Can non-Jews dwell in Eretz Yisrael according to halacha today? Rav Shlomo Katz explores the status of ger toshav—a non-Jew who commits to the seven Noahide laws and aligns with the values of a Jewish society—and the halachic tension created by the absence of yovel. Drawing from the Rambam, Rav Herzog, and modern examples like the Druze community, this shiur probes the practical and emotional challenges we face as a sovereign people navigating an incomplete redemption.

As Am Yisrael returns home, the Torah presents clear halachic guidelines about who may dwell in the Land and under what terms. Rav Shlomo Katz explores the opinions of Rashi, the Rambam, and the Sefer HaChinuch on the mitzvos of lo techanem and lo yeshvu be’artzecha—not as political slogans, but as enduring halachic frameworks. Through real-life examples and historical context, he unpacks the complexities we face today and the vision we’re still working toward.

When Am Yisrael returns home, who else is here, and what does the Torah ask of us in response? Rav Shlomo Katz opens a deeply sensitive and essential conversation around two core prohibitions in the Torah: forming covenants and selling land to non-Jews in Eretz Yisrael. With humility and fire, he brings the words of the פסוקים, the wisdom of the sages, and the lived experience of modern return into one piercing frame: we are not back here for democracy, we are back to reestablish the מלכות of Hashem.

It’s not just about being back in the Land. It’s about being back in our place. Rav Shlomo Katz opens the gates of time and prophecy, guiding us through the halachic and prophetic conditions for the return of Shemitah and Yovel. With the Rambam, the Gemara in ערכין, and Yechezkel’s vision of tribal boundaries, we’re reminded that the geulah isn’t merely about presence, but placement. And as we imagine Dan touching Turkey and Levi guarding the Mikdash, we daven for the day that every Jew finds his shevet, his portion, and his purpose in Eretz HaKodesh.

Rav Shlomo takes us on a breathtaking historical sweep of the mitzvos that only come alive in Eretz Yisrael. From Yehoshua’s conquest to Ezra’s second sanctification, from exile to return, we trace how mitzvos like Shemitah, Yovel, Terumos and Ma’asros waxed and waned with the presence—or absence—of Am Yisrael in the Land. But the real heart of the episode is the invitation: you can actually turn a mitzvah from derabanan to de’oraysa just by where you live. And the deeper message? It’s not just about agriculture. It’s about מלוכה, about משפט, about building the holy society we were always meant to live in.

Now that we’ve mapped the borders, Rav Shlomo brings us into the heart of what it means to live Torah in Eretz Yisrael. Beyond Shemittah and Terumos, there’s a mitzvah that rests on the entire nation: to establish a society guided by Torah justice. But what happens when the most powerful judges can’t say Shema Yisrael? Through a moving reflection on the state of leadership, the power of Sanhedrin—even imagined—and the Chassidic mandate to draw out the good in every Jew, this episode calls us to dream bigger, love deeper, and remember why we came back home.

Rav Shlomo wraps up our deep dive into the גבולות of Eretz Yisrael with a story that’s as hilarious as it is holy—about a בעל תשובה, a chicken parmesan, and a very literal take on the Ramban. But from this “flying mashal,” we soar into something deeper: what it means to keep Torah in the Land versus outside of it, and why mitzvos done here carry a different kind of soul. As we prepare to explore the mitzvos unique to the Land itself, we’re reminded: we didn’t come back here just to live—we came back to live differently. With spiritual maturity. With clarity. With קדושת הארץ pulsing through every halacha.

Back east we go, tracing the uncertain outlines of עבר הירדן המזרחי. With love, clarity, and a dash of cartographic chaos, Rav Shlomo Katz explores what happens when the Torah says “from the desert to the river” but leaves the rest to us. Through Rambam’s squared geometry, the conquest of Sichon and Og, and the promise of נהר פרת, we touch the dream of the future borders of ארץ ישראל—stretching into lands yet to be revealed.