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As of FRIDAY AUG 29th Services will be held at the Adath Israel (Zuckerman Hall) on
Harrow in Hampstead
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UPCOMING THIS WEEK
CELEBRATIONS
MABROOK!!!
Solly Arazi & Silia Arazi
on their Anniversary
MABROOK!!!
Ness-Elya Hadid
on his Hebrew Birthday
MABROOK!!!
Maurice Hazan - Totah
on his Birthday
MABROOK!!!
Mordechai-Joshua Hadid
on his Hebrew Birthday
HAZKAROT
HAZKARAH
Yaffa Gamalo Bat Nazli z'L
Mother of Izake Lawi
HAZKARAH
Abraham Sayegh z'L
Father of Emile (Mino) Sayegh
HAZKARAH
Moshe Ben David Maslaton z'L
Father of Solly Maslaton
HAZKARAH
ELIYAHU (Napoleon) Morabia z'L
Father of Victor Morabia
HAZKARAH
Chehade Hadid z'L
Father of Marc Hadid
Grandfather of Charly, Benjamin & VIcky
NOTICES
________________________________________________ THe community offers it's condolences to the Chemtob FAMILY ON THE PASSING OF Liliane Farhi z'L ___________________________________________________
THe community offers it's condolences to the Dahan FAMILY ON THE PASSING OF Sol Dahan z'L ___________________________________________________
THe community offers it's condolences to the BRaUNSTEIN/AZERAD FAMILY ON THE PASSING OF EMILE BRAUNSTEIN z'L ___________________________________________________ refua shelema to AHOUVA BAT MAZAL
2) Halakhat Hashavoua (Halakhot related to day to day life) By Hazzan David Azerad -Elul and Shofar Blowing - Peninei Halacha
3) Holy Jokes!
4) For KIDS
This Week's Parasha Insight with Rabbi Eli Mansour
Parashat Reeh: The Reward for Early Struggles
The Gemara in Masechet Ta’anit (9a) tells that Rabbi Yohanan once saw a schoolchild coming out of school, and asked him which verse he studied that day. The child answered by citing a verse from Parashat Re’eh (14:22) in which the Torah introduces the obligation to tithe one’s annual produce: "Aser Te’aser." Rabbi Yohanan then asked the child to interpret this phrase, and the child answered, "Aser Bishbil She’tit’asher" – "tithe so that you become wealthy." The phrase "Aser Te’aser" alludes to the fact that by giving tithes – a Misva which we fulfill nowadays by donating one-tenth of our earnings to charity – one earns wealth.
The Kedushat Siyon (by Rav Bentzion Halberstam of Bobov, 1874-1941) offers a deeper insight into this story. He explains that when Rabbi Yohanan saw this student, he sensed that the child was struggling, and was having difficulty understanding the material being taught. And so after hearing that the child learned the verse, "Aser Te’aser," Rabbi Yohanan drew his attention to the interpretation, "Aser Bishbil She’tit’asher," that giving charity eventually brings wealth. When one parts with a portion of his hard-earned income, and, despite having his own financial pressures and his own bills to pay, donates funds to charity, he at first experiences a loss. His balance in the bank drops, and his financial status appears to worsen. But with time, perhaps only years later, he will be rewarded for his generosity and will be blessed with wealth. Rabbi Yohanan was assuring this child that this is true of Torah study, as well. At first, in the early stages of a person’s Torah education, he invariably encounters difficulty. He feels frustrated and upset, figuring he is wasting his time as he struggles in vain to understand the material. But as in the case of charity, the rewards eventually come. Although the process of Torah learning begins with struggle and hardship, one who invests the effort will eventually find himself capable of understanding and internalizing what he learns.
The Mishna in Avot famously teaches, "Yagati U’masati Ta’amin" – if a person says that he toiled in Torah study and was successful, he should be believed. This is in contrast to somebody who says that he toiled and did not succeed, or that he achieved success without toiling, who must not be believed. The only one of these three claims which can be assumed correct is "Yagati U’masati" – that one achieved success in Torah learning through hard work and diligence. A number of commentators raised the question of why the Mishna uses the term "Masati" – literally, "I found" – in reference to success in this context. Usually, the root "M.S.A." denotes something a person discovers without effort, like a valuable object which one happens to find as he goes about his business. Why is this term used in the context of hard work and effort in Torah study?
