REMEMBER?

Adar 11, 5786 / February 27-28, 2026

Parashat Tetzaveh (Shabbat Zakhor)

Torah Reading: Exodus 27:20 - 30:10
Maftir (Shabbat Zakhor): Deuteronomy 25:17-19
Haftarah (Shabbat Zakhor): 1 Samuel 15:1-34

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Lunch and Learn meets Mondays at 12:30 PM on Zoom and Facebook Live. NO Lunch and Learn on March 2. On Monday, March 9, we'll continue our learning in BT Pesachim in preparation for Passover, commencing on Wednesday, April 1. 

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Rabbi Van Leeuwen has a blog which you should read at:

https://rebjasonblog.wordpress.com 

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

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REMEMBER?

This Shabbat is known as Shabbat Zakhor (Remember) because of the first word of the Maftir, the additional Torah reading, which instructs us to remember what Amalek did to our ancestors on the way out of Egypt. This serves as a connection to the observance of Purim, Monday night and Tuesday, when we commemorate the defeat of Haman, a descendant of Amalek. However, I want to focus on a different kind of remembering, mentioned in the weekly portion for this Shabbat.

"And you shall put the two stones upon the shoulder pieces of the ephod, stones of remembrance for the Children of Israel; and Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord upon his two shoulders for a remembrance... And Aaron shall bear the names of the Children of Israel in the breastplate of judgment over his heart, when he goes into the holy place, for a remembrance before the Lord perpetually." Exodus 28:12, 29

"For a remembrance - that the Holy One Blessed Be He should see the tribes written before Him and remember their righteousness." (tzidkatam – their righteousness) Rashi to verse 12, citing Midrash Exodus Rabbah

"Memory is the source of redemption; exile comes from forgetting." Baal Shem Tov to verse 29.

The names of the tribes were engraved on the stones as a reminder - to whom? Rashi teaches that God needs to be reminded of the righteousness of our ancestors. Perhaps it is to remind God of our (inherent?) righteousness (as if!); we also are the Children of Israel. Does God really need to be reminded of anything - as if God could forget! Yet many of the prayers which we regularly offer do just that.

I understand the Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Chasidism, as saying "no!" We are the ones who need to remember. If we believe we are righteous, we need to remember that we once were not. If we are not righteous, we must remember that we can become so - if we try. Remembering takes on redeeming qualities, because it can compel us to perform acts of righteousness. So it is imperative to remember what you once were; to be reminded of what you have the potential to become; and to do something about it, by performing acts of tzedek and tzedakah, of justice and of righteousness.

Have a wonderful Shabbat! Purim Sameach! Barukh Mordechai; Arur Haman! 

HaRav HaGaon HaTzaddik Abba Reuven Ben Menachem Mendel Flom, Sh’lita

Der Heileger Rebbe of Sherman Oaks - Emeritus

Rosh Yeshivah – Lower Slobbovia Bartender Academy

Slivovitz Taste Tester
משנכנס אדר, מרבין בשמחה

From the beginning of Adar, we increase joy.

BT Ta’anit 29a

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