March 23, 2012 Vayikra
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
April 22, 2012
SAVE THE DATE
S.T.A.R. Community Lag B’Omer Extravaganza at the Santa Monica Pier May 9th, 2012.
Come and join thousands of Jews from all kinds of background on the happiest time of the year.
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Vayikra
Candle Lighting: 6:51pm
Shabbat Ends: 7:46pm
Torah Message
Why Can’t I Hear G-d Talking To Me?
"And He called…"(1:1)
The London Symphony Orchestra takes its place on the podium of the Royal Albert Hall. The large double basses mournfully tune up. The piccolos prance from one octave to another. The dull dooming thud of a muted timpani is heard. Two swift taps of the baton on the lectern. The cacophony ceases, replaced by a mighty chord played by eighty instruments. The chord grows longer and longer and louder and louder. The entire audience is enthralled in rapt attention. The entire audience, that is, except a rather eccentric gentleman leaning over the balcony. He seems somewhat distracted. He keeps looking this way and that. His concentration is anywhere except on the music. It’s not surprising, however, for covering his ears are a large pair of canary yellow plastic sound-excluders. The sort that you see ground crews use when they refuel airplanes.
After a couple of minutes the next-door neighbor to this fellow cannot contain himself any longer. He leans over the balcony and starts gesturing to the fellow, pointing at the sound-excluders and miming "Your ears are blocked! You can’t hear anything because your ears are blocked!" The other fellow scrunches up his brow, cocks his head to one side as if to say, "What are you saying?" So once again the other points to the sound excluders and mimes even more loudly than before, "You can’t hear anything because your ears are blocked!"
The other fellow finally realizes that someone is trying to communicate with him and so he takes off his canary yellow sound-excluders and says blithely to the other, "I’m sorry. I can’t hear you. You see, my ears are blocked."
Look at the world. It’s not a pretty picture. I don’t want to spoil your Shabbat, but I’m sure it comes as no surprise to you that world-wide poverty is on the increase, that our natural resources are dwindling at an alarming rate and that selfishness, greed and intolerance are as popular as ever.
Where is G-d? Is this a G-dly world?
No. This is not the world that G-d wants. It’s the world that man wants. G-d has created man as the being that chooses. This is man’s unique privilege – and his responsibility. There can be no choice without the potential to choose incorrectly. A world where choice has no consequences is, effectively, a world without choice. The world looks like it does because man chooses it to be this way, and most of the time man’s choices are dominated by his own selfishness.
The spiritual Masters teach that when G-d spoke to Moshe He spoke in voice that was overpoweringly loud, a voice that was vast enough to pulverize mighty trees. Nevertheless, the only one person who heard the voice was our Teacher, Moshe. And when Moshe heard that voice it sounded to him like a loving and gentle summons: "Moshe, Moshe…"
G-d’s voice is the loudest thing in this world. If we can’t hear it that’s because our ears are plugged with the wax of our own selfishness and egos, the detritus of ignoring the Designer and His design for this world.
- Sources: Rashi; Sifra
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara
March 9, 2012 Ki Tisa
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
April 22, 2012
March 18, 2012
STAR kids leave your wings at home, we are going to the ultimate trampoline arena; SKY HIGH!!
SAVE THE DATE
S.T.A.R. Community Lag B’Omer Extravaganza at the Santa Monica Pier May 9th, 2012.
Come and join thousands of Jews from all kinds of background on the happiest time of the year.
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Ki Tisa
Candle Lighting: 5:39pm
Shabbat Ends: 6:35pm
Torah Message
One Step Beyond
"…he will give Teruma of G-d." (30:14)
The entire Oral Torah begins with the question, "When do we read the Shema prayer in the evening?" The Mishna answers, "When the kohanim go in to eat their Teruma (the priestly gifts)."
What is the connection between saying the Shema and the mitzvah of Teruma? Why didn’t the Mishna just say, "The time to say Shema in the evening is when it gets dark"?
The Torah obligation to give Teruma is as little as a single grain. The Rabbinic obligation, however mandates between one-sixtieth, which is considered miserly, and one-fortieth, which is generous. The median amount is one-fiftieth. The word "Teruma" is an allusion to this median amount, forTeruma stands for trei mi-me’ah, two out of one hundred – one-fiftieth.
