Emunah in HaShem and Moshiach

The significance of the 3rd of Tammuz in Jewish history that occurred during the first generation of Jews in the Land of Israel, shares the same with this last generation of exile and the first generation that enters into the Era of Redemption. The leader of this generation, the solitary major luminary of our generation, is the sun that never set - the Lubavitcher Rebbe, the present Rebbe of Chabad.

This 3rd of Tammuz marks the 18th year (!חי) we've been under trial of belief in the Rebbe's words. This week's portion of Torah is Korach. It says in Rashi there (Num. 17:13):

אין משה אומר כלום מלבו אלא מפי הגבורה

"Moses (of the generation) does not say anything of his own but that which he hears from God!"
Note this assertion's incisive, unequivocal and emphatic tenor - "does not say anything but"! Accordingly, we believe God spoke through the lips of the Rebbe and all that he said will happen will happen. May it be already now!

LEARN MORE HERE

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Overcoming the "Goy" Within Us

One aspect of the "goy within" is that it perceives the world exactly as the gentile does - a material, physical existence. Unlike the G-dly soul, which perceives only G-dliness, the "goy within" perceives only material existence. In the words of the Alter Rebbe: "The animal soul comprehends the physicality of this world and its materiality...the intellect which is enclothed in physical matters [and] which grasps physicality in accordance with human intellect is a lie and truly the opposite from G-dly wisdom which is the wisdom of truth." That is the "goy" within.

READ IT ALL HERE  

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Pastor Paul Tan and his Congregation -

Listen to this powerful and informative interview as you browse the web by Gavriel Sanders about Pastor Paul Tan and a group of Chinese messianics in Singapore rejects Jesus as being God or the Messiah and are now turning toward the Bnai Noach Movement or possibly even full conversion to Judaism.



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Remembrance and Love

Shmiras Haloshon Yomi

17 Sivan, 5772 / June 7, 2012
Day 17 Remembrance and Love

SEFER CHOFETZ CHAIM Introduction: Positive Commandments 1-2
     When trying to impress a class of students about the evils of loshon hora, the average teacher would probably use examples of serious cases in which a persons reputation or livelihood was destroyed, or perhaps of a shidduch (marriage match) which was unnecessarily broken. After all, these are real-life illustrations which clearly demonstrate the danger of loshon hora.
     The Torah, however, does the opposite. In teaching us the evils of loshon hora, the Torah relates an incident which is so mild that it has barely a tinge of loshon hora. It is the case of Miriam, who spoke to Aharon about their brother, Moshe (see Bamidbar ch.12). Miriam was punished with tzaraas (a skin disease induced by spiritual impurity), sent out of the camp of the Jews to live in isolation, and the entire Jewish nation, well over a million people, was forced to wait for her to be cured before they could resume their travels.
     The Torah commands us to remember the story of Miriam to remind us of the evils of loshon hora, as it is written, Remember that which Hashem, your God, did to Miriam on the way when you were leaving Egypt (Devarim 24:9).
     The Chofetz Chaim points out how mild this case of loshon hora was. Miriam spoke about her brother, whom she loved and for whom she had risked her own life. She did not say something derogatory about him; all she did was mistakenly equate Moshe with other prophets. Moreover, her words were not said in Moshes presence or in public. And we know that Moshe wasnt hurt by her words and that there was no negative fallout. The Chofetz Chaim explains that this is precisely why the Torah uses this incident to teach us the evils of loshon hora. Despite all these factors and Miriams great personal merit, she was still punished.
     How much more culpable are people who speak loshon hora that does hurt people and does cause damage! When a person speaks loshon hora, he transgresses this commandment of remembering the lesson of Miriam.
     The Chofetz Chaim further states that when one speaks loshon hora, he also violates the commandment you shall love your fellow as yourself (Vayikra 19:18). It is obvious that if you speak loshon hora about someone: A. You do not love him, and B. You are not treating him as you would yourself. The proof to this, says the Chofetz Chaim, is that most people are well aware of their own faults, yet they are very intent on concealing them from others. Even if someone were to discover one of our faults, and would tell some of our friends about it, we would hope that they would not believe him.
     This is because we really love ourselves, and we do not want others to view us in a negative way. The Chofetz Chaim says that this attitude is precisely what the Torah wants us to apply to our fellow man. Just as we would be horrified to overhear our peers reviewing our faults, we should be equally horrified to participate in a similar conversation about someone else. And just as we are so caring and protective of our own egos, so must we be equally caring and protective of the pride of others.

