02 Jan SPEAK YOUR VUES WITH THE VUES MASTER

HELPING THE GRIEVING
Dear Vues Master:
Yesterday, I returned from Eretz Yisroel, and on
the way back, I sat next to a fellow. We nodded
a few times as we were waiting for the suitcases. I
introduced myself, and I asked him why he went to
Eretz Yisroel. I saw he was there with his family. I
thought they went for a vacation. He told me that his
son was Niftar. I couldn’t believe it. I gave him a hug.
I thought maybe it’s his son in the army. He told me
he had an eight year old child, and the boy was niftar
suddenly. I hugged him again. I was overwhelmed by
the tzara, and that this person was sitting next to me
the entire time, and I didn’t bother to find out what
might be troubling him. As I was leaving the airport, I
thought to myself, Lo Meever Layam Hei, you don’t
have to go across the Atlantic to find, and hear the Tzar
of Klal Yisrael, and to be able to try to feel the pain
to minimize the tzar of those who are suffering. There
are people in our communities, people that are sitting
right next to us that are going through tremendously
difficult times. If only we’d have the sensitivity to
be able to try to feel their pain. I was very moved
by the whole incident, but I think it’s something that
we need to keep in mind. What’s going on in Eretz
Yisrael now is meant to partially make us feel, make
us really, really feel for fellow Jews. But we don’t
need to go to Eretz Yisrael to act upon it. We can do
it in our own backyards, and hopefully iy”H we will.
YAS
Vues Master’s Note: What a sad story! Makes me cry.
We should no longer have tzaar, only Simcha!

BAALEI TESHUVA
Dear Vues Master:
After the October 7th terror attack on Israel by Hamas,
many Jews responded with a dramatic increase of
interest in religious observance. This resurgence
is consistent with recent research findings that the
experience of “loss during war increases religiosity.”
Many secular Jews are seeking expressions of Jewish
identity they never felt before, increasing synagogue
attendance, lighting candles, and spawning a global

shortage of tefillin and mezuzahs. A recent survey
of 211 Chabad rabbis found 86% reported seeing
increased synagogue and program attendance since
the attack, and 98.6% reported seeing an increase
“in personal practice related to Jewish traditions and
observances among community members.” Amid
this great awakening, a small yeshiva in Passaic is
suddenly bursting at the seams, flooded with newly
observant adults, or baalei teshuva. Yeshiva Ner
Baruch Passaic Torah Institute (PTI) was founded
by Rabbi Shlomo Singer with the belief that “every
Jew belongs in a yeshiva.” He developed a method
to make rigorous in-depth learning accessible, even
to people with limited background. “We pitch Torah
at a very high level, but make it accessible no matter
what your background,” says Rabbi Singer. There
are dozens of programs for men and women and
multiple levels of day and night classes, from the rote
beginner to the most advanced student. Rabbi Singer
has spent a life in kiruv, literally from birth, when his
rabbinical father’s dream was to find a pulpit “where
there is no frumkeit,” landing in a coal mining town
in Pennsylvania. Rabbi Singer developed a prototype
of accessible inclusive learning while employed as
a shul chazan. Upon retiring, he started PTI in his
dining room and soon moved to its current location
in a converted Mediterranean style house. Just
since the terror attack, an explosion of new 20 and
30-somethings has overrun the yeshiva, stretching its
capacity to the limit and necessitating plans for a larger
building. Recruiting this new influx is Ben Rand, 32,
who himself has been at PTI a matter of months after
a stint at Aish Hatorah in Jerusalem that changed his
life. “This is a strange time for the Jewish people and
for the whole world. One major disruption after the
other. It defies reason–the world blaming victims
for their own massacre, antisemitism in the name of
civil rights, the double standard for Israel, political
extremism, COVID,” Rand says. “The world has lost
all of its values and a lot of us are asking why all
this is happening. It’s like a spiritual alarm clock. The
only reason Jews are still here is G-d. We feel a call to
action, a need to find our purpose.” Surprisingly, Rand