If the Torah was hinting through the word Teruma to the median gift of one-fiftieth, why did it express that fraction as two parts out of a hundred? Why didn’t it coin instead a word that used the words for ‘one’ and ‘fifty – Chad and Chamishim? Why wasn’t Teruma called "Chadshim" or something like that? And why specifically the proportion of two out of a hundred? Why not four parts out of two hundred, or eight out of four hundred?
The Vilna Gaon explains that the core of Shema lies in the first verse, Shema Yisrael, and in the next phraseBaruch Shem Kevod Malchuto le’olam va’ed, "Blessed is Hashem’s name of the Honor of His Kingdom for ever and ever," which we say immediately afterward. The essence of Shema is to affirm our belief that everything in existence is One and the smallest aspect of creation ultimately leads to Him alone.
The Gaon of Vilna observed that the twenty-five letters in the first verseof Shema and the twenty-four letters in Baruch Shem together equal forty-nine.
The number fifty connotes something beyond this world. We count forty-nine days of the Omer from Pesach till Shavuot, but we do not count the final day, the day of Shavuot itself, because Shavuot represents something beyond this world – the supernal moment of the closest encounter between G-d and man.
In this world, we can approach fifty, but we cannot count it; we cannot define or delineate it.
When I say the Shema I surrender the ineffable, indisputable knowledge of my own existence and proclaim that there is only One Existence, and that I am no more than just one expression of that Ultimate Existence. That is the ‘one’ that I give to make the fifty complete.
My recitation of the Shema – my own closest encounter with G-d – represents the "one" that raises the forty-nine to fifty. And as I say the Shema twice daily, it represents the trei mi-me’ah – the two out of a hundred.
Trei mi me’ah– twice a day, the Teruma that I give is the forty-nine letters that make up my declaration of G-d’s total and absolute Unity, together with the ‘one’ – the surrender and elevation of my own existence that joins me to ‘fifty’ – the Ultimate Existence.
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
March 11, 2012
March 18, 2012
STAR kids leave your wings at home, we are going to the ultimate trampoline arena; SKY HIGH!!
SAVE THE DATE
S.T.A.R. Community Lag B’Omer Extravaganza at the Santa Monica Pier May 9th, 2012.
Come and join thousands of Jews from all kinds of background on the happiest time of the year.
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Tetzaveh
Candle Lighting: 5:337pm
Shabbat Ends: 6:29pm
Torah Message
Fancy Dress
“…for glory and for splendor” (28:2)
In light of the critical economic situation here in Israel, the government has been cutting back drastically on renewing visas for foreign workers and summarily deporting those who are here illegally.
A few years ago we had a cleaning lady from Romania called Valerica. Her mode of dress was the standard Romanian generic stonewashed Levis topped with a T-shirt that proclaimed the megatour of some Heavy Metal Band like Blind Widow or some other denizen of the musical illiterati.
A couple of days ago my wife happened to be walking down Shmuel Hanavi Street when she saw a lady who bore a striking resemblance to Valerica. However, this lady was dressed in a long skirt, a modest blouse and her hair was covered with a beret. My wife looked again and said “Valerica? Is it you?” “Yes, it’s me” she replied. My wife’s curiosity was piqued, “But what? What happened? Did you become Jewish?” With a malignant snort she replied, “Of course not! It’s only for show. If I dont dress up like this, the police will spot me and kick me out of the country!”
I couldn’t help but be struck by the irony: Some sixty years ago Jews were afraid to walk the streets of Bucharest unless they were dressed as conspicuous Romanians, and some sixty years later this Romanian was afraid to walk the streets of Jerusalem (obviously with far more benign consequences) unless she was dressed like a Jew.
Clothes conceal, but they also reveal.
This week’s Torah portion starts with a description of the clothes of the kohanim. The Torah uses two abstract nouns to define the purpose of these garments: “for glory and for splendor.”
The Malbim says that the “glory” of the garments of the kohanim was that they revealed the innate holiness that G-d had given to the kohanim. However, these clothes were also for the “splendor” that would come from the efforts of the kohanim.
