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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:29
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כניסות: 322
Portion of Va Yay Lech - Moshe Went (where?)
Some commentators ask " where did he go"? Why that language in the Torah?
Did he go -
On His Way?
To the Tabernacle?
From the corporeal to the spiritual?
From the Tabernacle towards Mount Nebo (where he passed on?)
Where were his wife and children? Were they all still alive (we KNOW he had grandchildren from reports in the later parts of the Tanach - the prophets)
So here is a thought -
That he "left" the teaching to Joshua his successor
and entered into a new dimension OF BLESSING AND SINGING
(the next portion is HA AH ZEE NOO - the swan song of Moshe Rabenu - our teacher)
No longer speaking the words of the Almighty -
but EMULATING THE ALMIGHTY - as we all are supposed to do
to make this world a bit more like HEAVEN -
to the best of our ability - especially as we approach Yom Kippur - a G-dly Day -
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:28
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Portion of Nitzavim - You and Redemption, not the movie
The Shem Mishmuel commentary delivers a powerful message for this week - and so does Moses!
(EVERYTHING Shem Mishmuel WROTE is a powerful message)
He wrote that by making Shabbat this week a holy Shabbat
not just your average Shabbat
you can redeem anything that may have missed or been lacking in your Shabosses the whole last year!
And what about Moses? In the portion it speaks of his last speech to the People of Israel-
And Moshe our Teacher on his last day on this Earth among us
(The operational part of that speech was....)
YOU CAN DO IT
YOU CAN GET CLOSE TO THE ETERNAL SOURCE OF LIFE THE ALMIGHTY
IT IS NOT OVER THE SEA - it is in WHAT YOU DO AND SAY
so let's make this Shabbat a Great Shabbat and do GOOD and say GOOD and Think GOOD for all
(based on a quote by Rabbi Jungreis the son of the late saintly Rebetzin of blessed memory)
Shabbat Shalom and Ksiva Vachatima Tova to all - for the Blessed New Year
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
- פרטים
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:28
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כניסות: 303
Portion Ruh Ay : Blood Sweat and Labor Day?
Last week the Torah taught us a little about not eating Blood -
and a lot about fhe Kosher Laws. Blood just doesn't go with kosher -
"because the blood is the soul ... " of every living thing - and we don't want to lose the soul!
And this week? As my teacher Rabbi Zvi Y Kook said:
the Torah teaches us about LIFE in PAIRs -
the PORTIONS go in PAIRS - and This week - the Pair of last week's portion.
What is the PAIR here? We
Add a dimension to the BLOOD issue -
as the portion teaches that
when we sacrificed in the
Great Temple we did 2 things -
the blood was sprinkled on the altar - AND WE SHARED THE FOOD.
THE PORTION SAYS " OnThree holidays go up to Jerusalem
EnJoy and Share in Jerusalem-
The "thank you" sacrifices, the "peace to all" sacrifices, etc
AND As Rebbe Nachman wrote
The three feasts (sukkos passover and shavuos"
Are to experience the joy of sharing with ALL ISRAEL
So this Labor Day remember
We may have worked hard
And sweated it out
And dealt with stuff - and
Now there is this holiday season, and Labor Day,
and the High Holidays coming up
And the sukkos feast
All of these are Gifts of the Almighty who INVENTED HOLIDAYS
To Teach us this is a reward-
AND The greater when we share it
SO Happy holidays
Happy new school year
and Happy Shabbos!
Love from Israel
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:27
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Portion Shoftim (meaning judges) and Shotrim (police)
Judges and police - the portion starts off with some of the laws that
keep society groups from destroying each other
-but that's not the BIG story this week!
What is BIG in the portion - and VERY TIMELY-
IS " the excitement mounts as our people
Prepare to enter Israel!"
And they are warned there will be wars - BUT NOT TO FEAR
There will be disagreements -
but Listen to The Priests and Teachers - AND THE KING (if like
(another NEW concept for the Israelites)
AND TO REJOICE for a YEAR (not just a few weeks)
when you get married
and build a home
and plant a new vineyard ...
