JACOB’S MANTRA

Parashat Vayechi

12 Tevet 5775 / 2-3 January 2015

Torah: Genesis 47:28 - 50:26 (Chazak, chazak v'nitchazeik!)

Haftarah: 1 Kings 2:1-12

Calendar and dedications follow below. For a full calendar of events and other info about Congregation Beth Meier, check out: www.bethmeier.org

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

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JACOB’S MANTRA

"For Your salvation do I hope, O Lord!" Genesis 49:18

In the middle of blessing his sons, between the blessings for Dan and Gad, Jacob cries out this apparent non-sequitur. Rashi suggests that Jacob is prophesying the moment when Samson (a Danite), blinded by the Philistines, cries out to God for sufficient strength to destroy them (Judges 16:28). Other commentators say that it is a plea for God¹s protection of the tribe of Dan, which was to be the rear guard during the desert journey. Still others say that Jacob, on his deathbed, is asking God for help to complete the blessings before his strength gives out.

Until recent times, people believed that sleep was a bit like death. Because of this, the Rabbis who compiled the siddur included a prayer to be recited on awakening each morning, which thanks God for restoring one¹s soul. And in the bedtime prayer, they included the above verse.

However, one does not merely recite the verse. The three Hebrew words of the verse are manipulated so that one recites the following: "For Your salvation do I hope, O Lord. I hope, O Lord, for Your salvation. O Lord, for Your salvation do I hope." Many siddurim say that this formula is repeated three times, so that the verses, and the name of God, are said nine times. It is, in essence, a Jewish mantra. Perhaps it is symbolic of the nine months of childbirth, so that when we recite this portion of the bedtime prayer, we are asking to be "reborn" in the morning.

לִישׁוּעָתְךָ קִוִּיתִי יְהוָה

קִוִּיתִי יְהוָה לִישׁוּעָתְךָ

יְהוָה לִישׁוּעָתְךָ קִוִּיתִי

 

It is also a plea that God should safeguard the soul should one die during the night. The bedtime prayer is replete with this theme - from the opening blessing through the Hashkiveinu ("cause us to lie down in peace, and to rise up again, our King") to the concluding verse of Adon Olam: "Into His hand I entrust my spirit, when I am asleep and awake; and as with my spirit, so also my body, God is with me and I will not fear."

One need not fear death in order to derive immense comfort from reciting the bedtime prayer. The feeling of having communicated to God one's hopes and fears can be a relaxing conclusion to any day. Recite Jacob¹s mantra, and sleep well.

Shabbat Shalom! Happy and Healthy 2015!

Rabbi Richard A. Flom – ZSRS ‘00

Congregation Beth Meier

Studio City, CA

http://www.bethmeier.org/

Blogging at: rav-rich.blogspot.com/

Visit me on Facebook

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Candlelighting: 4:37 pm

Thursday: Fast of Tevet. Office closed – Federal Holiday. Happy New Year!

Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.

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

Sunday:  NO Religious School – resume January 11.

Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – 12:00 Noon.

Looking ahead:

Sunday, 25 January: Congregation Beth Meier Annual Members’ Meeting – 2:00 pm.

This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Avi Shmuel Yosef Hakohen ben Bella, Boaz ben Dina, Michah ben Dina, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Sarah Mindel bat Toby, Bonnie Baird, Jeff Bluen, Elsbet Brosky, John Todd Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Annabelle Flom, Jerry Forman, Leo Hoenig (Leib ben Bella), Neal Hoffman (Nachum ben Dina), Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Jayne Kaplan, Lina Kniter (Lina bat Batya), Jeannie Kottler, Shirley Kronzek, and Annie Rivera.

My weekly divrei torah are also available by free subscription to 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

DISHONOR BEFORE DEATH?

5 Tevet 5775 / 26-27 December 2014

Parashat Vayiggash

Torah: Genesis 44:18 - 47:27

Haftarah: Ezekiel 37:15-28

 

Calendar and dedications follow below. For a full calendar of events and other info about Congregation Beth Meier, check out: www.bethmeier.org

 

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

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DISHONOR BEFORE DEATH?

"And Joseph could not restrain himself before all who stood by him, and he called out, 'Remove everyone from before me!' So no one remained with him when Joseph revealed himself to his brothers." Genesis 45:1

Rashi - He was unable to bear that Egyptians should stand by him and hear the humiliation of his brothers when he revealed himself.