The commentators explain that indeed, after the initial struggles, one "finds" his success. After one overcomes the initial hurdles and prevails over the early struggles of Torah learning, he will reach the point where he "finds" success, where he acquires knowledge and understanding easily. The experienced student frequently arrives at new insights and absorbs knowledge almost by accident, without effort, armed with the skills and information he gained over the course of his years of struggle.
Just as we cannot expect to enjoy wealth and prosperity immediately after giving charity, yet we fully trust in the Torah’s promise of reward for charitable donations, similarly, we must trust that our struggles and effort to understand complex, difficult areas of Torah will eventually yield rewards, and today’s hard work will allow us to easily absorb and internalize the sacred words of the Torah in the future.
Halachot this week are selected and Translated by Hazzan David Azerad
Elul and Shofar Blowing - Peninei Halacha
The month of Elul and the Ten Days of Repentance are particularly auspicious for repentance, as this is the period when God agreed to forgive the Jewish people for the sin of the Golden Calf. Forty days after the Torah was given, when Moshe had not yet descended from Mount Sinai, a group of sinners persuaded the people to make a golden calf as a replacement for God’s authority. At that moment, a great anger was kindled against Israel. It was serious enough that God said to Moshe, “Now, let Me be, that My anger may blaze forth against them and that I may destroy them, and make you a great nation” (Shemot 32:10). Moshe prayed fervently and reminded God of the merits of the patriarchs and matriarchs, thus delaying the punishment. Then he descended the mountain, shattered the Tablets, and, together with the tribe of Levi, executed the sinners. He melted down and pulverized the calf, mixed the ash with water, and made all the Israelites drink from it. The water served as a litmus test, and those who had worshipped the calf died. Nevertheless, the threat of destruction still hovered over Israel. Displaying a spirit of self-sacrifice, Moshe stood before God and declared, “Now, if You will forgive their sin [well and good]; but if not, erase me from the record which You have written” (ibid. v. 32). Following this declaration, the decree was lifted. However, Israel was still disgraced and distant from God. It was as if they were no longer His children, His servants, or His special nation. Furthermore, the first Tablets lay in pieces.
On Rosh Ḥodesh Elul, Moshe once again ascended Mount Sinai to pray as Israel’s emissary, asking God to have mercy upon them and forgive them. On Yom Kippur, their repentance was fully accepted. Moshe descended to give the Jews the second set of Tablets and to inform them that they were forgiven. As an indication of their renewed closeness and specialness, God commanded them to erect a Mishkan (Tabernacle), through which the Shekhina would be revealed to them. Since the timing of important events is not accidental, we see that the forty days from Rosh Ḥodesh Elul until Yom Kippur are particularly auspicious for repentance.
This accords with the following midrash:
On Rosh Ḥodesh Elul, God said to Moshe, “Come up to Me on the mountain” (Shemot 24:12). The shofar was then blown in the camp, to let it be known that Moshe was ascending the mountain again and that Israel must not repeat their mistake. God ascended on that day through those same shofar blasts, as we read, “God ascends with a blast (teru’a); the Lord, with the sound of a shofar” (Tehillim 47:6). Therefore, the Sages ordained that the shofar be blown each year on Rosh Ḥodesh Elul. (Pirkei De-Rabbi Eliezer 46)
They chose to have the shofar serve as a wake-up call for the people, because it has the power to discourage people from sinning and to awaken the masses to repent (Tur and Beit Yosef, OḤ 581:1).
Accordingly, Jewish communities customarily blow the shofar during the month of Elul. Ashkenazic custom is to blow each day at the end of Shaḥarit. Sephardim, who recite Seliḥot all month, blow the shofar when they recite the concluding Kaddish of Seliḥot. Many Sephardim also blow the shofar when reciting the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy. Blowing the shofar in Elul is not obligatory, but it is proper for communities to try to do so. Nevertheless, an individual who did not hear the shofar blown does not need to search for someone to blow the shofar for him.
