Rabbi Mordechai Kraft - Why Do Jews Sway When They Pray?

okay hi everybody thank you for coming out to join this Lunch and Learn and its we'll just wait a moment as I see people are coming onto this screen and I'm coming in you know just as a dis way of introduction first log just want to sound very excited this is something we've been thinking about with space and time it's so hard sometimes to all get together one place for a class and so we feel this might be an opportunity for many of the students that we connected with over the years I connect with personally to have the opportunity to once a week and we spent a night together and tend to learn and to study something and to utilize it to grow and to move forward so that's going to be the goal of what this class is gonna be all about it's the the plan is it's gonna be just really between twelve twelve forty on Tuesdays and different topics each week it's usually something relating to the parsha something about the Jewish thought something that will give us I think a little bit of inspiration and insight into ourselves and utilize as it means to move forward to grow you know I think we're gonna one thing we'll miss in this opportunity which I was enjoying when I teaches is the back and forth and so when this form has to be little bit hard to do that so what I think we'll do is I'll present but we'll leave a few minutes over in towards the end of the class for for questions and and comments and and you can share it with the group or you know or if you don't feel comfortable you could text me or email to me and I'd be happy to if you want to put on the chat you're on the chat not on the chat we'd have a nice chat we've already started what's that and you can email me or just send it send me a text i'll be--i'll comment to it like that as well or feel free to to speak up on on the in front of everybody you know this community of like-minded people will try to grow together while trying to share ideas together and it's wonderful to to do it participate so with with that said just let's let's begin and before I do begin I do want to say that today's Shearer will be in the full aim of a very dear friend of ours Emmet and then student dependent a la design but Rosa and we hope and pray in the inspiration and merit and elevation that we achieve bismuth attempt in today's words that it should be able for schlanger for a lot of design but Rosa visitation so today's topic is a topic that I've been thinking about for a while and it's something I think is very fundamental for for art for growth in order to get there I have to start the story and the story works like this that when the construction was being done on the house next to ours they were knocking down a one-family the building every family and was taking a course of time there was a person there who was in charge of the construction he was a ex-policeman but his job is to oversee the construction and obviously the workers and we used to me each other every morning and we stood talked and used to be friendly with each other and one day he comes over to me he says to me rabbi I understand why Jews when they pray they moved back and forth like this and he said rabbi you know I seen Orthodox Jews before his name was Vinny wasn't Jewish but he said I've seen it I know they go like this and I was always intrigued why'd he do that why they have such movements in their prayers and he said I finally understand why so I said to him why and he said I was watching a show last night on the History Channel Nova or something like that and he said that the Jewish people have been in so many exiles and it's true we've been exiled around this world like no other nation in the world decant the exiles it's it's it's over 100x army of insulin and Jews were always right always moving from one country to the next country and there wasn't the pick up and go and there was quick so he told me that what happened was we would get on our camels and start fleeing from one country the next and we didn't have time to pray so we had to sit on our camels and pray so therefore we go back and forth back and forth back and forth like this playing on our camels and Jews have adapted that into the synagogues and want to remind themselves how to used to play on the camels so we shake back and forth back and forth back and forth I think so remember I looked at him and I said you know sometimes when something is just so wrong like you just let me know where to begin with it so I I looked at him and I said Benny no that's not it I wasn't gonna go into it but I I was just so you know let me give you insight right now why we do it and this is a little bit basis as though ours Kabbalah to some extent but I think it's very real we have two relationships for this young one relationship is the relationship or something which we call you the hero oftentimes gets a a mistranslation as the proper translation is from the word evolved which means to see really what year amines and the way my Russia she remembers was translated was with units of recognition units of awareness efficient doesn't notice or the word to see I have units of recognition Russia not aware of the share now of course the more one is aware of a sham the more that will generate a degree of fear and that's a positive thing if we really focus to what extent that shim is the master of creation and it's the king and it's involved every time it's elders mitosis he said split and it shouldn't sizes is beyond anything we could that should generate some fear but really what year it is yes Wow yeah hello so really what fear is is it are you is its units of awareness units of radiation is you know just to give an example I just sometimes you have to concretize ministers to make it yield you know we know that the Sun is 93 million miles away from Planet Earth 93 million mouths we know that the moon is 246 thousand miles the closest star the planet Earth at the Sun is a star called Alpha Centauri and Alpha Centauri happens to be four and a half light-years away from Earth now how what's a Lightyear well we know that light travels 186,000 miles a second that means in one second life can circle the world six times the world is thirty thousand miles inland in one second I could go around the world six lines now what does that mean