B"H
Thursday, Nissan 13, 5782 / April 14, 2022
Q.One of the items placed on the Seder plate is a hard boiled egg. What does the egg represent?
A.Unlike other foods, eggs become firmer when boiled. This recalls the story of the Jewish people in Egypt. The Torah tells us that the more the Jewish people were afflicted, the more they multiplied and became exceedingly mighty. We too, throughout history have become much stronger and firmer during our over 2000 years of exile and hardships. May we finally merit the coming of Moshiach. Amen.
*A wealthy man was fond of a particular beggar. Every year, before Pesach he gave the poor man 500 rubles. One year, when the poor man came for his annual Pesach donation, the rich man gave him only 250 rubles.
“What is the meaning of this?” asked the beggar. “This is only half of what you usually give me.”
“I’m sorry, but I must cut my expenses,” replied the benefactor apologetically. This year my daughter married a young man who is studying in Yeshiva. Between the wedding bills and their support I cannot give you more.
“What!” cried the poor man, “you marry off your daughter and support her and her husband on my account?!”
**In Chelm, there was a wine maker. We'll call him Yankel. Naturally, most of his yearly income came before Pesach, when Jews all over, and Chelm was no exception, buy a lot of wine.
One year before Pesach, Yankel opened a fresh barrel and noticed that it was half empty. How could wine be missing from a newly-opened barrel? He thought and thought, but couldn't figure it out. He called his wife and told her about this puzzle. "Perhaps you can solve the mystery," he said.
After a quick inspection, she pointed to the bottom of the barrel and exclaimed, "Yankel, look there is a small hole here. This is why the wine is missing!"
Yankel carefully inspected the hole, examined the wine in the barrel and looked at the hole again. "That's the silliest thing I have ever heard! How could the hole be the culprit?" he said confidently. "Look, the hole is at the bottom of the barrel and the wine is missing at the top!"
***Rabbi Akiva Eiger, one of the great Torah scholars of his day, would invite many poor people to his Seder and did everything he could to make them feel at home. Once, a guest accidentally spilled his cup of wine all over the new white Pesach tablecloth. The poor man became very embarrassed. Thinking quickly, Rabbi Akiva Eiger knocked over his owncup and exclaimed, "It seems that the table is not very steady…"
BEST WISHES TO YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES FOR A HAPPY & HEALTHY PASSOVER
CHAG KOSHER V’SAMEACH - NEXT YEAR (even better.. THIS YEAR) IN JERUSALEM
Next Torah Fax in a week and a half, after the holiday, G-d willing
B"H
Tuesday, Nissan 25, 5782 (10th day of the Omer)/ April 6, 2022
Shalom. I hope everyone had a wonderful Pesach holiday. May the spirit of Pesach - the holiday of Freedom, continue through the entire year. We find ourselves now between the holidays of Pesach and the holiday of Shavuot – when G-d gave us the Torah at Mount Sinai.
Beginning with the second night of Pesach, until Shavuot, a period of forty nine days, we perform the special mitzvah of "Counting of the Omer" ("Sefirat Haomer").
Each night, at the end of the evening service, we recite the following blessing, "Blessed are you L-rd, our G-d, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and has commanded us regarding the counting of the Omer." Then we mention the appropriate day of the Omer. We perform this mitzvah for a period of forty nine days (seven weeks).
The mitzvah of counting the Omer is found in Leviticus (23:15): "And you shall count unto you... seven weeks complete they shall be."
As with all mitzvot, this mitzvah of "Sefirat Haomer," which connects the holiday of our Exodus from bondage; and Shavuot, when we received the Torah, teaches us a special lesson.
On the day of the Exodus, the people of Israel gained their physical freedomfrom Egypt. However, they still did not free themselves of their "spiritual" enslavement to the Egyptians. After hundreds of years of slavery it would take more than just leaving Egypt to accomplish that purification. As the saying goes, "It was easier to take the Jewish people out of Egypt, than to take Egypt out of the Jewish people."
The seven weeks between the Exodus and receiving the Torah enabled the Jewish people to gradually elevate themselves each dayuntil, in the end, they were completely rid of their spiritual enslavement and were ready to receive the Torah.
The Ten Commandments begin with, "I am the L-rd your G-d who delivered you from the land of Egypt from the house of slavery." True freedom took place at Mount Sinai when we received the Torah.
The Jewish festivals which G-d gave us are not merely days of physical celebration. They are also opportunities for us to draw spiritualenergy, inspiration and elevation for the rest of the year.
Pesach is the "Season of our freedom." However, the Torah concept of freedom is not necessarily the same as the common definition. The Torah concept of freedom is not freedom from responsibility. Freedom comes with purpose and responsibility. When one has no purpose and responsibility, they may be enslaved to their lusts, desires and even evil inclinations.
True freedom can only be achieved when realizing our purpose in life through living by the laws and guidelines of our G-d given Torah.
