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Parshat Mishpatim 5773
Written by: Ruth Michaels Editor: David Michaels Parshat Acharey Mot-Kedoshim 5778 At the beginning of this parsha verse 2 states, “Speak to all the congregation of the to cleave to him (u'ldavkah bo). Moreover we are duty bound to do all that is good and children of Israel and say to them: holy shall you be... ". Rav Shimshon Refuel Hirsch perfect ...simply because G-d commanded us to do so." comments that only at the giving of the very first Law which Israel received, the command of the Pesach offering, do we find the order written in similar terms ,to He continues to ask " Why does the Torah say Kedoshim T'hihyu?" “You should be announce the Law to the whole community. The reason for this is because this holy...”. He answers that one should not think that kedoshim t'hihyu refers solely to admonition, "holy shall you be “ refers to the highest degree of moral human perfection forbidden sexual relations due to its juxtaposition to the laws at the end of Acharei Mot and every individual needs to be included in this call to very height of absolute morality. but this phrase refers to each of the Ten Utterances, This means the Jewish people should be holy and sanctify themselves in all matters. Rabbi M Miller suggests that Moshe had to speak to the whole congregation, to each one individually, because in the question of self restraint even from pleasures generally The parsha of Kedoshim follows the sedras from Vaiyikra to Acharei Mot. What is the permitted, each individual must know his own nature...detect in himself the inclinations significance of this order? According to Rav Shimshon Refuel Hirsch, the morality is that threaten to degrade him and exercise on himself those restraints that will restore learned from G-d’s word which rests beneath the wings of the keruvim. -
PARASHAT SHEMINI the Sin of Nadav and Avihu and the Animals
PARASHAT SHEMINI The Sin of Nadav and Avihu and the Animals Prohibited for Consumption By Rav Amnon Bazak A. The Problem In the aftermath of the tragic death of Nadav and Avihu, the Torah suddenly interrupts the narrative with a command highlighting an additional function of the kohanim: And to distinguish between the holy and the profane, and between the impure and the pure; and to instruct Bnei Yisrael concerning all of the statutes which God spoke to them at the hand of Moshe. (10:10-11) These verses set forth the framework for the chapters that follow in chiastic order. First, the Torah discusses the differences between the impure and the pure, in terms of the types of animals that may be eaten and those that may not (chapter 11), and the various types of impurity and purity (Parashot Acharei Mot, Tazri'a, and Metzora); thereafter, it addresses the differences between the holy and the profane (Parashot Kedoshim andEmor). What do these categories and the differentiation between them have to do with the sin of Nadav and Avihu? Why are the kohanim given the new job of differentiating between the holy and profane and between the impure and the pure specifically here, in the midst of the events of the "eighth day"? In order to answer this question, let us examine the animals forbidden as food as listed in chapter 11. We will find two groups of prohibitions in this chapter, and we will discuss the connection between them and the story of the death of Nadav and Avihu. -
Shabbat Shalom from Cyberspace May 11, 2013 - 2 Sivan 5773
