CHOLESTEROL OF THE SOUL

Parashat Va’era

Torah Reading: Exodus 6:2 - 9:35
Haftarah Reading: Ezekiel 28:25 - 29:21

 

Dedications and this week’s calendar are below. For more information about our community, visit: http://bethmeier.org/

 

Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.

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Cholesterol of the Soul

 

“And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart ...” Exodus 7:3

 

The notion that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart raises great difficulty. What does this say about free will? Rabbi Yochanan asked, “Doesn’t this provide heretics with ground for arguing that he had no means of repenting?” If God caused Pharaoh to refuse to let the Israelites go, if he foreclosed Pharaoh from repentance, if everything is preordained, then how can anyone be held accountable for their actions? To paraphrase Abraham, how can God, the judge of all the world, then claim to be acting justly?

 

For the first five plagues, “Pharaoh’s heart hardened” - he chose to act as he did. But for the last five plagues, “God hardened Pharaoh’s heart”. In the Midrash, Resh Lakish says, “Let the mouths of the heretics be stopped up. ‘If to scorners, He will scorn.’ (Proverbs 3:34) When God warns a man once, twice, even three times, and still he does not repent, then God closes his heart against repentance so that He should exact vengeance from him for his sins.” Still, why does God harden Pharaoh’s heart at all? Or does He?

 

Interestingly, in the Talmud, Resh Lakish gives a different and more satisfying answer. He says, “What is the meaning of ‘If to scorners, he will scorn; and to the meek he gives favor’? If he tries to defile himself, he is given an opening; if he tries to purify himself, he is helped.” Note the lower case here. Not God, but man. If we turn to scorners, we will scorn. If we turn to the meek, we give ourselves favor. We always have the choice to open our hearts and souls or harden them to the cries of others. If we choose evil, God passively leaves openings, which we can choose to enter - or not. If we choose time and again to harden our souls, it becomes more and more difficult for us to change our ways. But the difficult is not impossible. Because, says Resh Lakish, if we choose goodness, God affirmatively helps us.

 

Unclog the arteries of your soul, and heed the cries of those in need.

 

Shabbat Shalom v'Chodesh Tov.

 

Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Congregation Beth Meier
Studio City, CA
http://www.bethmeier.org

Visit me on Facebook

 

"For the sake of Zion I will not be silent; for the sake of Jerusalem I will not be still."  Isaiah 62:1

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Candle lighting: 4:33 pm

 

Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Come on down for a joyful way to bring in Shabbat! Oneg Shabbat follows.

Saturday: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am. Kiddush lunch follows.

Sunday: NO Religious School; NO Adult Hebrew Class – both resume January 5.

Tuesday: NO Lunch and Learn this week.

Wednesday: Beth Meier office closed – Happy New Year! NO (Re)Introduction to Judaism class – next meeting is January 8.

Thursday: Rosh Chodesh Shevat.

Sunday, January 12th: Tu B'Shevat Seder at 10:00 am for the Religious School and entire congregation. Join us for snacks and songs of Eretz Yisrael (no cost but RSVP required)

 

This d’var torah is offered in honor of my wonderful wife, Lynn Kronzek, who has been putting up with me for 33 years. Happy Anniversary, my dear!

 

This d’var torah is offered in honor of Rachel and Gil Robbins on the occasion of their wedding anniversary. Mazal tov!

 

This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Blimah Reizel bat Ruchel, Dina bat Sarah Emanu, Dov Nechemya Hakohen ben Rachel Chaya Sarah, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Eve Beatty, John Todd Brosky, Jo Cardona, Howard Ehrlich, Joshua Erenmark, Jerry Forman, Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Lizzie Legnine, Gloria Loera, Frank Marcovitz, Barney Meskin, Marshall Neiman, Colleen Pierce (Chaya Shoshanah bat Sarah Emanu), Phil Raider and Rachel Robbins.

 

Please let me know if there is anyone you would like to add to this list or if there is anyone who may be removed from this list.

 

My weekly divrei torah are also available by e-mail from the Cyber Torah list.

Cyber Torah list management (no salesman will call!):

To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net

Send requests for dedications of Cyber Torah in honor of a simchah, in memory of a loved one or for a refuah shleimah to: mailto:ravflom@sbcglobal.net

To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Unsubscribe”

ONE WHO SAVES A LIFE ...

