Rabbi Benjamin Blech writes about a legacy in an article at Aish. He describes a friend of his who encountered a stranger at his father's grave on the anniversary of his death. The stranger had vowed to visit the grave annually because of the debt he owed to the man who was his rabbi.
"It was then," my friend confided to me, his eyes welling with tears, "that I wondered who other than those bound by familial obligations would come to my graveside after I'm gone to give thanks for what my life had meant to them. I've made money, lots and lots of it, but my father made people. And it was then that I decided that I would from that day forward commit a significant portion of my time and my funds to make a difference in the lives of others.
Read full article: http://www.aish.com/ci/s/Defining_Success_Steve_Jobs_or_Bill_Gates.html
VIN writes about the hundreds of people who attended the levaya of a "fourteen year old Israeli boy whose beautiful middos and golden voice captured the hearts of countless listeners."
...“We put tefillin on him on the day of his Bar Mitzvah,” reminisced Bein Ish U’Bein Achiv volunteer Mordechai Aron Tirnauer, “but when Dovid came out of the coma he was shaking because he had missed the opportunity to put on tefillin on the day of his Bar Mitzvah. We told him that he had indeed worn his tefillin on that day but Dovid was concerned that perhaps since he was in a coma he hadn’t properly fulfilled the mitzvah. One month after his Bar Mitzvah, Dovid put on tefillin for the first time with the Skverer Rebbe.”
Read full article: http://www.vosizneias.com/108125/2012/06/17/brooklyn-ny-talented-teen-that-captured-thousands-mourned-by-crowds-at-borough-park-levaya
18 Jun 2012
17 Jun 2012
Not one donkey
Moshe complains about the accusations hurled against him and says, "Lo Chamor Echad Meihem Nasasi", I didn't even take a single donkey from them (Korach 16:15). Rashi says this refers to when he came down to Mitzrayim to redeem them on a donkey, and he paid for it from his own money. Rav Shimon Schwab asks, why would Moshe think that he should have taken the money from Bnei Yisroel.
Rav Schwab answers that the gemara in Sanhedrin (98a) says that when the geula comes, if we are zocheh Moshiach will arrive on clouds, if not then Moshiach will come come as a pauper on a donkey. Why? The whole world needs to know that Hashem is bringing the geula and Moshiach has no power by himself. If Bnei Yisroel are Maaminim and Ovdei Hashem then Moshiach can come in grand fashion and we will all place thanks in Hashem and not Moshiach. But if we do not recognize Hashem's hand, then Hashem will need to send a Moshiach who is powerless and destitute to show that it is not his charisma, brains, or money that will release us from the galus.
Moshe was the Goel in Mitzrayim. Bnei Yisroel was not Zocheh and Moshe came riding into town on a donkey lacking any pomp or grandeur. He came with the stick in his hand and the shirt on his back. To show his poverty he should have asked Bnei Yisroel to pay for his donkey. Even then he did not, since he did not want to take anything from any member of Klal Yisroel.
Read full article: http://revach.net/galus-geula/moshiach/Parshas-Korach-Rav-Shimon-Schwab-Picking-Up-The-Tab-For-Moshes-Donkey/5099
Rav Schwab answers that the gemara in Sanhedrin (98a) says that when the geula comes, if we are zocheh Moshiach will arrive on clouds, if not then Moshiach will come come as a pauper on a donkey. Why? The whole world needs to know that Hashem is bringing the geula and Moshiach has no power by himself. If Bnei Yisroel are Maaminim and Ovdei Hashem then Moshiach can come in grand fashion and we will all place thanks in Hashem and not Moshiach. But if we do not recognize Hashem's hand, then Hashem will need to send a Moshiach who is powerless and destitute to show that it is not his charisma, brains, or money that will release us from the galus.
Moshe was the Goel in Mitzrayim. Bnei Yisroel was not Zocheh and Moshe came riding into town on a donkey lacking any pomp or grandeur. He came with the stick in his hand and the shirt on his back. To show his poverty he should have asked Bnei Yisroel to pay for his donkey. Even then he did not, since he did not want to take anything from any member of Klal Yisroel.
Read full article: http://revach.net/galus-geula/moshiach/Parshas-Korach-Rav-Shimon-Schwab-Picking-Up-The-Tab-For-Moshes-Donkey/5099
Baseball, American pie and the Caliphate
Two articles at the Times of Israel caught my eye this morning.
Sandy Koufax knew when the time was not right to play Major League Baseball, and so did Max Ungar. While Koufax decided back in 1965 not to pitch Game 1 of the World Series because it fell on Yom Kippur, Ungar has just decided to decline a contract offered him by the Washington Nationals, and to go to college instead.
