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Chassidic reggae star Matisyahu, who recently returned from an Israeli tour, sharing his experiences of his trip with some friends in 770.
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Chanukah *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
TOTAL TORAH LEARNING: YESHIVA OHR TMIMIM
www.ohrtmimim.org for details.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* Chanukah, the holiday of lights, is probably the most observed of all Jewish
holidays. Even the most non-observant Jews know the blessing (with the accompanying
melody of course). And for many it is the only blessing they know, Yet Chanukah is, paradoxically, the most radically orthodox of all the
Jewish holidays; a living testimony to Jewish 'extremism'. It commemorates a bloody war fought by the Jews against the Greeks over two
thousand years ago for the most obscure of religious motives. And it is the
only holiday that has become a custom to observe by everyone 'M'hadrin min
HaM'hadrin' namely in the strictest of the strict ways. (It is only necessary to light one candle, even on the last night, for the
entire family. The stricter opinion says, one for each person. But the
strict of the strict says an increasing number of candles every evening for
each person, which is what we all do.) Let us consider for a moment what really happened on that first Chanukah. Approximately 2,500 years ago the Greeks, under Alexander the Great,
conquered the world and ruled it for several hundred years. The success of Greek rule lay not only in their superior armed forces, but
in their 'superior' culture as well. They were as 'civilized' a bunch of
rulers as they come and their ideas of freethinking and free living held
them in the throne long after Alexander the Great died. One of the prime examples of this is the manner in which they dealt with the
Jews and their Holy Temple. They did not destroy this center of Jewish
identity, as did the barbarian Babylonians or Romans before and after them,
rather they cleverly 'defiled' it according to the Torah definition of
defilement. The Greeks, you see, did not want to raze the 'Holy House' but
rather that the service therein be a bit more Hellenized and less intense;
to 'normalize' Judaism. Similarly, they had no designs to exterminate the Jewish people, (as the
evil Haman tried to do some two hundred years earlier), rather they wanted
to reeducate them with 'superior' Greek intellect and progressive lifestyle. In other words the Greeks wanted to do pretty much what most free thinking
'normal' Jews want today: Liberty, Fraternity and Equality. WHAT WAS SO BAD
ABOUT THAT?? Suddenly, as if from nowhere, appeared Yehuda 'Maccabee' Chashmonai and his
little band of zealot m'shugoyim (according to Rashi, Deut. 33:11, there
were only 13 of them) armed to the teeth, and began stabbing, and cutting up
the reasonable, civilized, 1000-times-stronger Greek conquerors! And the
whole thing caught on!! Suddenly even the most assimilated Jews (the vast
majority of the Jews back then) got into the spirit and either helped make
war or at least threw away their tickets to the arenas and theaters. The Greeks soon understood that the times were changing and that they better
start packing. They were loosing battle after embarrassing battle, and even
worse, the Jews were going berserk! No one wanted to listen to a good
rational Greek idea anymore, and the bacchanals were almost completely
Juden-rein! Exit the Greeks. Next act: Setting: The empty Holy Temple. Enter a garrison of victorious Jews swords drawn. As they realize there is
no enemy, they return them to their sheaths. Shimon (the commander): Nu, we made it, men; we're back in the Mikdosh
again. Wow, the place is in pretty good order, in fact looks like they
didn't destroy anything. Dovid (a soldier): Exactly the opposite, they destroyed everything, it's all
defiled! Here, look over here, in this storeroom, have a look at all these
vials of oil. Looks perfect, doesn't it, all they did was move or open every
bottle, didn't even spill a drop. They have extinguished the Holy Menora and
want us to light it with their defiled oil. Those dirty. Reuvain (a soldier): Hey! watch your language, my friend, remember where you
are.
But just a minute...hey...I remember a law that says...well, it's something
like the Pesach Offering, if a few people are defiled they have to wait a
month and make it up on 'Pesech Sheini' but if everyone is defiled they can
all make it in the right time. Same thing here, if we have no other choice
we can use defiled oil to light the menorah. We can... Dovid: Forget it, buddy, if we wanted to start thinking like that we
wouldn't have been crazy enough to take on the entire Greek army in the
first place, would we? We are using pure oil and that's final. We're not. Reuvain: O.K. O.K. But meanwhile all that we have is unclean. It seems that
we really don't have much of a choice, do we. Maybe we should... One of the group: (on his knees from the corner of the room, he's been
rummaging: through the bottles) Hey, Hey! Look here! It's a miracle! A
miracle! Thank G-d! Thank you HaShem! Thank you! Thank you!! (Everyone
gathers around him. He is still on his knees looking up and weeping) Thank
you G-d! Thank yoooou! Shimon: What's going on here, why is he crying? What is he pointing at? Good
G-d! It's a bottle that they must have missed. Hey don't touch it! It's
still sealed with the seal of the Great Cohen, it really is a miracle! Thank
G-d!! First, all those months of miraculous victories, and now this.Who is
mighty like you G-d!!! CURTAIN But, to the disappointment of everyone, there was only one such bottle,
enough pure oil for only one day, and they needed eight days worth (that is
how long it took to purify the workers and to either bring or make new oil). So oil was not lacking, there was plenty of impure oil, but these fanatics
insisted on using only pure oil. Also, there is no logical or perceivable
difference between pure and impure oil, the whole thing is only a Torah law
that is not even written explicitly in the Torah itself But the rest is history. The pure oil miraculously burned for eight days
and the Jews had their Bait HaMikdosh and their independence for two hundred
more years. So there we have it: There was plenty of oil for the lamp. There was no real
danger to anyone's life. The Jews were allowed to worship in the Temple and
do all their commandments even without the war. All the Greeks wanted were a
few concessions, a few reforms, co-existence; certainly nothing to risk ones
life about. And that is how we got the holiday of Chanuka. There are those who want to say that the Jews fought for independence them
and the miraculous victories were more for personal than religious freedom.