18 Tevet 5774 / 20-21 December 2013
Torah: Exodus 1:1 - 6:1
Haftarah: (Ashkenazim) Isaiah 27:6 - 28:13; 29:22-23; (Sephardim) Jeremiah 1:1 - 2:3

Dedications and this week’s calendar are below. For more information about our community, visit: http://bethmeier.org/ 

Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
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One Who Saves a Life ...

"But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, for they kept the male children alive." Exodus 1:17

Rashi - They would supply them with food and water.

Rabbi Nissan Puchinski - The implication is that had they not supplied them with food and water, they would be considered as murderers, because preventing someone from being saved is considered similar to murder.

Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5 - "One who takes a single human life; it is as if he destroyed an entire world. One who saves a single human life; it is as if he saved an entire world."

In its classic form, the Kabbalistic concept of "tzimtzum" relates to God withdrawing or contracting in order to make room for the physical universe. However, according to Rabbi Irving "Yitz" Greenberg, after the Shoah, tzimtzum was necessary in order for human beings, no longer willing or able to operate only as God's servants under an imposed mandatory covenant system, to become God's partners in a voluntary covenant. God has "self-limited", he says, "contracting divine power in order to empower humanity." Under this theory, every Jew is a "Jew by choice". The purpose of the partnership agreement is "tikkun olam" - the repair of a shattered world.

God may have withdrawn from visibly active participation in the physical world, but God is still present in healing shattered hearts and comforting the suffering. God acts through us, as we are told in Isaiah 43:12, "You will be my witnesses." Witnessing means undertaking action to fulfill the terms of the partnership and improving the world to its ideal state. It is our empowerment with independent action which makes every human being truly "in the image of God".

Please, donate your time and/or money as generously as you can to organizations that feed the hungry, house the homeless, provide medical care to the needy – you get the idea. Join the partnership! Use your power to save life.

Shabbat Shalom!

Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Congregation Beth Meier
Studio City, CA
http://www.bethmeier.org
Visit me on Facebook

"For the sake of Zion I will not be silent; for the sake of Jerusalem I will not be still."  Isaiah 62:1
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Candlelighting: 4:29 pm.

Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Come on down for a joyful way to bring in Shabbat! Oneg Shabbat follows.
Saturday: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am. Kiddush lunch follows.
Sunday: NO Religious School ; NO Adult Hebrew Class – both resume January 5.
Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – noon.
Wednesday: Beth Meier office closed – Federal holiday. NO (Re)Introduction to Judaism class – next meeting is January 8.

This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Blimah Reizel bat Ruchel, Boaz ben Dina, Dov Nechemya Hakohen ben Rachel Chaya Sarah, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Eve Beatty, John Todd Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Joshua Erenmark, Jerry Forman, Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Lizzie Legnine, Gloria Loera, Frank Marcovitz, Barney Meskin, Marshall Neiman, Colleen Pierce (Chaya Shoshanah bat Sarah Emanu), Phil Raider and Rachel Robbins.

This d’var torah is offered in honor of Myra and Ira Goodman (Ken’s parents) on the occasion of their 70^th (!) wedding anniversary. Siman tov u’mazel tov!

Please let me know if there is anyone you would like to add to this list or if there is anyone who may be removed from this list.

My weekly divrei torah are also available by e-mail from the Cyber Torah list.
Cyber Torah list management (no salesman will call!):
To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net 
Send requests for dedications of Cyber Torah in honor of a simchah, in memory of a loved one or for a refuah shleimah to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net 
To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Unsubscribe" to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net

ON CIGARS AND SWEET WINE; ON RELIGIOUS SCHOOL SHABBAT AND SANDY HOOK - A REFLECTION

On Cigars and Sweet Wine; On Religious School Shabbat and Sandy Hook – A Reflection

Saturday night – motza’ei Shabbat – coming out of Shabbat. Every motza’ei Shabbat, I go out on the patio. I light up a fine cigar, I have something to drink (sometimes plain, like water or club soda; sometimes sweet like ginger ale or cranberry cocktail; sometimes sweet alcohol, like a highland Scotch whiskey or port, or, tonight, a glass of sweet marsala), and I think. I think about the Shabbat that was, about the week that was, about the week to come – what was, what is, what will be.

Friday evening was Religious School and Family Shabbat. The children and the rest of the congregation sang so sweetly – traditional prayers, non-traditional songs. They smiled, we laughed, their parents and grandparents and the members of the congregation kvelled – they were proud of these kids, their learning and their joy. It was quite beautiful – Shabbat evening as it should always be. Relaxing, peaceful, happy – that is Shabbat. No work, no cares – a celebration of accomplishment and relaxation. “Shavat v’yinafash” – He rested and He was refreshed – literally, His soul was restored. That is Shabbat. The parents and children came up on the bimah, and we blessed them and each other. “May the Lord bless you and guard you; May the Lord’s countenance shine upon you and may He be gracious to you; May the Lord’s countenance be turned to you, and may He grant you peace”. That, too, is Shabbat – the Day of Rest and Peace and Blessing.