one minute that's huge them 60 times 106,000 you take one hour whatever that meant resist I'm 60 with a 24 hours of that word that another times it's a nobody put it to a year we're talking about trillions of miles and that's the closest star to took blender back to the Sun and of course the universe is much better than that they're stars a thousand meters away and there are other universes so a shams enormity is beyond our imagination so when we focus on how awesome it shatters it should to have a little bit of a shake this is so big he's so great and so good so such grandeur and and you know where am I in comparison to this so that's one hero is here is that awesome or wareness oh god but those are slack there as we know that the awesome awareness is really in order to provoke an understanding of what a sham really is but what we realize how great he is be such a really wait a minute but he created that cosmos for one reason he doesn't mean the customers he doesn't need a universe light years upon light years away he doesn't one reason he wants us to realize how great we are he created all for us as well purpose on it so it's all there for us to realize that there's a greatness in who we are and he created us because He loves us for no other reason and he cares about us he's our Father he wants us to get to know this as love but if we don't predicate that love and that awesome awareness of who he is the love is gonna be very superficial bed shadow first we have to appreciate genuine so magnificent so great and so but you love me so much see if we were to start the long section I just I love you but I don't focus on the greatness didn't deep into who is and the love is gonna be very shallow as well and the truth the matter is this structure is a structure which merely exists in every relationship on the spot you know this we take marriage as our as he as a prime example and then we understand that as Jewish we have certain laws governing before marriage at knowledge before now if you have an aspect something in court Sherman Agia but will refrain from from contact with the opposite gender and the reason why is that no no we should appreciate get to know the person once touch is mixed into the fray the emotions kick in we suddenly start looking deep and of course in marriage marriage provides a time in which a husband or wife he'll have a deep connection a close physical connection and then there's a time when there's a separation and the purpose of that separation is to work on awesome awareness of it to be able to look and see and reconnect spiritually psychologically emotionally we think it's a fascinating look that says that you want a husband and wife are bit into each other we should be together in the same room why because that's a place where this speech his discussion was talk is rebuilding be emotional and psychological so divine and of course then when connection is allowed candidate it's why it should be so the cycle of of awesome awareness thing love but then these two go back to the Lawson awareness awesome awareness called era to love know that maybe why we shape wrong data well we've ablution what are we doing recovery photo sham hello looking at a sherman we're trying to say a Shem I want to get to know you I want talk to you but how can I do it you're so massive so big as a year events year there's awareness of your greatness but I want to get to know you because you want to get to know me so we move forward in love but then when I came close to Hashem but do I deserve to be here is the right place to be your soul is so mighty and blessed when it got try again because you want the relationship about what this I move forward and I get closer Shem your soleus I'll try again I performed so the way we diamond will be praised Europe Avila awesome awareness love you know you know not I couldn't tell Benny that he said I just I was standing outside and you know who's working as construction site next door like a snow bank I'm not sure he would appreciate it so much you but that's what we can appreciate it then we're always trying to work towards awesome awareness and love but if we don't have that awesome awareness the love is good news now with that said I'd like to take us into something from this past week Scotia that really is related to partially movement but so the story was masters question and that has to do with the two sons of our own we know our own our two sons not of value you so bear with me so we know that Aaron had two sons no the puppy none of of you who think none of us interesting name he's not that what a gift Ivy who was interesting and also means his father so there's something in none of my field really reflected Aaron's greatest we know hard was of what if Shalom some person peace but not above evil made a tremendous error in judgment and it says that on the date of the inauguration of the Michigan which is mostly the happiest day of the year shun commands us to build this beautiful structure a tabernacle which was to be a place where we get a intimacy with God on the day of the inauguration not a reveal were commanded to go to a certain point of the college video should believe all these and bring it sacrifice they went in and he did something wrong what did it wrong we'll talk about in a moment but he did something wrong and Shems response was he died instantaneously and the death was supernatural the death was a death of fire coming down entering through their nostrils burning them up from the inside out leaving the body hole and the quoting home but the insides of hooding war was completely destroyed and he died and it was a tragedy that ensued and these verses actually see and partially meaning right where it says that the you'll be near Howland not above you this isn't precious meaning chapter 10 verse one by a crow but you who've been there our own notable view each make that let me give an H said none of you took a fire of offering and be placed in at the fire assuming that guitarists we put spice in it we have Cleveland m80 yet the brought some strange fine our tuition I shall not see but also something the work to do that takes a Asian innovation a fire went out from before action to help some be elusive nation and they were consumed and they died before a sham or shouldn't comfort our