A modern commentator, Z. Ron wonders how Rashi could possibly know what Joseph was thinking. Since he was the viceroy, maybe he did not want to embarrass himself before the Egyptians when he began crying. I might add that perhaps he would not want the Egyptians to know that this disheveled band of starving shepherds was his kin. The answer, according to Z. Ron, is in the next verse - "And he wept loudly, and Egypt heard, and the house of Pharaoh heard." Thus, he says, Rashi is right - Joseph chose to embarrass himself rather than his brothers.

Jewish tradition teaches that publicly embarrassing another person is a form of murder. That's why we have the phrase "character assassination". Words, like arrows, cannot be recalled once they go forth. Joseph chose to suffer whatever dishonor there might have been in displaying weakness, rather than have his brothers suffer the "death" of public humiliation.

 

As it turns out, there was no embarrassment for Joseph at all. That Joseph's brothers had come "... was pleasing in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of his servants." (45:16) Sparing others from humiliation, and risking it for oneself, reaps respect, not dishonor. We gain respect by respecting the dignity of others.

 

Shabbat Shalom! Happy and Healthy 2015!

 

Rabbi Richard A. Flom – ZSRS ‘00

Congregation Beth Meier

Studio City, CA

http://www.bethmeier.org/

Visit me on Facebook

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Candlelighting: 4:32 pm

 

Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.

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

Sunday:  NO Religious School – resume January 11.

Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – 12:00 Noon. Readings: One Year Review of the Pew Survey

Thursday, 1 January: Fast of Tevet. Office closed. Happy New Year!

Friday, 3 January: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.

Saturday, 4 January: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am. Kiddush lunch follows.

 

Looking ahead:

Sunday, 25 January 2015: Congregation Beth Meier Annual Members’ Meeting – 2:00 pm.

 

This d’var torah is offered in honor of my wonderful wife, Lynn Kronzek, who as of this coming Sunday, will have been putting up with me for 34 years. Happy Anniversary, my dear!

 

This d’var torah is offered in memory of Rabbi Leonard Beerman, who passed away on Wednesday. Zekher tzaddik liv'rakhah.

This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Avi Shmuel Yosef Hakohen ben Bella, Boaz ben Dina, Michah ben Dina, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Sarah Mindel bat Toby, Bonnie Baird, Jeff Bluen, Elsbet Brosky, John Todd Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Jerry Forman, Leo Hoenig (Leib ben Bella), Neal Hoffman (Nachum ben Dina), Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Jayne Kaplan, Lina Kniter (Lina bat Batya), Jeannie Kottler, Shirley Kronzek, and Annie Rivera.

 

My weekly divrei torah are also available by free subscription to 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

NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT

Parashat Miketz

28 Kislev 5775 / 19-20 December 2014

Torah: Genesis 41:1 – 44:17

Maftir: Numbers 7:30-35 (Hanukkah 4)

Haftarah: Zechariah 2:14 – 4:7 (Shabbat Hanukkah)

Calendar and dedications follow below. For a full calendar of events and other info about Congregation Beth Meier, check out: www.bethmeier.org

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

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NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT

"Now let Pharaoh seek out a discerning and wise man and set him over the land of Egypt." Gen. 41:33

Rabbi Shalom Schwadron asks this question: Why was a "discerning and wise man" needed to oversee the collection of provisions during the seven years of plenty? 

He suggests that gathering and saving food during a time of abundance in preparation for a famine in the future requires true wisdom and understanding, because it is against human nature. He quotes the Talmud (Tamid 32a): "Who is wise? One who has foresight." What is more, Joseph had to convince Pharaoh and the entire Egyptian nation to share in this foresight, which required even further wisdom on his part.

In our own lives, we often look back at missed opportunities. For example, when our children are young, we have many chances for teaching them about our heritage. There are Shabbat and Holy Day observances, religious school education, and what the educators call "teaching moments" which can arise at any time. Once they are gone, they are gone forever. It's true that Shabbat comes every week, and the festivals come annually, but _this_ Shabbat and _this_ religious school class will never come again.  

