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Essays on the weekly Torah portion, the holidays and Jewish thought.
Parsha Toldos – Out of Sight Isaac was spiritually sensitive to any form of evil. His sensitivity derived from his being offered as a sacrifice and hi eyesight was affected by the “tears” of the angels, symbolic of the angelic purity that was instilled in him from that time onward. As he matured, his spiritual sensitivity and i Parsha Toldos – Reflections 2 The two periods of exile and Redemption are expressive of the two modes of G-d’s relationship with us. In exile G-d appears distant and it instills a feeling of G-d having abandoned us. In the days of the Holy Temple old as well as when Moshiach will come, we will experience G-d’s love and closeness Parsha Toldos – Receptive to Blessings Of all the sacrifices we can make to make us worthy of the Messianic blessing it is the sacrifice that involves changing our habits for the purpose of helping another or going against our nature in the fulfillment of any Mitzvah. Parsha Toldos – Reflections Even when we are justified in our anger against another, we must never allow that anger to seethe in us. The anger should be directed into a course of action how to correct the mistakes of the other, but never should the anger be allowed to remain in our conscious and even subconscious mind. By expu Parsha Toldos – Reversing the Reversal Torah to us is more than just a powerful teaching; it is the most intimate aspect of our lives; we are married to it. This intimate relationship with Torah is based on its Divine nature, which connects to the Divine aspect of our souls. Denying the Divine dimension of Torah is tantamount to violatin Parsha Toldos – The Birthright in Three Stages Our mission now therefore is to “buy the birthright” from Esau in a figurative sense. This means that we should live our lives now as we imagine we will live our lives in the imminent Age of Redemption. We should recognize that the Jacob aspects of our lives are the dominant ones. In the Rebbe’s wor Parsha Toldos – The Hands of Esau We are currently living in an age where most countries in the world are supportive to one degree or another of Jewish life and observance. Even the former Soviet Empire that sought to extinguish every trace of the light of Judaism has been transformed into a society that warmly supports Jewish life Parsha Toldos – The Twin Bar Mitzvah The myth is that a Messianic Age will bring about a reduction of responsibility and will serve essentially as a universal “senior citizen” retirement experience as a reward for all of our good work. When Moshiach will take us out of exile, we will all celebrate our collective Bar and Bas Mitzvah, wh Parsha Toldos – The Voice of Jacob and the Hands of Esau A Jew cannot be passive. Judaism is not a spectator sport. One must be actively engaged in one’s Jewish life. Parsha Toldos – Vive La Old Age The energy and verve with which youth is associated is more than just commendable, it is indispensable. It is the catalyst for the future Redemption. However, it does not negate the virtue of advanced age and its potential for advanced maturity and spirituality. Parsha Toldos – We Are All Firstborn! Eisav disenfranchised himself from G-d’s community. Can a Jew can do the same today. If that were the case, G-d forbid, millions of assimilated Jews, who do not identify with the claim of being G-d’s firstborn, will not be redeemed by Moshiach. The answer has already been provided by the Rebbe: “No Holidays Yom Kippur – Feasting and Fasting Everything possesses spiritual energy. But, G-d deliberately hid much of this energy so that we, the human beings, utilizing our intelligence and choice to do good, can discover that energy and then unleash it. Where does G-d hide this spiritual energy? In levels of existence that are lower than the Holidays Yom Kippur – It Depends Who You Ask – Yom Kippur Meditation (2) From G-d’s perspective, Teshuvah can bring atonement. G-d’s utter transcendence renders the blemish harmless. To access this transcendent level of G-d, before whom sin is irrelevant, we must arouse a similar transcendent response from within our soul. Holidays Yom Kippur – Kol Nidrei In these tumultuous times that we find ourselves, we are witness to a new phenomenon: unprecedented good alongside unprecedented evil. This phenomenon is explained in Chassidic texts as an indication that we are on the threshold of the ultimate Redemption. It is a time that is characterized by the e Holidays Yom Kippur – Rising Above Time Instead of just focusing on our past misdeeds or on resolving for the future, on Yom Kippur we discover who we really are now. Our essential bond with G-d is revealed. When we know who we are, regretting the past and resolving for the future are no longer the overriding issue. Being a Yom Kippur per Holidays Yom Kippur – Teshuvah – The Art of Return When one expresses remorse for his or her actions, the emotional experience of remorse can counter the emotions that one experienced while he or she committed the forbidden act. When we confess verbally, however, the physical act of speech is endowed with the power to neutralize the forbidden action Holidays Yom Kippur – The One and Only On Yom Kippur the most unique level of the soul, called the Yechidah, can be reached and expressed. This explains why, only on Yom Kippur, we pray five different prayers. These five prayers are designed to reveal all of the five levels of the soul, including yechidah. Holidays Yom Kippur – Yom Kippur and Sukkos: The Link There is an obvious reason for the sense of urgency conveyed by the requirement to build the Sukkah immediately after Yom Kippur. One should always connect a resolution for the good to something concrete. If time is allowed to elapse between the time when one makes a commitment for the good, albeit Holidays Yom Kippur – Yom Kippur Meditations Talking about Redemption serves the same three functions as confession of sins: It reveals our faith in the coming of Moshiach; It strengthens our faith in the coming of Moshiach; It creates a feeling and yearning for it even if they did not previously exist. . Holidays Rosh Hashanah – A Truly New Year! When the two days of Rosh Hashanah are followed by Shabbos—three consecutive days of holiness—it represents a qualitatively higher form of holiness. An event that recurs three times establishes a chazakah (literally: a strong fact), an established and entrenched reality. And just as the head control