but what's supposed to be a day of joy turns into day of mourning drown question that our sages looked for is what Peter bong and I think what people drawn is is extremely significant important for us to know what we do wrong that brought about such a there a death which again burnt them from the inside out leaving the body hole and leave in a closed hole so let's see if we could explore together and and I'm going to read from the Midrash Robbie right now where the middle travel offers about ten different reasons for what they did wrong now each reason might be either the reason for this punishment or maybe what was the cause of their action that elicited a bunch men but there seems to be a common denominator in all ten so I'll read through right now and let's see if we can identify it together what that common denominator is so I'm asked everybody right now to listen as I read these ten different opinions or ten different angles of what none of you did that was wrong and let's see if we can find and then something which gives us a united picture of what's going on with them so it says like this reason number one says Shahar Oh Hal dr. Bini Bravo he said but be decided Jewish law be passed in the locker in front of the teachers where the teachers motion Island we had an idea they wanted to bring some different sacrifice well if you wanna bring them in sacrifice discusses with your teacher you have two great teachers about sure that we know what many how the holes in children are how we always have to before we decide to is law we have to consult the backgrounds uniform there's a greater role in the cities must go to him yeah motion I want a name choose to decide what to do without consultation that's one people second opinion was al Haq Reba should Nicholson in Richmond it's just been went too far in in other words there's a place in the coach Pete ocean where they were supposed to stop and do the offering he said no we're going all the way in when I stopped in here we're gonna go even further number three says she creeper Corbin shallowness table like the verse says he brought the carbon sacrifice which they weren't commanded to do perhaps that's the reason the before sazon age designer they brought fire that they shouldn't bring in number five is interesting it says yeah and should or not or age since the reason he didn't even think to ask each other for advice no before you do something which is not what your command do like speak to each other like I'm doing the right thing you know it says a fir Galvez says it says Connecticut Rhonda have a friend speak at all always always ask somebody before you make a decision they didn't do that as it says each meet doctor each man with his own offering each may ask mostly each took their own offering number six said something interesting I'll show sha tsui yang before the dinners important service to go these decide to drink one that's interesting business appropriate time to drink wine so they are a simple and enjoys occasion but if you're about to do such an act of service to God is this the appropriate time did you drinking wine says they drink wine number seven says I'll show hangover God they were lacking the appropriate dress code what does that mean morally lacking meal they took off the jackets you know for us a jacket is a sign of respect before we do something which you know we want to show you the respect for EM I respect for another person will be put on a jacket going Tralee off of that banana' jackets widely shown before the almighty what they do he took off their jackets they're unusual number eight cents I should nipple super double-click to see a diner online entered into this holy place without first washing their hands to the feet no the Kohanim we don't have a special ritual where they would wash their hands and feet in special way that we have a remember sub back before we watch the bread we know be Washington to see dining that's in order to remind us how the Kohanim would wash when they would eat what's called the true bathroom and we go one day God's gonna rebuild a temple for us from the secular says again come on we're gonna have true offerings and therefore we don't wanna forget that should we wash but the aside we're not gonna wash something which is very unusual and something a little bit lacking may be improper respect also number 10 says something very interesting and it says I should boil I have notion he chose not to get married down with a wheaty what the mattress doesn't listen I ask everybody to stay with me to the end of this little peak before I go to set I just read you right now okay so it's a little bit hard to hear on the read right now so stay with me Paul we're gonna work it out I'm gonna make it better but it sounds like this it says why did they get married um actually a villanelle over the brother of our father is the king who was the brother of their father Nora Boehner their fathers and brothers motion it's an ugly man uh see the brother of our mother is B no C is the tribal leader of traveleurope action banana nada one who jumped into the Red Sea a phenol coin goggle our Father is our Oh who's the coin got all cranked out oh that I'm sorry Kahuna were the second were they number two lieutenants of the governor AZ Shogun's Lana could there possibly be a woman whose fish trust and nobody get upset too fast on that one I'll give you a little bit answer what's going on two months but it's the surface level and it doesn't sound good you know we kinda truly have a great for a family you know your uncle's motion your your father's you know you you know you have you have the scene tribal leaders as other uncle's and he felt there's no girl there who stood for their money has it possible to notice no woman fit for them and the women are the one came to the desert with we know tambourines and and drums women singing you know Cindy Baraka could be of such a more than be trusted something Goods gonna come from this we knew it you know there's gonna be an amazing salvation when there was no one the Jewish nation no she's a pantyhose but Tory women he couldn't find it we couldn't see the reason number eleven says ten and this is a hard one here also is it al-sham motional unholy to freedom motion are used to walk first but none of of you my house cannot