Sunday, November 28, 2010

Thanksgiving and Chanukah



B"H

The Rebbe many times spoke publicly about Thanksgiving. He explains that the national holiday marks a time for us to give thanks to G-d from the depths of our hearts. We should recognize how fortunate we are to have a country who's laws govern our freedom to practice our religion, even publicly such as the Chanuka menoras around the country...

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Now the pit was empty there was no water in it.

Chumash with Rashi for Vayeishev

24. And they took him and cast him into the pit; now the pit was empty there was no water in it.

Rashi: now the pit was empty-there was no water in it: Since it says: “now the pit was empty,” do I not know that there was no water in it? For what purpose did the Torah write,“there was no water in it” ? [To inform us that] there was no water in it, but there were snakes and scorpions in it. [From Shab. 22a, Chag. 3a]

In ruchnious terms snakes and scorpions represent the forces of evil. And water represent the Torah, as it says ein maim elo Torah. This comes to teach us a profound lesson. If there is no Torah in ones mind then you can be sure that evil thoughts will be prevail. If a person is not thinking good positive thoughts proactively then he will not remain a neutral person eventually not good and not holy thoughts will preoccupy his mind.

Evev Yud Tes Kislev 5771.

Yeshiva guy says over a vort


according to Chassidus the avos performed all the mitvzos but in a spiritual manner. every mitzva that we do brings down a certain G-dly light. The Avos being on a grand spiritual standing knew which mitzva brings down what kind of hamshaha so they were able to bring down those lights in their own way. they didn't do all the mitvos like we do them with physical objects but they did accomplish the same ends so you can say that the Avos kept all the mitvos even before they were given. One example is when Yacov used the striped sticks, it is explained that at that time he accomplished the mitva of teffilin. These are my thoughts on the matter, hope it helps more than confuses. lol.:)

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

--Understanding The World Of Dreams --



A shiur by Yoseph Paltiel is always gishmak. Here is one on this weeks parsha VaEshev. Why was Joseph always dreaming?

UNESCO: PROTECT, NOT DENY, JEWISH HERITAGE Petition

got this is my in box. it looks like a proper petition to me. hope it helps to spread the truth.

UNESCO: PROTECT, NOT DENY, JEWISH HERITAGE Petition

To: The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization�s (UNESCO)

H.E. Mrs. Eleonora Valentinovna Mitrofanova, Chairperson of the Executive Board of UNESCO
Ms. Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO
Mr. Davidson L. Hepburn (Bahamas), President of the General Conference
Bureau of the World Heritage Committee
Chairperson: H.E. Mrs. Mai Bint Muhammad Al Khalifa (Bahrain)
Rapporteur: Mr. Ould Sidi Ali (Mali)
Vice-Chairpersons: Mr. Tyronne Brathwaite(Barbados,H.E.Mr. NarangNout(Cambodia),H.E.Mr. Margus Rava(Estonia),H.E.Ms.Dolana Msimang(South Africa),H. E. Mr. Rodolphe Imhoof (Switzerland)


We the undersigned protest The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization�s (UNESCO) ruling that Israel has no right to add the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron, where almost all of Israel�s patriarchs and matriarchs are buried, to the National Heritage list. The Tomb of the Patriarchs, the oldest Jewish shrine and the second holiest site in Judaism, centers around the Cave of Machpelah, an ancient double cave revered for almost 4,000 years as the burial site of the Hebrew patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their wives. The connection of the Jewish people to the Cave of Machpelah was established some 3,800 years ago, when Abraham, the first Hebrew, purchased it for the express purpose of using it as a burial site for himself, his wife Sarah, and their future generations. It is the cradle of Jewish history and the focal point of Jewish identity. The rectangular enclosure over the caves is the only fully surviving Herodian structure. Thus the Tomb of the Patriarchs is of inestimable historical value as well as great sacred significance for the Jewish people.