But if this were the case then why does the holiday stress the 'religious'
miracle and center around lighting little candles, (Remember also that the
Menorah was located in a room in the Temple that was accessible to only a
few priests, so almost no one actually saw the miracle of the oil anyway!)
why not more emphasis on the military victories? The answer is that Chanukah is an 'exile' holiday. It was instituted by the
Rabbis when the Jews began suffering the darkness of exile after the
destruction of the first Temple in order to celebrate and encourage the
victory of Jewish Light over Greek Darkness. Aristotle, the epitome of Greek thinkers, believed that there was no Creator
or beginning to creation. Being just always existed in some form or other.
Just as space seems to be infinite and we can't imagine a beginning or end
to the sky, so, he said, is true of time and all creation; it had no
beginning. Jewish thought, however, says the opposite: all being including time, space,
spirit and consciousness was created. It not only had a beginning but, even
more, it is constantly being created anew by G-d. [The Talmud relates that the Greek ruler Ptolemy put 70 Jewish scholars into
70 separate isolated rooms and commanded each of them to translate the
entire five books of Moses into Greek. All 70 independently realized that a
literal translation would spell trouble for the Jews and each made
miraculously the same ten alterations. The first of these changes was in the
first sentence of the Torah; instead of translating "In the beginning,
created G-d the heavens and the earth." (Which could be misunderstood to
imply that The 'Beginning' created G-d), they wrote "G-d created the
beginning etc." so as not to strengthen the Greek position that G-d and all
the spiritual powers are but a product of nature. ] Of course, no one can prove either side of the argument. No Jew observed the
creation and no Greek can explain how there was none. but the implications
of each belief are overwhelming. If there is no Creator man is free and alone. There are no moral laws, only
natural ones: Pursue pleasure avoid pain. But if there is a Creator then it could be that He cares. It could be that
there is a purpose to creation; perhaps the Torah is ultimate and binding
and man can't do whatever he wants. But one thing for sure; Greek philosophy was a product of their personality.
The Greeks loved everything natural, especially the human body and mind.
They had their spiritual side and religions, to be sure. But their gods
were also a part of nature and were worshiped only for the physical
benefits; Luck, Power, Love, Health etc. they hopefully would bring to their
worshipers. But Judaism is in many ways the opposite of Jewish personality. In fact the
nature of Jews is not far from that of the Greeks, that is why they welcomed
Hellenism.. But the Torah (and the Jewish soul hidden within each Jew)
regards Greek wisdom as darkness and selfish small-mindedness: to be a
prisoner of ones own mind, emotions and urges and deny the Creator's wisdom
is the greatest darkness possible. And Jews don't like spiritual darkness. That is the Jewish identity. Even
the Reform or Reconstuctionist Jews don't want to loose the name 'Jew' or
their connection to G-d. The story is told about a certain Jew by the name of Menashe that lived in
the Israeli town of Chevron during the terrible massacre of 1927. One
fateful Shabbat all he Arabs living in Chevron and it's surroundings turned
on their Jewish neighbors, after living with them in harmony for years, and
murdered as many of them as possible. One of the Jews there, Menasha, was the 'black sheep' of the Jewish
community. He would ride his motorcycle through the town on the Shabbat,
cigarette between his teeth and his only friends were the local Arabs. As
for the Jewish community all he had to say was " I'm as good a Jew as they
are, who needs them." On the terrible day of the massacre, armed Arabs came streaming in from all
the surrounding area. After they killed all the Jews in the streets, the
synagogues and the shops, they began going from house to house looking for
new sacrifices, and eventually they arrived at the house where Menasha was
sitting with his friends. "Who is he?" They asked, pointing to Menasha. "Oh,
he's one of us" they replied, and the murderers returned to the street and
turned to the next house. Suddenly, unexplainably Menasha ran out after them
and began screaming, "No, I'm a Jew! I'm a Jew!" They killed him. The reason he did it is because each Jew has buried deep in his soul a small
bottle of pure, undefiled (and undefilable) 'oil'. This 'oil' is the essence of the Jewish soul and its purpose is to make a
miraculous light. That is what we were "chosen" for; to illuminate the
entire creation with the awareness of the Oneness of G-d. Every Jew senses this purpose in some way. Every Jew feels somewhere down
deep that he is different, that he somehow has an obligation to make a
difference; to bring some sort of good and meaning to the world. It may be
that he misinterprets this feeling or totally ignores it. It may take the
non-Jews around him to open his eyes or a Chabad house to wake him up but we
are promised by G-d that it will happen to every Jew. Every Jew will find
this bottle of pure oil and light his 'menorah' to bring blessing and light
to the darkness that surrounds us. In fact this is the job of the Moshiach and the goal of Judaism: To awaken
the fire in every Jew and illuminate the world. This explains, then, what happened on that first Chanukah and what happens
every Chanukah when millions of Jews all over the world light their
menorahs. Suddenly they feel proud and optimistic. M'hadrin min HaM'hadrin. In the flames of their Chanuka Menorahs they can see the power of the Jewish
soul and the redemption of the Jewish people. Wishing all our readers a happy, healthy, meaningful Chanukah filled with
the light and blessing. This Chanukah may we see the light of the real
menorah in the Third Temple built by.... Moshiach NOW!! Rabbi Tuvia Bolton,
Yeshiva Ohr Tmimim.
