FOR WHOM DO YOU WORK?

Parashat Pekudei
Torah: Exodus 38:21 - 40:38
Haftarah: 1 Kings 7:51 - 8:21 (Ashkenazim); 1 Kings 7:40-50 (Sephardim)

2 Adar Sheni 5779 / 8-9 March 2019

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

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

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FOR WHOM DO YOU WORK?

"According to everything that God commanded Moses, so the Children of Israel did all the work." Exodus 39:42

Rabbis Lawrence Kushner and Kerry Olitzky, authors of Sparks Beneath the Surface, a commentary on Itturei Torah, offer the following thought: We seldom consider that the term "mitzvot" (commandments) implies the existence of a "mitzaveh" (commander). They then tell this story:

A rabbi met the gatekeeper of a city. He asked, "For whom do you work?" Replied the gatekeeper, "I work for the master of this city. For whom do you work?" Instead of answering directly, the rabbi said, "I wish to hire you to work for me." "And what will be my duties?" asked the gatekeeper. The rabbi replied, "You will ask me every day, 'For whom do you work?'"

I would venture to say that the vast majority of Jews, when asked, "What does the word 'mitzvah' mean?" would answer, "A good deed." This is only partly correct. In his book Mitzvah Means Commandment (directed towards teenagers, but also very appropriate for adults), my teacher Rabbi Elliot Dorff explains in easy to understand terms how and why Jews observe the mitzvot and derive meaning from them. Ultimately, the question Rabbi Dorff is really answering, the question that each of us must ask of ourselves is, "For whom do you work?"

Have a wonderful Shabbat!

Grand Rabbi Abba Reuven ben Menachem Mendel Flom

Der Heiliger Shlabodkieville Rebbe
Av Beis Din – Chelm

משנכנס אדר, מרבין בשמחה

Mishenichnas Adar, Marbin B’simcha! 

With the entry of the month of Adar, we increase joy!

Be Happy! Adar 2 is here!

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CALENDAR

Candle lighting: 5:36 pm

Friday – Tot Shabbat Service – 6:30 pm. A 45-minute Guitar-Accompanied Service and a Kids’ Story with Reb Jason and Rabbi Flom, with a kid-friendly Oneg Shabbat. Shabbat Evening Service – 7:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows

Saturday – Breakfast and Torah study - 8:45 am. Shabbat Morning Service - 9:30 am. Kiddush luncheon follows. Turn your clocks ahead one hour tonight before retiring - DST has arrived!

Sunday - Religious School - 9:30 am.

Tuesday – Lunch and Learn – 12:00 noon. Continuing with learning Midrashim on Purim!  Purim Shpiel Rehearsal – 7:00 pm. Everyone is welcome to participate! – even if not at previous read-throughs. Cast yourselves into the cast of our shpiel!

Friday, March 15 – Shabbat Evening Service – 7:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows

Saturday, March 16 – Breakfast and Torah study - 8:45 am. Shabbat Morning Service - 9:30 am. Kiddush luncheon follows.

Sunday, March 17 - We need help in assembling and delivering Mishloach Manot baskets – 9:30 am.  Please contact Susan Burke or Melinda Trauman if you can pitch in.

Wednesday, March 20 - Purim dinner, shpiel and megillah reading, beginning 6:00 pm. RSVP to TBH office.

Sunday, March 31 – Sisterhood Meeting – 12:00 noon. Movie Time! Yentl - 2:00 pm.

Saturday, April 6 – Women’s Rosh Chodesh Shabbat Morning Service – contact Carol Herskowitz or Lynn Kronzek for more details. 

Saturday, April 13 – NO Torah Study/Breakfast – resume May 4. Sh’MA (Shabbat Morning Adventure) Service – 9:30 am. A Guitar-led, singalong service with Dr. Steve Pearlman. Designed for the whole family! Followed by kiddush luncheon.

Saturday, April 20 – Community Second Seder Shel Pesach – more info to follow.

Sunday, May 19 – TBH/CBM Concert and Fundraiser – with music, comedy, silent auction, and food and drink. Check our website: http://bnaihayim.com for details. Or contact the TBH office.

Sunday, June 2 - Afternoon at the Colony Theater – “Old Jews Telling Jokes” – a bawdy (not suitable for minors) visit to the Catskills with Jokes, Skits, Song & Dance! More info to follow.

Next time you come to TBH/CBM, please bring some non-perishable canned and packaged foods and personal items (no glass) for SOVA.

TBH Religious School and TBH Preschool have open enrollment. Enroll your children now! Contact the TBH office for information.

And be sure to tell your neighbors, friends, and relatives about our warm and welcoming community and our programs!

We are looking for volunteers for services: chant Torah or Haftarah, daven, lead English readings, deliver d’rashot, and have aliyot and other Torah/bimah honors. Training available! Contact Rabbi Flom by e-mail for details and to sign up!

This d'var torah is offered in honor of my mother, Annabelle Flom, celebrating her birthday on Monday, March 11. Yom huledet sameach, Ima! Ad me'ah v'esrim!

This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Elisheva bat Malkah, Ze’ev ben Adeline, Liora bat Sarah, Eilite bat Miriam, Sarah bat Devorah, Susan Arbetman, Ken Bitticks, Jerry Daniels, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Bernard Garvin, Leah Granat, Brandon Joseph, Gabor Klein, Philip Kovac, Tonya Kronzek (Zlata Malkah bat Sarah Imanu), Marilyn Lee, David Marks, Debra Schugar Strauss (Devorah bat Chaya Feiga), Helen Schugar (Chaya Feiga bat Kreina), Bernie Seeman, Irwin Silon, Price Simon, William Sragow, 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.

My weekly divrei torah are available through free subscription to the Cyber Torah e-mail list. No salesman will call! 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.