פרשת וארא

This week’s Parsha, וארא, speaks of the first seven of the Ten Plagues. We learn of Hashem hardening the heart of פרעה after the first five plagues, while פרעה hardened his own hurt during the first five plagues.

Rabbi Soloveitchik was of the opinion that the slaves that he controlled were essential for the success of his economy. This explains why he was so reluctant to let the Jewish people go. A similar concern took place during the Civil War, where slavery was also considered to be the necessary ingredient for a thriving economy. This, too, was proven wrong.

Today, many Jews feel that they must work on Shabbat or forego their regular time periods for the study of Torah, in order to have Parnassa. Over and over again, in some kind of miraculous way, it has proven, that one’s livelihood does not change by Shabbat violation and ביטול תורה, canceling Torah study. Shabbat Shalom