A daily lesson from the Chofetz Chaim: A Daily Companion/Mesorah Publications.

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We Have a Higher Purpose than the Gentiles

While the Olympics may be fun to watch, that's not who we are as a people - we have a higher purpose. (wonderful write-up is here)

When we examine our mundane lives, it seems that the true spiritual experience is to be had on Shabbos, when we are able to withdraw from our mundane concerns and devote ourselves to Torah study andTefillah. After all, what could be spiritual about the rat race of pursuing a livelihood, and the numerous tasks of cooking, cleaning, and the like necessary to maintain a household? (You can learn much from this site - here)

Why is the Torah so elaborate in its description of the Sota, the wayward woman? Infidelity on a family level resembles treason on a national level...this is an 11-minute mini-lesson that you don't want to miss. Have a wonderful Shabbat (see it here)

We're told Moshiach's era has dawned. But many of us detect no change from how it was years ago.  So what gives? Read here

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Teenage Boy Completes Entire Talmud in Three Years

His story is beginning to inspire Jews around the globe!

Devoting hours of intense study every day to his regular course load, a 19-year-old boy from Toronto has accomplished in the astonishing time of three years what most adults spend their whole lives attempting. But ask Chabad-Lubavitch yeshiva student Shaya Zirkind what secret allowed him to learn the entire Talmud and he’s surprisingly down to earth in his answer: go to bed early, wake up refreshed, and take each day at a time.  READ IT HERE.
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Chareidi Rock Music - THROW THE TRASH OUT OF THE HOUSE!

“Today there are styles in the chassidic music that have no connection to chassidus,” says the singer Mordechai Ben David Werdigger. “It is like being in the jungle. The kushim sing in a more refined way than they do. The words don’t make the song chassidic. Maybe it gives pleasure – like eating pizza, but there is no spiritual pleasure in it.” [from an interview in the Bnei Brak paperKol HaIr 12^th Tishrei 5764].

“Something has happened to the chassidic music in the past few years,” says Avraham Freed. “The truth is that today’s young singers have no red lines. I know that I have my limits that I will never cross….. The situation today has worsened to a point that very soon we, the singers and the public will have to shout – ‘The music has reached the gates of hell!’” [from an interview in the magazine Shaah Tovah, Erev Sukkos, 5764].

The singer Gidon Levine [in the same magazine] sums up the situation: “My problem is that the imitation of goyishe music is likely to bring a deterioration in our society, and particularly among the young people.”

These singers [with the exception of R’ Ben Tzion Shenker] fail to mention that they are the ones who started the trend to imitate American rock and roll, and that the younger singers who they criticize are only taking an example from them to copy the new styles of popular street music. Let us finally hear what the “Composer of the year – 5764” Yishai Lapidos has to say about the subject:“I know many people who claim that today’s big singers introduced the disco beat and the rock. For example, Mordechai Ben David introduced rock and roll, Deady Groucher brought in the rock, Vindish with Boruch Hagever brought in the trend of ‘converted songs’. The song ‘Moshiach’ of Mordechai Ben David is in the style of real rock and roll, and there is not much difference between rock and roll and dance. The disco of all the big singers such as Werdigger, Freed and Deady have come from the American rock and roll and disco.” [From the magazine, Shiru Lo, Chanukah 5764, p.20].

