The Joy of Giving שבת שובה תשע׳׳ה Shabbat Shuvah 5775
(יג) וַיֹּ֨אמֶר אֱלֹהִ֜ים לְנֹ֗חַ קֵ֤ץ כָּל־בָּשָׂר֙ בָּ֣א לְפָנַ֔י כִּֽי־מָלְאָ֥ה הָאָ֛רֶץ חָמָ֖ס מִפְּנֵיהֶ֑ם וְהִנְנִ֥י מַשְׁחִיתָ֖ם אֶת־הָאָֽרֶץ׃
(13) And God said unto Noah: ‘The end of all flesh is come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

(ה) ..."כי מלאה הארץ חמס מפניהם". איזהו חמס ואיזה היא גזל א"ר חנינא חמס אינו שוה פרוטה וגזל ששוה פרוטה וכך היו אנשי המבול עושים היה אחד מהם מוציא קופתו מליאה תורמוסים והיה זה בא ונוטל פחות משוה פרוטה וזה בא ונוטל פחות משוה פרוטה עד מקום שאינו יכול להוציאו ממנו בדין

(5) "Because the land was filled with hamas"- What is hamas and what is theft? Hamas is stealing less than a peruta (smallest copper coin) theft is stealing a peruta or more. This is what the people of the deluvial generation would do: they would find a person whose reserve is filled with lupin beans, they would take less than a peruta worth and the next person would do the same, and the next person the same, and the victim would not be able to see recompense from the court...

(י) וְעָשִׂיתָ חַג שָׁבֻעוֹת לַיקוק אֱלֹהֶיךָ מִסַּת נִדְבַת יָדְךָ אֲשֶׁר תִּתֵּן כַּאֲשֶׁר יְבָרֶכְךָ יקוק אֱלֹהֶיךָ. (יא) וְשָׂמַחְתָּ לִפְנֵי יקוק אֱלֹהֶיךָ אַתָּה וּבִנְךָ וּבִתֶּךָ וְעַבְדְּךָ וַאֲמָתֶךָ וְהַלֵּוִי אֲשֶׁר בִּשְׁעָרֶיךָ וְהַגֵּר וְהַיָּתוֹם וְהָאַלְמָנָה אֲשֶׁר בְּקִרְבֶּךָ בַּמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר יִבְחַר יקוק אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְשַׁכֵּן שְׁמוֹ שָׁם... (יג) חַג הַסֻּכֹּת תַּעֲשֶׂה לְךָ שִׁבְעַת יָמִים בְּאָסְפְּךָ מִגָּרְנְךָ וּמִיִּקְבֶךָ. (יד) וְשָׂמַחְתָּ בְּחַגֶּךָ אַתָּה וּבִנְךָ וּבִתֶּךָ וְעַבְדְּךָ וַאֲמָתֶךָ וְהַלֵּוִי וְהַגֵּר וְהַיָּתוֹם וְהָאַלְמָנָה אֲשֶׁר בִּשְׁעָרֶיךָ.

(10) And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto the LORD thy God after the measure of the freewill-offering of thy hand, which thou shalt give, according as the LORD thy God blesseth thee. (11) And thou shalt rejoice before the LORD thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy man-servant, and thy maid-servant, and the Levite that is within they gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are in the midst of thee, in the place which the LORD thy God shall choose to cause His name to dwell there... (13) Thou shalt keep the feast of tabernacles seven days, after that thou hast gathered in from thy threshing-floor and from thy winepress. (14) And thou shalt rejoice in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy man-servant, and thy maid-servant, and the Levite, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within thy gates.

(יז) מוטב לאדם להרבות במתנות אביונים מלהרבות בסעודתו ובשלוח מנות לרעיו. שאין שם שמחה גדולה ומפוארה אלא לשמח לב עניים ויתומים ואלמנות וגרים. שהמשמח לב האמללים האלו דומה לשכינה שנאמר להחיות רוח שפלים ולהחיות לב נדכאים.
(17) It is good for people to increase in their gifts to the poor more than they increase in their meal and the gifts that they send to their companions, for there is no greater or glorious joy than to bring happiness to the hearts of the poor and orphans and widows and strangers, for he who brings happiness to the hearts of these unfortunate people is compared to the Divine Presence, as it says, "To revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones" (Isaiah 57:15).

דע, כי האדם נפעל כפי פעלותיו, ולבו וכל מחשבתיו תמיד אחר מעשיו שהוא עוסק בהם אם טוב ואם רע, ואפילו רשע גמור בלבבו וכל יצר מחשבות לבו רק רע כל היום, אם יערה רוחו וישים השתדלותו ועסקו בהתמדה בתורה ובמצות, ואפילו שלא לשם שמים, מיד ינטה אל הטוב, ומתוך שלא לשמה בא לשמה, ובכח מעשיו ימית היצר הרע, כי אחרי הפעלות נמשכים הלבבות.

Know, a person is driven by his action, his heart and mind are always drawn after his actions - be they good or bad. Even a completely wicked individual and in his heart is all wickedness, however, if he commits his spirit and put all of his efforts to performance of mitzvot and the study of Torah, even if he does so for a purpose other that the sake of heaven, this person will immediately tip towards the good, and, through the performance of these acts for the non-ideal intentions, he will come to do them in for the highest purposes. It is through the force of action that he will kill the urge to do bad, because - it is action which shapes the heart

Viktor Frankl, Man‟s Search for Meaning, pp. 153-154

Let me explain why I have employed the term “logotherapy” as the name for my theory. Logos is a Greek word that denotes “meaning”! Logo-therapy focuses on the meaning of human existence as well as on man‟s search for such a meaning.

According to logotherapy, the striving to find a meaning in one‟s life is the primary motivational force in man. That is why I speak of a will to meaning in contrast to the pleasure principle on which Freudian psychoanalysis is centered, as well as in contrast to the will to power stressed by Adlerian psychology.

(יט) כָּל־הַֽחַיָּ֗ה כָּל־הָרֶ֙מֶשׂ֙ וְכָל־הָע֔וֹף כֹּ֖ל רוֹמֵ֣שׂ עַל־הָאָ֑רֶץ לְמִשְׁפְּחֹ֣תֵיהֶ֔ם יָצְא֖וּ מִן־הַתֵּבָֽה׃ (כ) וַיִּ֥בֶן נֹ֛חַ מִזְבֵּ֖חַ לַֽיקוק וַיִּקַּ֞ח מִכֹּ֣ל׀ הַבְּהֵמָ֣ה הַטְּהרָ֗ה וּמִכֹּל֙ הָע֣וֹף הַטָּהֹ֔וֹר וַיַּ֥עַל עֹלֹ֖ת בַּמִּזְבֵּֽחַ׃
(19) every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, whatsoever moveth upon the earth, after their families; went forth out of the ark. (20) And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt-offerings on the altar.