17 Tammuz 5775 / 3-4 July 2015
Torah: Numbers 22:2 - 25:9
Haftarah: Micah 5:6 - 6:8
Torah: Numbers 22:2 - 25:9
Haftarah: Micah 5:6 - 6:8
IMPORTANT
NOTE:
We
are changing our Shabbat Evening Service time for the month of August! On
August 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30, Shabbat Evening services will begin at 6:30 pm. This
will give those who do not wish to drive at night, or who would like to have
Shabbat dinner after services, or simply a more relaxed evening, the chance to
do so. We’ll see you here!
Calendar
and dedications follow below. For a full calendar of events and other info
about Temple B’nai Hayim/Congregation Beth Meier, check out:
Please
feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
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NO
PROFIT FROM “PROPHETS”
“How goodly are your tents, O Jacob, your dwelling places, O Israel. Like palm groves that stretch out; like gardens beside a river; like aloes planted by the Lord; like cedars beside the water.” Numbers 24:5-6.
The first verse here is the opening of “Ma Tovu”, recited upon entering the synagogue. Together, the verses are a beautiful blessing, or perhaps an observation, offered by the sorcerer-prophet Bil’am, who had been hired to curse the people of Israel.
The early Hasidic master Yakov Yosef of Polnoye asks, “What is the difference between a true prophet and a false one?” The true prophet, he says, scolds people, telling them of their failings and how they may correct them. Think of Jeremiah or Isaiah.
“How goodly are your tents, O Jacob, your dwelling places, O Israel. Like palm groves that stretch out; like gardens beside a river; like aloes planted by the Lord; like cedars beside the water.” Numbers 24:5-6.
The first verse here is the opening of “Ma Tovu”, recited upon entering the synagogue. Together, the verses are a beautiful blessing, or perhaps an observation, offered by the sorcerer-prophet Bil’am, who had been hired to curse the people of Israel.
The early Hasidic master Yakov Yosef of Polnoye asks, “What is the difference between a true prophet and a false one?” The true prophet, he says, scolds people, telling them of their failings and how they may correct them. Think of Jeremiah or Isaiah.
The
false prophet, on the other hand, sweet-talks the people. “You’re
wonderful! Everything is great! Don’t change a thing.” He
covers you in honey and cream while preparing to slice you to pieces.
It
is precisely because true prophets love the people that they criticize them and
demand improvement. Even though Bil’am and others of his ilk praise the
people Israel, they do not sing out of love. They say what they say in
order to entice Israel, and prevent the people from reaching the loftiest
possible spiritual and moral levels.
Don’t
be fooled by false prophets - they'll love you to death.
Shabbat
Shalom!
Rabbi
Richard A. Flom
Temple
B'nai Hayim/Congregation Beth Meier
Blogging
at: http://rav-rich.blogspot.com
"שתיקה כהודאה דמיא"
"Silence
in the face of wrongdoing is consent.”
BT
Yevamot 88a
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Candle lighting: 7:45 pm
Friday: Shabbat Evening Service – 7:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat
follows.
Saturday: Torah study/breakfast – 8:45
am. Shabbat Morning Service – 9:30 am. Kiddush lunch follows.
Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – 12:00 noon.
Friday, July 26: Shabbat Evening
Service – 7:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.
Saturday, July 27: Torah study/breakfast –
8:45 am. Shabbat Morning Service – 9:30 am. Kiddush lunch follows.
This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Leah
bat Sarah Imanu, Sarah bat Devorah, Susan Arbetman, Ken Bitticks, Mark
Brownstein, Jerry Daniels, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr.
Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Annabelle Flom (Channah Bella bat
Kreina), Bernard Garvin, Leah Granat, Carol Herskowitz, Brandon Joseph, Gabor
Klein, Philip Kovac, Tonya Kronzek (Zlata Malkah bat Sarah Imanu), Marilyn Lee,
David Marks, Sandra Raab, Marguerite Rassiner, Josef Sands, Debra Schugar
Strauss (Devorah bat Chaya Feiga), Helen Schugar (Chaya Feiga bat Kreina),
Bernie Seeman, and William Sragow.
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.
Next
time you come to TBH/CBM, please bring some non-perishable canned and packaged
foods and personal items (no glass) for SOVA.
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!
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