At present in this country we are witness to the phenomenon of ‘Greek song’. Two of the mushchossim of the tzibbur who were thrown out of Eretz Yisroel returned to America with their merchandise to sell to the public. One of them made rachmono litzlan, a song about the most important principle of the 13 principles. The second took examples from this to make a song about the destruction of Amolek, and they turned them into jazz רח"ל – literally! What happens to a person’s heart when he listens to this version of mechiyas Amolek? He hears that to wipe out Amolek is jazz! Is it possible to receive any good influence from this? Or chas vesholom the opposite, that he is disconnected from the whole concept of destroying Amolek? Or if he hears ‘Moshiach’ with that imbecilic nigun – is it possible to elevate oneself by hearing this? In this way they are killing the public, and we have to publicize them by name – one is called Freed (Fried), and the other is called Werdigger (Mordechai Ben David)! 

“I love the songs,” Fried said of the new album. “I think there’s some great material. There are great messages. There are songs to cry to, there are songs to dance to, there are songs that will inspire. I think it’s a solid album.”

Fried said that he has adopted a certain style to which he has stuck in this album as well. “I have a certain style which is what we call the Hassidic style. In that Hassidic style there are some areas where we’ll take a disco feel or a rock feel, but that’s the extent of it.”

 Anyone who lets their songs into his house must know what this will cause to his Torah. Elisha ben Avuya, one of the four great members of the chaburah, did not stop singing a Greek song, – and it made him into a different person and finally a heretic! We have to throw this out of the house! Throw it all out! And not let this trash remain in the house!

[Rabbi Yisroel Elya Weintraub שליט"א, Lakewood Yeshiva, Cheshvan, 5755]

“Speech is the expression of the mind. Music is the expression of the soul, and by means of this it is possible to determine the level of a person at any time. The prohibitions related to speech apply also to musical expression.”

The Rebbe of Bobov, Rabbi Ben Tzion Halberstam הי"ד.

“I have heard that there is something new that they call “Chassidic music”. I don’t know whether it is kosher or not, but one thing I can be quite sure about – that it has no connection to chassidus, and I do not know if it is suitable for yeshiva boys to listen to it.”

Rabbi Elazar M. M. Shach זצ"ל.

“The non-religious street has managed to infiltrate into chareidi society by means of the modern music.”

Rabbi Moshe Shmuel Shapira זצ"ל.

SOURCE:THE TORAH IS NOT HEFKER

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Alef-Beis and Nekudos

Teaching the Alef-Beis and Nekudos separately, engraves its holiness into the children. The Rebbe writes to an educator who asked the question about how to teach children to read:

"It is obvious that one must teach children how to read by first teaching them the letters and the Nekudos separately, as it is a well known fact as to how much the Gedolei Yisroel as well as our saintly Rebbeim "waged wars" for this purpose, to engrave into the children the holiness of the Alef-Beis letters and the holiness of the Nekudos."

Preface

The Alter Rebbe once summoned a young disciple of the Maggid and said to him in his customary chant: I have the mitzva of "ושננתם לבניך" (Teach them to your children). You have the mitzva of sustaining and providing for your family. Let us make an exchange. I will give you what you need to fulfill your mitzva and you will teach my son (who was later the Mitteler Rebbe).

Then the Rebbe explained the method of instruction: The first thing is to teach the letters, alef, beis and so on.

What is an alef? A dot above, a dot below and a line between - this is an alef. A child must know that the alef of Torah is a yud above, a yud below, and a line of faith that joins them. Another version: A Yud above - this is the soul; a yid (Jew) below - this is the body; a line of Yir'as Shamayim (fear of Heaven) in the center.       (Hayom Yom, 8 Adar-I)

The Alter Rebbe is hereby setting the goal of teaching Alef Beis to a child: is not merely to provide him with a “reading tool”, but rather, to teach him what is the inner significance of the Alef too, thereby instilling Yir’as Shamayim into the delicate mind and heart of the child,

Consequently, we must choose the correct method in teaching the Alef Beis to the child, so that the desired goal is achieved.

