Parashat
Chukkat
10
Tammuz 5775 / 26-27 June 2015
Torah:
Numbers 19:1 – 22:1
Haftarah:
Judges 11:1-33
Dedications and Calendar of Events follow below. Full
calendar and other information about our community may be found at: http://www.bethmeier.org
Please
feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
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THE KASHRUTH OF MONEY
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THE KASHRUTH OF MONEY
"The
princes dug the well; the nobles of the people dug it, by the direction of the
lawgiver, with their staves. And from the wilderness they went to
Mattanah." Numbers 21:18
The
following story appears in Itturei Torah, a compilation
of commentaries:
A
rich man who had acquired his wealth by illegal means came to
Rabbi Yisrael of Rozhin. The man brought a pitka - a note asking the rabbi to pray for
him - and a pidyon - a gift of money (literally,
“redemption”). The rabbi accepted the note but not the gift, saying,
"The Torah says 'from the wilderness to Mattanah.'" The
wilderness is symbolic of uprightness and purity, for according to
tradition, it is a place where there is no theft. Only from one whose
money is obtained honestly and with clean hands could the rabbi take
a 'mattanah' - a gift
- not from this one, who made his fortune from deceit and oppression.
Who
would have thought that money can be kosher or treif? After all, it is
morally neutral. It depends on what you do with it. We can use it for
tzedakah, charity, or to buy poison to put in our bodies. Apparently, how
we get our money matters, too. Rabbi Yisrael refused to accept the gift of
tainted money, even though he undoubtedly would have done good things with
it. Perhaps he could foresee what has befallen the beneficiaries
(both individuals and charities) of the "largesse" of people such as
Bernie Madoff and his ilk. More important, perhaps, he did not want to be in a
position of owing anything, even a “thank you”, in exchange for the “gift”.
(Think also of Abraham refusing gifts from the King of Sodom - Genesis
14:21-24; and from the Hittites – Genesis 23)
Just
as what comes out of our mouths is as important as what goes in, how we earn
our money is as important as how we spend it. We cannot cleanse our souls by
attempting to launder them with dirty money.
Shabbat
Shalom!
Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Congregation Beth Meier - Studio City, CA
Visit me on Facebook
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Candle lighting: 7:50 pm
Friday: Shabbat Evening Service –
8:00 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.
Saturday: Shabbat Morning
Service – 10:00 am. Baby naming for the daughter of Chelsea and Albert Omoss –
Mazal tov! Kiddush lunch follows.
Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – 12:00
noon.
Sunday: bowling party POSTPONED
to a later date.
Friday, July 3: NO Shabbat Evening Service.
Saturday, July 4: Shabbat Morning Service –
10:00 am. Kiddush lunch follows.
Sunday, July 12: English Tea Party at Beth Meier - Enjoy a
three course meal, meet new people, have fun and plan other events. Limited
seating, $25 per person, RSVP by July 7th!
Sunday, July 19: Rosh Chodesh Group’s
Tallit Making Caravan to Little India. Contact Lynn Kronzek or Deb Sigel for
details.
This d’var torah is offered in memory of my mother-in-law, Helena
Kronzek, whose yahrzeit falls on Friday, Tammuz 16. Her memory is a blessing.
This d’var torah is offered in memory of my teacher, colleague and
friend Rabbi Ben Zion Bergman, who entered the yeshivah shel ma’alah on
Tuesday. Y’hi zekher tzaddik liv’rakhah – May the memory of the righteous be a
blessing.
This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Avi Shmuel Yosef
Hakohen ben Bella, Naomi bat Yorma, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Sarah Mindel
bat Toby, Jeannie Berger, Ken Bitticks, Elsbet Brosky, Jacob William Cohen,
Jerry Daniels, Howard Ehrlich, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht
(Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Leonard Foint, Annabelle Flom (Chanah Bella bat
Kreina), Gig Flom (Gittel Tobi bat Blanca), Jerry Forman, Pamela Huddleston, Ean
Kleiger, Philip Kovac, Rabbi Sheldon Pennes, and Annie Rivera.
My weekly divrei torah are also available through the Cyber Torah e-mail list.
Cyber Torah list management:
To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail from
the receiving address to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net with the
heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah”.
To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an e-mail
from the receiving address to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net with
the heading “Unsubscribe Cyber Torah”.
To dedicate a Cyber Torah in honor of
a simchah, in memory of a loved one or for a refuah shleimah, send an
e-mail to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net with
the heading “Dedicate Cyber Torah” and provide details in the message body.