Kfar Chabad, Israel. _________________________________________________________
To Subscribe/Unsubscribe: www.ohrtmimim.org/subscriptions
B"H Science From the Top Down
------------------------- The scientist's understanding begins from the outside and attempts to work in --from the bottom up. He begins with subjective empiricism and attempts to deduce an objective model. The wisdom of Torah begins from the inside and works its way out --from the top down. In this approach you meditate upon the Creator's own objective model and apply it to discover the truth behind this world. The prudent scientist will realize that he can benefit most through a combination of both approaches. A Daily Dose of Wisdom from the Rebbe
-words and condensation by Tzvi Freeman
Kislev 22, 5766 * December 23, 2005 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Chanukah is just around the corner! Our extensive Chanukah website has how-to’s, stories, lessons, games and even recipes! It's sure to make your holiday more meaningful and insightful! All this at: http://www.Chanukah.org Tip: Join a public menorah lighting or Chanukah event in your area too! http://www.chabad.org/103839 Send Chanukah Greeting Cards to friends and family: http://www.chabad.org/225487 Wishing you and your family a Happy Chanukah! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Brought to you by Chabad.org To purchase a copy of "Bringing Heaven Down to Earth: Meditations and Everyday Wisdom from the Teachings of the Rebbe", or other books by Tzvi Freeman, click here: http://www.chabad.org/240099 Makes a great gift! Include the Daily Dose on your own website! Click here: http://www.chabad.org/141897 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ** Enjoyed this email? Please help us continue sharing the
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*PLEASE NOTE*:
Due to Shabbat observance, the Shabbat edition of Today in Judaism is sent on Friday. Shabbat Shalom!
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Kislev 23, 5766 * December 24, 2005 =================================
T O D A Y I N J U D A I S M
================================= * Laws * Customs * Jewish History * Daily Quote * Daily Study * Today is: Shabbat, Kislev 23, 5766 ======================
Today's Laws & Customs
====================== • Blessing the New Month This Shabbat is Shabbat Mevarchim ("the Shabbat that blesses" the new month): a special prayer is recited blessing the Rosh Chodesh ("Head of the Month") of upcoming month of Tevet, which falls on next Shabbat and the following Sunday. Prior to the blessing, we announce the precise time of the moled, the "birth" of the new moon. It is a Chabad custom to recite the entire book of Psalms before morning prayers, and to conduct farbrenges (chassidic gatherings) in the course of the Shabbat. Links: On the Significance of Shabbat Mevarchim [http://www.chabad.org/54766]; Tehillim [http://www.chabad.org/15770] (the Book of Psalms); The Farbrengen [http://www.chabad.org/search/keyword.asp?kid=2225] ===========
Daily Study
=========== Chitas and Rambam for today: Chumash: Vayeishev, 7th Portion Bereishit 40:1-40:23 with Rashi
• English Text:
http://www.chabad.org/parshah/rashi/default.asp?tDate=12/24/2005&src=ds Tehillim: Chapters 108 - 112
• Hebrew text:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tehillim.asp?tDate=12/24/2005&Lang=HEB
• English text:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tehillim.asp?tDate=12/24/2005 Tanya: Likutei Amarim, end of Chapter 1
• Lesson in Tanya:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tanya.asp?tDate=12/24/2005
• RealAudio:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/audio.asp?what=tanya&tDate=12/24/2005&format=rm
• Windows Media:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/audio.asp?what=tanya&tDate=12/24/2005&format=m3u Rambam:
• Sefer Hamitzvos:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/seferHamitzvos.asp?tDate=12/24/2005
• 1 Chapter: Mechirah Chap. 5
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/rambam.asp?tDate=12/24/2005&rambamChapters=1
• 3 Chapters: Nedarim Chap. 13, Nezirut Chap. 1, 2
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/rambam.asp?tDate=12/24/2005&rambamChapters=3 Hayom Yom:
• English Text:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/hayomyom.asp?tDate=12/24/2005 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Chanukah is just around the corner! Our extensive Chanukah website has how-to’s, stories, lessons, games and even recipes! It's sure to make your holiday more meaningful and insightful! All this at: http://www.Chanukah.org Tip: Join a public menorah lighting or Chanukah event in your area too! http://www.chabad.org/103839 Send Chanukah Greeting Cards to friends and family: http://www.chabad.org/225487 Wishing you and your family a Happy Chanukah! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Check out our other Calendar Tools: Candle Lighting anywhere: http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=6226
Zmanim - Halachic Times: http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=143790
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Yahrtzeit Calculator: http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=6229 Copyright © Chabad.org, 2005 For more Torah study and inspiring articles, please visit:
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*PLEASE NOTE*:
Due to Shabbat observance, the Shabbat edition of Lessons In Tanya is sent on Friday. Shabbat Shalom!