“Glory” refers to the gifts G-d gives man. “Splendor” refers to what we can achieve by ourselves.
The reading of this week’s Torah portion comes just before Purim. On Purim there is a widespread custom to dress up in masquerade costumes. What is the connection between Purim and costume?
In Tractate Megilla (12a), the students of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai ask him why the Jews of Persia at the time of Purim were judged to be worthy of destruction. He said to them “You tell me.”They said, “Because they had pleasure from the feast of that evil man (Achashverosh).""However, if that were true, only the Jews of Shushan who participated in the feast should have been culpable, not every Jew in Persia." So they said back to Rabbi Shimon, “You tell us.” He said,“Because they bowed to the idol of Nevuchadnetzar.”
"But they only did that for show.” They only bowed out of fear of being put to death, not because they were really worshipping idols
“They only did it for show, so G-d only did it for show. As it says in the passage, He did not answer from his heart.” G-d only allowed Haman’s genocide plan to proceed as far as it did to frighten the Jews into repenting and mending their ways.
Our dressing up on Purim is to remind us that this whole world is a type of show. That this whole world is a mask that hides the existence of G-d. The word for “world” in Hebrew, olam, has the same root as ne’elam, which means “vanished” or “hidden.”
What we see is not necessarily what is. It is our job to pry the mask from the face of the world and reveal Who is behind it.
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Join Em Habanim congregation for an uplifting evening with the Bakashot Choir. March 3rd, Saturday night at 8pm
****
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Purim Monte Carlo Night March 7th at 8pm at Emhabanim. For more Info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Rabbi Mizrahi will be speaking at Em Habanim on March 4th 2012. Lecture topic: “The right relationship between the Jew and Hashem”
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara
February 24, 2012 Terumah
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
March 11, 2012
March 18, 2012
STAR kids leave your wings at home, we are going to the ultimate trampoline arena; SKY HIGH!!
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Mishpatim
Candle Lighting: 5:27pm
Shabbat Ends: 6:23pm
Torah Message
Guilding The Lily
"Its knobs and its blossoms will be (hammered) from it… " (25:31)
In English, when we speak of "gilding the lily", we mean that something has been unnecessarily adorned. How can the lily be made more beautiful? If you paint it gold will it be more radiant? When you paint a lily it detracts from its true beauty. It’s "overdone".
There’s a common misconception that the Torah is like a lily and the Rabbis were a bunch of lily painters.
There is not a single Rabbinical dictum or law, not a extrapolation nor an embellishment that is not hinted to in the Torah itself. Everything stems ultimately from the Torah.
We can see this idea in this week’s Torah portion: "You shall make a Menorah of pure gold, hammered out shall the Menorah be made, its base, its shaft, its cups, its knobs and its blossoms will be (hammered) from it."
The Menorah was extruded from one solid block of gold. Nothing was grafted on to it. Just as its base and its shaft and its cups were integral, drawn from the same block of gold, so too were its knobs and its blossoms integral and drawn from the same block of gold.
The same is true with every law that the Rabbis promulgated. Nothing is grafted on. Nothing is unrelated embellishment. Just as the Torah laws – the "shaft" and the "cups" of the Torah – stem from an indivisible unity, so does every last Rabbinical dictum and decree. It’s "knobs" and its "blossoms" derive from that same ‘block of gold’.
The lily is ungilded.
- Source: Chafetz Chaim
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Purim Monte Carlo Night March 7th at 8pm at Emhabanim. For more Info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Rabbi Mizrahi will be speaking at Em Habanim on March 4th 2012. Lecture topic: “The right relationship between the Jew and Hashem”
Sephardic Temple:
Talmud Torah and Youth Havadalah and Movie Nite will return in January after the completion of the remodel of the new Alcana Youth Lounge. Watch for upcoming dates and info!
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara
February 17, 2012 Mishpatim
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
March 11, 2012
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Mishpatim
Candle Lighting: 5:21pm
Shabbat Ends: 6:17pm
Torah Message
So Close And Yet So Far Away
"…and you will bow down from a distance." (24:1)
We perceive G-d in two ways. We believe that He is pre-existent, the Cause, the Creator and the Sustainer of all reality. He is far beyond and above. Ultimately distant. He precedes all beginning and transcends all ending. No creature can fathom Him, for what can the painting know of the Painter? He created thought so no thought can think of Him. He is utterly separate and distant beyond all concept of space and time.
