Parashat Hashavua

Portion of Kedoshim – Holy "Mitzvas" – Sabbaths and Idol Worship (today)

What do celebrating Shabbat and refraining from Idol Worship have to do with each other (especially today).

"Kedoshim tihyu" the portion says – we are commanded to be holy. How?
Rabaynu Bachya (of Spain about 7 hundred years ago) wrote that

this portion relates those 2 issues: idol worship - the BASIC ANTITHESIS to G-dliness - to the concept of celebrating the Sabbath (Shabbat) – as the BASIC TENET of G-dliness.

Idol Worship (and money worship, or other addictions) do not leave us free to understand what the Almighty wants of us (whether for our own development, the good of our family, or people, or the world).

The Shabbat is the antidote - and the antithesis - of these addictions.

On the Sabbath we can breathe deeply, take time with our close ones (NOT JUST RUSH TO THE STORE, OR EVEN RUN TO THAT CAMPING TRIP in the great outdoors, that the Almighty created to inspire us and expand our conscious ness).

The Shabbat should give us time to think – and remember that we are here on this planet for a purpose –

so be a little Holy this week: celebrate the Shabbat, and be inspired by Israel Independence celebrations next week – celebrating the miracle of our coming back to re-build our homeland and our people and our faith in the G-d that promised it to us.

Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

פרטים: נכתב על ידי Super User; קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ב01 דצמבר 2020; כניסות: 1660

Portion of Kedoshim

Matza- Infinity or Real Numbers?

Four Questions and Four Children speaking up -

That is the Hagadda - and the Seder is the answer that works for 3000 years

Okay - so Passover can be a lot of work -

BUT YOUR CHILDREN WILL

ALWAYS REMEMBER

and APPRECIATE

WHAT YOU ALL PUT INTO IT-

(IF YOU DON'T COMPLAIN TOO LOUD ABOUT IT)

BECAUSE you know

THEY WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER THE LOOKS OF PAIN

AND THE COMPLAINTS about anything .... AND YOU DON'T WANT THAT!!!!

Matza is just Soul Food - enough to keep your soul alive in today's desert of ideas -

Matza is a part of the Big Plan we sometimes hide from -

The PLAN is to know when and how to do Jewish Mitzvas fast -

You learn to Bake Matzas in up tp 18 minutes - no more

18 stands for Chai - to live

Passover - and Matza - can pack a lot of SoulPower into 18 minutes

Love from Israel - and wishes for a happy and healthy Passover

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

פרטים: נכתב על ידי Super User; קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ב01 דצמבר 2020; כניסות: 1784

Pesach

Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach used to say over a Hassidic story

About a Rebbe who came to the next world and went in search of his good friend -

(the allegory is we are ALWAYS searching for a GOOD FRIEND)

Tonight and tomorrow is the anniversary of the Israélite's crossing the Red Sea

(been there and crossed that - but not

the same way)

So too tomorrow is the day of saying Yizkor- do not forget!

When the Hassidic Rebbe found his holy friend by the sea

his friend said

"this is the sea

made of all the tears of Israel

and I pray for an end to the tears"

So remember to say Yizkor

ANd remember we

ALL have seas to cross

and there are sometimes tears at each

crossing - and wecan help each other end the tears

In the end the Almighty gets us ALL

to the Holy Land

A place and time to sing Halel songs and celebrate

Happy Pesach and Gutt Shabbos

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

celebrating in the Holy Land

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Pesach

Portion of Tazria – Aw, Do we Have To do 613 Commandments?

Thank you Ora for initiating this idea.

How many commandments are in the Torah for us all? 613?

How does this portion say "If a woman gives birth … she shall be ritually impure for … days … and then …"?

Do men give birth? Then how do men fulfill this commandment?

Later on it says "If there is a (leprous) wound in the beard …" – but do women have beards? Then how can they be commanded to this one of the 613 commandments?

So we have been taught – all of Israel is bound as one people – and

If there are 613 Commandments, and some part of our people do this one, and when some part do that one-

we are all considered as part of the Whole People of Israel doing All the Commanments!

This Shabbat, be a part of ONE BIG HOLY PEOPLE!