When you smoke a good cigar, as it burns down, the flavors change. If the cigar goes out, as it does sometimes, it can be relit – and enjoyed down to the very nub. It can last a long time - in this case, more than 90 minutes. That is the life of the cigar. That is how human life should be – long-lasting, reignited occasionally, changing and complex to the very end. The marsala – dark, sweet – a product of nature improved upon and enjoyed by humans. A puff here – a sip there. Thinking, looking – the moon, the stars, the lights of planes in the distance, the occasional meteor – there was one tonight. The glass falls from my hand and shatters. The deep red wine soaks into the concrete – the shards of glass are a reproach. “Lo ta’amod al dam re’akha” – Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor. But it is dark and I am tired – I’ll clean up in the morning, in the light of day. I pour another glass, and drink. And think. And pray.

Shabbat morning – a day of complexity. Congregants davening, chanting the Torah and the haftarah – I am glad for these people, that others are serious and committed. We sing, we pray, we learn Torah together. Then comes a moment of – dread. I chant “El Malei Rachamim” – God Full of Compassion. I say the names of the dead – the parents of the congregants observing their yahrzeits, and the names of 26 children and adults who were murdered a year ago today – today is their yahrzeit - pointless sacrifices on the altar of the relentless American god known as “The Gun”. “We and our society are suffering from a peculiar madness,” I say. “Those 26 are less than one tenth of one percent of the 30,000 who died in the United States this year because of gun violence.” I think of the folk songs of my youth – “When will they ever learn?” – “The answer is blowing in the wind.”

I pray that there will more and more Religious School Shabbatot – children singing and praying and accepting the great gift that is a day of rest and reflection. I pray that there will be a time, bimheirah b’yameinu b’karov – speedily, in our days, very soon – when parents will not recite Kaddish, when rabbis and congregations will not recite El Malei Rachamim over children sacrificed on the altar of the gun. God will not bring this about. But with the strength of God, we will. And so I pray.

SHVER TZU SEIN A YID?

11 Tevet 5774 / 13-14 December 2013
Parashat Vayechi (Chazak!)
Torah: Genesis 47:28 - 50:26
Haftarah: 1 Kings 2:1-12

Dedications and this week’s calendar are below. For more information about our community, visit: http://bethmeier.org

 

Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
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Shver tzu sein a Yid?

"And Jacob called to his sons, and said, 'Gather yourselves together, and I will tell you what will happen to you at the end of days.'" Gen. 49:1

Rashi: "He desired to reveal the end of Israel's exile, but the Shekhinah (the Divine Presence) withdrew from him, and he began to say other words."

The Sefas Emes, Yehudah Aryeh Leib, asks why the reckoning of the end of the exile was suddenly withheld from Jacob. He answers that the exile was to serve to cleanse Israel of their sins, and if they knew the time of the end, they would feel no unhappiness from the exile. This, he says, is because any unhappiness that has a known end is not serious.

Putting aside the notion that human suffering is a form of punishment or atonement, the Sefas Emes seems to be saying that if we know that our condition, whether physical, emotional, spiritual, economic, etc., is going to improve on or before some certain date, then we suffer less. Perhaps we don't suffer at all; we simply endure until that time. It's not that we know that our suffering will end, but that we might fix a date that bothers the Sefas Emes.

Consider a painful physical condition that can be cured by surgery. If we know that the surgery will occur on a certain date, we more easily bear the pain, because we know that the pain will have a finite duration. A condition that can not be cured, however, we deal with in one of several ways. We give up all hope and die, or we suffer with resentment against the real or imagined source of the suffering, or we adjust our attitudes and move on with improving our lives as best we can.

Now consider children studying for their b'nai mitzvah. They often regard the preparations as a form of punishment, to be endured until the happy day when they will not have to go to Religious School or Shabbat services anymore. They even get a reward - gifts, a party, and so forth. If neither you nor your children have ever felt this way, then you have a unique family. If we regard being Jews and learning how to live meaningful Jewish lives as burdensome, if we have the attitude of "shver tzu sein a Yid" (it's hard to be a Jew), then it's no wonder that our children feel the same way.

