Pre read for next shabbos

The following is an interesting article which compliments articles by Dr. Rabbi George Schlesinger concerning evidence of the existence of Hashem.  The article points out how everything needed to be perfect in order for the universe to exist.   On top of that, everything needed to be perfect for life to emerge at all, let alone intelligent beings who question our existence.  The odds of us being here, if we would be here by pure chance, are 1 in a number so large it is hard to imagine.   These are numbers so large that I have never learned what they are called!  The article makes the case that it makes a lot more sense that we are here because of an intentional design and plan.

This is a pre-read as we will be discussing this article.  If the link takes you to a subscription page, it is possible to get to a page containing the entire article by doing a google search on "wall street journal case for god".

http://www.wsj.com/articles/eric-metaxas-science-increasingly-makes-the-case-for-god-1419544568

Recap of our discussion, 5 Tevet 5775, parsha Vayigash

This Shabbos we discussed parsha Vayigash, including Rav Yeager’s commentary on the parsha. We discussed the central theme in Judaism, of bringing spirituality to the physical world. We discussed another theme - that we are all part of our community and nation, and can’t exclude anyone. We also discussed from Rav Malamed - the halakhah of muktzeh. David Schlesinger led discussion this Shabbos, and also shared a few stories from his father.

We discussed parsha Vayigash, including Rav Yeager's commentary on the parsha.  In a previous parsha, Joseph is thrown into a pit and then sold off into slavery. We know that Jacob showed favoritism towards Joseph, which led to jealousy by his brothers. Bucky also shared that Joseph may have had a feminine side which was a turn off to his brothers.  But we discussed a more in depth reason for his brothers actions. The brothers were concerned that Joseph was too much into the physical, and that this was not the type of person that should be leading the Jewish people in future generations.

We discussed the idea, that at the time of the parsha, there were basically 2 different tracks people could take. Track 1 represents a life of spirituality, based on the direct miracles from hashem that we have witnessed.  Track 2 represents life in the physical world, in which a spiritual orientation is absent.  We discussed the idea from Rav Yeager’s commentary that Joseph was on track 2.

Today, track 1 no longer exists, as Hashem no longer manifests himself in a direct way and we have to make some effort in order to “see” him.  However, today we have a further division of track 2, into two sub options,  – track 2a and track 2b. Track 2a represents what Judaism is all about – bringing spirituality to the physical world. We do not have to be 100% certain of Hashem’s existence in order to do this. Track 2b represents the track that much of the world takes – which is life in the physical and material world, without appreciation for why this world exists and the purpose we were given.

We discussed how in the generations prior to Joseph, in previous parshas, there were exclusions of family members, such as Jacob’s brother, who were judged to be on the wrong track. Thus Joseph’s brothers thought it was perfectly appropriate and consistent with their values to exclude Joseph, who also seemed to them to be on the wrong track.  The track Joseph was on, track 2, does carry more risk than track 1, but Joseph eventually ended up on track 2a.

We discussed how when the brothers arrived in Egypt for the first time, Benjamin was left behind. It turns out that Benjamin had the same mother as Joseph, and had become the new favorite son of Jacob. Joseph told the brothers to go back and bring Benjamin. We discussed why it is that Joseph was not satisfied with almost all his brothers bowing down.  We discussed the differences between Joseph's original dream and what happened.  In the dream his brothers knew they were bowing down to Joseph, however there was some time before Joseph revealed who he was to his brothers.

Another reason for wanting Benjamin to come to Egypt - was to give the brothers a test. Benjamin was very similar to Joseph. He was the younger brother. He came from the same mother. He was favored by the father. Joseph created a test, to see if the brothers would exclude Benjamin the same was that he had been excluded. Joseph planted some evidence, and tried to withhold Benjamin and put him in jail, to see if the brothers would simply leave him there. 

