Parashat Hashavua

Portion of Bamidbar - Why count the number of the Israelites in the desert - they all perished there for their sins?

פרטים: קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ברביעי, 25 נובמבר 2020 07:58; נכתב על ידי Super User; כניסות: 1165

Portion of Bamidbar - Why count the number of the Israelites in the desert - they all perished there for their sins?

Book of Numbers : First Portion:
1 to 12 - the tribes and later the Levites get counted - so what?
Okay - count the Levites - BUT
All the tribes - every one except Caleb and Joshua- perished for their sins in the desert -
for not wanting the Land of Israel - so why count them?
Okay - so the men passed away in the desert - but NOT all the women.
Okay - so some tried to repent and go right away to Israel - BUT they were not allowed.

AND YET OUR TALMUD TEACHES US THAT FOR 40 YEARS IN THE DESERT MOSES TAUGHT THEM ALL THE TORAH!

Hillel says "a bashful person cannot learn, and the impatient person cannot teach."(Pirkei Avos)
Ben Zoma said "who is wise? He who learns from everyone" (Pirkei Avos)
Elisha Ben Avuya says "one who studies Torah as a child is likened to ink written on fresh paper." (Pirkei Avos)
Hillel said "do not say when I will be free I will study for perhaps you will not become free" If not now, when? (Pirkei Avos)

THE ISRAELITES NEVER DESPAIRED!
THEY WERE COMMANDED TO STUDY TORAH - AND THEY DID!
AND THEY TAUGHT THEIR CHILDREN WELL - BECAUSE THE CHILDREN NEVER REBELLED AGAINST JOSHUA
when he led them INTO the Promised Land to make it ours for eternity!

SO - AS REBBE NACHMAN SAYS ; DESPAIR IS NOT REAL! (AYN YE-USH B'OLAM)
WE ALL COUNT!
AND WE COUNT BECAUSE WE KEEP THE TORAH ALIVE AND IT KEEPS US ALIVE

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

Portion of Bechukotai - what's the worst thing - and what's the Best?

פרטים: קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ברביעי, 25 נובמבר 2020 07:58; נכתב על ידי Super User; כניסות: 1235

Portion of Bechukotai - what's the worst thing - and what's the Best?

Okay - think about that for a moment.

Bechukotai – MY G-dly Rulings

Rabbi Carlebach often would teach:
What's the worst thing you can do to someone?

To IGNORE them – and that is NOT G-d's way!

What is G-d's way?
We were taught by Rebbi Mendele of Vitebsk - who moved to Tiberias
- that it is to see the HEALING coming out of every TRYING situation-
to MAKE it a BLESSING ...

In this portion of Be chuko tai - the Almighty says to Moses on Mount Sinai –
They (Israel) will sin –they will REJECT me –and I can overlook for a while – but
eventually the land of Israel will reject them for ignoring MY land
and the G-dly way of ife
They will ignore ME – and for that they will suffer –
OIY how we have suffered over the years ! –
But Hashem promises – to NEVER forget the Covenant with us
The Almighty NEVER ignores us – even if it SEEMS like to us –
"Because I am G-d – always remembering the BEGINNING of our Covenant."
So this Shabbat let's remember where it all started, how G-d took Abraham out of Iraq,
Through Syria, brought him in PEACE to Israel (Canaan) – taught him about Egypt
(so that later on great grandson Joseph could SAVE THE WORLD as Regent of Egypt)-
And eventually brought us out of Egypt to teach the world
"The One G-d remembers his Covenants" – and so
let's remember the Sabbath and keep it Holy
and dedicate it to our Covenant with the L-ord.
and studying HOW we can turn things around for the GOOD

Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

Portion of Emor – Is. Independence Day and – Portion of Behar

פרטים: קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ברביעי, 25 נובמבר 2020 07:57; נכתב על ידי Super User; כניסות: 1397

Portion of Emor – Is. Independence Day and – Portion of Behar

What is fallibility?

So my computer wasn't working last week! Thanks for fixing it Asaf! But don't we often blame computers for problems?

Now - a lot of people like to look for fallibility of Rabbis too - but of the Almighty? and the Torah?

