B"H

Tuesday, Iyar 9, 5782 (24^th day of the Omer)/ May 10, 2022

Happy Mother’s day!!  “But it was two days ago? He must be in a different time zone…” you say.

Well, let me explain. The true indicator of honoring ”Mother’s Day,” is when the day after Mother’s Day, and the day after.. and all days of the year are also Mother’s Day! Unfortunately, for many, Mother's Day is just that, “Mother for one day.”  A one day a year event.   

Celebrating Mother’s day one Sunday of the year, may leave some with the false notion that mothers are to be remembered and honored only one day a year.  There is nothing farther from the truth than this.

The mitzvah to honor parents is one of the Ten Commandments and it applies every day of the year and every minute of the day.

One can only imagine the destructive state the world would be in if some of the other commandments, such as, "Do not steal" and, "do not commit murder," would be observed only one day a year!  Can one imagine, "Do not murder day! Or, "Do not steal day?" What about the rest of the year?

According to the Torah, Mother's Day (and for that matter Father's Day) is every day of the year.

Did you know that honoring parents is the only mitzvah of the Ten Commandment for which G-d promises a reward; "Honor your father and your mother, that your days shall be long upon the land which the L-rd your G-d gives to you."

According to our sages this reward is measure for measure, for by taking good care of our parents, we cause that their life is extended, thus we too, are rewarded, measure for measure, with extended life. 

The Talmud relates many wonderful stories about our sages whose level of observance of this mitzvah was way above the requirement and yet the sages said that they have not fulfilled half of this mitzvah.

The Talmud tells a story of a gentile who let go a business deal in which he would have made a tremendous profit. But this would have required him to wake his father in order to retrieve the key to the safe where a precious stone was stored.  In reward, G-d paid him back with a much more profitable deal.

Today may not be "Mother's Day" on the secular calendar but it sure is on G-d's calendar!  A visit or call to mother and father, for those who are blessed to have them, is one of the greatest mitzvot any time!

For those whose parents are not alive, we can always perform a mitzvah in their honor.

Our sages teach that there are three partners in the creation of a child: father, mother and G-d.  Each one of the partners deserves our honor, respect and gratitude. 

Honoring parents teaches our children beautiful values, so that they too will honor their parents (that’s us!) in the same way.

HAVE A VERY GOOD, HAPPY, HEALTHY, SUCCESSFUL AND WONDERFUL DAY

B"H

Friday, Iyar 12, 5782 (27^th day of the Omer)/ May 13, 2022

One of the timeless lessons our sages gave us is found in the Pirkei Avot (Chapters of our Fathers), which we recite every year during the summer months.  Although these lessons were recorded over fifteen hundred years ago, they are as valid and practical today as they were then. 

One of the many teachings in Pirkei Avot is the following: “Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov said, ‘He who fulfills one mitzvah acquires for himself one advocate, and he who commits one transgression acquires against himself one accuser. Repentance and good deeds are like a shield against retribution.’”

Rabbi Eliezer teaches us here the importance of even one mitzvah – one good deed, and the gravity of even one sin. 

One shouldn’t say, “What’s the benefit of doing one mitzvah, when all my life I haven’t done any mitzvot? Or what is the benefit of attending synagogue one time when I don’t attend it regularly? What is the benefit of putting on Tefillin one time when I don’t do it every day?

Rabbi Eliezer tells us that we should not minimize the importance of even ONE mitzvah.  For every mitzvah we do, even a single mitzvah, we acquire for ourselves a good advocate in heaven, which can make a big difference in our favor. 

By the same token, one shouldn’t say, “If I have done so many mitzvot what harm can it be if I commit only one sin?  Here too, tells us Rabbi Eliezer that even one sin can create an accuser in heaven who works against us.

Our sages say that the proper way to view the importance of a mitzvah and the gravity of a sin is as follows: “Every person should at all times view the world as being on a perfectly balanced scale. Every deed we do, even if seemingly a small deed, will tip the balance of the scale one way or another.

If we do a mitzvah, then the universal scale tips to the good side and blessings will flow to us and the world.  But if one performs a sin, the scale gets tipped to the negative side. 

Here we see the importance of even a single mitzvah.  What even one good deed can accomplish.

According to our sages, every mitzvah we perform is a form of tzedakah-charity. 

Just like through tzedakah-charity we help someone who needs our help, so too, with every mitzvah we do we are performing a charitable deed, for it is not only beneficial to ourselves, but also to the whole world. May we merit to do as many mitzvot as possible, but we should not undermine the importance of even one single mitzvah, for it may be that very mitzvah which will tip the scale for blessings and good.

SHABBAT  SHALOM

Montreal candle lighting time: 7:58 / Shabbat ends: 9:10

B"H

Monday, Iyar 15, 5782 (30^th day of the Omer)/ May 16, 2022

Yesterday, the 14^th of Iyar, was Pesach Sheini.  The literal translation of Pesach Sheini is, “The second Pesach.” In the time of the Holy Temples, Pesach Sheini was an important day with practical implications.

Here is how this special day came about.  The Torah, in Numbers chapter 9, tells us that one year after the Exodus, G-d commanded the Jewish people to celebrate the holiday of Pesach - the holiday of their freedom, by offering the Korban Pesach (Pascal sacrifice).  However, there were people who were spiritually impure due to carrying the remains of Joseph to be buried in Israel and one who comes in contact with a dead body cannot partake in the sacrifice. 

The men then came to Moshe and said, "Why should we be lacking the mitzvah of sacrificing the Passover sacrifice?"  The Torah tells us that Moshe brought their case before G-d. 

G-d told Moshe, "Speak to the children of Israel saying,'If a man among you or of your future generations shall be unclean as a result of [contact with] a dead body or will be on a distant journey, they shall make the Pesach offering to the L-rd on the fourteenth day of the second month, toward evening; they shall eat it with matzah and maror (bitter herbs)." 

Thus, the fourteenth of Iyar, became the “second Pesach.” In the days of the Temple, anyone who was impure or far from the Temple at the time of Passover, was given a second chance to perform the mitzvah, one month later on the 14th of Iyar.

Today we don’t have the Temple and as a result sacrifices are forbidden, so the application of Pesach Sheini as it was then, for the purpose of bringing the Pesach sacrifice, is not applicable.

However, the spiritual idea of Pesach Sheini and the lesson it teaches is forever. Pesach Sheini teaches us that we should never say, “We missed our chance and it’s too late.”  Pesach Sheini is all about having another chance! Indeed, G-d gives us always another chance and another chance.  But it’s up to us to take advantage of it.

Another important lesson is that G-d waited for the Jewish people to come forward and request this second chance. At times, it’s up to us to make that first move to show G-d that we really want that second chance.

The story of Rabbi Akiva is the best example of this.  The Talmud tells us that until the age of 40 Rabbi Akiva was an ignorant shepherd. Only at the age of 40, with the encouragement of his wife, Rachel, did he get his chance to study Torah. He studied diligently and forty years later, Rabbi Akiva became the greatest Talmudic sage of his time, leading a Yeshiva with thousands of students!

Pesach Sheini, teaches us to never give up if we failed the first time, for G-d always gives us a second chance.

HAVE A VERY GOOD, HAPPY, HEALTHY & SUCCESSFUL DAY