However, the brothers ended up doing T’shuva and were not willing to leave Egypt without their brother. This time around, they were not willing to exclude a brother who was very much like Joseph. We discussed that the ultimate T’shuva in Judaism, is to be in the same situation as before, but this time to act differently. Seeing that his brothers had done T’shuva, Joseph reveals himself, and invites the entire family to come to Egypt and escape their struggle with the famine. Joseph was very willing to forgive his brothers, saying that it was Hashem’s plan that he come to Egypt.

We discussed how the ox represents Joseph, and the lion represents his older brother Judah. The lion is known as the strongest animal of the two, however David tells us a story from his father, Dr. Rabbi George Schlesinger, about what happens when the lion meets the elephant and gets demolished!

There is another story David told from his father that perhaps symbolizes what this parsha is all about. We are all in a boat and someone is digging a hole. The guy digging the hole tells us it is none of our business what he is doing. Of course, it is our business because the hole will cause all of us to drown. Likewise, everyone in our communities can affect us with what they are doing (or not doing). We can not just exclude anyone, any more than we can exclude this guy in the boat. And this is the lesson Joseph’s brother’s learned, that they can not exclude Joseph either. 

Judah goes on to become a king, and to become a leader of spiritual things, whereas Joseph learns how to bring spirituality to the physical world, and moves to track 2a.  Everyone has a role to play, regardless of what track they are on.  They may eventually get to the right track.   Judaism is an all-inclusive religion where we all rise and fall together.

This Shabbos we had a discussion of the halakah of muktzah. There are certain objects we need to put away on Shabbos. These include such things as electrical devices and pens. The Rabbi’s implemented these rules, because they were concerned if these items were around we would be tempted, or might accidentally use them.  This use would constitute a violate of the 39 types of work. We discussed another reason for the rabbinic halakah, which is simply to preserve a certain atmosphere on Shabbos which is lost if we are focused on tasks such as moving furniture.  These rules are there to ensure we do not take time away from other activities.

We discussed how Judaism carries great rewards however it may not always be easy to observe. David told us about how when he was growing up, he and his father would walk to the Hillel on Shabbos. It was a long walk, and even more difficult in that they would always be going in the opposite direction of all the football fans!

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 28 Kislev 5775, parsha Mikeitz, Yeirzeit for Joseph ben Abraham

This Shabbos was a special Shabbos.  I very much appreciate that the learning was in memory of my father, Joseph ben Abraham.  His yeirzeit was this past week, 2 days before Shabbos.  David Schlesinger led discussion as we discussed the holiday of Hanukah, including commentary by Rav Malamed.  We also discussed this week’s parsha, Mikeitz, including commentary by Rav Yeager.   Efroni Schlesinger offered his commentary on the parsha, as well.

Today is the 3 year anniversary of these notes.  Three years ago, my friend David Schlesinger had a learning in memory of my father at his house, when I was returning from the shiva. My family in New York and Costa Rica were not able to come to this learning, so I summarized what we discussed and sent it to them in an email. The decision to do this was made so fast and spontaneously, that it wasn’t until afterwards that I realized why I had done what I did.   And this is how I began writing these summaries, which I have continued doing after every Shabbos.

When I was growing up, my father was fascinated with memory tricks, which he taught to me. It wasn’t until someone pointed out that I had a good memory that I realized that I was using my dad’s tricks in order to remember the material in order to write these summaries.  This Shabbos, Yaki talked about how everything is part of Hashem’s plans.  I believe this includes our learning every Shabbos, and the summarizing of what we learn in these notes.

My father’s Hebrew name is Joseph ben Abraham. His yeirzeit just so happens to occur at the same time the person he was named after, Joseph, is the main character in the parsha. My father, just like Joseph in the parsha, was in fact very fascinated and interested in dreams and would often write them down. I don't write down my dreams, but I know that the best dreams that I have are during my Shabbos nap, which is why I always look forward to it.

Like Joseph, my father did move away from his family when he was in his late teens, to the United States where he went to college and later met my mother. This is of course not the same as Joseph in the parsha being forced to go to Egypt. My father did stay in contact and visit his family ofen, even though he lived in another country. I am sure the same way Joseph reunited with his father, my father’s soul has reunited and is much closer to his parents and Hashem now than it has ever been.