That is one of the reasons that last week's portion tells us not to offer crippled sacrifices, and not have (young or old or) crippled Kohains (priests) do PUBLIC service in the Holy Temple. BUT - Is this Discrimination in the Temple?

It prevented people from talking about WHO was doing the service - rather than focusing on GETTING CLOSE TO THE ALMIGHTY

People sometimes lose concentration – so it makes sense- to not present impediments to focusing on G-d.
Note: That disabled priests partook of the priesly portions - just did not do the operations in front of all.

The next section is based on WEEKLY DVAR by Shlomo Ressler which you can also order online:

As for this week's Parsha, Behar, it says G-d spoke to Moshe (Moses) on Mount Sinai,

allowing for six years of planting in Israeli fields,

but the seventh year is a Sabbath for the land.

The Sabbatical year LAW proves that only G-d could be the Author who gave the Torah on Mount Sinai.

G-d promises that the year before the Sabbatical will provide enough crops for the next three years (25:20-21). No human being would ever write this law because it would be disproved within six years!

So it MUST be a G-dly LAW and a G-dly promise.

Just as he promised we would be RETURNED TO OUR LAND - and the promise was PROVEN this week

by ISRAEL's 66 the Independence Day - a proof of G-d's promises -

like the rest of the Torah

Shabbat Shalom from Israel

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

Portion of Kedoshim : How A Rabbi and a Librarian were both Holy in 1944

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Portion of Kedoshim : How A Rabbi and a Librarian were both Holy in 1944

Maimonides explains "be holy (Kedoshim) with what is Mutar (permitted) to you.

Mutar can also mean "what is released to you" or "left to you".

How can a Moslem Librarian and a Hassidic Rabbi be Holy in the same way?

In Sarajevo there is a thousand-year-old hand-illustrated Passover Hagada worth millions.

A Nazi general knew it was in the central library during the war -

and threatened the Moslem librarian and his boss if they wouldn't turn it over to him.

What did they do?

They said to him "The first Nazi General came 2 weeks ago and took it" -

and took some abuse - until the Nazi thief gave up.

Meanwhile the Hagada was hidden on some shelves between some Korans ...

And due to their bravery we can still see it on display...

Recently another literary work was found - 70 year-old personal notes written about this time of year - in 1944- from the Vishnitzer Rebbe who came to Israel after the war.

He - the Vishnitzer Rebbe ( who passed away about 40 years ago) wrote

"We had a minyan today - Shabbos morning -in the room we rented from some gentiles to hide in.

But a student of mine came and told us the Nazis were rounding up Jews! And headed our way!

So we emptied out our pockets

(not to violate the laws of Shabbat against carrying things)

and we ran off into the woods!"

Rabbi Nachman said "what's in your heart will drive you to do G-d's will"

Rabbi Carlebach said "let your feet dance you to a holy place and a holy purpose"

and Maimonides wrote

"Holiness is a general commandment that encompasses the whole Torah".

So Make yourself a little more Holy this Shabbat

Shabbat Shalom from the Holy Land

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

Kohanim - For G-d or for Man? – Portion of Tazria

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Kohanim - For G-d or for Man? – Portion of Tazria

One of my students in the U.S. this week asked me:
"What is a Priest (Kohain) doing in the Jewish religion?"

Rabbi Carlebach used to say – jokingly – around Purim time:

"What do you call a drunk Kohain? A "High" Priest!

Last week's Torah portion talked about sacrifices in the Temple the Kohanim needed to know how to perform.
This week's portion talks about – giving birth! And about illness (skin diseases)!
Were the Kohanim Butchers? Or Doctors? OR – Teachers and confidants to the people?

In short - Sacrifices – as performed by the Kohanim –
are for atonement – to teach us the value of life and the life cycle of the PEOPLE –
entrusted by the Almighty to DO MITZVOT.

ALL the Kohanim's work was to HELP US DEAL WITH putting
DAILY HOLINESS- of all sorts – into LIFE.

The Bottom Line for Judaism is, as I saw in a poster in a synagogue I was in this week ,
Rav J B Soloveitchik said something like:

"holiness in Judaism is NOT an out-of-worldly
Judaism is to bring sanctification every day" –

And it was the Kohanim who were given the task to TEACH that and help ACHIEVE that.