And yet He is very, very near. He fills the world. There is no place or time where He is not. For if He were not there, that place could not be, that second would never take place. He fills all worlds and encompasses all worlds.
G-d is both transcendent and immanent.
It is the unique privilege of the Jewish People to proclaim these two seemingly opposite aspects of our perception of G-d. Many religions have a concept of G-d being supremely elevated above all. But they falter in their recognition of His imminence. They fail to understand that He is here right now. He sees all, knows the secrets of every living thing, and is interested in their every move.
When the Jewish People rise during their prayers and proclaim like the angels the Kedusha, this is how they praise the Creator:
"Holy, Holy, Holy, G-d, Master of Legions. The whole world is filled with His Glory."
"Blessed is the glory of G-d from His place."
The first statement depicts our relationship with G-d as immanent – the universe is "filled with His Glory." No place or time can be devoid of Him. The second statement implies G-d’s transcendence, His utter separation and elevation from this world – "from His place."
This is also the deeper meaning when the prophet Isaiah says "‘Peace to afar and to close at hand’ says G-d." To the righteous who are faithful to these two beliefs, G-d radiates a constant stream of heavenly influence.
These two aspects also express themselves in the awe of Heaven on the one hand and the love of G-d on the other. A person is only awed by that which is above and beyond him. That which is near at hand doesn’t strike fear into his heart. It’s too close. On the other hand, love only flourishes in closeness. It’s difficult to love when there is no contact.
"…and you will bow down from a distance."
The hidden meaning of this verse in this week’s parsha is that bowing – fear and awe are the natural partners of distance – G-d’s transcendence.
Another understanding of this verse is that bowing implies the drawing down of Heavenly energy into all the worlds. It is for this reason that we bow in the prayer Aleinu when we say "And we bend our knees and bow." Our physical actions give substance to a spiritual reality, the drawing down of holiness. Thus Moshe is telling Aharon, Nadav, Avihu and seventy of the elders of Yisrael that they will bring down the lofty spiritual influences into all the worlds by their bowing.
- Sources: Kedushas Levi, Arizal
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Purim Monte Carlo Night March 7th at 8pm at Emhabanim. For more Info. visit www.emhabanim.com
Sephardic Temple:
Talmud Torah and Youth Havadalah and Movie Nite will return in January after the completion of the remodel of the new Alcana Youth Lounge. Watch for upcoming dates and info!
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara
February 10, 2012 Yitro
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
February 20, 2012
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Yitro
Candle Lighting: 5:14pm
Shabbat Ends: 6:11pm
Torah Message
The Princess and the Bentley
"Thou shalt not covet." (20:14)
How is it possible to command people not to covet? Coveting is a knee-jerk reaction, isn’t it? You see someone driving along in a Bentley Continental and before you can even think twice, your envy-glands go into overdrive. Covetousness is a reflex, isn’t it? It’s not in the domain of intellectual control, is it?
Once there was a peasant who stood in line all day to see the king pass by. At last, the royal procession drew close. He craned his neck to catch a glimpse of the royal countenance. Immediately behind the king stood the crown princess; the peasant was taken aback. The princess was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She had delicate pale features. All the women he knew had coarse sun-browned skin and bad teeth. A peasant’s life is not conducive to physical beauty. However, despite the princess’s exquisite appearance, not for one moment did the peasant desire or covet her. She was someone so above his station in life that it never entered his mind that he was even in the same world as her. She remained an ethereal unreality in another cosmos
The root of all desire is the unconscious assumption that we could have the object of our desire. If we feel that it’s possible for us to have that thing, if we feel that it’s within our orbit, the next step is to covet it.
The truth of the matter is that G-d puts each of us on our own separate monorail in life. Like two trains speeding past each other in the night that come ever-so-close, but never (hopefully) touch.
The fact that you have a Bentley Continental and I don’t doesn’t mean that if you weren’t around I could have your car. It means that if you weren’t around that Bentley Continental wouldn’t exist.