Shabbat Shalom from Cyberspace May 11, 2013 - 2 Sivan 5773 SHABBAT SHALOM FROM CYBERSPACE BEMIDBAR/SHABUOT MAY 10-11, 2013 2 SIVAN 5773 Day 46 of the Omer Happy Mother’s Day to all and Happy Anniversary Chantelle SEPHARDIC CONGREGATION OF LONG BEACH We look forward to welcoming Baruch and Michal Abittan & Rabbi Dr. Meyer and Debra who along with Rebetzin Ida are sponsoring the Kidush in honor of their, daughter, granddaughter and great granddaughter Sarah Chaya, Abittan Friday Night: Candles: 7:41 PM - Afternoon and Evening service (Minha/Arbith): 7:00 PM Morning Service (Shaharith): 9:00AM –Please say Shemah at home by 8:29 AM 11:00 - 12:00 Orah's will be here with our Shabbat Morning Kids Program upstairs in the Rabbi's study. Stories, Tefillah, Games, Snacks and more . And Leah Colish will be babysitting down in the playroom 5:30 - Mincha Shabbat Afternoon Oneg with Rabbi Yosef and Leah; Treats, Stories, Basketball, Hula-hoop, Parsha Quiz, Tefillot, Raffles and Fun! Supervised play during Seudat Shelishit. 5:30: Ladies Torah Class at the Lemberger's 1 East Olive. Pirkei Avot 6:30 with Rabbi Aharon Minha: 7:00 PM – Seudah Shelishi and a Class 7:30 – with Rabbi David – Seudah Shelishi co-sponsored in honor of Chantelle and David’s anniversary and for all the moms on mother’s day … Evening Service (Arbith): 8:30 PM - Shabbat Ends: 8:41PM WEEKDAY TEFILLA SCHEDULE Shaharit Sunday8:00, Mon-Fri at 7:00 (6:55 Mondays and Thursdays) WEEKDAY TORAH CLASS SCHEDULE Daily 6:30 AM class – Honest Business Practices Monday Night Class with Rabba Yanai – 7PM Monday night LADIES: Wednesday Night 8PM with Esther Wein at various homes – continues next week Financial Peace University – Continues next Tuesday at 8PM The sisterhood will once again sponsor lunch the second day of shavuoth. -
1. Keter (Primary Meaning: Crown
1. KETER (PRIMARY MEANING: CROWN. ALSO KNOWN AS: UPPER CROWN, AYIN (NOTHINGNESS), CHOKHMAH PENIMIT (INTERNAL WISDOM), MAHSHAVAH ELOHIT (DIVINE THOUGHT), SPIRIT OF G-D, ROOT OF ROOTS, MYSTERIOUS WISDOM, EHYEH ASHER EHYEH, (I AM THAT I AM) 2. CHOKHMAH (PRIMARY MEANING: WISDOM. ALSO KNOWN AS: REVELATION, THE PRIMORDIAL TORAH (THE TORAH THAT EXISTED BEFORE CREATION), FATHER, YESH ME-AYIN (BEING FROM NOTHINGNESS), BEGINNING, YAH, YHVH) 3. BINAH (PRIMARY MEANING: UNDERSTANDING. ALSO KNOWN AS: INTELLECT, TESHUVAH (REPENTANCE), REASON, PALACE, TEMPLE, WOMB, UPPER MOTHER, JERUSALEM ABOVE, FREEDOM, JUBILEE, "YHVH PRONOUNCED AS ELOHIM") 4. CHESED (PRIMARY MEANING: MERCY. ALSO KNOWN AS: GRACE, LOVE OF G-D, RIGHT ARM OF G-D, WHITE, EL, ASSOCIATED WITH ABRAHAM) 5. GEVURAH (ALSO CALLED "DIN" - PRIMARY MEANING: JUDGMENT. ALSO KNOWN AS: STRENGTH, SEVERITY, FEAR OF G-D, LEFT ARM OF G-D, RED, ELOHIM, YAH, ASSOCIATED WITH ISAAC) 6. TIPHERET (PRIMARY MEANING: BEAUTY. ALSO KNOWN AS: HARMONY, RACHAMIM (COMPASSION), THE ATTRIBUTE OF MERCY, THE WRITTEN TORAH, BRIDEGROOM, HUSBAND, SON, KING, FATHER, MESSIAH, TABERNACLE/TEMPLE, THE HOLY TREE, (TREE OF LIFE), HEAVEN, THE LETTER "VAV," CREATOR, GATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, SUN, "THE HOLY ONE BLESSED BE HE," HA-SHEM, YHVH, YHVH-ELOHIM, THE GREAT NAME, THE UNIQUE NAME, THE LUCID MIRROR, OPEN MIRACLES, LULAV [ON SUCCOTH], THE SHOFAR [AS RELATED TO THE MITZVOT OF BLOWING THE SHOFAR], GREEN, TEFILLIN OF THE HEAD, ASSOCIATED WITH JACOB) 7. NETZACH (PRIMARY MEANING: VICTORY. ALSO KNOWN AS: ETERNITY, PROPHECY, ORCHESTRATION, INITIATIVE, PERSISTENCE, BITACHON (CONFIDENCE), RIGHT LEG, "HOSTS OF YHVH," ASSOCIATED WITH MOSES) 8. HOD (PRIMARY MEANING: GLORY. ALSO KNOWN AS: MAJESTY, SPLENDOR, REVERBERATION, PROPHECY, SURRENDER, TEMIMUT (SINCERITY), ANCHOR, STEADFASTNESS, LEFT LEG, "HOSTS OF ELOHIM," ASSOCIATED WITH AARON) 9. -