BECAUSE THE ALMIGHTY WANTS US TO BUILD
(but the Almighty in this portion teaches us
ALSO to protect ourselves ... and CALL TO THE NEIGHBORING CITIES IN PEACE
(to teach them real Jewish peace - to fulfill the plan of the L-rd -
(not greedy evil leaders who make war for the sake of war or greed or conquest).
IT IS THE MESSAGE OF ELUL - the month preceding Rosh Hashono
as I heard Rabbi Grossman of Migdal Or quote our great spiritual leaders
Elul is NOT the end of a year
but the Preparation for something NEW!
Let's all get prepared! Build Anew!
Love from Israel
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
- פרטים
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:27
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Portion VaEtChaNan - Moses and Rabbi Healers
Reb Elimelech Of Lizensk (His great great gramdson called me a few days ago to say hello - a very close friend's son and also a friend) explained in Noam Elimelech:
How can a Rabbi help heal people or change someone's fate decreed by the Almighty?
In this portion Moses tells us to be close to G-d
Moses is the guy who saved the Israelites from countless plagues and disasters ! How did he do it?
He taught us to be close - to stick to the L-rd and to live.
G-d created us all to live - and to add life to the world (in many ways) -
but since we are human we have physical limitations - and we don't live forever-
But the closer we cling to the SOURCE of LIFE - the Almighty -
and the MORE we can bring life to others -
and that's what the portion says - cling to the Almighty and LIVE!
Lots of Love from Israel and Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
- פרטים
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:27
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Portion Devarim and Tisha Bav Fast: Titanic and the Temple
We used ro sing in camp:
"Oh they built the ship Titanic to sail the ocxean blue
And they thought it was a shipthat the sea could not get through..."
So' did they prophesize about the Titanic in the Great Temple of Jerusalem?
Well...
When King Hezekiah was about to die the prophet Isaiah came and said
"you need to get married ..."
Anyway he lived a long time and built a strong extra wall around Jerusalem
That he Babyloians could nor get thriugh!
But - Sadly (like on the Titanic)
the people put their faith in the wall and not in tve Almighty
And on Tisha Bav this sunday we fast because
a few generatons later the Babylonians did beak through
and
Killed housands,
and destroyed he first Temple.
MAYBE The Tutanic might have been saved if hey had trusted in he Almighty ???
Certainly Jerusalem had a chance ....
Moses in this portion reminds everyone of the lack of faith
they showed in he desert - but that the L-rd
Kept them safe forty years in the desert
until hey were ready to be the People of Israel in he Land of Israel
SO - try to Fast even a litrle on Sunday if you can
AND Trust in the Almighty and not in the Titanic
And may we dance together at the rebuilt Temple of Jerusalem
soon...
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:26
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Portion of Masei – Hi there – We're – Home?
This week we read the final portion of the first Four -
books of the Chumash (the 5-part Bible) – and we SHOUT-
Chazak Chazak v Nit Chazek – be Strong and Strong and be Strengthened!
The Lubavitcher Rebbe (quoted in last week's Dvar Malchut) said "really –
The end of the fourth book is the WHOLE TORAH"
(the fifth being a deepening recap of the first 4)
What a spiritual lesson – but wait – This portion speaks of homicide and marriage- certainly
NOT RELATED – but a surprising culmination of the Four Books???
Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach used to say:
"How do you deepen and strengthen your faith in the Almighty – and your performance of the Torah – SO THEY ARE EVERLASTING like the Torah?
Go slow
Take your time
Don't bite off more than you can chew…"
So the last portion of the four books teaches – deadly mistakes happen when you rush!
Even if you didn't want to hurt someone – carelessness is a danger!
Rabbi Carlebach also taught us many stories of people finding their Soulmates
But
You gotta go slow
Take your time
And don't bite off more than you can chew!
The end of the Fourth Book tells us how the 5 daughters of Zelafchad
Found their SOULMATES! It took time – but it all ended well
AND MOSES DANCES AT 5 WEDDINGS AS HIS ALMOST FINAL OFFICIAL ACT!