fall and nobody used to walk behind her the old woman used to say but taishanese a kingdom another Mason when will these two old men die but I don't know goose Laurent super and will be the new leaders of the Jewish community the most to base that and said Romulan says did he say it actually say it but they think of their hearts but whether they suddenly caught it it's a very difficult thing to hear to walk behind motion on and you think or say when will these two old men die so you should be the leaders of the community interesting and finally the last reason says is that the office was a look in the October issue see it says going back a year ago Marcy Naima got me the turtle mission get a third he says that no two people there on the map this chance in return we're also drinking wine guess who those two people were you got it nothing Bobby else so what's going on over here how do we understand this not a reveal were great setting how great warning in fact after death Moshe conference Alan says that are on that I knew from the champagne Shems name we sanctified with the greatest through the greatest people the Jewish nation mosha said that I thought was human Nate I realize it wasn't it was your two children nodded but the greater than we are and it brought out such an egg nificent kids you shown by the way let me die white because perhaps equal so Garrett Jones Jim doesn't play favorites even with these people are closest to him his his elite Shem is straight he's just he's Yahshua if something needs to be done and dusted but motion of being picked up something on that via that kids you shouldn't be greed most it was indication that there's enormous greatest and there was enormous greatest memory the V were considered after motion items would be to next graders yet one thing to wrong what's the common denominator of these approximately ten different ninety years or ten different looks angles what brought about the punishment well this was the reasonable approach in the dark the reason behind their action what was some what was flawed in the thinking perhaps we suggest the following in assists they've waited in the portion learned we mentioned at the beginning of this year that they're too wasted submission this Yura and his hobby his fear and his love the goal is to get the love there's no question to have an intimacy with occasion better in monster but we tried to suggest that unless there's an awesome recognition on how great galleries and therefore it demands for me awesome is Larry if I'm not thinking about his greatness I'm not gonna be focused on a deeply enough to really understand how much he loved me either the Louisville be shallow unless it's predicated on that loss awareness not if of you want to get to that love in fact they felt that the mistake at our scene on was it was too much about year it was too much about here in fact we know that right after rc9 Moshe is the late it's a six hour the way that people are afraid how can we possibly relate to shadow that motion so they wanted to build a calf the cap wasn't supposed to be an idol that calf was supposed to be an intermediary like a mass they said the high banished em you're so big and awesome I want a little bit too high and you before we thought we could have you I emotion but he's gone he's dead after something created the whole light show that motion Ben was twenty personality we need something to hide some sort of intermediary of course that turned into something much beyond their second state a table some book at was the tradition that died evaluated murder and also services but if that juncture all they really wanted was something didn't hear nobody felt had motion Arum focused more on how much he loves us how much we should move him and less on the year or the awesome solution we will never have made that mistake so in the heart and the very pure and Noble heart none of you they really wanted to bring the Jewish nation to a place of love in you sham and that's why by the way he said we used to walk behind motion and he said you know when will these two old men die so that we should be the leaders the community not would be at any we're trying to disrespect the mother to motion our own they wanted to bring the community when we thought it needed to go from love not fear and then with this in mind but he's understand me all of these different causes cause number one it says that the passing the halacha they decided the law you know that consulting the rabbi's the teachers now I think we might suggest and say well you know if you're not looking to see me awesomeness oh god if you're not Predaking your love by saying I'm gonna see hope how much I need to respect you trust and and how big you are and how great you are if what's not treating their heart and mind to look that way this is problem you're not going to see the teachers even I knew decide allahö in front of us because you're not looking to great deal if you're looking to see how great they are how do you think in fact if you're not looking to see greatness in a shell it means you're not working on the attribute of looking to see greatness in the human being either you're not only the secret this in each other as it says they decided the law even fact insulting each other love not bill eighths of zoom exam he did anything to ask each other first place perhaps this explains also why they took after Jackie's let's get rid of finality why do we need to be so you know so so formal this relationship has been more casual she loves us he's her father's King my sibling table with my father take off my jacket do we need to wash our hands and our feet it's more informal over here the fact let's be so informal that will drink some wine will get the heartburn bomb it lets you solo me which is why the heart is stimulated let's be more emotional this relationship you felt the same thing in our scene not be more emotional it's bigger heart anymore let's do some wine there as well but there's a great danger in this the danger is if one's not training oneself to look and see Awesome's to see the greatness to have that awareness and that you know that was equal once getting a very shallow and superficial vision whether it be of God or whether view people and maybe that's why we can understand that we didn't get married now