Noahidism Or B'nai Noah—Sons of Noah—Refers To, Arguably, a Family
Noahidism or B’nai Noah—sons of Noah—refers to, arguably, a family of watered–down versions of Orthodox Judaism. A majority of Orthodox Jews, and most members of the broad spectrum of Jewish movements overall, do not proselytize or, borrowing Christian terminology, “evangelize” or “witness.” In the U.S., an even larger number of Jews, as with this writer’s own family of orientation or origin, never affiliated with any Jewish movement. Noahidism may have given some groups of Orthodox Jews a method, arguably an excuse, to bypass the custom of nonconversion. Those Orthodox Jews are, in any event, simply breaking with convention, not with a scriptural ordinance. Although Noahidism is based ,MP3], Tạləmūḏ]תַּלְמּוד ,upon the Talmud (Hebrew “instruction”), not the Bible, the text itself does not explicitly call for a Noahidism per se. Numerous commandments supposedly mandated for the sons of Noah or heathen are considered within the context of a rabbinical conversation. Two only partially overlapping enumerations of seven “precepts” are provided. Furthermore, additional precepts, not incorporated into either list, are mentioned. The frequently referenced “seven laws of the sons of Noah” are, therefore, misleading and, indeed, arithmetically incorrect. By my count, precisely a dozen are specified. Although I, honestly, fail to understand why individuals would self–identify with a faith which labels them as “heathen,” that is their business, not mine. The translations will follow a series of quotations pertinent to this monotheistic and ,MP3], tạləmūḏiy]תַּלְמּודִ י ,talmudic (Hebrew “instructive”) new religious movement (NRM). Indeed, the first passage quoted below was excerpted from the translated source text for Noahidism: Our Rabbis taught: [Any man that curseth his God, shall bear his sin. -
Wertheimer, Editor Imagining the Seth Farber an American Orthodox American Jewish Community Dreamer: Rabbi Joseph B
Imagining the American Jewish Community Brandeis Series in American Jewish History, Culture, and Life Jonathan D. Sarna, Editor Sylvia Barack Fishman, Associate Editor For a complete list of books in the series, visit www.upne.com and www.upne.com/series/BSAJ.html Jack Wertheimer, editor Imagining the Seth Farber An American Orthodox American Jewish Community Dreamer: Rabbi Joseph B. Murray Zimiles Gilded Lions and Soloveitchik and Boston’s Jeweled Horses: The Synagogue to Maimonides School the Carousel Ava F. Kahn and Marc Dollinger, Marianne R. Sanua Be of Good editors California Jews Courage: The American Jewish Amy L. Sales and Leonard Saxe “How Committee, 1945–2006 Goodly Are Thy Tents”: Summer Hollace Ava Weiner and Kenneth D. Camps as Jewish Socializing Roseman, editors Lone Stars of Experiences David: The Jews of Texas Ori Z. Soltes Fixing the World: Jewish Jack Wertheimer, editor Family American Painters in the Twentieth Matters: Jewish Education in an Century Age of Choice Gary P. Zola, editor The Dynamics of American Jewish History: Jacob Edward S. Shapiro Crown Heights: Rader Marcus’s Essays on American Blacks, Jews, and the 1991 Brooklyn Jewry Riot David Zurawik The Jews of Prime Time Kirsten Fermaglich American Dreams and Nazi Nightmares: Ranen Omer-Sherman, 2002 Diaspora Early Holocaust Consciousness and and Zionism in Jewish American Liberal America, 1957–1965 Literature: Lazarus, Syrkin, Reznikoff, and Roth Andrea Greenbaum, editor Jews of Ilana Abramovitch and Seán Galvin, South Florida editors, 2001 Jews of Brooklyn Sylvia Barack Fishman Double or Pamela S. Nadell and Jonathan D. Sarna, Nothing? Jewish Families and Mixed editors Women and American Marriage Judaism: Historical Perspectives George M. -