The analogy fails, of course, because being a Jew and living Jewishly is not a burden, unless we make it so. It is, instead, a privilege and a joy to be a Jew, and in our society, it is actually quite easy to be a Jew. We are free to worship as Jews, kosher food is readily available, we can usually arrange our schedules to observe Shabbat and Yom Tov, etc. Our Torah and other holy texts give us a path to "the good life", which is to say, a life of goodness. Jewish observance brings us deeper into our partnership with God in the enterprise of "tikkun olam" (improving the world), grounding us in the ethical traditions of our people and one of the oldest civilizations on earth. We have rituals that are full of light and song and wisdom, if we open our eyes and ears and minds.

I believe, to put it bluntly, that the Shekhinah withdrew from Jacob because he brought his children to Egypt and stayed after the famine was over. He took them into exile. We suffer from no famine. There is no excuse for sentencing our children to exile from their heritage.

Shabbat Shalom!

Rabbi Richard Flom - ZSRS '00

Congregation Beth Meier

Studio City, CA

http://bethmeier.org

Visit me on Facebook

"For the sake of Zion I will not be silent; for the sake of Jerusalem I will not be still." Isaiah 62:1

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Candlelighting: 4:26 pm

Tonight: (Re)Introduction to Judaism class – 7:30 pm.
Friday: Fast of Tenth of Tevet – Dawn - Dusk. Family Shabbat Evening Service – 7:30 pm. Led by our Religious School students. Come on down for a joyful way to bring in Shabbat! Oneg Shabbat follows.
Saturday: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am. Torah: Warren Trauman; Haftarah: Melinda Trauman. Kiddush lunch follows.
Sunday: Religious School – 9:30 am. Adult Hebrew Class – 10:00am.
Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – noon. Beth Meier Trip to Israel – preliminary meeting with Israel Tour Connection – 7:00 pm. All welcome – no obligation.
Wednesday: (Re)Introduction to Judaism class – 7:30 pm.

This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Blimah Reizel bat Rachel, Boaz ben Dina, Dov Nechemya Hakohen ben Rachel Chaya Sarah, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Eve Beatty, John Todd Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Joshua Erenmark, Jerry Forman, Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Lizzie Legnine, Gloria Loera, Frank Marcovitz, Barney Meskin, Marshall Neiman, Colleen Pierce (Chaya Shoshanah bat Sarah Emanu), Phil Raider and Rachel Robbins.

Please let me know if there is anyone you would like to add to this list or if there is anyone who may be removed from this list.

My weekly divrei torah are also available by e-mail from the Cyber Torah list.
Cyber Torah list management (no salesman will call!):
To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
Send requests for dedications of Cyber Torah in honor of a simchah, in memory of a loved one or for a refuah shleimah to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Unsubscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net

ONE BUT NOT THE OTHER?

4 Tevet 5774 / 6-7 December 2013
Parashat Vayiggash
Torah: Genesis 44:18 - 47:27
Haftarah: Ezekiel 37:15-28

Dedications and Calendar of Events follow. Full calendar available at http://www.bethmeier.org/

Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source
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One But Not the Other?

"And they told him, saying, 'Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt.' And Jacob's heart fainted, for he did not believe them." Genesis 45:26

The Kotzker Rebbe, Menachem Mendel (d. 1859): When one says a person is "alive", the implication is that he is righteous - for only that path is true living. Thus, Jacob was told that Joseph was both righteous and the ruler of Egypt. To Jacob, those were mutually exclusive.

The Kotzker may have been drawing upon a well-known teaching of the Rabbis: "even in their lifetime, the wicked are called dead." (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 18) My question is: why would Jacob think that righteousness and rule over Egypt were contradictory?

In much of his teaching, the Kotzker emphasizes the search for truth, the need for humility, and constant self-examination and self-criticism - all of which he might characterize as righteousness. If indeed Joseph is the ruler of Egypt, with unimaginable power and ostentatious wealth, this could well prevent him from following the paths of righteousness.

An answer, according to Rabbi Chaim Sofer (d. 1886), is found in the next verse: "And they told him all that Joseph had spoken to them". He says that Jacob was revived, and he believed his sons, only after hearing that Joseph had said, "God has made me lord over all Egypt." (Gen. 45:9) Jacob knew that, so long as Joseph recognized that all he had came from God, he truly could be both powerful and righteous.

May we all have the wisdom and righteousness of Joseph.

Shabbat Shalom!