what was the sin of not getting married well was there nobody in the Jewish nation was I mean there must have been good great city adios great Jewish women who came out of each but if you're not looking to see awesomeness you're not looking to see greatness if I'm looking at the depth of a ship or the death of another person you're gonna look at all the women who said there's nobody sitting for us I can't find adios was right for me no one is worthy of me it's because they're not looking to see me inside there's a to see the depth have you been looking and train themselves to see that many of them whether it being God or whether in people of course they would have been somebody I think I get married so whether that's the cause the scenery a symptom of what's wrong either approach might be unclear might be the cousin I just on a side note I'm everything wants my my what should I play with this he moves there if that's the cause this saying how interesting it is so there were two women who never married across them he never knew those women if they're gonna be taken for tasks tasks that indirect damage list of careful we have to leave sometimes damage people I mean indirectly betray conscious boo-yeah of course the flip side of that is we're gonna be rewarded for indirect good like remember that as well when they of shows they show something good we didn't even know we did because it's in you but the cont'd anomaly of all of these is they weren't looking to see greatness you want to be loved without you and therefore what we do we went too far in chef said stop right over here but wait a minute why can't I go a little further in she has my father isn't it let me go into the private chamber over there you know I remember one time when my children were young and um you know my daughters were lying am i dead it was time to go to sleep and I asked goodbye please leave me goes to them so I never everyone left and come back to my bed i I see one of my little daughters there she was about four years old and look at her still my bed and she looks up he goes ah blah you didn't mean me surely didn't want me leave and the truth is that's an appropriate response how could my father not want me to be very close to him is that one and there's that closeness and for for yo that's very appropriate this is difficulty however relationship or with people if we want that closeness but we're not first working on that awesome awareness the love that we had is going to be very superficial it's not going to be what God wants us to be then wanting love but they went to sacrifice here now it's interesting how does a shell respond to this ashen response is a fire comes out from the recoded ocean it enters the nostrils it goes to the inner part of who they are burns them from the inside out leaves the body intact and the clothing this seems to be important messaging them as well a shaman is saying if you're not going to look to see the essence of the inside all you're left with the superficial bottom if you're not looking to see the greatness of who I am on the inside I'm gonna respond I'm going to take away your inside but perhaps the message it is that if you take away the inside everything that left is just something was just a shell it was a lot of the tragedy for a Jewish nation yet from God's vantage points it seemed to be such unnecessary lesson to teach a shun needed to act with strip just assume because what the Jewish nation needs to understand at this critical and pivotal moment of development is that the only way there could be a deep loving relationship with God or with other human beings is if you first work yura awesome awareness and therefore I should not have it actually you had to a close to justice antonin dun nun Rios actions and they should have a message it's a tragic moment bonita dumped but for all our relationships to succeed in this world we have to understand that we have to be looking at the greatness of who the others and then if you go to love and intimacy then we have to always step back again and appreciate the awesome given that space and span and then of course there could be the deep love again that's what we dive in like this your love your love that's why we have laws of marriage that require separation at certain points because this is the means that which we achieve the love that can be the monster there has to be a structure on ball there has to be a means to establish the awareness of how great God is not ready I think that's a little bit the message another love you and I think it's enormous the important lesson for our lives and so to think about then whatever relationship might be due respect and all we have for the other is really means to which we are able to see how great the others and to love the other and to have that bond that were really looking I'm gonna stop over here right now and I want to thank everybody for joining listening today and we hope to make this a serious a luncheon learn I will open I understand people have to get back to whatever they're doing I am more than happy to stay online but if you were mentoring but he wants to open up for discussion a conversation or a person wants to text me or email me practically that's okay after spot that as well and it's a most importantly I hope this can become a forum as we go forward to to share ideas together to learn together and if space and distance seems to separate all their name the boy alone was given us technology to allow us to connect this way and help everybody will join us as we go forward this is concept go for this one I will open the floor right now the questions for a few minutes I do understand the question everybody needs to get back to the gym today thank you very much again rather yes you could just explain how you got to the conclusion of that's why the fire consumed there inside and let their bodies intact yeah sure so I think I think it's sort of a you know a media connected me to type idea you know that other words you didn't look to see who I'm in the inside so I'm kind of taking away your inside you know and of course the second stage in that process is that you know if you're not looking to see the inside what's what's there what do you have left you have a beautiful body and you have beautiful clothing but you know the essence of