HAVE A VERY GOOD, HAPPY, HEALTHY AND SUCCESSFUL DAY
B"H
Wednesday, Nissan 26, 5782 (11th day of the Omer)/ April 27, 2022
Today isYom HaShoa – Holocaust Memorial Day, designatedtoremember our Six Million martyrs, who were murdered for no other reason, except for the fact that they wereJewish.
Jews were always the easy scapegoats for other nation’s problems. From the Egyptian exile up to our days, anti-Semitism existed, in one form or another for the past three thousand years. Today, when it is politically incorrect to call it anti Semitism, it is called BDS, or anti Zionism, etc., but the concept is the same. No matter what the disguised official name may be, it derives from hating Jews and Israel.
But, throughout the past three thousand years, it is we, the victims, who always came out on top. Which is why we are compared to oil. For no matter how much you beat and mix it, it always floats to the top. Our strength lies in the fact that we never forget. We do not forget our past and as a result have a very distinct GPS system to guide us on our path to the future, even if the road may be bumpy.
Many of the nations who tried to annihilate us are long gone and completely forgotten. But we are still here, greater, and stronger than ever. Yes, in too many cases they were able to take our bodies, but they were never able to take our spirit. Even when they were able to rob us of our physical possessions, they were never able to take away our Torah and spiritual inheritance.
“Am Yisrael Chai” – “The nation of Israel lives on,” is our eternal slogan. The Torah is our life! The Torah and the Jew are inseparable. Thus, we are both everlasting.
We remember the six million Holocaust victims, including the one million infants and children, who were murdered over 77 years ago. We mustgive our children the proper education and exposure to our heritage. Our continuity depends on our children and grandchildren.
May we merit the coming of Moshiach when there will be no more wars and more strife. Although it may be hard to imagine such a time, G-d promised us through our prophets that that era will definitely come.
But how is it possible that Moshiach, who didn’t come during the times of the prophets and our great sages’ generations ago, will come now? Is our merit greater than theirs?
Our rabbis answer this question with the following parable: A giant was walking in a field and saw a very tall tree with beautiful tempting fruits on top of it. But the fruits were beyond his reach. Then he saw someone standing next to him. He asked him, “Would you like to eat of these beautiful tempting fruits?”
“Are you making fun of me?” Replied the person. “How do you expect me to reach the fruits, when you cannot?”
Replied the giant: “I will place you on my shoulder and together we could accomplish it!”
It is the same with Moshiach. It’s a joint effort of all generations over the past three thousand years. We, today are riding on the shoulders of giants - our ancestors. Together we will accomplish it. May it be speedily in our days.
HAVE A VERY GOOD, HAPPY, HEALTHY AND SUCCESSFUL DAY
B"H
Friday, Nissan 28, 5782 (13th day of the Omer)/ April 29, 2022
The Torah reading for this Shabbat will not be the same in the Diaspora as in Israel. The Torah reading in Israel will be Parshat Kedoshim, the seventh Parsha in the Book of Leviticus. In the Diaspora we will read Parshat Acharei - the sixth Parsha in Leviticus. Thus, Israel is one Parsha ahead of us in the Torah readings.
Also, in the Diaspora we will recite the first chapter of the Pirkei Avot (Chapters of our Fathers), and in Israel they will be reciting the second chapter. Here too, Israel is one week ahead of us.
Israel and the Diaspora will again be back to the same Torah reading on the last Shabbat in July.
This Shabbat we will bless the New Hebrew Month, Iyar. Rosh Chodesh will begin Saturday night, through Sunday and Monday.
One of the many instructions our sages give in the first chapter of Pirkei Avot is from the sage Antignos Ish Socho. He said, “Do not be like servants who serve their master for the sake of receiving a reward, but rather be like servants who serve their master without the intent of receiving a reward; and let the fear of heaven be upon you.”
Q. One of the thirteen principles of Jewish faith is that G-d rewards for the observance of mitzvot and punishes for desecrating them. So, why shouldn’t anyone do the mitzvot for sake of their reward?
A. A man came to a town and offered to walk across the river on a tightrope for one hundred gulden. Amongst the many people who gathered to watch the scene was Rabbi Chaim of Krasna, a disciple of the Baal Shem Tov. Rabbi Chaim watched the man very intently as he was walking on the tightrope.
When asked why he was so interested in the man walking on the rope, Rabbi Chaim told his followers that watching this scene taught him a great lesson in the service of G-d.
"Here I saw a man putting his life at risk in order to earn 100 gulden. Yet, as I was watching him walking the rope, I realized that his entire concentration was on the task before him. Had he thought of the reward that he will receive he would have lost concentration and fallen into the river.”
"From this I learned,” said Rabbi Chaim, “that although G-d promised us reward for the mitzvot, yet, when we perform the mitzvah, our entire concentrationshould be to accomplish the mitzvah to the best of our ability and not think about the reward. Only then can we fulfill the mitzvot properly.”
SHABBAT SHALOM
Montreal candle lighting time: 7:41 / Shabbat ends: 8:49
|
Torah Fax is published daily (except Shabbat & Sunday) so you can learn something new every day |