We also protest the decision by UNESCO to re-label as an Islamic mosque the tomb of Rachel, Israel�s other matriarch, and to demand that Israel remove the site from its National Heritage list. The Tomb of Rachel, Judaism's third-holiest site, has been the scene of prayer and pilgrimage for more than three thousand years, and has an especially meaningful connection for Jewish women. Rachel, the matriarch who died in childbirth and was buried at that spot on the road to Hebron, has been a comfort and hope to Jews since biblical days. �Thus says the Lord, 'Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; for your work shall be rewarded�and they shall return from the enemy's land and there is hope for the future'� 'Your children shall return to their own country.� Jeremiah 31:16-17. Until 2000, the Palestinians recognized the site as Rachel�s Tomb. It was called �Rachel�s Tomb� in Al-mawsu'ah al-filastiniyah, the Palestinian encyclopedia published after 1996 and in PALESTINE, THE HOLY LAND, a Palestinian publication, with an introduction by Yasser Arafat. However, during the second intifada, Al-Hayat al-Jadida, a Palestinian daily, announced a new-found historical connection to Rachel�s Tomb, declaring that is was "originally a Muslim mosque.�

In an effort to erase Jewish history and supersede Jewish religious sites with Islamic institutions, Muslims have intentionally built mosques upon numerous synagogues and Jewish holy sites. The clearest examples are the Al-Aqsa mosque which sits on Jerusalem's Temple Mount, and the Dome of the Rock, which was built on Judaism�s holiest site of the two biblical Jewish Temples. This pattern repeats itself at the second and third holiest sites. Thus at the Tomb of the Patriarchs, there are domes over the tombs of Abraham and Sarah and a mosque over the tombs of Isaac and Rebecca. Photos from the early 1900's show no Muslim cemetery near the Tomb or Rachel. After 1948 Muslims built their own cemetery surrounding three sides of Rachel�s tomb and now claim that Rachel's Tomb is one of their burial plots and that it contains a Muslim rather than Jewish notable.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu�s office decried the ludicrous nature of the UNESCO decision:
�The attempt to detach the Nation of Israel from its heritage is absurd. If the nearly 4,000-year-old burial sites of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs of the Jewish Nation � Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah �are not part of its culture and tradition, then what is a national cultural site?�
�Sites such as the Tomb of the Patriarchs and Rachel�s Tomb (which sits on the edge of Bethlehem) present an inconvenient truth for the pro-Palestine movement and its supporters, who want to claim that the Jews have no historic ties to this land.�

In cooperating with efforts to erase Jewish historical ties to Israel, UNESCO is aiding and abetting those who hope to and obfuscate Israel�s Jewish past and undermine Israel�s Jewish future.

The UNESCO mission states: �Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live with today, and what we pass on to future generations. Our cultural and natural heritage are both irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration.�

We demand that there be no exception to UNESCO�s mission when it comes to Jewish heritage. Israel�s Jewish legacy must be recognized and preserved and not swept away to conform with the pro-Palestinian narrative. In attempting to sever the Jewish cultural, religious and natural heritage bond with the Tomb of the Patriarchs and Rachel�s Tomb, UNESCO denies the history it is mandated to preserve, engages in a political maneuver designed to weaken a member UN nation, and undermines its own principles. It aims to rob the Jewish people not only of two sacred sites, which are irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration, but also of their past and a legacy to pass on to future generations. We demand that UNESCO, whose purpose it is to protect heritage, also protect Jewish heritage, rather than deny it.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

Monday, November 22, 2010

The Jewish Genome

interesting article in Newsweek a while ago says that Jews come from a common ancestry. Also it disproves the claim of some anti Semites that the European Jews descended from a group called the Khazars.

----

Jews have historically considered themselves “people of the book” (am hasefer in Hebrew), referring to sacred tomes, but the phrase is turning out to have an equally powerful, if unintended, meaning: scientists are able to read Jewish genomes like a history book. The latest DNA volume weighs in on the controversial, centuries-old (and now revived in a 2008 book) claim that European Jews are all the descendants of Khazars, a Turkic group of the north Caucasus who converted to Judaism in the late eighth and early ninth century. The DNA has spoken: no.

