Last Saturday, my aunt passed away - Aunt Rivka, mother of the Lubavitcher Rebbe's emissaries in Frankfurt, Budapest, and Cyprus, and a woman whose entire life was a continuous emissary. A woman who never let anyone pass her by without saying hello and ran from slander like fire.
In short, Aunt Rivka left us at a young age, between the passing of Sarah and the arrival of Rivka.
During the days of "Sheva," I found myself delving into the wonderful figure of our mother, Rivka, the girl from the first love story in the Torah. The woman through whom we learned the laws of matchmaking, the mother whose parasha of matchmaking is repeated twice in the parasha, until the Sages learned from it that "the conversation of the servants of fathers is better than the teaching of sons.".
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We first meet our mother Rebecca in the Torah at the end of Parashat Vayra, where we are introduced to the fact that our father Isaac's marriage came into the world. But we first meet her in the first matchmaking section of the Torah, and the first time the Torah uses the word "love" – and Isaac brought Sarah his mother into the tent and took Rebecca and she became his wife and he loved her.
Eliezer finds Rebecca immediately upon arriving in Haran. He recognizes in her the qualities that characterize Abraham the Hebrew, the father of the Israeli nation. He recognizes her compassion, shyness, and acts of kindness. He is enthusiastic and wants to sign his mission, but the girl's family shows less enthusiasm, and in the end, "the girl was called and her mouth was asked"...
Another practical lesson for parents: the one who ultimately decides is the daughter, not you!
Isaac brings her to Sarah's tent to test her righteousness and discovers that the same candle that had been burning from Sabbath to Sabbath in his mother's life has returned. Is it any wonder that he loves her?
Incidentally, from here the Lubavitcher Rebbe learned that every woman and girl lights Shabbat candles, even before her wedding. He instructed his followers to ensure that there was no Jewish girl who did not light candles.
The blessing found in the dough, along with the cloud tied to the tabernacle and the candle lit from Shabbat to Shabbat, connect to the main commandments imposed on women – the kosherness of food in the home, the separation of challah; the holiness and purity of the family, and education in the light of Torah, "the candle of Mitzvah and the light of Torah.".
Although Isaac and Rebecca's marriage is perfect, there is something clouding their relationship, and we will learn about this in the next section. They beg God to have children, and once again we discover the unique virtue of Rebecca, whose prayer was answered by God.
When she is pregnant, she goes to ask the tzaddik of the generation why she is breaking both clauses. She loves Jacob more than Esau, because Jacob carries the same genes as her. Being a tent dweller and hidden among the utensils, she continues the family tradition.
She is also the one who finds the smart solution, following the conflict that broke out between the brothers, after she initiated the famous "blessings scam.".
In short, our mother, Rebekah, led her household with a strong hand, took care to keep away the bad daughters-in-law that Esau had brought, and sent Jacob to find him a wife in the place where she came from, so that he would have someone to continue the legacy of his grandfather Abraham.
Her actions were done with the modesty and sophistication that characterize most of all the people of Israel who emerged from her captivity.
I'm not objective, but my aunt Rivka, whom I find it difficult to write "peace be upon her," was very similar to her, to Rivka, the mother who came from Haran and filled the place of Sarah, her mother-in-law, whom she never saw.
I dedicate this column to the memory and uplifting of the soul of a great woman who established a house of Torah and piety, and smiled at every person regardless of their status and situation.
May her memory be blessed.
What honor can do
And interestingly enough in that regard.
The attacks and the intifada that finally reached the media greatly weakened the left side of the political map, to the point where it could be said that it almost went bankrupt.
But lo and behold, help suddenly came to him from an unexpected place. A group of "Haredi" women, fighters for women's liberation, ready to abandon everything dear to us for a lentil stew, in the form of an appearance in Knesset committees as if they were fixing the world and spoiling the name of Haredi Judaism, which is already not doing well in the Israeli media.
They are ready to surrender to the extreme left, provided that a member of Knesset from that futureless party - which persecutes the entire Haredi public and the Torah world in particular - smiles at them and tells them how civilized, smart and enlightened they are (compared to us old-fashioned and "extremist" Haredim).
And the left seizes the opportunity and embraces them into its bosom.
It's amazing what respect can do to people. What, are they blind? What, don't they understand that they are being used to bash the public they came from?
The Fritz's Mushka is not dead. He continues to dance 'Ma Yafit'. But today he is no longer called Mushka, he has lots of other, feminine names.
Sad. Sad that women among us choose a little media attention, over the path of the holy mothers.
Sad and disappointing.
• Part of the column is based on the talks of the Lubavitcher Rebbe
The writer is the owner of "My Choice", an event host, lecturer and radio broadcaster: [email protected]