discovered only after starting at PTI that
his father and uncle had studied at PTI
during the yeshiva’s infancy many years
ago. It was their ties in the construction
field that originally converted the house
into a yeshiva. Indeed, the original
generation of PTI learners came during
the golden age of kiruv, returning “on
fire” from new outreach yeshivas like
Aish and Ohr Somayach. They feel
they’re mentoring younger versions of
themselves in this incoming generation.
“It brings back memories of the most
exciting time of my life,” recalls Shmuel
Brodsky,” who followed a similar path
decades ago. “This is a place to inspire
and be inspired.” The latest addition to
the PTI lineup is the Young Professionals
program, coordinated by Rand. The
group meets every Thursday night. It
features a free hot buffet, guest speakers,
guided group learning, and always
concludes with a musical kumzits that
builds the camaraderie and momentum of
the group. It just concluded a successful
shabbaton and plans another in early
2024. Integrating the daunting number
of PTI’s new programs and students
into the greater yeshiva is Rabbi Baruch
Bodenheim, Associate Rosh Yeshiva and
long-time columnist in the Jewish Link
and Monsey Mevasser. Rabbi Bodenheim
has been racing to keep up with the
rush of new entrants by creating more
programs for men and women, recruiting
teachers and volunteers, and upgrading
technology and communication systems.
Welcoming the new entrants, he set the
tone, “It’s an upside-down world where
bad is seen as good, and good is seen as
bad. Yehivas are a haven of sanity and the
Torah is the one place of truth. The Jewish
world is feeling we’re all in this together
as one people, and you men are taking up
the calling.” There is learning literally
around the clock, day and night seven
days a week, including four levels of
gemara learning in the evening, morning
programs for retirees, a day kollel of
advanced scholars, Sunday shiurim,
Zoom classes for distance learners,
distinguished speakers series, chavrusas,
and programs for women all week.
Everything is free. “Come in and we’ll
find a shiur that fits your background,
interest, and schedule,” invites Rabbi
Bodenheim. To meet the demand for
programming while running a new
building campaign isn’t an easy task. As
the website PTI.shulcloud.com promotes

the upcoming annual dinner, a greater
than normal turnout is also anticipated as
people recognize the relevance of PTI in
these troubled times. Summing up PTI’s
place in the trend, Rabbi Yitz Greenman,
a 40 year veteran of numerous kiruv
programs including as former Executive
Director of Aish Worldwide, reflects,
“There is great confusion in the world
now, with double and triple standards
facing the Jewish people and many are
wondering what is happening and why.
The Torah is the source of moral clarity
and provides the answers that people are
looking for. We must share the meaning,
relevance and depth of Torah with every
member of our tribe, and right now!
That’s PTI.”
PT
Vues Master’s Note: Pretty impressive!
Wow! Keep up the good work!

NO MORE PALESTINIAN
WORKERS IN ISRAEL
Dear Vues Master
Since the outbreak of the war in Israel
on October 7th, hundreds of thousands
of Palestinian workers from Yehudah
and Shomron have been barred from
entering Israel. The security reasons
for the move are obvious but the lack
of workers has negatively affected
many industries in Israel, especially
the construction and agricultural
industries. To solve the problem
without endangering Israel, the Israeli
government is finalizing a plan to
permanently bar Palestinian workers
and end Israel’s dependence on them,
Kan News reported on Sunday evening.
Israel will bring in about 25,500 workers
from Sri Lanka, 20,000 workers from
China, 17,000 workers from India,
13,000 workers from Thailand, and
6,000 workers from Moldova. In
addition, an initiative has been launched
to incentivize Israelis to work in the
construction and agricultural industries.
The plan will require new deals
with these countries. The diplomatic
groundwork is already being carried out
by the Foreign Ministry in cooperation
with the Finance, Interior and Labor
ministries. The initial plan had been
approved by Finance Minister Betzalel
Smotrich and the final plan is scheduled
to be presented to the economic cabinet
in about two weeks.
Vues Master’s Note: B”H. It’s about time
they did this!