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Kislev 23, 5766 * December 24, 2005 ===============================
L E S S O N S I N T A N Y A
=============================== Today's Lesson: Likutei Amarim
(Conclusion of Chapter One)
--------------------------- As for the well-known saying (22) that one [whose deeds and misdeeds are] equally balanced is called a Beinoni, while [he who has] a majority of virtues outweighing his sins is called a tzaddik, this is [only] a borrowed name, [i.e., a figurative use of the term borrowed from its true usage in order to emphasize a particular point. Thus the names Beinoni and tzaddik, denoting a balance between merits and sins, are in fact but borrowed names] used in regard to reward and punishment, because one is judged according to the majority [of his deeds], and he is termed "righteous" in reference to his verdict, since he is acquitted at his trial. [It is only in this legal sense that the term tzaddik is applied to one who performs more good deeds than evil.] If, however, we seek to truly define the distinct qualities and ranks of tzaddikim and Beinonim, our Sages have remarked that the righteous are "judged" [i.e., motivated and ruled, solely] by their good nature, as it is written, (23) "And my heart is slain within me," meaning that he [i.e., David, the author of this verse] was devoid of an evil nature, having slain it through fasting. [David extirpated his evil nature through fasting; other ways too are possible. We thus see from the Gemara that the definition of tzaddik in its true sense applies to the person who has rid himself of his evil nature.] But whoever has not attained this degree [of ridding himself of his evil nature], even though his virtues outnumber his sins, is not at all at the level and rank of tzaddik. [In fact, not only has he not reached the rank of tzaddik: he has not yet attained even the level of Beinoni, as has been demonstrated above.] This is why our Sages have expounded: (24) "The Almighty saw that the righteous were few, so He arose and planted [i.e., and spread] them in every generation," [for,] as it is written, (25) "The tzaddik is the foundation of the world." [Thus, in each generation there must be a tzaddik who serves as the "foundation of the world." This paucity of tzaddikim ("The righteous were few") can be explained only if a tzaddik is he who has totally rid himself of his evil nature. Were the term tzaddik to mean one whose good deeds outweigh the evil, why then do our Sages say that "the righteous were few," when the overwhelming majority of Jews have more good deeds than evil!] However, the explanation of the matter, [so that we better understand the levels of tzaddik and Beinoni, as well as the various gradations within their ranks, is to be found] in light of what Rabbi Chayim Vital wrote in Shaar HaKedushah (and in Etz Chayim, Portal 5, ch. 2) - that every Jew, whether righteous or wicked, possesses two souls, as it is written, (26) "And neshamot (souls) which I have made." [Though the verse speaks of an individual Jew (as is indicated by the singular form of the word ruach (spirit) in the preceding phrase, "When the spirit of a man which emanates from Me will be humbled.."), the plural term souls is nevertheless used, in dicating that every Jew possesses two souls.] These are two nefashot (27) - two souls and life-forces. One soul originates in the kelipah and sitra achra. ["Kelipah" means a shell or peel. G-d created forces which conceal the G-dly life-force found in all creation as a peel covers and conceals a fruit. "Sitra achra" means "the other side" - the side of creation that is the antithesis of holiness and purity. (The two terms are generally synonymous.) It is this nefesh [which originates in the kelipah and sitra achra] that is clothed in the blood of a human being, giving life to the body; as it is written, (28). "For the nefesh of the flesh [i.e., the nefesh that sustains physical and corporeal life] is in the blood." From [this nefesh] stem all the evil characteristics, deriving from the four evil elements within it. [Just as the four physical elements of Fire, Air, Water and Earth are the foundation of all physical entities, so too is this nefesh comprised of four corresponding spiritual elements. Since they derive from kelipah and evil, they themselves are evil, and from them in turn one's evil characteristics come into being.] Namely: anger and pride [emanate] from the element of Fire which rises upwards; [Once ignited by anger and pride, a man (like fire) soars aloft. Pride is the state of considering oneself superior to others. Anger too is an offshoot of pride. Would a person not be proud, he would not be angered when someone defied his will.] The appetite for pleasures [emanates] from the element of Water, for water promotes the growth of all kinds of pleasure-giving things. [The ability of water to make pleasurable things grow indicates that concealed within it is the element of pleasure. Thus, the appetite for pleasure derives from the element of Water.] Frivolity and scoffing, boasting and idle talk [emanate] from the element of Air; [like air, they lack substance]; and sloth and melancholy [emanate] from the element of Earth. [Earth is characterized by heaviness. A man encumbered by sloth and melancholy likewise senses a heaviness of the limbs.] From this soul stem also the good traits inherent in every Jew's character, such as compassion and benevolence. [But since this is a nefesh of kelipah and evil, how do good characteristics come from it? This matter is now addressed.] For in the [case of the] Jew, this soul of kelipah is derived from the kelipah called "nogah", which also contains good; [and the good within this nefesh gives rise to these positive natural traits.] [This kelipah] is from the esoteric "Tree of Knowledge" [which is comprised] of good and evil. (29) The souls of the nations of the world, however, emanate from the other, unclean kelipot which contain no good whatever, as is written in Etz Chayim, Portal 40, ch. 3, that all the good that the nations do, is done out of selfish motives. [Since their nefesh emanates from kelipot which contain no good, it follows that any good done by them is for selfish motives.] So the Gemara (30) comments on the verse, (31) "The kindness of the nations is sin" - that all the charity and kindness done by the nations of the world is only for their self-glorification... [When a Jew acts in a benevolent manner he is motivated mainly out of concern for the welfare of his fellow. The proof of this is that were his fellow not to need his help, this would give him greater pleasure than the gratification derived from his act of kindness. Concerning the nations of the world, however, this is not so. Their motivation is not the welfare of their fellow; rather, it stems from a self-serving motive - the desire for self-glorification, a feeling of gratification, and the like. It should be noted that among the nations of the world there are also to be found those whose souls are derived from kelipat nogah. (32) Called "the pious ones of the nations of the world," these righteous individuals are benevolent not out of selfish motives but out of a genuine concern for their fellow. Footnotes: 22. See Rambam, Hilchot Teshuvah 3:1; Rashi on Rosh HaShanah 16b.
23. Tehillim 109:22. See ch. 13 for the comment of the Rebbe on
the interpretation of this verse.
24. Cf. Yoma 38b.
25. Mishlei 10:25.
26. Yeshayahu 57:16.
27. The Rebbe notes: The addition of the words, "These are
two nefashot," makes it clear that the two souls possessed by
every Jew are not necessarily of the soul-level of Neshamah, the
third highest of the five soul-levels (viz., Nefesh , Ruach,
Neshamah, Chayah and Yechidah), for this soul-level is not
necessarily found in every Jew, and certainly not in his animal
soul. Rather, this refers to the essential soul-level of Nefesh
possessed by every Jew.