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

How to win friends? ... and Influence the WORLD? (People? ) - Shminee

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How to win friends? ... and Influence the WORLD? (People? ) - Shminee

Sheminee - Moses - Moses talking:

The portion begins with
"THIS IS HOW G-D'S GLORY WILL APPEAR TO YOU..."

The Torah is for ALL GENERATIONS - not a dry history book -
so I always wondered about what that sentence MEANS!
What is G-d's Glory? and
Was it ONLY for Aron and only for THAT WEEK - or for US and for ALL TIME?

Rabbi SHLOMO CARLEBACH USED TO SAY

"YOU KNOW SOMETIMES YOU MEET SOMEONE-
and they just strike you as being a holy person"-
and you feel closer to G-d!

That is what G-d wants - for us to be that way-
so G-d's Glory will appear to all the world.

We're all like that - SOME of the time

but how can we be like that

as much of the time as we can?

So G-d's Glory will appear to us and to ALL?

So Rabbi Mordechai Sheinberger AMV"Sh writes on
Pirkei Avot Chap. 6 Mishna 10 says:
"5 things G-d OWNS in this world-
... and number 4 is ABRAHAM"

So Rav Scheinberger (of Jerusalem ) writes
(based on the Zohar-Kabala)
"Abraham took (Gdliness) in POTENTIAL
and made it ACTUALIZED in this world
by his LOVING KINDNESS
(Chesed)

May we all be students of Abtraham and Moses and ALL the Holy People

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

BURN burn BURN - draft Torah Shabat Tzav and PURIM ZACHOR

פרטים: קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ברביעי, 25 נובמבר 2020 07:56; נכתב על ידי Super User; כניסות: 2529

BURN burn BURN - draft Torah Shabat Tzav and PURIM ZACHOR

BUrnt sacrifices? What good are they?
The Torah explains there are so many kinds of sacrifices -
but what do they mean to US?

Actually - Abraham offered HIMSELF to wicked King Nimrod -
challenging Nimrod's Idol Worship. So
Nimrod threw him in a fire.

Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach said:
How did G-d rescue Abraham? Abraham was the first believer who said-
- I may burn in Nimrod's furnace but I teach for G-d and if that's what G-d wants - so be it.
He was willing to sacrifice for the purpose of G-dliness- but was saved.

Haran his brother said "if Abraham was saved because of his belief-
so I'll believe in this powerful G-d - but he was not saved-
because he did it to be powerful - NOT to be close to G-d's PURPOSE.

So we're told to offer sacrifices on the altar of the holy temple -
to remember the difference between Abraham and Haran.

Not to burn for G-d or for ego...

And Haman and Mordechai?

Haman burned up with hatred and with ego.

Esther and Mordechai burned with hope
(like the chanuka candles) - and so we were all saved - and need to remember

KEEP THE CANDLES BURNING
AND DANCING FOR JOY THAT G-D GIVES US SUCH HEROES -
AND SUCH A BEAUTIFUL HERITAGE AND PURPOSE IN LIFE.

On Thursday, March 13, 2014 9:14 PM, chanoch n e wrote:
Triple Header this Shabbat!!!

SHABBAT SHALOM AND HAPPY PURIM

RABBI ANDY EICHENHOLZ

Portion VayikRa - the stories of Hans and of Doctor Bing

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Portion VayikRa - the stories of Hans and of Doctor Bing

Dedicated to Alan and Bonnie and Janice and Jeff

The third book of the 5 Books of Moses starts with the word VayikRa -
with the word having a tiny Alef (first Hebrew letter) - instead of a normal size.

To Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach's (and his father's) synagogue in Manhattan there came all sorts of people.
Some were German Jews who escaped Hitler, and some were holocaust survivors, and some were American Jews who moved uptown from the Lower East Side - and some younger people..

VayikRa talks about types of sacrifices and who might need to offer a sacrifice in the Mishkan or Temple (or in their lives) to expiate what mistakes.

At first it uses the word "ADAM" (the first G-d-created human) to describe "people" and then later it uses "NEFESH" - meaning "souls".

WHY?

ADAM was created perfect (and later EVE was created perfect from him and to complement him) -
and NEFESH? SOULS? Emotions? Feelings and connections to G-d? Why that term?