... When asked whether he thought that his Jewish upbringing and education might have influenced his decision in any way, Unger said it likely had. “After going on the Israel trip and learning Jewish studies and Torah for thirteen years… the values you get out of that are that learning is important,” he reflected. “You learn that you shouldn’t grab the biggest marble. It’s better to take things step by step.”
Read full article: http://www.timesofisrael.com/jewish-day-school-grad-says-no-thanks-to-the-major-leagues/
An international organization that advocates jihad to re-establish a global Islamic caliphate will hold a conference Sunday in the Chicago area. ...A location for the conference has yet to be announced, after organizers decided to move the event from its originally planned venue.
Read more: http://www.timesofisrael.com/group-advocating-global-islamic-caliphate-to-hold-conference-in-chicago-area/
Pamela Geller wrote that the site which was supposed to host the conference cancelled after receving letters of protest.
"We regret to inform you that the venue that had agreed to host our event previously is no longer willing to accommodate our Khilafah Conference."
Sandy Koufax knew when the time was not right to play Major League Baseball, and so did Max Ungar. While Koufax decided back in 1965 not to pitch Game 1 of the World Series because it fell on Yom Kippur, Ungar has just decided to decline a contract offered him by the Washington Nationals, and to go to college instead.
... When asked whether he thought that his Jewish upbringing and education might have influenced his decision in any way, Unger said it likely had. “After going on the Israel trip and learning Jewish studies and Torah for thirteen years… the values you get out of that are that learning is important,” he reflected. “You learn that you shouldn’t grab the biggest marble. It’s better to take things step by step.”
Read full article: http://www.timesofisrael.com/jewish-day-school-grad-says-no-thanks-to-the-major-leagues/
An international organization that advocates jihad to re-establish a global Islamic caliphate will hold a conference Sunday in the Chicago area. ...A location for the conference has yet to be announced, after organizers decided to move the event from its originally planned venue.
Read more: http://www.timesofisrael.com/group-advocating-global-islamic-caliphate-to-hold-conference-in-chicago-area/
Pamela Geller wrote that the site which was supposed to host the conference cancelled after receving letters of protest.
"We regret to inform you that the venue that had agreed to host our event previously is no longer willing to accommodate our Khilafah Conference."
Anti-Israel and excluding Israel
Adam Kredo has penned an article titled Anti-Israel for pay.
J Street’s opposition to a military strike on Iran’s nuclear sites is less a matter of conviction than a concern of fundraising, according to Harvard law professor and pro-Israel author Alan Dershowitz, who lambasted the liberal fringe group as “the least transparent lobby in Washington” during a Friday interview with the Free Beacon.
Read full article: http://freebeacon.com/anti-israel-for-pay/
Eileen Toplansky writes about the exclusion of Israel form the GCTF.
In a letter penned on June 11, 2012, Senators Joseph Lieberman and Mark Kirk wrote to Secretary of State Clinton to "express [their] surprise and disappointment of the absence of ...Israel, from the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF)" which she attended in Istanbul last week.
Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/06/excluding_israel_from_counterterrorism_conference.html#ixzz1y0C9kQpr
J Street’s opposition to a military strike on Iran’s nuclear sites is less a matter of conviction than a concern of fundraising, according to Harvard law professor and pro-Israel author Alan Dershowitz, who lambasted the liberal fringe group as “the least transparent lobby in Washington” during a Friday interview with the Free Beacon.
Read full article: http://freebeacon.com/anti-israel-for-pay/
Eileen Toplansky writes about the exclusion of Israel form the GCTF.
In a letter penned on June 11, 2012, Senators Joseph Lieberman and Mark Kirk wrote to Secretary of State Clinton to "express [their] surprise and disappointment of the absence of ...Israel, from the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF)" which she attended in Istanbul last week.
Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/06/excluding_israel_from_counterterrorism_conference.html#ixzz1y0C9kQpr
15 Jun 2012
A rant and a moan
An official at a State Department-sponsored school in Jordan defended her right to post an anti-Semitic rant in the comments section of a website that aims to combat anti-Semitism, a move that has stoked concerns about the school’s curriculum.
Read full article: http://freebeacon.com/schoolhouse-hate/
Below is an item from Twitchy. H/T Memeorandum
Obama bemoans ‘people hurting out there’ at Sarah Jessica Parker’s $40,000-per-person fundraiser.
Read full article: http://freebeacon.com/schoolhouse-hate/
Below is an item from Twitchy. H/T Memeorandum
Obama bemoans ‘people hurting out there’ at Sarah Jessica Parker’s $40,000-per-person fundraiser.