28. Vayikra 17:11.
29. See Zohar I, 12b.
30. Bava Batra 10b.
31. Mishlei 14:34.
32. See Siddur Im D'ach, Shaar Chag HaMatzot; Likutei Biurim (by Rabbi
Hillel Malisov of Paritch), 47b. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Chanukah is just around the corner! Our extensive Chanukah website has how-to’s, stories, lessons, games and even recipes! It's sure to make your holiday more meaningful and insightful! All this at: http://www.Chanukah.org Tip: Join a public menorah lighting or Chanukah event in your area too! http://www.chabad.org/103839 Send Chanukah Greeting Cards to friends and family: http://www.chabad.org/225487 Wishing you and your family a Happy Chanukah! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> © Copyright
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B"H ----------------------------------------------------------------------
*PLEASE NOTE*:
Due to Shabbat observance, the Shabbat edition of ''Today's Day'' is sent on Friday. Shabbat Shalom!
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Kislev 23, 5766 * December 24, 2005 =======================
"T O D A Y ' S D A Y"
======================= Wednesday, Kislev 23 5703 Torah lessons: Chumash: Vayeishev, Revi'i with Rashi.
Tehillim: 108-112
Tanya: Since the said...the said Likutei Amarim.
(p.xvi). From my grandfather's talks of Elul 5635 (1875):
The three days before Shabbat are a preparation for Shabbat. The Zohar says (1) about Shabbat that "from it are all days
blessed."(2) "All days" refers to the six days of the week on which G-d conferred a general blessing - "G-d will bless you in all you do." The blessing of Shabbat is for the days preceding it and the days following it. The preparations for Shabbat begin Wednesday, and are announced by the brief L'chu N'ran'na (3) of three verses.
Footnotes: (1) Zohar II, 63b, 88a.
(2) Devarim 15:18.
(3) Siddur (Tehilat HaShem) p. 78. First three verses
of Psalm 95 appended to Wednesday's Psalm 94. The
same three verses begin the Friday night prayers
inaugurating Shabbat (Siddur Tehilat HaShem (Kehot)
P. 128). >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Chanukah is just around the corner! Our extensive Chanukah website has how-to’s, stories, lessons, games and even recipes! It's sure to make your holiday more meaningful and insightful! All this at: http://www.Chanukah.org Tip: Join a public menorah lighting or Chanukah event in your area too! http://www.chabad.org/103839 Send Chanukah Greeting Cards to friends and family: http://www.chabad.org/225487 Wishing you and your family a Happy Chanukah! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Compiled and arranged by the Lubavitcher Rebbe in 5703 (1943) from the talks and letters of the Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe. Note: day of week and Torah lessons indicated are from 5703 (1943). For a glossary of terms used in "Today's Day" please click here:
http://chabad.org/article.asp?AID=95867 © Copyright
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B"H ----------------------------------------------------------------------
*PLEASE NOTE*:
Due to Shabbat observance, the Shabbat edition of Daily Mitzvah (Maimonides) is sent on Friday. Shabbat Shalom!
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Kislev 23, 5766 * December 24, 2005 ==================================================
D A I L Y M I T Z V A H (M A I M O N I D E S )
================================================== Today's Mitzvot (Day 113 of 339): Positive Mitzvot 95, 92 Negative Mitzvah 209
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Positive Mitzvah 95: The Nullification of Vows (The exact source for this commandment is considered a matter of
question by our Rabbinic Sages.) Sometimes, a person just cannot keep his promise or finds himself
unable to fulfill his obligation. The Torah commands us to examine
the situation. By dealing properly with the incident and judging
the circumstances, it may be possible to absolve the vow. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Positive Mitzvah 92: The "Nazir" - Growing his Hair -Numbers 6:5 "And he shall let the locks of the hair on his head grow" The Nazir is commanded to let his hair grow long during the entire
time he has declared himself a Nazir. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Introduction to Negative Mitzvot 202-209: The "Nazir" When a gardener wants to protect his vegetables, he builds
a fence around his field. The fence keeps harmful animals out of his garden. He makes sure to shut the latch every time he enters or leaves
and feels confident that nothing will harm his vegetables. The same applies to us as Jews. A person may begin to feel that he might make a mistake and
not fulfill a Mitzvah properly. Therefore, he builds a "fence"
to protect himself from anything that may cause him to disobey
or not fulfill the Mitzvah. That "fence" will keep out anything "harmful" to fulfilling the
Mitzvah. HaShem created many wonderful things in this world which He wants
us to enjoy and use properly. If used improperly they can cause us harm. Take wine, for example: HaShem gave wine a special delicate taste that makes a person feel
good. He commanded us to use it for Kiddush or festive occasions.
It adds to the holiday spirit. A person who drinks too much wine
could become drunk and unable to think clearly. While in such
a state he may do the wrong thing. A person who is worried that even a bit of wine can cause him
to become lightheaded and possibly lead him to sin, may decide
to build a "fence" around himself. In this way he will protect
himself from going against the Torah. But how do you build a "fence" around yourself? The person who wishes to do so, decides not to drink any wine
or even eat grapes. The "fence" that protects him from possibly
doing wrong, is his decision not to drink any wine at all. A person who makes such a decision is called a "Nazir." He abstains from wine and grapes for a certain amount of time.