NAME GAME
Dear Vues Master:
According to Harav Hagaon R.Shlomo

Miller Shlita, naming a child after a non-
Frum family member is acceptable &

at times even recommended. The main
reason we name after an individual who
passed away is to honor him or his living
relative. It is usually done as הטוב הכרת.
(Gratitude) הטוב הכרת overrules all the
reasons for not naming after a non-Frum
person. We find ישראל בני as a הטוב הכרת
named their children after Alexander the
Goy.
MF
Vues Master’s Note: I thought it was for
Alexander the Grape!

WRITING
Dear Vues Master:
I’d like to offer my copywriting services
to all the antisemites out there. It’s on the
house. Feel free to copy and paste this to
your social media accounts. Let’s start
with the UN: “We would like to formally
apologize for being a completely corrupt
organization for the past 75 years. We’d
like to apologize for being Hamas’
puppet and continuing to spread more
blood libels and Jew hatred. We fully
recognize that we have been obsessed
with Israel because it’s the only Jewish
state and we are, in truth, an antisemitic
organization. Now that we’ve corrected
that, we actually don’t know what to do
with ourselves so we’re just gonna call it
quits and shut our doors. Bye everyone.“
UNRWA: “We would like to let everyone
know that we have rebranded and we
are finally changing our name to reflect
our work. The new name we came up
with is true to our founding principles.
Hamas. From here on out, UNRWA will
be removing our silly masks that no one
fell for and calling ourselves what we
are, actual terrorists. We thank you for
your support. Now excuse us, we need
to make sure Hamas has enough supplies
for their tunnels and enough textbooks
to poison the next generation.” The
Canadian/UK/South African/French (and
many others) governments: “We would
like to announce that we are officially
adopting Sharia law and letting radical
Islamism take over our country. We
have zero moral compass or backbone
and we have Jew hatred in our bones
so we have decided to stop pretending
we are anything other than full blown
antisemites. It was nice knowing you all.

According to Sharia law, the internet is
off limits so buh bye.” Pro Palestinian
protestors: “We would like to announce
that we are no longer branding our
marches as pro Palestinian. We realized
no one buys that story anyway. So from
here on out, we will be hosting anti Jew
marches around the world. We will block
highways, assault cops, and create total
chaos with the hopes that we will annoy
the living daylights out of everyone and
they will hopefully blame the Jews.
Wish us luck.” The squad: “While we
are officially American politicians, we
all met today and decided that we are
tired of pretending. So we are officially
announcing our loyalty to Hamas, PIJ,
Hezbolloh and any other radical Islamic
organization. Our only condition to help
is that the organization has to make
sure to murder, rape, and mutilate as
many Jews as possible. If they do that,
we’ll make sure to rally on their behalf
in congress.” Ok, I’ll stop there. If you
are reading this and you don’t stand with
Israel, I am more than happy to write your
copy too. No charge. No strings attached.
I gotchu. Just let me know. How’d I do?
Hillel Fuld
Vues Master’s Note: Thanks for your
services!

HITLER IN GAZA
Dear Vues Master:
Palestinian Arab children as young as
ten years old took an active part in the
Hamas pogrom on October 7, according
to shocking new testimony from
eyewitnesses. A survivor named Raziel
Tamil, who was hiding in a citrus grove
adjacent to the Israeli music festival
that Hamas attacked, saw terrorists
hand rifles to a group of children in
Hamas garb—whom he estimated to be
between six and ten years old—“and
directed them to execute hostages,
which they did,” the Washington Free
Beacon reported. Amotz Bazer and
his family were barricaded in their safe
room in Kibbutz Nir Oz when terrorists
approached their home. Bazer “heard the
gunmen push two young boys through
the window. The boys then opened the
front door for the armed terrorists.” He
said that based on the sound of the boys’
voices, he believed they were probably
about ten years old, since Bazer has
children the same age. Footage from
security cameras has provided further
confirmation of children’s involvement

