30
Av 5778 / 10-11 August 2018
Parashat
Re'eh (Shabbat Rosh Chodesh Elul)
Torah:
Deuteronomy 11:26 - 16:17
Maftir:
Numbers 28:9-15
Haftarah:
Isaiah 66:1-24
Calendar
and dedications follow below. For a full calendar of events and other info
about Temple B’nai Hayim/Congregation Beth Meier, check out:
Rosh Hashanah begins the evening of Sunday,
September 9. Please get you membership and ticket orders in to the office ASAP.
Also, if you want to remember your friends and loved ones in the Book of
Remembrance, contact the office ASAP.
Please
feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
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SAY
IT ISN’T SO!
"You
shall not do so to the Lord your God." Deuteronomy 12:4
R.
Menachem Mendel of Kotzk: Your worship of God shall not be "so", as a
monotonous routine - one simply meant to fulfill your obligation - but for the
sake of God and with a feeling of holy reverence.
"For
you shall surely open your hand to (the needy), and you shall surely lend him
enough for his need, that is lacking for him." Deuteronomy 15:8
Rashi:
You shall surely open even many times. (Citing Sifrei)
There is a conflict between two concepts relating to the fulfillment of the mitzvot. The concepts are keva' (regularity) and kavanah (focused intent). One must observe the mitzvot regularly and become accustomed to them. At the same time, whenever one performs a particular mitzvah, one should do so intensely, focused on the holy significance of the act, and what it accomplishes. That's not easy to do on a regular basis. That is possibly a reason for reciting a b’rakhah, a blessing, before performing a mitzvah.
But
the giving of tzedakah, charity, is somewhat different. Tzedakah surely is
a mitzvah. It might also be considered a form of worship in the sense of avodah
– service to God. Thus, we learn from the Kotzker Rebbe and Rashi that no
matter how often we give tzedakah, with keva', it cannot be done in a
rote manner; we must do it with kavanah, with feelings of intensity and
holiness.
Unlike
virtually any other mitzvah, there is no b'rakhah, no blessing,
recited before giving tzedakah. Perhaps the reason for no blessing is to
prevent us from feeling too proud of ourselves for having performed the
mitzvah. Another reason might be that it objectifies the recipient as a
means for performing the mitzvah and could also embarrass
them. Perhaps more important, the recitation of the b'rakhah delays
the performance of the mitzvah, and with charity, time can sometimes mean the
difference between life and death.
Give
tzedakah, often, and know that it is a holy act. But don't think about it
for too long.
Shabbat
Shalom! Chodesh Tov!
Rabbi
Richard A. Flom
Temple
B'nai Hayim/Congregation Beth Meier
"שתיקה כהודאה דמיא"
Silence
in the face of wrongdoing is consent.”
BT
Yevamot 88a
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Candle lighting: 7:27 pm
Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 7:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat
follows.
Saturday: Torah study/breakfast – 8:45
am. Women’s Shabbat/Rosh Chodesh Morning Service – 9:30 am. Kiddush
lunch follows.
Sunday: TBH/CBM Open House – 11:00 am – 1:00 pm. Come on down
with your family and friends who might be interested in joining our growing
community. Schmooze with old friends and make new ones! Also, on 19 August
and 26 August.
Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – 12:00 noon.
Looking ahead:
Friday, 24 August: Cool Shabbat Evening
Service with Steve Pearlman and Rabbi Flom – A Guitar-Accompanied Service –
It’s a GAS! – 7:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.
Next time you come to TBH/CBM, please bring some non-perishable
canned and packaged foods and personal items (no glass) for SOVA.
This d'var torah is offered in honor of all the women of our
community, those who are conducting parts of our services this week, and those
who serve the community in so many other ways. Kol hakavod!
This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Elisheva bat
Malkah, Ze’ev ben Adeline, Eilite bat Miriam, Sarah bat Devorah, Susan
Arbetman, Ken Bitticks, Jerry Daniels, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr.
Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Annabelle Flom (Channah Bella bat
Kreina), Bernard Garvin, Leah Granat, Brandon Joseph, Gabor Klein, Philip
Kovac, Tonya Kronzek (Zlata Malkah bat Sarah Emanu), David Marks, Janice Ross,
Debra Schugar Strauss (Devorah bat Chaya Feiga), Helen Schugar (Chaya Feiga bat
Kreina), Barbara Shear-Hill, Irwin Silon, and Jonathan Woolf.
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.