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

פרטים: נכתב על ידי Super User; קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ב01 דצמבר 2020; כניסות: 1535

portion of Tazria

Portion of Shemini and Haftara of Parah - Reasonable or NOT?

This is Based on Rabbi Sholom Brodt - a student of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach -

who heads Yeshivat Sinchat Shlomo in Jerusalem-

Who based his idea on that of the Rebbe of the Warsaw Ghetto (1942).

Why should we perform Torah Commandments we don't understand or maybe even agree with?

(like Parah Aduma and Sacrifices the priests did in the Temple - from this week's Torah Reading)

Rabbi Akiva taught that

‘just like a ‘mikveh’ (Jewish ritual bath) purifies (for MANY purposes)

those who are ‘tamei’ (Ritually and Spiritual NOT READY)

so too The Almighty purifies Iisrael [as it says "mikveh Yisrael Hashem”

– Hashem is the ‘mikveh’ (prepares us for the SERVICE of G-d) of Yisrael.’

This explains that to come close to G-d

we must try with our whole HEARTS.to PURIFY our INTENTIONS relating to our SPIRITUAL SIDE

As Rabbi Carlebach often said "friends. Open Your Hearts" - totally

Meaning be open " to the Amighty's holiness and will, the Commandments - mitzvot"

and try to perform and enjoy them purely - as a gift of G-d.

So too did Moshe Rabeinu in this Portion - Shemini - try to teach Aron and his sons - to perform the commandments of all the Temple work - with a full heart -

and thus achieve the spiritual benefits for ALL ISRAEL

May we enjoy and perform this Shabbat and its MITZVOT with all our hearts and love

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

פרטים: נכתב על ידי Super User; קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ב01 דצמבר 2020; כניסות: 1643

Portion Tzav – Darth Vader versus Aron the Hih Priest

Searching for kid and adult costumes I found there were Cleopatra and Minnie Mouse and Darth Vader and Police Officer Outfits but-

No High Priest Costumes for sale for Purim?

In this week’s portion the Torah continues with "sacrifices"

and then with Aron the Priest and his Sons-as-Part-of the community

"Take Aron and his sons” and inaugurate the JEWISH PRIESTHOOD–

So they are inaugurated in front of the Tent (Sanctuary) of the meeting – in front of all Israel

Judaisn is One Family community

They call us tribes – but we are the "OPEN SYSTEM tribes

We are the WELCOMING ALL tribe and we say–

join us for sacrifice to FIX THE HATRED IN THE WORLD or HATRED OF ONE ANOTHER –

and learn holiness in our

“Bayti beit tefila Lekol HaAmin – our house of prayer is for ALL nations”

If only the world would understand that

Maybe there would be Purim costumes of Aron the High Priest and his sons the JEWISH priests!

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

פרטים: נכתב על ידי Super User; קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ב01 דצמבר 2020; כניסות: 1633

portion of Tzav

Portion of : Vayikra and Zachor (Remember)

It was the week before Purim and all through the house

there were costumes of butterflies and even a mouse!

The Almighty's poetry is better than mine - and it says

We see G-d "called to Moshe" with a little "aleph" at the end -

(Hebrew letter aleph meaning "champion" - a LITTLE letter here so as NOT to inflate our EGO_

And this Shabbat we read also

that we have to "Remember what Amalek did (and does) -

so wipe out the memory of Amalek

(whether their evil acts and intentions -

or the doubt and fear they sew ...

Yes - Moses our teacher STARTED the defeat of Amalek -

but evil and doubts and fears are still things we must contend with

but we can all realize

that the Almighty calls to the "Great but Humble Moses" within us all -

with a LITTLE ALEPH

to be the CHAMPIONS of ANTI-EVIL in our world-

by celebrating AND SHARING the story of PURIM this week.

With blessings from Israel

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

פרטים: נכתב על ידי Super User; קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua; פורסם ב01 דצמבר 2020; כניסות: 1600

Portion of Pekuday – Ending Book 2 of the Famous 5 - How Good is Good?

Reb Elimelech ofLizensk wrote the Hassidism/Torah Book "Noam Elimelech".

Actually, Saturday nights, his son Elozer used to write down the talks given each Shabbat, and later on show them to his father "for corrections". (These were the basis of the book.)