MAKE SURE YOUR CHILD IS LEARNING THE CORRECT WAY -
LINK BELOW IS A PDF DOWNLOAD COMPILED AND PREPARED 
BY RABBI LEVI GOLDSTEIN

CLICK HERE

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Geulah b'Rachamim AND The Big Picture

Rabbi Pinchas Winston presents the first part of the Geulah b'Rachamim Seminar, dealing with the question why the Jewish people seem to overstay their welcome in exile.

Rabbi Pinchas Winston presents the second part of the Geulah b'Rachamim Seminar, dealing with the question why the Jewish people seem to overstay their welcome in exile. This part looks at the story of Ya'akov Avinu, who not only taught us how to survive in exile, but how to leave it while it is still safe to do so.

Rabbi Pinchas Winston presents the third part of the Geulah b'Rachamim Seminar, dealing with the question why the Jewish people seem to overstay their welcome in exile. This part looks at the concept of Nitzotzei Kedushah—Holy Sparks—and what they have to do with the Jewish people, exile, and redemption, and ultimately, anti-Semitism.

The continuation of: What must we do to mitigate the impact of anti-Semitism, but only after a discussion about Holy Sparks.

This is the Introduction to Rabbi Pinchas Winston's magnum opus, THE BIG PICTURE: THIRTY-SIX SESSIONS TO INTELLECTUAL & SPIRITUAL CLARITY. The entire project can be purchased online at www.thirtysix.org.

INTRODUCTION PART II

INTRODUCTION PART III

INTRODUCTION PART III

Rabbi Pinchas Winston presents the first part of the Geulah b'Rachamim Seminar, dealing with the question why the Jewish people seem to overstay their welcome in exile.



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Redemption to Redemption

Based on the book Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston, these lectures examine the deep connection between the holidays of Purim and Pesach. Even though Purim occurred after the close of the Torah, nevertheless, it is our preparation for the holiday of Pesach. If one understands the true opportunity of Purim, and takes advantage of it, then he will be in better position to experience the redemptive power of Pesach. And, to this, we must first better understand the story of Yosef and his brothers, as it relates to the Mishkan. Listen Now.

Redemption to Redemption: Introduction

Why is it so important to celebrate Purim in the month immediately before Pesach, even in a leap year?

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_intro.mp3

A Mouthful   and  Redemption

We may take our ability to speak for granted, but, as we will see, it was and is central to the concept and reality of redemption. Pesach: Chapter One from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_pass1.mp3

The Centrality Of Speech

Embodied in the concept of speech is the entire purpose of man’s existence. Pesach: Chapter Two from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_pass2.mp3

Adam  and  The Donkey

As it turns out, the separation between the Jewish people and the Egyptians has a primordial beginning, and matzah is the link between the two. Pesach: Chapter Three from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_pass3.mp3

Heavenly Bread and Amalek

... And the connection of the munn, the miraculously Heavenly bread, to Haman. Purim: Chapter Four from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_purim4.mp3

When Fifty  and Speech Meet

Understanding better the centrality of speech, we can now look at its connection to the Nun Sha’arei Binah—the Fifty Gates of Understanding— and see how Pesach is the redemption that Purim leads to. Pesach: Chapter Four from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_pass4.mp3

Seventy and Da’as

The role of the number seventy and its connection to Da’as is also an important key to unlocking the spiritual potential of Purim. Purim: Chapter Five from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_purim5.mp3

Da’as Moshe

This was the level of intellectual clarity that Moshe Rabbeinu achieved, which is why, incidentally, Bris Milah was such an issue for him.Pesach: Chapter Five from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

 http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_pass5.mp3

Toward A More Perfect Vision

The “bottom line” is one’s vision, that is, one’s ability to see not only with one’s physical eyes, but with the mind’s eye as well. We see this from the story of Yosef and his brothers. Purim: Chapter Six from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_purim6.mp3