When that time is over, he must follow the Torah guidelines for
ending his "Nazirite" period. Although the Torah does not encourage us to avoid things which
HaShem allows us to enjoy and use properly, still, the "Nazir"
is appreciated for his good intentions and strong will. The Torah regards him as special and commands him to stick to
his decision, considering him holy during this period. The following Mitzvot apply to the "Nazir," (see also Positive
Mitzvot 92 and 93). ----------------------------------------------------------------- Negative Mitzvah 209: A Nazir may not cut his hair or shave -Numbers 6:5 "No razor shall touch his head" A Nazir is not allowed to cut his hair or shave during the time
of his Nazirite period. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Chanukah is just around the corner! Our extensive Chanukah website has how-to’s, stories, lessons, games and even recipes! It's sure to make your holiday more meaningful and insightful! All this at: http://www.Chanukah.org Tip: Join a public menorah lighting or Chanukah event in your area too! http://www.chabad.org/103839 Send Chanukah Greeting Cards to friends and family: http://www.chabad.org/225487 Wishing you and your family a Happy Chanukah! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Brought to you by Chabad.org To listen to an audio version of today's lesson, please click one of the following links: MP3: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/audio.asp?what=seferhamitzvot&tDate=12/24/2005&format=m3u
Real: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/audio.asp?what=seferhamitzvot&tDate=12/24/2005&format=rm To view this lesson online with its many features please visit: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/seferHamitzvos.asp For more daily Torah study, please visit: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/ >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ** Enjoyed this email? Please help us continue sharing the
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If you can not see this email properly, please click here  | |  | | Polls Show: Ariel Sharon to Appoint One-Third of the Knesset
Though Israel is officially a democracy, Ariel Sharon appears to be in the unique position of being able to determine, all by himself, a full third of the upcoming Knesset.
Full Story Below |
| | | 
PizzaIDF.org Today's Maccabees are at the forefront of the worldwide battle against terrorism. You can't be there with them, but you can send our soldiers your encouragement & support. Send them Donuts & Pizza for Chanuka with your message of gratitude and support. You can also send to Gush Katif refugees!!
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More Details |  | | Editor: Hillel Fendel
Friday, December 23, 2005
22 Kislev 5766
 |
| | | 1. Polls Show: Ariel Sharon to Appoint One-Third of the Knesset
|  | | By Hillel Fendel
Though Israel is officially a democracy, Ariel Sharon appears to be in the unique position of being able to determine, all by himself, a full third of the upcoming Knesset.
|
When he quit the Likud and announced the formation of his new party last month, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon explained that as the party did not yet have institutions, he himself would set the party's list of Knesset candidates. With polls currently giving his party approximately one-third of the 120-member Knesset, it appears that he has the sole power of determining the identities of a significant number of members of Israel's 17th Knesset.
The issue comes to the fore with the reported tension in the party between Finance Minister Ehud Olmert and Justice Minister Tzippy Livny, both of whom wish to be appointed to the #2 slot. The matter has now been complicated by Shimon Peres' announcement that he, too, is leaning towards joining the list after all.
Peres originally said, when he quit Labor and joined Kadima several weeks ago, that he would not run for a Knesset list - but is now reconsidering. (Peres' flip-flop was reminiscent of his announcement two years ago, upon assuming the position of Temporary Chairman of the Labor Party, that he would not run for the permanent post - which he did, losing two months ago to Amir Peretz.)
Sharon must name 120 people to his list of Knesset candidates, knowing that the slot he personally chooses for each one will determine whether s/he becomes one of Israel's lawmakers or not. The higher on the list each candidate is, the more chances s/he has of entering the Knesset. If the party receives 30% of the popular vote, for instance, then it will have (roughly) 30% of the Knesset Members.
Other large parties choose their Knesset Members more democratically. In the Likud, on the other hand, the list is chosen in a vote of the 3,000 members of the party's Central Committee. That vote is currently scheduled for January 9, 2006. In Labor, the entire party membership throughout the country will choose the party's candidates, on Jan. 17.
Likud MK Yuli Edelstein, asked his opinion on Sharon's power to name MKs, said, "It's very negative. But in truth, I can't blame Sharon - it looks like one-third of the voters in Israel are willing to swallow this and vote for Kadima..."
Polls show that Sharon's Kadima party continues to hold a landslide lead over the other parties. If elections were held today, Kadima would receive 39-40 seats, while Labor would receive 19-22, and the Likud - 12-15.
 Comment on this story
| | 2. Violence Against Jews Continues Worldwide
|  | | By Ezra HaLevi
Though many of them have only appeared on page 2 of local Jewish papers, a wave of anti-Jewish attacks continues around the globe. In recent weeks...
|
* In Australia, the Executive Council of Australian Jewry's annual report points to Jews there increasingly being verbally abused and physically attacked. "There were 332 incidents of anti-Jewish assault, vandalism, intimidation and harassment in the past 12 months," according to the report. Among the incidents reported were arson attacks on synagogues, vandalism and Nazi graffiti on property, assaults on Jewish men by unknown assailants, and vandalism of Jewish schools and synagogues.
* A 16-year-old British Jew was attacked with a knife in Manchester last week. His ear was slashed and his assailant shouted anti-Jewish slogans as he attacked him. A local rabbi chased the attacker.
* A French court sentenced a 25-year-old man last week to three years in jail for vandalizing a cemetery with Nazi graffiti and anti-Jewish slogans.
* Three teens in Swampscott, Massachusetts have been charged with hate crimes after burning a van belonging to a local Chabad-Lubavitch synagogue. The same Chabad synagogue was broken into in October and anti-Jewish graffiti was scrawled inside the sanctuary.
* A large menorah was torn down and stomped to pieces by a group of vandals at a South Philadelphia community center last week. The community says it will put up a newer and brighter Chanukah menorah to replace it.
* An anti-Jewish TV program called "America is a Changing Country” was aired on cable access television in Maryland. The program, produced by the National Alliance neo-Nazi group, blames “Jewish media” for urban decay and the denigration of "Aryan values."
* Thousands of fans of Hungary's Ujpest FC soccer team chanted anti-Jewish slogans during a league match last month when the team played against MTK Budapest, a team with Hungarian Jewish roots.
* In Salt Lake City, Utah, a plaque featuring a quote by Rabbi Eric Silver was defaced. The plaque, part of the Judge Memorial Religious Freedom Shrine, featured the words: "Upon his deeds not his ideas does G-d's favor rest on man.'' Vandals scratched out the words "G-d" and "Rabbi" and added the words, "Jews suck." Rabbi Silver said, ``It is unfortunate that in times that we'd like to regard as enlightened this sort of thing can still occur."