MAZEL TOV!
CHAZAK!
SHABBAT SHALOM!
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
- פרטים
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:25
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Portion of Matos - "Hersheleh" Potter story, the Flying Prophets and - the Laws of Kashrus?
Capturing the Land of the Israelites has never been easy -
Today the Arabs buzz the world with lies -
and the FIRST time when we got there from Egypt -
The Midrash Rashi quotes tells us that the wicked
Bilam the Prophet taught the Wicked Midianite kings to fly -
so they could BUZZ the Israelites and drop "bombs" of sorts (spears etc)
BUT PINCHAS the PRIEST shined the Silver HeadBand at them and BLINDED THEM
and Joshua's troops were able to defeat the Midianites!
When they brought back "things" to the camp (spoils of war)
The Almighty said "whatever can be cleansed through fire (metals) pass through fire-
and whatever could not, must be washed thoroughly ... BEFORE USING"
Here we have the basis of the Kashering laws when utensils come from a not clearly holy source
May our Torah Lights blind the evil BUZZING around the Jewish People and Israel
AND MAY WE ALL ADD TO THE HOLINESS OF THE WORLD
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:24
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Portion of Pinchas : Same old same old, or Totally Renewing?
What a busy week - 2 nights ago a new Sefer Torah (based on our 3000 year best seller)
was dedicated and there was dancing in the street
Yesterday after prayers and learning I attended a bar mitzvah for 30 so so Ehiopian kids
(I didn't understand a word of the main speech, given in Amharic - more for the families than for the now-Israeli kids)
Then back to a celebraton of a bris where both grandfathers srudy with me (at the Great Synagogue - see RabbiAndy.com for pictures) - and they dedicated a kiddush (real Jews are a very GIVING group)
What's that got to do with the portion?
The portion is packed too - starts with Pinchas (in a later guise Elijah the Prophet)
being ordained a Priest,
and ends with 70 sacrifices Israel must bring in the Temple for the "70 nations" (the rest of the world) -
and in there somewhere we are instructed to bring the daily sacrifice and that it MUST be from COMMUNAL funds
Just a quick word from the Holy Ohr Hachayim (passed on about 220 yeaRS AGO -who's Yahrzeit was this Thursday too):
hE SAID: We believe there is Holiness of the individual - and also holiness of the WHOLE PEOPLE
The DAILY offering must be from THE WHOLE COMMUNITY -
to remind us that the Almighty looks at us not only as individuals -
but also as the Whole Jewish People
MAY WE ALL BE BLESSED WITH A GREAT SHABBAT
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשלישי, 01 דצמבר 2020 13:24
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כניסות: 391
Portion of Balak (in Israel) - STORY TIME
Someone remarked this week that this portion is ALL STORY!
No laws no commandments - just a couple of stories.
A couple of wizzards and a couple of wars, a talking donkey and the richest miser in the world!
A wicked king sends his emissaries to the miser to bribe him -and he tells them to sleep over -
and they are OUT OF THERE before breakfast! So he doesn't have to feed them!
The Opposite of Abraham who FEEDS EVERYONE
The Opposite of Joseph who FEEDS THE WHOLE WORLD!
The wizzards try to CURSE the Israelites who are camped PEACEFULLY and
TRYING to make connections and treaties with the WORLD who rejects every entreaty -
SOUND FAMILIAR to TODAY?
THE NATIONS ARE NOT understanding that
The Almighty wants Israel to lead the world to PeacefulPlenty -
all the wizzards can do is try to trick the Israelites by offering them indulgences in the hope that they will SIN-
and 24000 do sin
and also one leader - who is slain by Pinchas - the forebear of Elijah the Prophet.
Getting everone back to reality - and getting Israel ready to conquer the wicked -
and create a peace loving kingdom for almost 800 years -
worshipping one-ness and togetherness.
(Next Week's portion culminates in the laws of
sacrificing for the peace of all nations-
a whole different "story" - so tune in!)
Shabbat Shalom and Love from Jerusalem
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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