Even the thought of distinguishing among Jews the extent to which they embody “his descendants are alive,” and how much more so regarding speaking or publicizing it – this detracts from the life of Yaakov Avinu, G-d forbid, and it is the opposite of simple faith in the Torah of Moshe, which states “Yaakov Avinu did not die,” for “just as his children are alive, so is he alive.”
What does Rav Yitzchok gain by saying, “there should be no talk at meals,” while in the very same breath with which he states this rule (at the meal) he seems to be breaking it? * Yaakov is beyond the natural limitations of the world; he is not confined by the laws of nature which insist that there must be death in the world.
For thousands of years the Jewish people have been subjected to the worst forms of tyranny and oppression – the inner Esau – culminating with the Holocaust and the spread of Communism in the last century. The primary challenge we have today comes from our over indulgence in the material world – representing the inner Yishmoel.
December 28, 2012