Bevirkat Shabbat Shalom and Chodesh Tov Umevorach
David Azerad
3) HOLY JoKeS!!
Selection of funny snippets, loosely related to this weeks parashah or current events, to brighten your day
4) FOR KIDS
Click on the image to open the youtube video
LIFECYCLE EVENTS
Celebrate a lifecycle event with us by sponsoring a Kiddouch
Rosh Hodesh Elul Aug 24th - Selichot Starts on August 25th
UPCOMING THIS WEEK
CELEBRATIONS
MABROOK!!!
Zoe Sasson
on her Birthday
MABROOK!!!
Sharon Fraenkel
on his Hebrew Birthday
MABROOK!!!
Annalie Shahin
on her Birthday
HAZKAROT
NOTICES
THe community offers it's condolences to the Chemtob FAMILY ON THE PASSING OF Liliane Farhi z'L ___________________________________________________
THe community offers it's condolences to the Dahan FAMILY ON THE PASSING OF Sol Dahan z'L ___________________________________________________
THe community offers it's condolences to the BRaUNSTEIN/AZERAD FAMILY ON THE PASSING OF EMILE BRAUNSTEIN z'L ___________________________________________________ refua shelema to AHOUVA BAT MAZAL
2) Halakhat Hashavoua (Halakhot related to day to day life) By Hazzan David Azerad -The Keriat Shema and it's berachot-Peninei Halacha
3) Holy Jokes!
4) For KIDS
This Week's Parasha Insight with Rabbi Eli Mansour
Parashat Ekeb: The Synagogue and the Bet Ha’mikdash
Parashat Ekeb includes the second paragraph of Shema, which ends with the promise, "…in order that your and your children’s days will be increased on the land which G-d has promised to your forefathers…" (11:21).
This verse indicates that the Land of Israel has the special quality of "Arichut Yamim," of prolonging life. And thus, as the Gemara (Berachot 8) relates, Rabbi Yohanan was surprised when he heard that there are elderly Jews living in Babylonia. If G-d promised Am Yisrael long life specifically in the Land of Israel, he wondered, then how could there be Jews in Babylonia living long lives? He received his answer when he was told that the Jews of Babylonia would arrive early in the synagogues and remain late, rather than rushing home. It is because of this practice, Rabbi Yohanan realized, that the Jews there enjoyed longevity.
The question, however, remains, how did they enjoy long life if the Torah promises long life only in Eretz Yisrael? The Torah does not make an exception for Jews who arrive early in the synagogue and stay late. Why, then, did Rabbi Yohanan make this exception?
The Maharsha (Rav Shmuel Eidels, 1555-1631), in his commentary to Masechet Berachot, explains by citing the Gemara’s comment elsewhere, in Masechet Megilla (29), that in the future, when Mashiah comes, all the synagogues and study halls in the Diaspora will be miraculously transported to Eretz Yisrael. Every synagogue in the Diaspora will one day be relocated in the Land of Israel, and thus those who spend time in synagogues outside the Land of Israel receive the special blessing of longevity that is granted to those who live in the Land of Israel.
In his commentary to Masechet Megilla, the Maharsha elaborates further on this concept. He cites a passage from the Midrash that in the future, the Bet Ha’mikdash will be exceptionally large, the size of the entire city of Jerusalem, and the city of Jerusalem will be the size of the entire Land of Israel. The reason for this remarkable expansion, the Maharsha explains, is because all the synagogues and study halls from around the world will be made part of the Bet Ha’mikdash. In his understanding, the synagogues and study halls of the Diaspora will not merely be brought to the Land of Israel, but will actually be incorporated into the Bet Ha’mikdash, resulting in an unimaginably large edifice.