* In Peru, Rabbi Guillermo Bronstein, rabbi of Lima's only Conservative synagogue, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency of a significant rise in attacks on the country's small Jewish community. Bronstein attributed the rise in attacks to the increase in neo-Nazi groups and the perception that the Jews have disproportionate influence in the government.
* Jews in the South Tottenham area of London have reported that they live in constant fear of violent attacks, citing several recent cases of unprovoked assaults on outwardly Orthodox Jews.
* According to a report released last week, the regimes in the Palestinian Authority, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Syria promoted Holocaust-denial or defended Holocaust-deniers over the past year. Iran and Egypt have each been in the headlines several times in recent months for similar government statements and activities. Just Thursday, the head of Egypt`s Muslim Brotherhood said that the Holocaust is a "myth."
Efraim Zuroff, director of the Israeli branch of the Nazi watchdog group, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, warned, "There's no question that a very ugly wave of Holocaust denial is sweeping the Arab world."
Also on Thursday, a man was put on trial in Austria for publicly swearing allegiance to Adolf Hitler. A French group was reported to be distributing pork soup to homeless in a bid to exclude Jews and Muslims from benefiting from their magnanimity.
Comment on this story
| |
 | SPECIAL Tasty Treats for Chanuka for IDF Soldiers!
Send a Package of sweets to our fighting boys! Order as many packages as you want, and the Arutz Sheva Mall will deliver them on Chanuka to the Soldiers!
Click Here! | | 3. Katif: Israel Pays to Clear Debris, Expellees Meet With Katzav
|  | | By Hillel Fendel
Israel has agreed to pay nearly $25 million to the UN to clear the debris remaining from the destroyed homes of Gush Katif... Gush Katif expellees held a positive meeting with President Katzav...
|
The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) was asked to undertake the rehabilitation project of what was Gush Katif by the Government of Israel, the Palestinian Authority and the Quartet. With more than 1.2 million tons of debris and rubble to be cleared and recycled, the project will cost US $24.7 million - underwritten totally by the Government of Israel. It will take an estimated 18 months to complete, and will employ several hundred PA workers. The concrete and metal debris cleared from the site will be milled and recycled for use as road paving and building materials.
The money will presumably also be used to clear the debris of the synagogues and greenhouses that the Arabs themselves destroyed.
MK Yuval Shteinitz (Likud), who voted for the Disengagement in the Knesset and against its delay, told Arutz-7, "We shouldn't have paid anything; they should thank us for what we left them. For Israel to pay is absurd, but unfortunately, we caved in all the way during these negotiations, simply in order to get this diplomatic achievement. I'd like to see the U.S. pay for what it did in Afghanistan... It's humiliating and irrational."
Shteinitz said the issue was discussed several months ago in the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, which he heads, and that he said the same things then.
This past Monday, President Moshe Katzav met with representatives of the destroyed Jewish communities and - at the Gush Katif residents' demand - directors of various government ministries.
The residents presented four main problems:
* heavy unemployment,
* the lack of agricultural plots for nearly all of the former farmers,
* the lack compensation for children who lived in Gush Katif and wish to build in their old/new communities,
* and the lack of funding for their communal frameworks.
The government officials said that in most cases, their hands are tied by the Evacuation/Compensation Law. President Katzav asked them to work to have the law changed, but to find other solutions in the interim. He suggested that the Ministry directors adopt the model utilized by the Education Ministry, which employs a community representative as a liaison between the town and its schools. The Agriculture Ministry's Director accepted the idea on the spot.
Prime Minister's Office Director Ilan Cohen said that as of January 1, the communities will receive funding. The residents say that most of the uprooted residents continue to live in their communal frameworks, yet money for synagogues, mikvaot, secretariat leaders (mayors), youth directors, welfare employees, culture directors and the like has not been provided since the expulsion.
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| | 4. Pinner Remains in Prison
|  | | By Hillel Fendel
Daniel Pinner of Kfar Tapuach, imprisoned since June on charges that his self-defense shots wounded a Gush Katif Arab, will remain in prison for at least another month, a High Court justice ruled.
|
Though the evidence against him is weak, his attorney Baruch Ben-Yosef says, no judge in Israel has beeen willing to release him even to a form of house arrest. The latest to hear an appeal on this issue was Supreme Court Justice Eliezer Rivlin, Thursday, Dec. 22. "It looked at first like he saw through the whole story [and would release him to house arrest]," Ben-Yosef said, "but in the end, the usual happened... [The judge] said that the case is almost over, and things like that."
"My client admits that he fired," Ben-Yosef sums up the case, "but not at the Arab in question - and there is no proof that it was his bullet that hit him."
Pinner, 38 and unmarried, was in Gush Katif to volunteer his services as a licensed electrician in refurbishing the Palm Beach Hotel in the last weeks of the the Jewish presence there. He was taking a walk on the beach when "about 50 Arabs throwing rocks attacked me," he recently told IsraelNationalRadio's Avi Hyman. "I was carrying an Uzi, so I shot in the air. After a few yards they began throwing rocks again, so I fired several more shots in the air. The Arabs then backed off, and I went back to the hotel. Four days later I was arrested at home, with the police claiming that I had shot one of the Arabs and wounded him. First they said in the chest, later it turned out that there was an Arab who claimed to have been shot in the leg. Because of that I am in jail almost six months."
Pinner insists that his life was "clearly in danger."
The case is being heard by Be'er Sheva District Court Justice Rachel Barkai. In this week's hearing, she told both sides to present written summations - unless they wanted to limit themselves to a 10-minute oral presentation. Both sides said that ten minutes would be far from sufficient to sum up a months-long case. The prosecution will therefore present its summation within ten days, followed ten days later by the defense. A verdict is expected on January 24.