So there was a man named Hans who would sometimes come to Friday Night Prayers with Rabbi Shlomo.
There it was all Torah and singing and dancing. He sat peacefully in the back.

The rest of the week poor Hans would walk up and down the Avenue talking to himself.

He had been a famous concert pianist before the holocaust.

Saturday afternoon we had the Third Meal (Shale Shudis) at the shul - and someone named "Doctor Bing" would come and recite his poetry. It didn't resound with the majority of the members - but as Mr. Lunzer once said to quiet the complaints - "Give the Man a Chance".

We are all ADAM and EVE and also SOULS - and who knows what each of us needs to fulfill their place in this world?

The portion of VayikRa tells us that every little Alef (the letter ADAM starts with) needs it's own way to come close to G-d's purpose (sacrifice in Hebrew is KORBAN - means a "bringing closer").

May we all be blessed to help others feel at peace no matter what they are going through or went through.

And may the memories of those who came before us and went through what they went through - give us al strength to be closer to G-d's purpose.

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

WEEKLY PORTION: PEKUDEI

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WEEKLY PORTION: PEKUDEI

For Jews the "end" is always a NEW BEGINNING!

If only the World would realize - a NEW beginning happens ONLY when

you DON'T FORGET THE PAST but LEARN from it!

So I quote here from Rabbi Osher - son of Rebetzin Esther Jungreis -

a Great Lady who survived the holocaust and BUILT ANEW a part of the Jewish People-

and who teaches in Manhattan to this day -

a Great Blessing for the world - may she see joy and be with us to 120 years ...

Love and Shabbos

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

SHABBOS CHAZAK - SHABBOS ROSH CHODESH- SHABBOS SHEKALIM

This Shabbos, we conclude the Book of Exodus and proclaim “Chazak, Chazak” - “

Be strong and of good courage”.

We also celebrate Rosh Chodesh Adar Beit and Shabbos Shekalim which signals that Purim, the most joyous of all holidays, is just around the corner.

PARSHAS PEKUDEI

Throughout this parsha, there is one phrase that keeps repeating itself: “As HaShem commanded Moses...” This phrase is reiterated no less than eighteen times and it is upon this foundation that our sages built the Amidah - the Silent Meditation, which is comprised of eighteen blessings. But the question that we should really be asking is why was it necessary to say, “HaShem commanded Moshe...”? Would it not have sufficed to say that “the Jewish people did as HaShem commanded”? Why the emphasis on Moshe Rabbenu?

Herein lays the key to Jewish survival - Daas Torah- faith in our Torah leaders. The knowledge had to be transmitted through Moshe so that, for all time, we should look for guidance to our Torah teachers, for that is the only way in which authentic Torah can be transmitted from generation to generation.

...to impart to us the sanctity and eternity of the Torah. This is not to say that we cannot be innovative and use our ingenuity, but that ingenuity must also be in consonance with the teachings of Daas Torah - the Torah of Moshe as transmitted through our sages.

... Thus, we can see from all this that every aspect of our lives, from our prayers to our comportment, to our learning, is based upon the Torah that was given to Moshe Rabbenu at Sinai and transmitted by our Torah sages throughout the generations. May we never lose sight of this.

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Osher

This Torah portion is dedicated in memory of

Chaya Golda Feigel Bas Yitzchok

The Hineni Heritage Center

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

www.hineni.org

Shabbat VaYakhel

פרטים: קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם בראשון, 22 נובמבר 2020 16:57; נכתב על ידי Super User; כניסות: 1426

Shabbat VaYakhel

Why all this detail about how to build the Holy Temple in the desert?
Isn"t the HOME supposed to be your PERSONAL Holy Temple?
THERE IS in both
An entrance
A Holy space
And
Holy of holies – where not everyone goes
And only in times of great closeness
When we are together we invite in people
Some times we share deeply with others
And some times and places it's only for our families.
But it works when we're together!

Reb Shlomo ztz"l used to emphasize the teaching that if even only one tiny peg was missing in the Mishkan, then the Shechinah would not dwell in it. The Mishkan was constructed with the t'rumot contributions of every 'nediv lev- every Israelite participated'
Shabbat shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

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