Rabbi Richard A. Flom

Congregation Beth Meier

Studio City, CA

http://www.bethmeier.org

Visit me on Facebook

 

"For the sake of Zion I will not be silent; for the sake of Jerusalem I will not be still."  Isaiah 62:1

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Candlelighting: 4:25 pm

 

Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Come on down for a joyful way to bring in Shabbat! Oneg Shabbat follows.

Saturday: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am. Kiddush lunch follows.

Sunday: Religious School – 9:30 am. Adult Hebrew Class – 10:00am.

Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – noon.

Wednesday: (Re)Introduction to Judaism class – 7:30 pm.

This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Blimah Reizel bat Rachel, Boaz ben Dina, Dov Nechemya Hakohen ben Rachel Chaya Sarah, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Eve Beatty, John Todd Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Joshua Erenmark, Jerry Forman, Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Lizzie Legnine, Gloria Loera, Frank Marcovitz, Barney Meskin, Marshall Neiman, Colleen Pierce (Chaya Shoshanah bat Sarah Emanu), Phil Raider and Rachel Robbins.

Please let me know if there is anyone you would like to add to this list or if there is anyone who may be removed from this list.

My weekly divrei torah are also available by e-mail from the Cyber Torah list.
Cyber Torah list management (no salesman will call!):
To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
Send requests for dedications of Cyber Torah in honor of a simchah, in memory of a loved one or for a refuah shleimah to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Unsubscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net

GET WISE!

Parashat Miketz
27 Kislev 5774 / 29-30 November 2013
Torah: Genesis 41:1 - 44:17
Maftir: Numbers 7:24-29 (Hanukkah Day 3)
Haftarah: Zechariah 2:14 - 4:7 (Shabbat Hanukkah)

For a complete Calendar of Events, as well as lots of other information on our community, check out our web site at: http://bethmeier.org/ 

Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
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Get Wise!

‘And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I dreamt a dream and there is no interpretation for it, but I have heard it said of you that for you to hear a dream is to interpret it.” And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “Not I! God will answer regarding Pharaoh’s welfare.”’ Genesis 41:15-16

Joseph is a slave and a prisoner, who has suffered at the hands of his brothers, Midianites, Ishmaelites and Egyptians for many years. This is his big opportunity to gain his freedom, by impressing Pharaoh with his wisdom. Yet, he tells Pharaoh that the interpretation of the dream will come from God. In last week’s parashah as well, Joseph did not claim the mantle of prophet or wise man. (“Do not interpretations belong to God?” 40:8) It seems that God is always on his mind. (“How then can I do this great evil and sin against God?” 39:9) Also see 41:25, 28 and 32.

What is going on with Joseph? Consider Job 28:12 (Job was another who suffered greatly) - “And wisdom, where (mei’ayin) will it be found? For is this  (v’ei zeh) the place of understanding?” The answer lies buried within the same verse, for “mei’ayin” and “ei zeh” each has two different meanings, so that the verse may also be read - “And wisdom, from nothingness (mei’ayin) will it be found. And what (v’ei zeh) a place of understanding!”

Pharaoh asks, “Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom is the spirit of God?” and tells Joseph, “As God has shown you all this, there is none as discerning and wise as you.” Joseph’s humility and refusal to despair, even in the nothingness of jail, ultimately save him and bring him to greatness. It is through his trust in God that he saves his family (and not incidentally, Egypt) and thereby saves the Jewish people.

“The beginning of wisdom is to hold God in awe.” Psalms 111.10; Proverbs 9:10. I pray that we follow the model of Joseph, and get wise.

Shabbat Shalom, Chag Urim Sameach and Happy Thanksgiving!

Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Congregation Beth Meier
Studio City, CA
http://www.bethmeier.org
Visit me on Facebook

"For the sake of Zion I will not be silent; for the sake of Jerusalem I will not be still."  Isaiah 62:1
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Candlelighting: 4:25 pm. Light Hanukkah menorah first, then Shabbat candles.

Friday: Beth Meier office closed. Shabbat Evening Service – 6:30 pm. NOTE EARLY START! Come on down for a joyful way to bring in Shabbat! Oneg Shabbat follows.
Saturday: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am. Kiddush lunch follows.
Sunday: NO Religious School. NO Adult Hebrew Class.
Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – noon.
Wednesday: Eighth Night of Hanukkah – come to Beth Meier for latkes, sufganiyot, dreidels and songs to say goodbye to Hanukkah! – 6:30 pm. No cost, but please RSVP to CBM office. (Re)Introduction to Judaism class – 7:30 pm.