on October 7. The Beacon noted that
“an online video of a 12-year-old Israeli
boy’s abduction from Nir Oz [showed]
a Gazan boy of about the same age
accompanying the kidnappers.” Also,
“boys were among the mob of Gazans
recorded crossing into Israel after
Hamas terrorists breached the border,”
and a Hamas-linked Associated Press
stringer “photographed a Gazan boy
entering [Kibbutz] Kfar Aza.” The
Beacon added: “In addition to the
children, hundreds of ordinary Gazans,
including teenagers, joined in Hamas’s
bloody rampage across southern Israeli
communities.” Such scenes are not
unfamiliar to those who have studied
previous Arab wars against Israel.
A front page report in the Palestine
[Jerusalem] Post on December 3,
1947 began: “A mob of 200 Arab
hooligans between 10 and 20 years of
age…smashed windows, looted shops
and stabbed a number of people” in
downtown Jerusalem. Those teenage
and pre-teen Palestinian Arabs were
angry at the recent United Nations
resolution recommending creation of a
sovereign Palestinian state alongside a
small Jewish state. They expressed their
fury by smashing, looting, and stabbing
Jews. And burning them, too. The
Post reported that the young terrorists
“forced their way into textile and trade
shops” where “the proprietors and
workers had barricaded themselves”
to escape the mob. The attackers “set
goods on fire.” Not unlike those who
burned Jews alive in southern Israel last
month. Some Israeli media outlets
have been reporting for years that
summer camps operated by Hamas in
Gaza, and by the Palestinian Authority
in the areas it occupies, train children
to use weapons and glorify terrorists.
Unfortunately, most mainstream
American and European publications
and media agencies have ignored
such reports. Dictators in previous
generations likewise prioritized training
children to hate and kill. Adolf Hitler,
for example, viewed Germany’s schools
as a breeding ground for raising an entire
generation of Nazis. Following Hitler’s
rise to power in 1933, German school
curricula and text books were revised
to reflect Nazi ideas. The new biology
texts advocated the theory of “Aryan”
racial superiority. Atlases focused on
the alleged danger to Germany posed

by surrounding nations and claimed
that various territories had been stolen
from Germany. History books presented
justifications for German militarism.
The Nazis even created their own
version of the Cinderella story, with the
prince favoring a racially pure young
heroine who rejects her racially alien
stepmother. Nazi-educated German
children filled the ranks of the Hitler

Youth movement. Teenage and pre-
teen members took part in numerous

atrocities, from forcing Jews to scrub
the streets of Vienna with toothbrushes
in 1938, to the mass shooting of Jews
swimming from sinking boats in the
German harbor of Lubeck in 1945. In
addition, many of those who graduated
from Hitler Youth joined the Gestapo
and participated in the mass murder of
European Jewry. Most branches of the
Nazi apparatus collapsed or surrendered
in the waning days of World War II—
but not Hitler Youth, whose members
remained fanatically loyal to their Fuhrer
to the very end of the war. That’s why
they are often mentioned in accounts of
atrocities that were perpetrated in the
spring of 1945. Menachem Weinryb,
an Auschwitz survivor who was forced
to take part in a death march from
Poland to Germany, recalled how when
the prisoners reached the Belsen area on
April 13, 1945, the German guards went
to a nearby town “and returned with a lot
of young people from the Hitler Youth
[and local policemen]…They chased us
all into a large barn…we were five to
six thousand people…[They] poured out
petrol and set the barn on fire. Several
thousand people were burned alive.”
Raising children to kill, whether in Nazi
Germany in the 1930s or in Gaza today,
always has deadly consequences.
Rafael Medoff
Vues Master’s Note: As usual you are
right on target!