One time his father asked "who wrote this stuff? It's pretty Holy!" not realizing that they were his own words!

So who knows how Holy we are?

On this week's portion Reb Elimelech said: There are 3 types of Tzadikim (Holy People).
(All the great Masters remark on the fact that the portion begins with sentences repeating the word PEKUDAY – "orders" – 3 times. I try here to explain Reb Elimelech's view.)

There is a Holy person who accepts gifts only to give to others, and there is a Holy person who accepts gifts for others but also in order to personally survive.We all are ordered by Hashem in some way.

Yet there is a third type of Holy person who is always praying and living in a heavenly sphere continuously supplicating for the good and welfare of the Almighty's world and G-d's people and ALL the creations of the Holy One Blessed Be He. This is a level of orders not everyone can achieve easily.

Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach used to say, ALL of us are HOLY, and anyone can be Holy – just you have to know where to START – like with Shabbos.

You may feel you can't satisfactorily keep the Shabbos – so start with JUST ONE HOUR.

And then when you have that under your belt – try two hours. And later three hours. Etc.

The same with HOLINESS – start slow – BUT STRIVE TO ADVANCE IN G-DLINESS AS YOU CAN.

Have a wonderful and HOLY Shabbat
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

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Portion of Pekuday

Portion of VaYakHel – Is there a Sabbath in a cultural Desert?

"YihYeh Lachem Shabbat Kodesh – You will have a Holy Shabbat"

How could G-d tell them this after sending the Israelites to 40 years in the desert? What Shabbat does He promise them? What Holiness?

Rebbe Nachman of Breslav writes about "How you make a Shabbat Kodesh" – with a discussion from the Talmud about "If you get lost in the desert – make the seventh day your Sabbath…"

And he quotes the Kabbalah where the students say to Rebbe Shimon "you the Holy Tzadik are equivalent to the Sabbath".

Where is the spirituality of the world? Not in the great cities of the world. After you see the culture - they hold nothing of spiritual value.

I just flew home via Moscow again – Moscow of the Russians bombing in the Middle East, Moscow the "Workers' Paradise" – where in transferring planes, the workers stole 3 or 4 baby carriages from the passengers!

They left families with kids having to walk kilometers in the airport carrying screaming kids – is that culture?

Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach taught that the greatest Mitzva is to try and help – but not one of the workers responsible for transferring planes would listen to me and make a call to find out where the baby carriages were! So I ended up carrying a one-year old and a Sefer Torah through the airport to help out as my Rebbe would expect.

So here the Almighty says there is a concept of Holiness and of Sabbath.

When you are lost in a desert the Talmud teaches us to look for a Holy Tzadik -to lead and teach you out of the desert – physical or spiritual.

May G-d bless us all with a little Sabbath, a little holiness, and a little direction from Holy Righteous people.

Love and Shabbos for all

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

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Key Teesah - Raising Up - Of Moses and Modesty

Key Tisah means "when you raise up"

and ends with Moses shining "light" to the people of Israel

The Medrash explains that the "rays of light" were a reward for Moses' modesty -

because he did not even want the Almighty to write in the Torah how modest he was!

Moses did not get angry when the people created the Golden Calf - nor did he "go on strike"

but he kept on WITH HIS JOB -

to RAISE THE G-D AWARENESS AMONGTHE PEOPLE

That was why the portion ends with the rays of light emanating from Moses - showing how

he would not give up after the Golden Calf - but SPREAD LIGHT

He knew it was HIS JOB TO REJUVENATE THE SPIRITUAL SIDE OF THE ISRAELITES

AND WHAT DO WE LEARN FROM THIS PORTION

(Thank you Dr Moshe Rothkopf for pointing this out- and I paraphrase here-

We learn that no matter how spiritually low we might fall-

there is always a Moshe Rabaynu soul out there - a spiritual powerhouse

to show you that you can get to "the highest closest to the Almighty"

This is the example of Moses - the light that shone - from his modesty - always uplifting

and this is the point of the world -

to have pointers on how raise each other up

have a High Shabbat -

a HEALING Shabbat-

As Rav Shlomo Carlebach said -

Let this shabbat should be the highest yet!

love and shabbos

Rabbi Andy Eichenholz

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portion of Key Teesah

עמוד 42 מתוך 60