Av 11, 5780 / July 31 – August 1, 2020
Torah: Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11
Haftarah: Isaiah 40:1-26 (First Haftarah of Comfort)
This Shabbat is known as Shabbat Nachamu, the
Shabbat of Comfort, for the words of God and the prophet following Tisha
B'Av (9 Av).
This d'var torah is offered in memory of Martha Gottschalk Stern (Lynn's grandmother), whose yahrzeit falls on Sunday, August 2 (12 Av). Y’hi zekherah liv’rakhah – Her memory is a blessing.
This d'var torah is offered in memory of Martha Gottschalk Stern (Lynn's grandmother), whose yahrzeit falls on Sunday, August 2 (12 Av). Y’hi zekherah liv’rakhah – Her memory is a blessing.
Candlelighting for Friday, August 31: 7:36 PM PDT
Links to all of our on-line activities can be found
below.
Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please
cite the source.
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TO REMEMBER OR TO OBSERVE?
"Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the
Lord your God commanded you." Deuteronomy 5:12
Rashi (quoting the Mekhilta d’Rebbi Yishmael): “At the
first (i.e., Exodus 20:8), it says, "remember" (the
Sabbath). Both were said in one statement and in one word, and they were
heard simultaneously.”
According to the Midrash, Moses does not have a faulty
memory. Since Moses cannot say two words at one time, the Torah uses
"remember" in one place, and "observe" in the other. I
have been taught that they are actually two separate commandments. One can
perform one of these commandments without performing the other.
How is it possible to observe Shabbat without remembering
it? Performance of mitzvot requires kavannah, the proper intent. If
one carries out all of the rituals of Shabbat, does no work, and so forth,
without reflecting on why one does so, without actually intending to do so, one
has observed without remembering, and the observance is, in a way,
incomplete. How is it possible to remember without
observing? One might say to oneself, "It is Shabbat, and I will light
the candles." But for some reason or other, one does not perform
other Shabbat rituals, or one performs work, and so forth. One has surely
remembered, but has not fully observed Shabbat.
I would suggest that remembering is more important than
observing. This is because remembering can lead to observing (as it has in
my own life), and one may thereby perform both of these commandments. But
mechanical observance tends to turn into empty ritual – which is meaningless -
and leads to forgetfulness, and thus the non-performance of both
commandments. Perhaps in this context, we would do well to refer to
the teaching of the Baal Shem Tov - "Memory is the source of redemption;
forgetting leads to exile."
Even if you are not yet prepared to fully observe
Shabbat, for your own sake, for the sake of your children, for the sake of the
Jewish people, remember Shabbat.
Shabbat Shalom.
Rabbi Richard A. Flom
.הַלּוֹמֵד מִכָּל אָדָם ?אֵיזֶהוּ
חָכָם
Who is wise? The one who learns from every person.
Ben Zoma - Pirkei Avot 4:1
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Join our Kabbalat Shabbat Service, with Reb
Jason Van Leeuwen and Rabbi Flom this Friday evening at 6:30 pm PDT at:
Join our Shabbat Morning Service with Reb Jason
and Rabbi Flom this Saturday morning at 10:00 am PDT at: https://www.facebook.com/BnaiHayim/
Downloadable and printable Siddur for Kabbalat
Shabbat, Shabbat Ma'ariv, Shabbat Morning, and more, available at:
You can download both Siddur Sim Shalom and Siddur Lev Shalem at the above link.
For the time being, we will not be posting
separate videos of Torah and Haftarah readings.
Join us every Sunday at 11:00 am PDT for "History
of the Jews of Israel and the Middle East" with David Silon at:
Join us every Tuesday at 12:30 pm PDT for Lunch
and Learn, a 60 minute study session. We're learning the weekly haftarah. Join
us at:
NO Lunch and Learn on Tuesday, August 4. We'll be back on Tuesday August 11.
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