Bris Milah: Covenant Of The Word

In fact, speech is so central to completion of the human being and achieving godliness, that, the central covenant of the Jewish people - Bris Milah is named for it. Pesach: Chapter Six from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_pass6.mp3
  

Twenty and Mishkan

The number twenty, it turns out, represents an intellectual blindness, one which the Mishkan came to cure. Purim: Chapter Seven from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_purim7.mp3

Avraham and Inspiration

Following this train of thought came only to Avraham, and the zealousness with which he served G-d, which is the measure of one’s devotion to the Creator and His plan for creation. Pesach: Chapter Seven from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_pass7.mp3
  

The Inside Story

Having understood all of this, it is now possible to see how the day of Purim, and its various mitzvos, act as a spiritual springboard to the freedom of Da’as. Purim: Chapter Eight from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_purim8.mp3

B’Yad Ramah

This realization is what elevates a person out of the everyday mundane reality, into the realm of the supernatural, and empowers a person to become a partner with G-d in his own self-completion and perfection of the world. Pesach: Chapter Eight from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_pass8.mp3

The Rite Of Passage
Redemption, Part One is complete, and it provides the bridge over which to cross over into the ultimate redemption of Pesach. Purim: Chapter Nine from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_purim9.mp3

Seder Night and The Haggadah

How the Seder puts all of this into practice, and activates the proper "switches" to bring the Holy Light to us. Pesach: Chapter Nine from Redemption to Redemption by Rabbi Pinchas Winston.

http://program.ouradio.org/audio/winston/redemp_pass9.mp3

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Daily Prayer / Your Soul's Purpose

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"Why are the Righteous Being Taken Away?"

Yitzchak Izik
12 Cheshvan 5772

Isaiah 57:1 - " The righteous man has perished, but no one takes it to heart, and men of kindness are taken away, with no one understanding that because of the evil the righteous man has been taken away."

A great Tzadik departed from this world on the yahrtzeit of Rachel Imeinu, a"h. [Jeremiah 31 - "Rachel weeping for her children...."] This Jew has made a huge self-sacrifice for the sake of the Torah. And he's only one of the many tzadikim who, in the last months, have disappeared from the world. Sometimes more than two per day; tzadikim, who, some of them are well-known like HaRav HaGaon Rav Natan Tzvi Finkle, ztz"l, and apart from this, very many lesser-known tzadikim in Olam Hazeh, but very distinguished in Heaven. This is the most fearful situation, because what will we do without tzadikim!? And the Tzadikim who are called gedolei hador - the great of the generation - the majority are much older Jews, and we tremble over their health daily. The question is asked: Why!? Why, at this moment in history, are we standing and observing daily how the magnificence of Am Yisrael is simply disappearing. [reference] What is the reason? Very simple. We are really right before the complete redemption, with G-d's help. And Am Yisrael is in a very difficult situation. If we give Am Yisrael too much musar, then Am Yisrael won't want to listen, usually.

[Tehillim 50:17 - "For you hated discipline and threw My words behind you."] And more than this, Am Yisrael is angry at those who tell them the truth, and run away instead of drawing close. Therefore, HKB"H is bringing down upon the Jews hard blows. In the last years, the blows upon Am Yisrael are big and hurt very much. Many Jews who died in a sudden manner, or in traffic accidents, lo aleynu, or in various other ways, lo aleynu, or from many difficult illnesses, lo aleynu. And we bury them and continue onward. We forget and go on, but we do not return in teshuva especially. [Isaiah 42: 25 - "And He poured out upon them the fury of His anger and the strength of battle, and it blazed upon them all around and they did not know, and it burned among them and they did not take heed."]