The mitzvah of not coveting tells us to look at someone else’s Bentley as peasant looks at a princess.
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Congratulations to Mr. Aime Eliezer Oiknine for being elected as the new president of Em Habanim. May he be a source of growth and success for his community and all of Am Yisrael.
****
Purim Monte Carlo Night March 7th at 8pm at Emhabanim. For more Info. visit www.emhabanim.com
Sephardic Temple:
Talmud Torah and Youth Havadalah and Movie Nite will return in January after the completion of the remodel of the new Alcana Youth Lounge. Watch for upcoming dates and info!
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara
February 2, 2012 Beshalach
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
February 11, 2012
February 20, 2012
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Beshalach
Candle Lighting: 5:07pm
Shabbat Ends: 6:05pm
Torah Messag
A Divine Tapestry
"Then Moshe and the Children of Yisrael chose to sing this song to G-d." (15:1)
As a young boy, I remember my mother weaving a tapestry of Gainsborough’s "The Boy In Blue". It took her forever. One day, shortly before she finished it, I remember picking it up and thinking to myself: "Mommy, you may be the best mother in the world, but when it comes to needlework, well… There’s a piece of red sticking out here. Over here, there’s a turquoise thread that seems to go nowhere. Clumps of wool all over the place. This doesn’t look anything like Gainsbrough. This thing is a mess!" The whole thing looked like chaos.
Suddenly, my fingertips detected smooth regular stitching on the other side of the tapestry. I turned the tapestry over and saw the most beautiful sight. An exquisite and precise copy of Gainsborough’s "Boy in Blue". The stitches were so regular and well formed. The colors all blended so beautifully together. A divine tapestry! All the disjointed threads that I saw on the other side of the tapestry harmonized into a complete and beautiful whole.
Sometimes it’s very difficult to see sense in world events. It’s difficult to believe that the world is being run by Somebody. You wonder how things could be part of a Divine coherent plan. You hear about suffering and evil, and you wonder how this can this be the handiwork of a Merciful G-d?
Don’t think you’re alone if you feel like that. You’re in good company. Because one of the greatest men who ever lived felt exactly like you. Moses, our greatest teacher, also had his questions about how G-d was running the show. In last week’s Torah portion Moses went to Pharaoh to ask him to let the Jewish People go. Pharaoh, as you may remember, was not the easiest of negotiating partners. In reply to Moses’ request, Pharaoh told the taskmasters to stop giving the Jews straw. However, the Jews were still required to produce the same quantity of bricks as before. Not surprisingly, the Jews complained bitterly to Moses. So Moses went back to G-d and said, "Why have You done evil to this people; why have you sent me? From the time I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your Name, he did evil to this People, but You did not rescue Your people."
Moses wasn’t just complaining about the problems he was having now with Pharaoh. Rather, he was saying that "from the time" – from its very beginning – the whole plan to take the Jews out of Egypt was fatally flawed. He was saying to G-d that he didn’t see any order in what was going on.
When you look at life’s rich tapestry from the wrong side it looks like a complete mess. Moshe didn’t see the Divine needlework of the Creator. He was looking at events from the wrong perspective. However, the same word that Moshe used to complain to G-d, he repeated in G-d’s praise when he saw the perfection of the Divine Plan. The Midrash says that just as Moses erred with the expression M’Az – "From the time" – so too with that same word "Az", Moses rectified his mistake.
After the Jewish People emerged from the splitting of the sea, they saw the mighty Egyptian army strewn across the beach like so many broken toy soldiers. It was there that every Jew, from the greatest to the most humble, reached a level of insight into the workings of the world that has never been repeated.
This perception moved Moses and the Children of Israel to song. Song in Jewish thought represents the ability to harmonize all the disparate events in our world and plug them back into the One – "G-d is One".
"Then – Az – Moses and the Children of Israel sang a song."
That song is part of the prayers we say every single day of the year. Maybe one of the reasons we say it every day is to remind ourselves that when life seems like a bad attempt at modern art, we must know that there is a Supernal Artist weaving the Divine Tapestry. And not a single thread is without design and beauty.
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Congratulations to Mr. Aime Eliezer Oiknine for being elected as the new president of Em Habanim. May he be a source of growth and success for his community and all of Am Yisrael.
