ONE PEOPLE

   The Yemay Noraim are behind us and we are anticipating the joyous YomTov Of Succot. One of the main Mitzvot of this Holiday is the taking of the Esrog and Lulav.

 Chazal tell us that the Four Species that we take daily on Succot and the manner in which we take them represent unity in Klal Yisrael, an ingredient that is sorely needed in our day and age.

    Rav Chayim Soloveitchik זצ׳ל noted that since the Bes Hamikdash was the gathering of all the leaders of Am Yisrael and the entire Jewish People, it was imperative to stress the need for unity.  To emphasize this point we are required to take the Esrog and Lulav for seven days so that the lesson of unity becomes ingrained in our being. 

    This idea reminds me of a story that I read recently; There  was a blind horse named Buddy. The man who owned him was terribly proud of him because Buddy was a very strong horse. One night a car got stuck in a ditch. It's driver saw there was a farm house nearby and knocked on the door and asked for help. The farmer said, "Sure no problem, I have a horse named Buddy who is so strong he will pull your car out of the ditch in no time flat." He went to the barn, got Buddy and hitched him up to the car. Strangely, the farmer started shouting to three other horses who didn't even exist. "Pull Silver, Pull  Ginger, Pull Becky,"and then to Buddy,  "Pull Buddy" and Buddy pulled the car right out of the ditch. 

   The man who owned the car was very appreciative and thanked the farmer profusely. And then asked, "Why were you calling other horses' names out? There were no other horses here."

     The farmer replied, "I do that every time. You see, if Buddy thought that he was pulling alone he would never have pulled so hard."

   When we pull together, we can achieve extraordinary things. 

   That is our lesson for Succot.  Taking the Esrog and Lulav, that represent different types of Jews, with many different ideas and philosophies and when we unite with each other than we are truly one עם״"a people that will survive against all acts of assimilation. These are times when  we need to act together. The Jew never pulls alone. We are a unified people, helping each other to achieve our goals in life.

   This is one of the most enduring traits of the Jewish People.  We are never alone. With G-D  as our guiding light, we are a Kehillah Kedosha , a community that shares a holy destiny. This can only be achieved if we continue to be a unified nation that is inclusive and caring for one another. 

    May this Yom Tov inspire all of us with a greater love for our fellow Jew and may Hashem bless us with, הי יברך את עמו ישראל בשלום.

    Wishing everyone a Gabensthe Yaur and a שמחת יום טוב and may we have the Zchut to see in our day and age the, ביאת גואל צדק.

  

YOM KIPPUR

    We stand only a few days prior to the Holiest Day of the year, Yom Kippur, that brings us the key that unlocks the Homeland of our Soul.  It is on this day that our Supplications and Prayers release the latch and we enter into the Divine presence.  Here we stand, not only face to face with our creator, but, also, face to face with ourselves.  All masquerades fall away, as it is written;

"Thou  remember every deed, nought is hidden from Thee."

     We shall wave goodbye to the past and joyfully and with courage, turn to face the future.  Each year, we hope and pray that this coming year will bring peace, happiness, success and healing to a world crying for salvation and miracles.  However, hoping is not enough.  We must all come to realize that it depends on the initiative of each and everyone of us.

     A story is told of the Baal Shem Tov, leader of the Chassidic movement; The saintly Baal Shem stopped to watch, with wonder, an acrobat who was skillfully walking on a tight rope, stretched across a pond.  The disciples gently chided their master for wasting time on such a frivolous matter.  But the Baal Shem turned and said, " My children, I was contemplating, as I watched the tight rope walker, how thoroughly he had to train his feet before he could perform this difficult feat.  If men could train their souls as well as this man has trained his feet, what spiritual chasm they could cross in safety."

     May this Yom Kippur inspire everyone to a more spiritual life in the coming year, and may our lives always be defined by our loyalty and dedication to our Torah way of life.

   May this coming New Year bring life and happiness, prosperity, salvation and joy, to all our families and to כלל ישראל.

     כתיבה וחתימה טובה 

THE ESSENCE OF MAN

    As we approach the Yom Tov of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, one word surfaces to set the tone for these Yemai Noraim, and that is "Teshuvah".

     According  to the Gemorah "Teshuvah precedes the world". Rabbi Shlomo Aviner explains this statement as not chronological, but rather causal. In other words, Teshuvah enables the world to exist and is the foundation of our lives. The world is dynamic, everything is in motion, there is constant activity as the world progresses in an unceasing upward process of self perfection.

   Hashem purposely created an imperfect state, so that with man it could be enhanced and perfected. This  process of improvement is the essence of Teshuvah, which is not only the transformation of evil to good, but also the progression from good to perfect. The idea that is expressed in this concept is that man should never be satisfied with his way of life. We are constantly required to elevate ourselves from one level to the next. Doing less than we are able is a sign of failure and is a sin in itself. 

   This idea is expressed in the opening words of this week's Torah reading, Parshas Nezavim.

     אתם נצבים היום כולכם לפני הי - suggesting that we are always standing before G-D, which requires that we proceed to do the best that we can,and realizing that He demands our best and nothing less. 

     Thus, we see that Teshuvah is the act of man returning to the original true nature of a human being who was created in the Image of G-D. 

  We then begin to realize that the process of Teshuvah is returning to a way of life that is constantly representing the will of G-D. Our life must be in line with the divine plan, and when it is, we will achieve the ultimate in the perfection of man.  This was Hashem's  plan when He created man on Rosh Hashana.

     I hope we can achieve the destiny of man as G-D had planned for us in the coming New Year.

    Wishing everyone a לשנה טובה תכתבו ותחתמו and may the coming year bring peace and serenity to our  personal lives and to our glorious State of Israel.

( I hope you enjoyed my Blogs this past year and look forward to reading your comments)

SAVING SOULS

     We stand on the threshold of the New Year, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, our Yamim Noraim, that brings us the key that unlocks the Homeland of the Soul. We require nothing else than the heart’s devoutness to transport us to the gates of the majestic Homeland.  Our supplications and prayers release the latch and we enter into the Divine Presence.  Here we stand not only face to face with our creator, but also face to face with ourselves.   All masquerades fall away.  “Thou rememberest every deed, nought is hidden from thee.”

     We shall wave goodbye to the past and joyfully and with courage turn to face the future.  Each year we hope and pray that this coming year will be different, bringing peace, happiness, success and healing to a world crying for salvation and miracles. However, hoping is not enough.  We must come to realize that it depends on the initiative of each and every one of us.

     A story is told of the Baal Shem Tov, leader of the Chassidic movement in the 18^th Century;  One day he was walking with his disciples.  Suddenly, the saintly Baal Shem stopped to watch, with wonder, an acrobat who was skillfully walking on a tight rope stretched across a pond.  The disciples gently chided their master for wasting his time on such a frivolous matter.  But the Baal Shem turned and said, “My children, I was contemplating, as I watched the tight rope walker, how thoroughly he had to train his feet before he could perform this difficult feat. If men could train their souls as this man trained his feet, what spiritual chasms they could cross in  safety.”

     May this coming New Year bring life and happiness, peace and prosperity, salvation and joy, to all of us and our loved ones.