In the wake of studies in the 1990s that supported biblically based notions of a priestly caste descended from Aaron, brother of Moses, an ambitious new project to analyze genomes collected from Jewish volunteers has yielded its first discoveries. In a paper with the kind of catchy title you rarely see in science journals—“Abraham’s Children in the Genome Era”—scientists report that the Jews of the Diaspora share a set of telltale genetic markers, supporting the traditional belief that Jews scattered around the world have a common ancestry. But various Diaspora populations have their own distinct genetic signatures, shedding light on their origins and history. In addition to the age-old question of whether Jews are simply people who share a religion or are a distinct population, the scientific verdict is settling on the latter.

more from Time

Thursday, November 18, 2010

recording of the Rebbe's yechidus.



Amazing recording about the situation with the youth in Eretz Hakodesh.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Can Homosexuality Be Cured?

This issue is very interesting and important to our society. The Torah prohibits homosexual conduct for both Jewish and Not-Jewish people alike. Many people seem to think that being "gay" is a genetic trait that someone is born with. Therefore according to their views it should be legalized, tolerated and celebrated. The Torah of Truth tells us that homosexuality is not the proper conduct for a person to be involved in. Even though the Torah recognizes that different people may have different desires, the Torah does not prohibit an act for which a man cannot hold himself back from doing. And as popular as it may be these days to accept homosexuality as healthy, doing so robs the person of a fighting chance to stop his destructive behavior. There is so much that can be said about this subject. The video below and link to their website provides a lot of great material to learn from. http://www.jonahweb.org/index.php



here is an expert from a Sicha of the Rebbe that can be found on the website:

There are those who argue that an act that brings pleasure and gratification is, or even must be good. This rationalization is analogical to taking a deathly poison and coating it with sugar. Along comes someone and says, "I see sugar, there is no poison in this sugar pill." To prove his words, he tastes it and swears it is sweet! Someone else may come along and say, "I don't care if there is poison in the sugar, so long as I can enjoy the momentary pleasure of the sweetness, albeit in an abnormal fashion, I don't care what the consequences will be!"

Certainly, they themselves will eventually very strongly complain against those who misled them, and also against those who saw what was going on and did not do all that was possible for them to do, to prevent it from happening.

It makes no real difference what causes an individual to presently choose this form of relationship. Even one who was born with this inclination, and was not educated in his youth to correct it (no matter who is to blame) and is now an adult, must also be motivated to educate him/herself, now; for it is still just as destructive, it is still just as abnormal, etc.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

The Rebbe Wanted "New Matter"

B"H

Adin Even-Israel speaks about how the Rebbe inspired him to accomplish above and beyond normal human conditions. He stills expects us all to do the same... overwhelmed?
http://www.chabad.org/1339431

Monday, November 15, 2010

Matisyahu Miller At His Best.



He is an amazing musician if you ask me.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

A Baal Shem Tov Story about how God Runs the world.

A story is told about the Baal Shem Tov and the Maagid. The Baal Shem Tov wanted to teach the Maagid a lesson in hashgaha protis. So he told him to hide behind a tree and wait to see what happens for an hour and to make sure not to say anything in the meantime.  As the Maagid looked on he saw a man gallop in on a horse sit down by a tree, drink, eat and fall asleep. He got up and got up on his horse and left but not without leaving behind a stack filled with money. The Maagid wanted to return the money to him but he couldn’t speak as per the Baal Shem Tov’s instructions.  Then a business man came by saw the sack of money took it for himself and left. Again the Maagid wanted to speak up and say how could you take the other man’s money but he couldn’t say anything. Thirdly, a poor man came by sat down and rested.  In the meanwhile the man who had lost his money came back woke up the poor man and demanded his money figuring he had hid it somewhere. When he said he doesn’t have it he shoved him around until he was sure that he is saying the truth. How is this fair thought the Maagid to himself, if anyone should get the money it should be the poor man and he's getting hurt for no reason.
The Baal Shem Tov explained that three hundred years prior there was person who borrowed money from a business man and didn’t pay back so the business man took him to court. The man bribed the judge who ruled in his favor.  
So they all three had to be reincarnated into these three people the man who lost the money was the thief and he owed the money to the businessman whom he didn’t pay back all those years ago. The business man got back his money and the thief lost it and was able to pay back the business man in such a way. The poor man who got beat up that was the Rabbi who had taken the bribe.
Sometimes in life we only see a little glimpse of what has occurred but we don’t really know what is happening in the big picture.

painting by Chanoch Liberman.