There are indeed some Jews who have returned in teshuva for real, but the majority continue to move away, and I'm speaking about the chareidim. They continue to move away, continue to drown within the Olam Hazeh and Eigel Hazahav. Indeed, they continue to stick hechshers on it, but it's treif, and it brings only to the end of life, so that a person will lose eternity, chas v'shalom.

But, HKB"H sees that it's not helping - so, He sends the tzadikim from us. Because without the tzadikim, we have no feeling of security at all. And the moment that they disappear from the area - then, everything is the most frightening. It's correct that in Heaven, they will pray for Am Yisrael, and it will help, but every single Jew is obligated alone to make a connection with HKB"H. And this is what will help us. And there won't be for us tzadikim to help, because they almost don't exist here. A little longer and we will really be orphans, Hashem have mercy, and like it is written, that at the end - before Mashiach - it will be a generation of orphans, orphans from rabbis, from tzadikim who direct us and give merit to the generation.

What can I say? Almost twenty years we're speaking, and there are people who are beginning to understand, but they're not the majority. They're continuing to fight Jew-against-Jew about nonsense; Jews doing against other Jews all kinds of evil acts, only from zealotry and hatred and all kinds of negative emotions. 'Machloket' - it's a name for a contest. And the situation is going to get worse. There is violence in the chareidi street and the situation is that whoever wants to raise children to Torah and mitzvot and good works, there is really almost no chance for a child to arrive at true yiddishkeit. Therefore, there must now be an end to the exile. There must be an end to the exile now! This moment! Because there is almost no hope for the future. We feel that the Shechinah is already no longer present all over the world. Many Jews are suffering in the worst way, but we're not waking up. We continue to be happy with ourselves, learning, keeping Shabbat - good Jews, but without heart. For the majority, they are without heart. Also, the yeshivas, also the Beit Yaakovs. Learning and learning, where is HKB"H on the horizon!? Where is HKB"H!? Not in the heart. Not in the heart of the majority of Jews.

Am Yisrael, what I'm saying is not new. Just one thing I want to say: Very dark clouds are on the horizon. [Zephaniah 1: 15 - "That day is a day of wrath; a day of trouble and distress; a day of ruin and desolation; a day of darkness and gloom; a day of clouds and thick darkness;..."] The dark clouds, it's war. The third world war. And this war will be the hardest. Hundreds of thousands and maybe millions will be killed. Two-thirds of the world will be destroyed. [Ezekiel 7:5,6,7 - "So said the Lord God: An evil, a singular evil, behold, it comes. An end has come; the end has come, it has awakened against you; behold, it comes. The dawn has set against you, O dweller of the land; the time has come; the day is near, confusion and not the shout of the mountains."] And Eretz Yisrael will not be destroyed, but the Jews, also in Eretz Yisrael, those who do not return in teshuva, those who continue their loitering in Olam Hazeh, they will not survive. That's not to say that there won't be anything in Eretz Yisrael, there will, but Eretz Yisrael will not be completely destroyed. I can only bless all Am Yisrael that we will return in complete teshuva and that our end will be the complete redemption, and that we will merit to this, because it will be the joy of all joys of the Olam Hazeh. But, I'm very worried that until we arrive to this, the world will be a ruined place. Really destroyed. Hashem will completely destroy all the evil, all the falsehood, and will bring us to the World-of-Truth. Without the yetzer hara. But - only with the truth.

Choose, Am Yisrael, choose. There's not much time. This war is standing before us. It's possible already to see it from afar, that it's advancing quickly toward us. A weapon - we shouldn't know of such - is in all the lands. Evil and falsehood are administering the world. There is no logic at all. The Satan leads them. The yetzer hara, the snake, rules over them. But at the end of the thing, in huge miracles, Hashem will erase them from existence. And to wait, even one minute, it's the most dangerous thing. We're obligated at this moment to change direction to the direction-of-truth, and to take out all the falsehood that you have in your lives.

http://palmtreeofdeborah.blogspot.com/
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