FENCE
Dear Vues Master:
When אייבשיץ יהונתן רבי was in Vienna,
the Emperor asked to see him. “I have
heard that you are very wise,” the
Emperor said, “that you are able to
foresee the future. I’m going hunting
today. Can you tell me which city gate I
will take upon my return to the palace?”
יהונתן רבי thought for a moment, took a
piece of paper and wrote a few words
on it. He then placed the paper in an

envelope, sealed it and gave it to the
Emperor with the request that he not
open it until after he returns to the city.
The Emperor went hunting and on his
return he figured he would outsmart
the Jew and ordered his soldiers to
breach the city wall so that he would
not pass through any of the gates. After
entering the city, the Emperor opened
the envelope and read the note which
:written had רבי יהונתן
“.מלך פורץ לעשות לו דרך”
BM
Vues Master’s Note:I was on the fence
regarding his response! But he locked it
up with a wall of an answer!

BARN
Dear Vues Master:
In 1847, Rothschild visited Eretz
Yisrael to inaugurate one of his projects
in a moshav. In those days, the Ottoman
rulers did not permit Jews to build
new homes. To comply with the law,
Rothschild had received permits to
build four barns for the cows which
he owned. Each “barn” had relatively
spacious apartments on both a first floor
and a second floor. As the inauguration
ceremony was occurring, a Turkish
inspector appeared and demanded
to know who had authorized the
construction. “Here are the permits,” the
Baron said. The inspector entered one of
the “barns” and saw the steps leading to
the second floor. “Do you mean to tell
me that cows are going to walk up to
the second floor?” he asked. “Of course
not,” Rothschild answered. “That’s
where we’ll store the hay.”
DW
Vues Master’s Note: I heard they sold
him the Brooklyn Bridge too.

CRAZY
Dear Vues Master:
There is a new frightening statistic: 25
percent of the women in this country are
on medication for mental illness. That’s
scary. It means 75 percent are running
around untreated.
MB
Vues Master’s Note: Sounds like, YOU
the letter writer forgot your meds! Not
everyone is crazy! Some hide it better!

MECHANIC
Dear Vues Master:
And he blessed them on that day,
saying: In you [future fathers] will

Yisroel bless [their sons], saying:
“May G-d make you as Ephraim and
Manasseh.” Berashis 48:20 Rav Hirsch
says that Asanas raised Yosef’s son, she
made sure they honored and respected
their father. This was no small feat as
she would be inclined to raise them
according to the idolatrous ways of
her parents and/or the aristocrats she
rubbed elbows with. Also, she had good
reason not to give heed to Yosef as he
was a slave and an ex-prisoner. Based
on this, I was contemplating if it would
be wise for my son, in his present state
of mind, to invest in his children since
he is a product of me, a baal teshuva
(second class) and a heretical mother
who worships CCY like the rest of her
family. Plus he’s no Yosef, who honored
his father. His wife on the other hand is
a bas Cohen (noble person) and both her
parents are FFB (social). Barring her
acting like Asanas, it looks like she isn’t
going to bear him children. Therefore, I
wouldn’t put too much energy into your
children unless you decide to become a
man and like Yosef
DG
Vues Master’s Note: I think his biggest
problem is having a father and future
grandfather like you who spews hate!

DOGS
Dear Vues Master:
The Torah relates that
A .לכל בני ישראל לא יחרץ כלב לשונו
reason for this is found in yesterday’s
דף, which says ;
כלבים צועקים, מלאך המות בעיר
the At . כלבים שוחקים, אליהו הנביא בעיר
very time that בכורות מכת took place,
הנביא אליהו came to the Jews. Thus, the
dogs could neither howl nor play and
were forced to remain silent.
MB
Vues Master’s Note: Now I understand
why criminals are told you have the
right to remain silent!