As we and our children grow older, the missed opportunities begin to pile up. Work, school, activities and the like begin to take over, and the religious and spiritual education begins to take a back seat. At some point, we look back and tell ourselves that we know too little and that it is too late to get the education. We begin to wonder why our children know so little, and do not practice the religion of our ancestors.

Of course, it's never too late to learn! Nevertheless, we need to bank learning and practice now, for the famine of opportunity which we know will come. The difference between us and Joseph is that he knew exactly when the famine would begin. We are not that wise. But we are wise enough to know that there is no time like the present to begin to add to our stores of knowledge and observance. In doing so, we avoid spiritual starvation in the lean years to come.

Happy Hanukkah and Shabbat Shalom!

Rabbi Richard A. Flom – ZSRS ‘00

Congregation Beth Meier

Studio City, CA

http://www.bethmeier.org/

Visit me on Facebook

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Candlelighting: 4:28 pm

Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.

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

Sunday:  NO Religious School – Resume January 11.

Tuesday: NO Lunch and Learn – resume December 30.

Thursday: Office closed. Federal holiday.  

Friday, 26 December: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.

Saturday, 27 December: Shabbat Morning Service – 10:00 am. Kiddush lunch follows.

Looking ahead:

Sunday, 25 January 2015: Congregation Beth Meier Annual Members’ Meeting – 2:00 pm.

This d’var torah is offered in honor of Robert Flom, whose Hebrew birthday and bar mitzvah anniversary are this Shabbat.

This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Avi Shmuel Yosef Hakohen ben Bella, Boaz ben Dina, Michah ben Dina, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Sarah Mindel bat Toby, Bonnie Baird, Jeff Bluen, Elsbet Brosky, John Todd Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Jerry Forman, Leo Hoenig (Leib ben Bella), Neal Hoffman (Nachum ben Dina), Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Jayne Kaplan, Lina Kniter (Lina bat Batya), Jeannie Kottler, Shirley Kronzek, and Annie Rivera.

My weekly divrei torah are also available by free subscription to theCyber 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

THE SECRET?

Parashat Vayeishev

21 Kislev 5775 / 12-13 December 2014

Torah: Genesis 37:1 - 40:23

Haftarah: Amos 2:6 - 3:8

 

Calendar and dedications follow below. For a full calendar of events and other info about Congregation Beth Meier, check out: www.bethmeier.org

 

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

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THE SECRET?

 

"And Judah said to his brothers, "What advantage is there if we slay our brother and conceal his blood?" Genesis 37:26

 

A traditional understanding of this verse is that Judah sees an opportunity to get rid of Joseph and profit at the same time (while saving his life). That is why the brothers ultimately decide to sell Joseph into slavery. But Rebbe Menachem Mendel of Kotzk has a very different take on the verse.

 

The Kotzker focuses not on the profit motive, but on the idea of hiding the deed. He says, "If we are forced to conceal the matter and keep it secret, that is a sign that it is wrong. Every secret is like a type of theft."

 

In the Kotzker's view, Judah is saying there is no benefit whatsoever in eliminating Joseph, since it will be a guilty secret among the brothers forever. Indeed, we see later in the Torah that the brothers become wracked with guilt and recrimination when they are confronted by the vizier of Egypt (the disguised Joseph), who seems omniscient in his penetrating questions and demands of them.

 

My father, z’tz'l, whose name also was Menachem Mendel, taught me a very simple lesson on the issue. "Don't ever say or do anything that you would not want on the front page of the newspaper."

 

There's no such thing as a secret.

 

Shabbat Shalom V'Chag Urim Sameach!

 

Rabbi Richard A. Flom – ZSRS ‘00

Congregation Beth Meier

Studio City, CA

http://www.bethmeier.org/

Visit me on Facebook

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Candlelighting: 4:26 pm

 

Friday: Family Shabbat Evening Service – 7:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.

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

Sunday:  Religious School – 9:30 am. Chanukah Workshop – 10:00 am – noon. Learn the history, customs and cuisine of Chanukah. Sing some songs! Sufganiyot for all!

Tuesday: Lunch and Learn - noon. Chanukah begins – sundown. Menorah! Latkes! Sufganiyot! Eight Crazy Nights!

 

Looking ahead:

Sunday, 25 January 2015: Congregation Beth Meier Annual Members’ Meeting – 2:00 pm.