I remember that we did celebrate chanukah together with my father. This Shabbos David Schlesinger led discussion of rabbi Malamed’s commentary on the holiday. Last week we discussed the miracle being the slow rate at which the oil was consumed. This week we talked about how the oil is just the beginning of the miracles that Hashem has provided to us. We discussed how the survival of the jewish people after so many years, is such a huge miracle, after many nations and empires tried to eliminate and get rid of us. We discussed that it is Torah and faith in Hashem that has helped keep Judaism going, regardless of in what part of the world we are in.

We discussed how Chanukah takes place during the time of year with longer nights. This is also the time of year when the moon is smallest. The lit candles of Chanukah symbolize the light, that the jewish people and Torah shine on a dark world. We discussed how it is the “Judaic-Christian” ideals that have transformed our world, into hopefully one in which people and nations do what is right and reflects hashem’s will, rather than one in which people and nations satisfy self centered desires.   We were able to preserver and not conform to the Greek culture, a culture in which multiple god's were worshipped, and a culture in which physical things were highly valued.

We discussed how although we have experienced great miracles as both a nation and in our personal lives, we can not rely on miracles. Yaki talked about how miracles are most likely to occur when we have done the best we can. Yaki talked about how hashem has plans for miracles which may be triggered if we do the best we can.   Yaki talked how it is important to believe in Hashem, that he will in fact take care of us, and it is the belief itself that triggers some of this “taking care of” to take place. If we do not believe in Hashem, we well may have to work on Shabbos and/or during the sabbatical year, and Hashem may have to command the land to give us food.

We discussed how chanakah, along with Purim, and certain other commandments, make up the 7 mitzvah that were implemented by rabbis. Efroni gave a very interesting dvar Torah, in which he points out that there are hints of chanakah in the original Torah, even though the events that created the holiday did not occur until thousands of years later.  We had an interesting discussion about the oral law, and how it differs from the written law. Efroni commented that it would not have made since for Hashem to communicate to Moshe that he can not drive a car on Shabbos. So we have the oral law that continues to be applied to different situations to this day.  Brett commented that this is similar to case law.

Efroni gave a very interesting dvar Torah on the week’s parsha. Efroni commented what it must have been like to be in Jacob’s shoes, hearing his sons tell this story of their adventure in Egypt. How could Jacob believe that they needed Benjamin to prove they were not slaves? Why would Jacob believe Benjamin needed to be used as some type of proof when they could easily bring some random guy? We discussed how the fact that they were willing to leave their starving families to go to Egypt again, seems to be what finally convinced Jacob that their story could be true.  Another thing we discussed, is that perhaps Potiphar knew all along that Joseph was innocent, but simply had no choice but to put him in prison, with all the talk that was going on.

This Shabbos we discussed Rabbi Yeager’s material as usual. We discussed two tendencies, that can lead us to go off course in life. These tendencies are represented by the people that Jacob had to deal with. The first tendency is laziness, which is represented by Jacob’s father in law, Laban. When we are lazy, we are not necessarily doing anything destructive, but we are not doing anything constructive either, and are wasting time. The second tendency is aggressiveness in the physical world, with no spiritual basis for what we are doing.  This second tendency is represented by Jacob’s brother Esau. Jacob has to deal with these two types of people in their life.  We discussed how Jacob successfully deals with these 2 people.

We then continued to discuss, from Rav Yeager, how Joseph finds himself in 3 situations. The first situation is when he arrives in Egypt and goes to work as a servent of Potiphar. In the second situation, Joseph finds himself in prison, having been accused of showing too much of an interest in Potiphar's wife. And in the third situation, Joseph finds himself released from jail and living as a direct servent of Pharaoh. In each of these 3 situations, Joseph rises to the top.  Rav Yeager makes the point, that Joseph succesfully builds on his father Jacob's success in life.