Sephardic Temple:
Talmud Torah and Youth Havadalah and Movie Nite will return in January after the completion of the remodel of the new Alcana Youth Lounge. Watch for upcoming dates and info!
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara
January 27, 2012 Bo
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
February 11, 2012
February 20, 2012
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Bo
Candle Lighting: 5:01pm
Shabbat Ends: 6:04pm
Torah Messag
I’m Being Watched!
"And G-d said to Moshe, ‘Come to Pharaoh…’ " (10:1)
Have you ever had the feeling that you are being watched? Have you ever felt that your every move is being scrutinized?
I’m not just asking those of you who have the misfortune to live in a police state. (Mind you, if you live in a police state, I doubt that the authorities are sufficiently magnanimous to allow you online access.) No. I’m addressing this to all of us whose most intimate contact with Big Brother was in a novel by George Orwell.
Have you ever felt that you are being watched? Do you feel that, as you are reading these words, right now, you are being investigated?
If the answer to these questions is no, then you’re in trouble.
Before you write to the editor of this august publication and suggest that he send the present writer on an extended South Sea cruise (chance would be a fine thing!), or call for those nice smiling men in their white coats – let me explain what I mean.
The phrase "the fear of Heaven" to our Anglo-Saxon ears sounds extremely archaic. It sounds like something out of the mouth of a street-corner gospel preacher, ranting his heart out to indifferent passers-by. We may be frightened by many things: that the dollar may go up; that the that the dollar may go down; that thieves may break into our homes; that we may contract some terrible malady. We may even be frightened that the supermarket will have sold out of our favorite dog food, but ‘the fear of Heaven’ is something very far from our hearts.
But, quite simply, the fear of Heaven means the feeling that you are being watched.
Try this experiment. Think for one moment that G-d is watching you. That’s right. Right now. G-d is watching your every move. In great detail. Think that G-d is right here, right now. Now, with that in mind, change the way you’re sitting or standing. Just a little.
What you just did was to show the fear of Heaven.
"And G-d said to Moshe, ‘Come to Pharaoh…’ "
Notice that the Torah doesn’t say, "Go to Pharaoh". Rather, it says, "Come to Pharaoh." Why?
There’s no such thing as "going" from G-d. G-d fills the world. There is nowhere where He is not. No place can exist if He is not there. You can’t "go" from G-d. Therefore the expression "Come to Pharaoh" is more apt because it also means, "Come – and I will go with you."
- Source: The Kotzker Rebbe
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
Sephardic Temple:
Talmud Torah and Youth Havadalah and Movie Nite will return in January after the completion of the remodel of the new Alcana Youth Lounge. Watch for upcoming dates and info!
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara
January 20, 2012 Va’era
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
February 11, 2012
February 20, 2012
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Va’era
Candle Lighting: 4:53pm
Shabbat Ends: 5:57pm
Torah Message
The Real Thing
"…and Aaron’s staff swallowed their staffs." (7:12)
You can’t fake the Real Thing.
When Aaron’s staff swallowed the staffs of the Egyptian sorcerers in front of the king it became clear who was authentic and who was not.
Jewish history has been plagued by other movements purporting to be the Real Judaism.
The most successful of these is undoubtedly Christianity, but there have been many others who have tried to authenticate themselves as the ‘real’ Judaism. Some break away from normative Judaism and change their name, and some try to usurp the authority of the Torah Sages and call their beliefs ‘Judaism’.
During the Ottoman Empire, the Karaites attempted to gain recognition for themselves as the ‘authentic Jews’.
They approached the Sultan, wanting to be recognized as the legitimate ‘People of Israel’, and that the Jewish People should be disenfranchised as being fakes.
The Sultan summoned a representative of both the Karaites and a Rabbi to appear in front of him at the royal palace. After hearing both their cases, he would decide who was the authentic "People of the Book".
Of course, as was the custom of the east, both the Karaite and the Rabbi were required to remove their shoes before appearing in front of the Sultan. The Karaite removed his shoes and left them by the entrance to the throne room. The rabbi also removed his shoes, but then he picked them up and carried them with him into the audience with the Sultan.