An Xlent Haggadah
An XLent Seder Each time we retell the story It's an exercise of imagination The seder isn't just a The Exodus story, its wonder, we're doing our own Midrash. to understand what slavery was celebration of freedom, joy, and significance must be like and to define our current it's a clear call to action. passed on. The Haggadah shouldn't be freedom. a fossilized book. Who knows fourteen? "Jacob, if I saw you in Shul more, You can teach Judaism in a 14 are the varieties of … you'd know the difference between positive way; it doesn’t have a Bracha and Kaddish." to be ‘us against them’. Freed us from slavery, Dayenu! What could go right? The untraditional Seder is becoming Slaughtered their progeny, Dayenu! As it turned out, everything! conventional. Split open wide the sea, Dayenu! Drowned all our enemies, Dayenu! Thank you for coming to this emergency meeting of the Plague Selection Son – wise, son – wet! Committee. WELCOME TO OUR SEDER A 40th anniversary celebration seder I'm so happy you're all here. [NZ]: "It’s very important at my seders, even though my kids are knowledgeable, to make sure that we have guests. When we don’t have guests our seders do not go well. You get that initial excitement that you have from the first time people are at our seders and we also try to make sure we have people have some incredible stories to tell because those stories are the heart of it." We'll find out shortly who that is. -
Saratoga Haggadah 2018 with Full Birkat Hamazon
1 The Seder Plate What's on the Table by Geoff Chesman (Adapted) From Haggadot.com We place a Seder Plate at our table as a reminder to discuss certain aspects of the Passover story. Each item has its own significance. Maror – The bitter herb, which symbolizes the harshness of lives of the Jews in Egypt. Charoset – A delicious mix of sweet wine, apples, cinnamon and nuts that resembles the mortar used as bricks of the many buildings the Jewish slaves built in Egypt Karpas – A green vegetable, usually parsley, as a reminder of the green sprouting up all around us during spring and dipped into the saltwater, symbolizing he bitter tears of enslavement. Chazeret – A bitter vegetable (often romaine lettuce), used in addition to the Maror as a bitter herb. The authorities are divided on the requirement of chazeret, so not all communities use it. Since the commandment uses the plural (“bitter herbs”) most Seder plates have a place for chazeret. (They shall eat the flesh that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs. – Exodus 12:8) Zeroah – Traditionally a roasted lamb or shank bone – vegetarians often use a beet – symbolizing the Paschal lamb sacrifice made at the ancient Temple in Jerusalem on Passover. Beitzah – The egg, which symbolizes a different holiday offering brought to the Temple. Since eggs are the first item offered to a mourner after a funeral, some say it also evokes a sense of mourning for the destruction of the temple. Orange – A recent addition to the Seder plate, which represents full inclusion in Judaism: women, people with disabilities, intermarried couples, and the LGBTQ Community. -
1. Agudas Shomrei Hadas Rabbi Kalman Ochs 320 Tweedsmuir Ave
