rabbisakhai

S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:

• Teen Late Night @ Speedzone  SOLD OUT!!

This Shabbat:

• Friday Candle Lighting: 7:30 pm
• Shabbat Ends: 8:40 pm

Torah Message:

Fire

The carved images of their gods you shall burn in the fire for it is an abomination of the L-rd, your G-d. (7:25)

Our Sages teach us that extreme anger is like worshipping idols. What is the connection?

Imagine you’re a courtier in the palace of the king. While walking past you, one of the other courtiers treads on your toe, and rather than apologize he turns around and pokes his tongue out at you.

Do you curse and shout at him? I doubt it. Not, that is, unless you are unconcerned about your head staying in nodding contact with the rest of your body. Your awe of the king, not to mention the fear of his punishment, makes it easy for you to swallow your pride and smile a wan and insincere smile at your fellow courtier.

S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:

• Teen Late Night @ Speedzone

This Shabbat:

• Friday Candle Lighting: 7:35 pm
• Shabbat Ends: 8:46 pm

Torah Message:

Drawing by Numbers

“Hear O Yisrael…” (6:4)

The first verse of the “Shema” is like “Drawing by Numbers”.

At one time, we must have all followed the numbers on a seemingly inscrutable page of dots, and watched as a perfect picture slowly emerged.

There are really three elements to drawing by numbers: The numbers themselves, the connection of the numbers one-by-one by lines, and the final emergence of the picture from the lines.

In the first verse of the Shema there are three Names:

“Hashem” – the Tetragrammaton – the ineffable four-letter Name of G-d.

“Elokeinu” — literally, “Our G-d.”

And then the Name “Hashem” again. However, this second mention of the Name is different to the first, as it is connected to the last word of the verse, “Echad” — One.

The Arizal explains that the three Names represent chochma, bina, and da’at — three distinct concepts that are variously translated into English by the catch-all (and not very illuminating) word: “Wisdom.”

Ethereal and Kabbalistic as chochma, bina, and da’at normally sound, they all originate in a verse in Proverbs: “Hashem, with chochma founded the Earth, established the Heavens with tevuna(synonymous with bina); with His da’at the deep was made permanent.” (Proverbs 3:19-20)

Let us explain.

S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:

• Teen Late Night @ Speedzone

This Shabbat:

• Friday Candle Lighting: 7:35 pm
• Shabbat Ends: 8:46 pm

Torah Message:

This week we complete the synagogue reading of the fourth of the Five Books of the Torah, Bamidbar — “In the desert.”

What is the theme of the Book of Bamidbar?

The captivity of the Jewish People in Egypt was more than just physical bondage. On a deeper level Egypt represents the enslavement of the power of speech. Egypt not only enslaved the bodies of the Jewish People, it put in chains the major weapon of the Jewish People — speech. Thus, the Torah writes that the Jewish People “cried out” to G-d. It never writes that they “prayed.” For in Egypt, speech itself was bound.

The power of speech is synonymous with the power to give direction. The word dabar can mean a leader or a director in Hebrew, as in “One leader for a generation, and not two leaders.”