When the Sultan looked down from his throne he was struck by the somewhat strange sight of the Rabbi holding a pair of shoes, and he demanded an explanation.
"Your Majesty." began the Rabbi "As you know, when the Holy One, may His Name be blessed, appeared to our teacher Moses, peace be upon him, at the site of the burning bush, G-d told Moses, "Take off your shoes from on your feet!"
"We have a tradition," said the Rabbi, "that while Moses was speaking to the Holy One, a Karaite came and stole his shoes! So, now, whenever we are in the company of Karaites we make sure to hold onto our shoes!"
The Karaite turned to the Rabbi and blustered, "That’s nonsense! Everyone knows that at the time of Moses, there were no Karaites!"
The Rabbi allowed time for what the Karaite had said to sink in, and then quietly added, "Your Majesty, I don’t believe there is a need for more to be said."
You can’t fake the Real Thing.
- Source: Heard from Rabbi Zev Lef
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
****
Please join Em Habanim congregation as we celebrate the Hilula of Harav Yisrael Abuchatzira (The Baba Sali) on the 26th of January at 6:30pm. Dinner will be served accompanied by entertainment, admission $26.
Sephardic Temple:
Talmud Torah and Youth Havadalah and Movie Nite will return in January after the completion of the remodel of the new Alcana Youth Lounge. Watch for upcoming dates and info!
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara
January 13, 2012 Shemot
S.T.A.R. News & Events
Here are S.T.A.R.’s upcoming exciting events:
February 11, 2012
February 20, 2012
This Shabbat
Shabbat Parashat: Shemot
Candle Lighting: 4:46pm
Shabbat Ends: 5:50pm
Torah Message
Kvelling
"And these are the names of the children of Yisrael." (1:1)
Imagine a grandmother sitting with a stack of photos of her grandchildren. She takes out the pictures after breakfast and leafs through them, reciting the names of each of her beloved treasures, one by one.
After lunch she has a nap, and then, well, she takes out her photos again and recites their names again.
And last thing at night, out come the pictures for a last time, kissing them and calling each of them by name.
The name of the book of Exodus in Hebrew is "Shemot", The Book of Names.
It starts with a list of the names of the children of Yaakov.
Even though the Torah had already detailed the names of Yaakov’s children in their lifetimes, the Torah lists their names again here after their passing from the world, to show how dear they are to G-d.
Because something that is dear and highly-prized is repeated and re-examined many times.
Like the photos of a doting granny.
The children of Yisrael are likened to the stars. Just as G-d counts the stars and calls them by name when they come out, and again when they pass from the world and are gathered in, similarly he counts the children of Israel both when they enter this world and when they are gathered in.
We should remember that since we are compared to the stars we must emulate the stars. Just as the purpose of the stars is to radiate light to the darkest and most distant corner of the universe, so too it is the job of the Jewish People to radiate spiritual light to the most benighted corners of the world.
Rabbi M. Weiss Rabbi Y. Sakhai
Community News
Em Habanim Congregation
Weekly Parashat Hashavua class with Rabbi Joshua Bittan on Wednesdays at 8:30pm for more info. visit www.emhabanim.com
***
Please Join Em Habanim for a special Lecture by world renowned Rabbi Yossi Mizrahi on the 16th of January at 7:30pm.
***
Sephardic Temple:
Talmud Torah and Youth Havadalah and Movie Nite will return in January after the completion of the remodel of the new Alcana Youth Lounge. Watch for upcoming dates and info!
Get Well Soon
We urge the whole community and all the jews around the world to pray for two 16 year old boys that were in a tragic accident. May hashem grant them a full Refuah Shelema and may he grant their families patience and nachat, Amen.
Ariel Menachem Chayim ben Miryam & Daniel ben Sara
We wish a speedy recovery for all the Jews that may need it where ever they may be and especially for:
Em Habanim:
Max Barchichat From Sephardic Temple: Al Azus,Buena Angel,
Elaine Leon,Itzchak Rachmanony
From S.T.A.R.:
Mordechai Chaim Ben Chana, Chaim Ben Buena,
Meshulam Dov Ben Chana Sarah
Bracha Eliza Bat Ehteram, Bracha Sara Chaya Bat Ronit,
Donna Devora bat Sara