B"H

Monday, Tishrei 19, 5785 / October 21, 2024

Chag Sameach – a Happy Sukkot holiday. Today (Monday) is the fifth day of the holiday of Sukkot.

Q.What is the origin and reason for celebrating this holiday of Sukkot?

A. The Torah tells us in Leviticus (23), “You shall dwell in Sukkot (booths) for seven days… so that your generations shall know that I have caused the Children of Israel to dwell in booths (Sukkot) when I brought them out from the Land of Egypt.”

There are two opinions in the Talmud: What were the booths in which G-d caused the Children of Israel to dwell when they left Egypt, during their forty-year journey through the Sinai wilderness?

One opinion holds that the “booths” (Sukkot) refer to the clouds which surrounded the Jewish people in the Sinai desert from all sides, to protect them from the unbearable desert elements – the scorching heat in the summer and the cold in the winter. They also protected the people from enemies, from snakes and scorpions and other dangers along the way.  

Another opinion is that G-d provided them with actual booths (huts) which they set up in the desert to provide them with shelter from the elements.

Sukkot is the time of the year when the crops of the field and the fruits of the trees are gathered in. It is the time when man reaps the reward of the labor of his work. The holidays of Sukkot, when we leave the comfort of our home and dwell in the Sukkah, are a reminder that what really matters in life is not our physical wealth and the comfort of our beautiful home, but our spiritual wealth. It also reminds us to be mindful of those who have less than us and as a result we will share our G-dly blessings with them.

Q. As mentioned above, the holiday of Sukkot is intended to recall the booths in which the Jewish people dwelt in the desert. Why then is the holiday celebrated in the fall and not in spring or summer?

A. Many answers are given to this question. 1) G-d gave us this mitzvah to be observed in the fall, to emphasize that we are doing this for the mitzvah, for G-d’s commandment, and not for self-comfort due to the warm weather.

2) The Torah also calls Sukkot, “Feast of the Harvest”, when you have gathered in all your labor from the field. Thus, we celebrate the holiday at this time as it also celebrates G-d’s blessing of the bounty we have gathered from the field.

3) The Midrash explains that we celebrate Sukkot right after Yom Kippur, in case there was a bad decree upon us, on Yom Kippur, to be exiled from our homes. By leaving the comfort of our home for the Sukkah, we would meet that requirement and not have to endure the experience of a real exile, G-d forbid.  

HAVE A VERY GOOD, HAPPY, HEALTHY AND SUCCESSFUL DAY & CHAG SAMEACH

UNITED WE STAND WITH OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN CAPTIVITY. MAY THEY ALL BE RELEASED NOW

B"H

Friday, Tishrei 9, 5785 / October 11, 2024

Yom Kippur, the Holiest day of the year, begins this evening through Shabbat. It is the only fast day we fast on Shabbat.

Q.  Yom Kippur begins with the Kol Nidrei prayer.   What is the significance of this prayer?

A.   Kol Nidrei is a prayer in which we declare our vows null and void. It was created in Aramaic, rather than Hebrew, because it was the spoken language of the Jews in Babylon at the time.  The only vows which we can nullify in Kol Nidrei are those which don't involve other people. However, vows and promises made to others do not become nullified on Yom Kippur.

Kol Nidrei gained much significance during the Spanish Inquisition. Then, many Jews, known as "Marranos", vowed to renounce their religion under the threat of death, yet in their heart remained loyal to Judaism.  They would gather on Yom Kippur in secrecy and use Kol Nidrei to renounce their vows against the religion that was forced upon them.

Q.   Why is the Kol Nidrei repeated three times?

A.   According to the Talmud, important announcements used to be repeated three times.  The repetition of the Kol Nidrei emphasizes its importance.  On a more practical level, we repeat it so that those who came late to the synagogue should not miss Kol Nidrei.

Q.  Are all sins forgiven on Yom Kippur?

A.  Only sins between us and G-d are forgiven, but sins which are committed against another person, are not forgiven until the person corrects their actions and asks forgiveness from the other.

Q.  Why do we fast on Yom Kippur?

A.  There are many reasons. Here are a few: 1) Being the day of atonement we spend the time with spiritual matters and not physical appetites.

2) Fasting humbles a person.  Thus, on Yom Kippur, when we must perform Teshuva-repentance with all our heart, with humility, we refrain from eating or drinking.

3) On Yom Kippur, when we are forgiven for our sins, we are considered as pure as angels. We express this by acting like angels who don't eat or drink.

May we ALL be sealed for a good, happy and healthy year. May we see peace-Shalom and prosperity in Israel. May ALL the hostages be freed NOW and those who need be healed NOW.

SHABBAT SHALOM, A SHANA TOVA, A GMAR CHATIMA TOVA AND AN EASY FAST

Montreal Friday candle lighting time: 5:57 / Yom Kippur ends: 6:57

B"H

Thursday, Tishrei 8, 5785 / October 10, 2024

There are ten days from Rosh Hashana to Yom Kippur, they are called, “Aseret Yemei Teshuva” – “Ten days of Repentance.”  Now, after Rosh Hashana, we prepare for the Holy day of Yom Kippur – the day in which G-d forgives us for our sins and misdeeds of the past year.

During these days we make a special effort to perform more mitzvot, especially the mitzvah of tzedakah-charity, helping the needy, as we come ask G-d to help us with our own needs for the New Year.

Ever mitzvah we perform makes a big difference. In fact, we never know which is the mitzvah which tips the scale for our good. Thus, we should be careful with every mitzvah.

The story is told of Rabbi Yisrael Meir, Rabbi of Radin, also known as the Chafets Chaim, who once noticed some of the students of the yeshiva, instead of learning, were discussing other subjects. He asked them why they were wasting their time on things other than studying Torah?

They answered, “Rebbe, we studied for hours already, can’t we waste some time… what difference will a few minutes make against the hours we have studied?

Rabbi Yisrael Meir replied, “There was once a man who started dismantling some of the railroad tracks. When the people noticed, they began screaming at him to stop doing it. “You’re going to cause a terrible accident in which many people may lose their lives.”

The man laughed at them, “There are hundreds and hundreds of kilometers of rails… What difference will a few rails totaling a few meters make if they’re removed?”

“But we all know,” said the rabbi, “how silly the man is… A few rails can make all the difference between life and death, if they are disconnected.”

The name “Mitzvah” in addition to command also means, “connection.” Every mitzvah is a connecting factor to G-d, through which G-d’s blessings flow down to us. Thus, we have to be careful to be connected ALL the time and not leave any gaps in our connection.

Q.  Why was the 10th of Tishrei chosen as Yom Kippur – as the day when our sins are forgiven?

A. Forty days after the Giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai, the Jewish people sinned by worshipping the Golden Calf. Eighty days later, G-d forgave them for that sin. Yom Kippur is celebrated on the day in which G-d forgave the Jewish people for the sin of the Golden Calfand the day when Moshe brought down the Second Tablets. G-d chose this day as the day of forgiveness for all generations.

HAVE A VERY GOOD, HEALTHY AND SUCCESSFUL DAY &

GMAR CHATIMA TOVA - A HAPPY, HEALTHY AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR

UNITED WE STAND WITH OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN CAPTIVITY. MAY THEY ALL BE RELEASED NOW