This d'var torah is offered in honor of my sister, Lorrie Flom Goodman, whose birthday is Friday. Yom huledet sameach! Ad meah v’esrim!

This d'var torah is offered in honor of my son, Robert Flom, whose birthday is Sunday. Yom huledet sameach! Ad meah v’esrim!

This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Blimah Reizel bat Rachel, Boaz ben Dina, Dov Nechemya Hakohen ben Rachel Chaya Sarah, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Eve Beatty, Howard Ehrlich, Joshua Erenmark, Jerry Forman, Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Lizzie Legnine, Gloria Loera, Frank Marcovitz, Barney Meskin, Colleen Pierce (Chaya Shoshanah bat Sarah Emanu), Phil Raider and Rachel Robbins.

Please let me know if there is anyone you would like to add to this list or if there is anyone who may be removed from this list.

My weekly divrei torah are also available by e-mail from the Cyber Torah list.
Cyber Torah list management (no salesman will call!):
To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
Send requests for dedications of Cyber Torah in honor of a simchah, in memory of a loved one or for a refuah shleimah to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Unsubscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net

SLAVE OR PRINCE?

Torah: Genesis 37:1 - 40:23
Haftarah: Amos 2:6 - 3:8
20 Kislev 5774 / 22-23 November 2013

For a complete Calendar of Events, as well as lots of other information on our community, check out our web site at: http://bethmeier.org/ 

Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
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Slave or Prince?

"And it came to pass after these things that the cupbearer of the king of Egypt and his baker had sinned against their master, the king of Egypt . Pharaoh was angry at his two princes - the prefect of the cupbearers and the prefect of the bakers." Genesis 40:1-2

Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch says that the reference to the two courtiers as "princes" is mockery. To those who served beneath them, they were "princes", wielding great power; but to the king, they were nothing more than slaves with fancy titles. He threw them into prison for no apparent reason. The cupbearer and baker failed to understand that, when one's position is dependent solely upon the whim of one's superior, one's position is, at best, precarious.

So it is all too often with people who attain positions of power granted by another. They clothe themselves in self-importance. The opinions of those who work for them are irrelevant. These "princes" believe that direct contact with the king somehow makes them as powerful as the king.

The most desirable community, it seems to me, is one where every member, whether leader or not, fully understands that they are serving a higher purpose; where there is no self-aggrandizement, no delusion of grandeur interfering with their dedication and perseverance. Fortunate is that community whose leaders understand that they are NOT royalty. Equally fortunate are the leaders and workers who serve that community which does not treat them like slaves. (I am thankful to be a member of THAT community! J ) May it be thus for all of us.

Shabbat Shalom, Chag Urim Sameach and Happy Thanksgiving!

Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Congregation Beth Meier
Studio City, CA
http://www.bethmeier.org
Visit me on Facebook

"For the sake of Zion I will not be silent; for the sake of Jerusalem I will not be still."  Isaiah 62:1
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Candlelighting: 4:27 pm

Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Come on down for a joyful way to bring in Shabbat! Oneg Shabbat follows.
Saturday: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am. Kiddush lunch follows.
Sunday:  Religious School – 9:30 am. Adult Hebrew Class – 10:00 am.
Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – noon.
Wednesday: First Night of Hanukkah – light your menorah after sundown. NO (Re)Introduction to Judaism class.
Thursday, 11/28: Happy Thanksgiving! Beth Meier office closed.
Friday, 11/29: Beth Meier office closed. Shabbat evening service – 6:30 pm. NOTE early service time.
Saturday, 11/30: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am.
Sunday, 12/1: NO Religious School ; NO Adult Hebrew Class.

This d'var torah is offered in memory of my uncle, David Flom, whose yahrzeit falls on Sunday. Y'hi zikhro liv'rakhah - May his memory be a blessing.

This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Boaz ben Dina, Dov Nechemya Hakohen ben Rachel Chaya Sarah, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Eve Beatty, Howard Ehrlich, Joshua Erenmark, Jerry Forman, Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Lizzie Legnine, Gloria Loera, Frank Marcovitz, Barney Meskin, Colleen Pierce (Chaya Shoshanah bat Sarah Emanu), Phil Raider and Rachel Robbins.

Please let me know if there is anyone you would like to add to this list or if there is anyone who may be removed from this list.

My weekly divrei torah are also available by e-mail from the Cyber Torah list.
Cyber Torah list management (no salesman will call!):
To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
Send requests for dedications of Cyber Torah in honor of a simchah, in memory of a loved one or for a refuah shleimah to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Unsubscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net