1. Agudas Shomrei Hadas Rabbi Kalman Ochs 320 Tweedsmuir Ave Suite 207 Toronto, Ontario M5P 2Y3 Canada (416)357-7976 [email protected] 2. Atlanta Kashrus – Peach Kosher 1855 LaVista Road N.E. Atlanta, GA 30329 404-634-4063 www.kosheratlanta.org Rabbi Reuven Stein [email protected] 404-271-2904 3. Beth Din of Johannesburg Rabbi Dovi Goldstein POB 46559, Orange Grove 2119 Johannesburg, South Africa 010-214-2600 [email protected] 4. BIR Badatz Igud Rabbonim 5 Castlefield Avenue Salford, Manchester, M7 4GQ, United Kingdom +44-161-720-8598 www.badatz.org Rabbi Danny Moore 44-161-720-8598 fax 44-161-740-7402 [email protected] 5. Blue Ribbon Kosher Rabbi Sholem Fishbane 2701 W. Howard Chicago, IL 60645 773-465-3900 [email protected] crckosher.org 6. British Colombia -BC Kosher - Kosher Check Rabbi Avraham Feigelstock 401 - 1037 W. Broadway Vancouver, B.C. V6H 1E3 CANADA 604-731-1803 fax 604-731-1804 [email protected] 7. Buffalo Va’ad Rabbi Eliezer Marcus 49 Barberry Lane Buffalo, NY 11421 [email protected] 716-534-0230 8. Caribbean Kosher Rabbi Mendel Zarchi 18 Calle Rosa Carolina, PR 00979 787.253.0894 [email protected] 9. Central California Kosher Rabbi Levy Zirkind 1227 E. Shepherd Ave. Fresno, CA 93720 559-288-3048 [email protected] centralcaliforniakosher.org 10. Chanowitz, Rabbi Ben Zion 15 North St. Monticello, NY 12701 [email protected] 845-321-4890 11. Chelkas Hakashrus of Zichron Yaakov 131 Iris Road Lakewood, NJ 08701 732 901-6508 Rabbi Yosef Abicasis [email protected] 12. -
A Note Regarding Dayan Simcha Zelig Rieger's View of Opening A
A Note Regarding Dayan Simcha Zelig Rieger’s View of Opening a Refrigerator Door on Shabbat A Note Regarding Dayan Simcha Zelig Rieger’s View of Opening a Refrigerator Door on Shabbat Rabbi Michael J. Broyde Introduction Thank you to Rabbi Yaacov Sasson for his comments on footnote 59 of the article “The Use of Electricity on Shabbat and Yom Tov” found in the Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society, 21:4-47 (Spring 1991) co-written by Rabbi Jachter and myself. It is always nice to have people commenting on articles written more than 25 years ago.[1] Before delving into the halacha, it is worth clarifying some preliminary facts – in particular, whether refrigerators even had automatic lights during the first half of the 1930s. Some commenters have suggested that such lights were not yet present, or that they were limited to rare and expensive refrigerators. This is not correct. I reproduce below a wide variety of newspaper ads from the early 1930s that show that a range of refrigerator models by many manufacturers at various price points featured automatic interior lights (see attachments here). These include a Frigidaire priced at $157.50, a GE priced at $99.50, a Majestic model with no price, a Frigidaire priced at $119.50, a Leonard priced at $114.75 and many more.[2] And while some of the publications appear targeted to the upper class, many others are clearly meant for wider audiences – particularly those available on installment plans (“$5 down, 15¢ a day”; “Nothing down! 20¢ a day!”; “$7 Initial Payment – enables you to enjoy any of these refrigerators immediately. -
Kabbalah and Ecology
