Neviim & Ktuvim

Goals:

The chanichim should understand Yehoshua’s strengths as a leader and how he differed from Moshe.

The chanichim should understand the challenges Yehoshua faced leading the Jews during the transition period from life in the Midbar to life in Eretz

Israel.

Goal: The chanichim will discuss how Shimshon is an extremely strange Shofet, and how this was all on purpose; that Am Israel needed an undercover Shofet who could work undercover, living amongst the Pelishtim, to fight them single handedly on behalf on Am Israel. The chanichim will discuss why Shimshon needed to be a Nazir to offset the dangers of this mission and will discuss the story of his birth and the characters of his mother and father- Manoach and Eshet Manoach.

Intro: In our last shiurim, we focused on Yehoshua. Now, we will move onto Shoftim, and compare it to Yehoshua. We will also outline the two themes in this Perek which will continue throughout Sefer Shoftim.

Lack of leadership – manhigut

Failure of Am Israel to kick out the other nations in

Israel (hitnachalut- settling the land) – which leads to them worshipping avodah zara, as they are then influenced by those nations.

Lack of unity among the shevatim - achdut. They act as separate nations and not as one cohesive unit.

Goals:

(1)     The chanichim will see the failures and lack of leadership of the Shoftim generation by contrasting the first two perakim of Shoftim to parallels in Sefer Yehoshua.

(2)     The chanichim will realize the issues created due to Bnei Israel not taking initiative to finish conquering the land and kick out the avodah zara worshipping nations.

Goal: Chanichim should see why Avimelech is such a terrible leader and what negative leadership traits we learn from him, and what happens when no one appropriate steps up to fill a leadership role.