 

This d’var torah is offered in memory of my uncle, Dr. David M. Flom, whose yahrzeit falls this Shabbat, 21 Kislev. Y’hi zikhro liv’rakhah.

 

This d’var torah is offered in honor of Dr. Martin and Marilyn Lee, celebrating their wedding anniversary this week. Mazal tov!

 

This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Avi Shmuel Yosef Hakohen ben Bella, Boaz ben Dina, Michah ben Dina, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Sarah Mindel bat Toby, Bonnie Baird, Jeff Bluen, Elsbet Brosky, John Todd Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Jerry Forman, Leo Hoenig (Leib ben Bella), Neal Hoffman (Nachum ben Dina), Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Jayne Kaplan, Lina Kniter (Lina bat Batya), Jeannie Kottler, Shirley Kronzek, and Annie Rivera.

 

My weekly divrei torah are also available by free subscription to 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

DON'T GIVE UP THE FIGHT!

Parashat Vayishlach

14 Kislev 5775 / 5-6 December 2014

Torah - Genesis 32:4 – 36:43
Haftarah – Ovadiah 1:1-21

Calendar and dedications follow below. For a full calendar of events and other info about Congregation Beth Meier, check out: www.bethmeier.org

Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
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Don't Give Up The Fight!

'And (the angel) said, "Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with humans, and you have prevailed.'" Genesis 32:29

Jewish tradition, going back to the opening chapters of Genesis, holds that names contain the essential being of the person, place or thing named. We Jews have been called the "Children of Israel" or the "People Israel" for longer than we have been called "Jews". The origin of the name is given in our verse. Does "Israel" describe our very essence? 

Consider first the struggle with other people. In the course of the Tanakh itself, our people struggled with Canaanites, Egyptians, Philistines, Assyrians, Babylonians, and others. Since then, we have striven with Greeks, Romans, Crusaders, Cossacks, Nazis, Soviets and many others. We have not always prevailed, in the sense of military victory - quite the contrary - no significant military victories from circa 165 BCE until 1948 CE. Yet, to the extent any people or nations at all exist today using those names, they are quite different from what they were. And what about us? We are still here, so we have prevailed; but we are still "a people apart", still struggling to be "a light unto the nations", still fighting sometimes for the very right to be Jews.

Now consider contention with God. From Abraham until modern times, Jews have wrestled with God. Our people at times have refused to follow God's word, sometimes at a heavy price. More often, our people have listened to God, yet still paid a price. We ask, "God, what do you want from us?" "God, what do these words mean, why do you command us to do such and such?" "God, where were You when the Temple was destroyed, when our people were being slaughtered at Auschwitz, and all the other times?" "Shall not the Judge of all the world act justly?" Sometimes, there is more than one "right" answer. Sometimes, there is no satisfactory answer. Sometimes, there is no answer, no response at all.

If we surrender to the forces around us, we give up the right to call ourselves Israel. It is not prevailing that matters; it is the very struggle with God and with man that defines the essence of being a Jew. Don't give up the fight!

Shabbat Shalom.

Rabbi Richard A. Flom – ZSRS ‘00

Congregation Beth Meier

Studio City, CA

http://www.bethmeier.org/

Blogging at: rav-rich.blogspot.com/

Visit me on Facebook

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Candlelighting: 4:25 pm

Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 8:00 pm. 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. Rosh Chodesh Women’s Group meeting – 12:00 noon.

Tuesday: Lunch and Learn - noon.

Sunday, 14 December: Religious School – 9:30 am. Chanukah Workshop – 10:00 am – noon. Learn the history, customs and cuisine of Chanukah. Sufganiyot for all!

This d’var torah is offered in honor of Sarah Ritter, celebrating her bat mitzvah this motza’ei Shabbat. Mazal tov!

This d’var torah is offered in memory of my uncle, Daniel Flom, whose yahrzeit falls on Shabbat. 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, Michah ben Dina, Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Sarah Mindel bat Toby, Bonnie Baird, Jeff Bluen, Elsbet Brosky, John Todd Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Maya Fersht, Dr. Samuel Fersht, Jerry Forman, Leo Hoenig, Neal Hoffman, Pamela Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Lina Kniter, Jeannie Kottler, Shirley Kronzek, and Annie Rivera.

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