excursus 1 Nefesh and related terms The primary meanings of n’shamah and nefesh in Torah can be understood by examining their relationship to ru’ach, meaning “spirit” and “wind”. Let us assume for the sake of argument that the triad ru’ach–nefesh–n’shamah covers one and the same “semantic space” as the triad of spirit–wind–breath. How does this semantic space get divided differently in modern English and in Biblical Hebrew? Starting from what is most similar, n’shamah,like“breath”,denotesthe respiration of a living, physical subject. From here the concepts diverge vastly. Breath is physical, while “spirit” denotes something metaphysical; breath is alive, while “wind” is not. One can visualize “breath” to be like a firmament, a flat plane, separating the metaphysical “spirit” above from the physical “wind” below. Thus a simple hierarchy is delineated: the metaphysical and animate spirit stands above the physical but still animate breath, which stands above the physical and inanimate wind. In this manner “spirit–wind–breath” defines its semantic space by dividing it into hierarchical levels, and it follows the history of conquest by reserving the Latin-derived word for the top of the hierarchy. The fact that spirit and wind are unified in the single word ru’ach suggests averydifferentarrangementofsemanticspace.Whatspiritandwindshareis that they both transcend physical bodies and are independent from any physical subject. Thus, ru’ach can be conceptualized as the external breath, the breath of Elohim, which both strikes the prophets and sways the tree branches. Ru’ach, which could be translated “spirit-wind”, would mean any un- or disembodied invisible flow (which could therefore be attributed to God), including the wind. -
Halacha a Crash Course in Teruma and Maaser 1. Mishna Rosh Hashana 1:1 אַרְבָּעָּהרָּ אשֵׁ ישָּ נִיםהֵׁם
Why Tu Bishvat Matters: Halacha A Crash Course in Teruma and Maaser 1. Mishna Rosh Hashana 1:1 ַאְרָּבָּעה ָּראֵׁשי ָּשִנים ֵׁהם. ְבֶאָּחד ְבִניָּסן רֹאש ַהָּשָּנה ַלְמָּלִכים ְוָּלְרָּגִלים. ְבֶאָּחד ֶבֱאלּול רֹאש ַהָּשָּנה לְמַעְשַ רבְ הֵׁמָּ ה . ַרִבי ֶאְלָּעָּזר ְוַרִבי ִשְמעֹון אֹוְמִרים, ְבֶאָּחד ְבִתְשֵׁר י. ְבֶאָּחד ְבִתְשֵׁרי רֹאש ַהָּשָּנה ַלָּשִנים ְוַלְשִמִטין ְוַלּיֹוְבלֹות, ַלְנִטיָּעה ְוַלְיָּרקֹות. ְבֶאָּחד ִבְשָּבט, רֹאש ַהָּשָּנה ָּלִאיָּלן, ְכִדְבֵׁרי ֵׁבית ַשַמאי. בֵׁית הִ לֵׁל אֹוְמִרים, ַבֲחִמָּשה ָּעָּשר בֹו: There are four New Years: On the first of Nisan is the New Year for kings; And for the Festivals. On the first of Elul is the New Year for animal tithes; Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Shimon say: on the first of Tishrei. On the first of Tishrei is the New Year for years, for Sabbatical Years and Jubilee Years, for planting and for vegetables. On the first of Shevat is the New Year for the tree, in accordance with the statement of Beit Shammai. But Beit Hillel say: on the fifteenth. 2. Terumah and Maaser I have assigned to you as your share, you Terumah Gedola – Bemidbar 18:8-12 shall set aside from them one-tenth of the tithe as a gift to the LORD. This shall be ַוְיַדֵׁבר ה׳ ֶאלַ־אֲהֹרן ַוֲאִני ִהֵׁנה ָּנַתִתי ְלָך ֶאת־ִמְשֶמֶרת accounted to you as your gift. As with the ְתרּוֹמָּתי ְלָּכל־ָּקְדֵׁשי ְבֵׁני־ִיְשָּרֵׁאל ְלָך ְנַתִתים ְלָּמְשָּחה new grain from the threshing floor or the flow ּוְלָּבֶניָך ְלָּחק־עֹוָּל ם... ֹכל ֵׁחֶלב ִיְצָּהר ְוָּכֵׁל־חֶלב ִתירֹוש ְוָּדָּגן from the vat, so shall you on your part set ֵׁראִשָּיתֲם אֶשר־ִיְתנּו ַליהָּוה ְלָך ְנַתִתים׃ The LORD spoke to Aaron: I hereby give you aside a gift for the LORD from all the tithes charge of My gifts, all the sacred donations that you receive from the Israelites; and from of the Israelites; I grant them to you and to them you shall bring the gift for the LORD to your sons as a perquisite, a due for all time… Aaron the priest.