On this basis, Rav Pinchas Friedman (contemporary) adds further insight into Rabbi Yohanan’s remarks regarding the aged Jews of Babylonia. The Gemara in Masechet Sukka (52a) teaches that at the time when Mashiah comes, G-d will destroy the Yeser Ha’ra. As we know from other sources, the Yeser Ha’ra, the Satan, and the Angel of Death are all one and the same. Thus, at the time of the final redemption, death will be defeated, for the downfall of the Yeser Ha’ra means the downfall of the Angel of Death. Hence, Rav Friedman explains, Diaspora Jews who spend time in synagogues and study halls are rewarded with long life. The synagogues and study halls have an element of the sanctity of the third Bet Ha’mikdash, which will be built at the time when there will no longer be death. Therefore, they experience longevity and live for many years.
Rav Friedman cites in this context a passage from the work Arbeh Nahal stating that one who donates money towards the construction or maintenance of a synagogue is considered to be donating money towards the construction of the third Bet Ha’mikdash. Since today’s synagogues are endowed with the sanctity of the third Bet Ha’mikdash, supporting synagogues is akin to supporting the third Bet Ha’mikdash.
Some people mistakenly assume that praying with a Minyan in somebody’s home is just as significant and valuable as praying in a synagogue. Based on what we have seen, this is not the case at all. Synagogues have a special dimension of sanctity – similar to the sanctity of the third Bet Ha’mikdash. It is an especially important and precious Misva to support and attend synagogues, in order to experience this unique Kedusha. We pray several times each day for the rebuilding of the Bet Ha’mikdash, but even as we long and yearn for this to happen, we still have the opportunity to experience, to some extent, the special sanctity of the Bet Ha’mikdash, and the special blessings of Eretz Yisrael, by regularly attending the prayers and classes in our synagogues.
Halachot this week are selected and Translated by Hazzan David Azerad
Keriat Shema and Its Berachot -Peninei Halacha
The recital of Keriat Shema commands center stage at the beginning of the Ma’ariv prayer. It is a biblical commandment to recite Keriat Shema at night and in the morning, as written in the paragraphs of Shema and V’Hayah Im Shamo’a, “When you lie down and when you get up.” It is also a mitzvah to remember the Exodus from Egypt during the day and at night, as it is written (Deuteronomy 16:3), “Therefore you will remember the day you left Egypt all the days of your life.” From the words “all the days” (kol yemei chayechah), Chazal learn that it is a mitzvah to remember the Exodus from Egypt both at day and at night (Mishnah Berachot 12:2). For that reason, the Vayomer paragraph is also recited at night, since the Exodus from Egypt is mentioned at its end. The Vayomer paragraph, which discusses the mitzvah of tzitzit, primarily applies to the day, and although one can fulfill the nighttime mitzvah of remembering the Exodus from Egypt with other verses, it is customary to remember the Exodus by reciting Vayomer, since these verses are familiar to all (Tosafot Yom Tov there). In addition, combined with the first two paragraphs of Shema, it contains 248 words (paralleling the 248 organs in the body as explained earlier in this book 15:12), and by reciting all three paragraphs, one completely accepts upon himself the yoke of Heaven (see 15:3-4 in this book. The detailed laws of Keriat Shema are clarified in chapter 15).
Anshei Knesset HaGedolah added the recital of two berachot before Keriat Shema and two berachot after it. The first, “Ma’ariv Aravim,” is a blessing of praise concerning the passage of time from day to night, and parallels Birkat Yotzer Or in Shacharit. The second, “Ahavat Olam,” is praise that refers to Hashem’s love for Israel and the giving of the Torah. The third, “Emet V’Emunah,” is praise about the redemption. In the fourth, “Hashkiveinu,” we ask Hashem to protect us at night and watch over us when we sleep. Hence, Birkot Keriat Shema are comprised of seven blessings, three in Shacharit and four in Ma’ariv; and the Yerushalmi (Berachot, chapter 1, halachah 5) states that they were instituted based on the verse (Psalms, 119:164), “Sheva bayom hillalticha” (“I praise You seven times daily.”)
Bevirkat Shabbat Shalom Umevorach
David Azerad
3) HOLY JoKeS!!
Selection of funny snippets, loosely related to this weeks parashah or current events, to brighten your day
4) FOR KIDS
Click on the image to open the youtube video
LIFECYCLE EVENTS
Celebrate a lifecycle event with us by sponsoring a Kiddouch
4) FOR KIDS