Friday, November 12, 2010

Tracht Gut V'tzein Gut and Beyond

B"H

We all have superpowers that we are not aware of. Check out how kosher Kabbalah can help you optimize and realize your potential...

http://www.kabbalahoftransformation.com/a18.html

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Who is a Jew? In the News.

The leftist, government sponsored, news source NPR is reporting on whether the IDF should accept men into the army who aren't Jewish al pi halacha.  I guess the real issue here is who is a Jew?  I learned once that one of the areas that Moshiach has to fight for is the area of Shlemos HaAm. The issue of who is a Jew? This is one of the areas that The Lubavitcher Rebbe always fights for. To make sure that all conversions done are done al pi Halacha.

from NPR:

When is a Jew not Jewish enough? It's a question that's troubling the Israel Defense Forces these days — and it's affecting a number of American Jews.
Jonathan Leavitt, originally from California, made aliyah — the migration to the Jewish state — this year. Stocky, with blue eyes and a laid-back manner, Leavitt says he came to Israel to serve in the IDF because he believes in the homeland of the Jewish people.
"Upon arriving to Israel, I was excited, a lot of motivation, feeling more Jewish, probably, than I'd ever felt in my whole life, and I didn't know what I was in for," he says...

the original article below:
In Israel, When Is A Jew Not Jewish Enough?

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Canadian Prime Minister - I Will Defend Israel "whatever the cost".



Ottawa, Canada - Prime Minister Stephen Harper says he is prepared to suffer any political backlash that comes his way for speaking out against anti-Israel rhetoric.

Harper told an audience Monday that while Israel is receptive to fair criticism, Canada is obligated to stand up for its ally when it comes under attack from others.

"Not just because it is the right thing to do, but because history shows us, and the ideology of the anti-Israel mob tell us all too well, that those who threaten the existence of the Jewish people are in the longer term a threat to all of us."

read more...

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

8 Month Old Deaf Baby's Reaction To Cochlear Implant Being Activated



A great heartwarming video of a baby's reaction to hearing his mother. Advances like these in science make us realize that the physical world is coming closer to the day when all flesh will be healed with the coming of our Righteous Moshiach.

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

New song by Shem's Disciples - Nachum Ish Gam Zu - Check Them Out.



A word from the artist:

Dear Friends,

I hope all is in good health and good spirits! I wanted to share the latest song I wrote entitled Nachum Ish Gam Zu. The song is about knowing that everything that happens in life, though it may be painful or uncomfortable and/or extremely difficult to deal with, it is ultimately for the good. For those of you that don't know, Nachum Ish Gam Zu was a sage that was famous for saying Gam Zu l'tova (this is also for the good) no matter what challenges lied ahead of him. The song conveys that although we may know this philosophy (intellectually) it is still hard to access it when we are going through whatever it is we are going through.

Come join Shem's Disciples as we search for the Nachum Ish Gam Zu inside of us and may we all merit to access the part of ourselves that can see past the "negative" into the inherent good. I hope you enjoy!

Strength and blessings to all,

Marlon " Moshe" Sobol

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nachum-ish-gam-zu/id398908241


p.s. I would love to know your comments or any feedback! peace.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Funny from rally to restory sanity - is Obama a Keynesian?



I don't know what the point of this rally was. I guess to calm the hearts of man. I hope some good came of it. I think it would have been better to talk about Shabbos, but I am not the one in charge. So is Obama a Keynesian or not?

Monday, November 1, 2010

Courage Under Fire



A great video about the holocaust survivor who saved his students at virginia tech. from a gunman.