Asked earlier this month why he thinks he is still in prison despite his innocence, Pinner said, "At every stage the judges continue to claim that I am a danger to society. I think the real reason I am still in jail is that at the very first hearing, all those months ago, I was denied any legal representation, held incommunicado for five days, and there was a total news blackout on the basis of a request from the Shabak [General Security Service]... My arrest was extended ten days originally, then fifteen and so on and so on, based on a secret Shabak report which I have not seen and probably will never see."
Daniel Pinner said he would appreciate messages from supporters via voicemail at
03-906-8079 (+972-3-906-8079 from outside Israel) or by regular mail at: Daniel Pinner- Maasiyahu Prison, POB 13 72100, Disengagement Wing. He asks for prayers for Daniel Moshe Tzvi ben (son of) Channah Malka Fayge.
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| |
 | Menshenables Judaica
Fun name, Fun-ky Judaica. Unique gifts and ritual items for every simcha and holiday.
Click Here! | | 5. Bethlehem Tourism is Up, But Media Blame Israel
|  | | By Hillel Fendel
Media around the world are painting a grim picture of Bethlehem a few days before Christmas - and blaming it on Israel.
|
HonestReporting.com cites sample articles from the New Statesman and the Baltimore Sun. According to the Sun,
"A towering wall of gray concrete slabs, 30 feet high, cuts across what was once the main road into this town from Jerusalem. Just inside the barrier, past a new Israeli security terminal, a once-bustling neighborhood has become a ghost town. Shops are shuttered or empty, and the streets are deserted."
Buried several paragraphs later is the fact that tourism to Bethlehem is actually up:
"Figures kept by the Bethlehem Municipality show a rebound in tourist visits... the numbers have climbed steadily since [2002], reaching 100,000 in 2004 and 252,000 this year."
Yet this does not stop the paper from writing, just two paragraphs later,
"The deteriorating economy [emphasis added] has led to a steady exodus of the city's Christian residents, once a majority and now estimated at about 35 percent of the total population of 30,000."
The Statesman claims,
"The flicker of optimism has been dampened by the completion of the barrier around Bethlehem and the installation of the gate, which has given a sense of permanence to the isolation and the economy's free fall. The crossing is daunting even for tourists who are searched on their coaches as they enter Bethlehem."
HonestReporting notes that according to the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, each one of these points is factually incorrect:
* There is no barrier that completely encircles Bethlehem. A fence exists only where the Bethlehem area interfaces with Jerusalem, and only a very small segment of the fence is a concrete wall, which prevents terrorists from shooting at Israeli motorists.
* The economy has actually improved significantly. Tourism has doubled compared to last year, and Bethlehem's main industries are also up: Textiles by 50%, stone and marble export by 40%, and commercial transportation 20%. These increases have brought millions of dollars into the local economy.
* The IDF has decided to take a "calculated risk" to make access easier for tourists. IDF Lt.-Col. Aviv Feigel said, "The military will try to speed the process by not checking every tourist bus, but conducting spot checks of random buses instead."
The New Statesman also raps Israel for pushing Christians out of Bethlehem. But as FrontPage magazine points out, it is actually the Muslims who have been forcing the city's Christian residents to leave:
"The Vatican, in a rare diplomatic move, called publicly on the Israelis to intervene in Bethlehem on behalf of its severely receding Christian population. Now totaling less than 12% of Bethlehem's population, Christians, who have been the targets of continual PA violence, might leave entirely."
Just this week, some 20 Fatah Al-Aqsa gunmen disrupted Christmas preparations in Bethlehem, taking over the municipality building across from the Church of Nativity and demanding police jobs or payment from the Palestinian Authority. Click here for a detailed report on Muslim violence against Christians that is largely ignored by the media.
HonestReporting did not cite BBC, which reported on Thursday on the financial hardships of a Bethlehem Christian named Nasim Bannoura. The BBC report concluded, "Curfews, closures and the newly-built West Bank barrier have cut him off from business in Jerusalem."
Only towards the end of the report is it stated, "A few Christians speak privately of harassment, Muslims seizing Christian land and the fear of speaking out against radical groups" - but this is followed immediately by, "But many others say they live like brothers with their Muslim neighbours, sharing the struggle against Israeli occupation."
Israel Army Radio reported Friday that Israel will institute special shuttle buses to Bethlehem this weekend, in order to ease travel for tourists. "The number of holiday tourists to Bethlehem is expected to be lower than usual this year," the report stated, "because of the continuing tensions between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, and tensions between various factions in the Palestinian Authority itself."
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| | 6. On A7radio: Yosef, His Brothers and Chanukah: History Repeats
|  | | A7 Radio's "Torah Tidbits Audio" with Phil Chernofsky
| Torah Tidbits Audio for Parshat VaYeishev.
Listen Now -or- Download*
For more A7 Radio visit www.IsraelNationalRadio.com.
Comment on this story
| |
 | Wide Range of Judaica Items
In www.mirrys-artglass.com you will see a wide range of judaica ( mezzuzot ; menoras; kiddush cups; havdalla sets; choshen;) and other items made from glass and copper with a silver or gold plated finish.
Click Here! | | |
| | Today on IsraelNN.com: |  |  | Israeli Salad with Yoni Kempinski
|   | | |  | |  | Just Us
Justice, for those who live in Samaria, Judea and the former Gaza communities has become "just us". If you are a member of the communities that Likud slated for destruction, you are a criminal.
|  | | | Who Needs Jerusalem, Anyway?
Not only has Sharon crushed the dream of Greater Israel, but the dream of a United Jerusalem is about to be shattered, as well.
|  | | | | |  | The Rule of Threes
It seems to me that the preponderance of threes in the Joseph story begs interpretation in connection with Chanukah.
|  | | | | |  |
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