The letters of chalah
No facet of our lives is bereft of Avodas Hashem. Even our basic needs can be steeped with Holiness. The Chinuch says a person's life depends on eating bread so Hashem wants to infuse this mundane necessary activity with Kedusha. Therefore He commanded us to separate a piece of the dough and give it to the Kohen. This not only helps in the world to come but also adds bracha to the physical dough itself.
It is brought down that the letters of Chalah (Ches, Lamed, Hey) is an acronym for Chelek L'Olam Habah. Maybe not coincidentally it also is Chelek L'Olam HaZeh.
Similarly, the gemara says that food of Jews has a special ingredient called "Shabbos". We all know that when cooking and baking food for Shabbos if one has in mind that it is special for Shabbos and says L'Kavod Shabbos Kodesh, the food has a special heavenly taste on Shabbos.
http://revach.net/article.php?id=374
It is brought down that the letters of Chalah (Ches, Lamed, Hey) is an acronym for Chelek L'Olam Habah. Maybe not coincidentally it also is Chelek L'Olam HaZeh.
Similarly, the gemara says that food of Jews has a special ingredient called "Shabbos". We all know that when cooking and baking food for Shabbos if one has in mind that it is special for Shabbos and says L'Kavod Shabbos Kodesh, the food has a special heavenly taste on Shabbos.
http://revach.net/article.php?id=374
14 Jun 2012
Incitement question
The president of a Paris University launched an administrative investigation on Thursday into a Gaza question “of a polemic nature” set to students of the Bichat Hospital Faculty of Medicine, Agence France Presse reported.
...“As it stands, this question constitutes an absolute incitement to hate Israel”, stressed Richard Prasquier, president of CRIF. “It has no place in medical education much less in a university and amounts to a violation of the neutrality (demanded by) professor Oberlin (in his capacity as an educator)”.
Read full article: http://obamareleaseyourrecords.blogspot.be/2012/06/sheriff-joes-lead-investigator-says.html
...“As it stands, this question constitutes an absolute incitement to hate Israel”, stressed Richard Prasquier, president of CRIF. “It has no place in medical education much less in a university and amounts to a violation of the neutrality (demanded by) professor Oberlin (in his capacity as an educator)”.
Read full article: http://obamareleaseyourrecords.blogspot.be/2012/06/sheriff-joes-lead-investigator-says.html
8 Jun 2012
Humility
This past Shavuos I attended a shiur in which the lecturer spoke about the prayer of "Modeh Ani," the first prayer we recite when we wake up in the morning and thank Hashem for returning our souls. The rabbi called our attention to the fact that the prayer doesn't begin with the word "Ani" (I) because the first thing is not to think about ourselves but rather of admitting and thanking Hashem for giving us life. He related a story of a Gentile who had a 45 minute audience with a Torah sage. The man walked out flabbergasted. He said that in 45 minutes of conversation, the sage never mentioned the word "I."
Go ahead. Try indulging in conversation and see how long you last without saying "I."
An article at Matzav by Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz reminded me of the above thought.
Click here to read the article titled Greatness, Leadership, Humility and What Hashem Wants From Us.
Go ahead. Try indulging in conversation and see how long you last without saying "I."
An article at Matzav by Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz reminded me of the above thought.
Click here to read the article titled Greatness, Leadership, Humility and What Hashem Wants From Us.
7 Jun 2012
Touched by two stories
The Lakewood Scoop has a happy ending story about a missing diamond, a bracha and a donation to tzedakah.
Click here to read what happened.
Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis writes about the gift of unity.
Let us not forget that in the generation of Dovid HaMelech the people were meticulous in their observance of mitzvos, but just the same they were doomed and failed in battle.
On the other hand, evil King Achav, an idol worshiper, was granted success. What was the secret behind this failure and victory? Despite its dedication to mitzvos, the generation of Dovid was fragmented by divisiveness and jealousy. On the other hand, Achav’s generation, despite its idolatry, was united by brotherly love – and in front of the Throne of Hashem, that unity outweighs all else.
Read full article: http://www.jewishpress.com/judaism/rebbetzins-viewpointrebbetzin-jungreis/the-gift-of-unity/2012/06/06/2/
Click here to read what happened.
Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis writes about the gift of unity.
Let us not forget that in the generation of Dovid HaMelech the people were meticulous in their observance of mitzvos, but just the same they were doomed and failed in battle.
On the other hand, evil King Achav, an idol worshiper, was granted success. What was the secret behind this failure and victory? Despite its dedication to mitzvos, the generation of Dovid was fragmented by divisiveness and jealousy. On the other hand, Achav’s generation, despite its idolatry, was united by brotherly love – and in front of the Throne of Hashem, that unity outweighs all else.
Read full article: http://www.jewishpress.com/judaism/rebbetzins-viewpointrebbetzin-jungreis/the-gift-of-unity/2012/06/06/2/
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