My father was not very religious with respect to being observant of all the halakuh, but he did a lot of mitzvah. My father liked to visit the sick.  I remember when we all wanted to go to the beach, my father was more focused on visiting a person who recently had a stroke. I also remember my father had a housekeeper whose sister passed away, and my father offered to pay for this funeral, which is something he did not have to do. My father was an inventor and artist. He was building computers at our house before people even knew what a PC was, and has numerous patents and rewards. And he has many paintings which were drawn with a single black pen, one dot at a time. I hope by learning and doing these summaries, I can build on my father’s success, the same way that Joseph was able to build on the success of Jacob.

My father’s birthday was the day after his yeirzeit. I talked to my sister and we just decided to eat his favorite food and make a fun day out of it. My dad really liked to go to the beach, which is why I really like to hear about beaches and Dave W has continued to tell us about the beaches in Florida. Dave W has pointed out that there is also a Chabad house in Destin, and that there is an Achdut Israel synagogue in Panama City. There is also kosher food at the Publix supermarket, including Challah.  F

Finally, we talked about how in Judaism we say blessings after the meal, as well as before. Brett pointed out that we even say a blessing on water, and he commented on the parsha that the speech at the UN by the ambassador of Israel was very much like the speeches that are given in the Torah.  And I would like to thank David again for the learnings in my father's memory.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 22 Kislev 5775 (Parsha Vayeishev and graduation Shabbos)

This Shabbos we discussed Parsha Veyeishev.  Efroni offered up very interesting commentary on the parsha.  This Shabbos was also a special “graduation” Shabbos for David Schlesinger who has just completed his MBA!  David gave a very interesting shiur related to his studies.  We also discussed the upcoming holiday of hanakuh, and possible vacation spots in Florida with growing jewish communities.

In this week’s parsha, Joseph is sold into slavery by his brothers. Efroni commented that there is a lot of repetition in the parsha.  Some of this repetition, includes the use of the word “davar”, that appears more than once in the parsha. Efroni gave us a very interesting dvar Torah related to this.  He spoke on how this word is used twice, once when interpreting dreams and once when Joseph goes off to check on his brothers. The word would appear to have 2 different meanings, but Efroni suggested that maybe it really doesn’t.  We discussed how maybe Jacob told Joseph to go off and actualize his dream, rather than to go off and simply check on his brothers.  After all, it wasn’t until 22 years later when Joseph’s dream had become true, that Joseph reunited with his father.

David gave a very interesting shiur related to his MBA studies. We started off discussing how it is a mitzvah to help those in need, sometimes by giving them loans.  If we have a choice, it is best to help those who are poor, and to help those in our own community before helping those from out of the area.

David discussed from his coursework how financing is done in the business world.  There are basically 2 types of financing, equity and bonds.  There are pros and cons to each of these which depend on whether it is from the perspective of the borrower, or from the perspective of the lender. The borrower calculates his cost of capital based on how his financing is allocated between stocks and bonds.  His goal is then to invest in projects that will provide a return that exceeds this cost. For example, if the borrower’s WACC (weighted average cost of capital) is 5%, the goal would be to invest in projects that return more than 5%.  Of course it is usually not possible to predict with certainty how successful a project will be, which is why there are risks associated with borrowing money.  Equity financing would seem to come with less risk because less needs to be "paid" to the lender if things do not go well, however there is the risk of losing out on a lot of "upside" when projects do well, that would not have been lost with straight loans achieved by issuing bonds.

We then discussed what type of financing would be best if we want to help someone who is in need.  Some of the points we discussed included that first, in Judaism it is important that we love and care for one another by actually putting ourselves in their shoes and feeling what they are going through. Secondly, Judaism is a religion where we all should rise and fall together, rather than some benefiting at the expense of others. These factors have led to our current halakuh that it is desirable to loan money to those in need, but it is prohibited to charge interest. When we charge interest, we are taking advantage of others and not truly feeling their pain. The laws against interest apply to both the borrower and the lender.

This brought up a discussion that was raised by a gentleman as to what we should do to encourage lending, when there may be no one interested in loaning out money at zero percent interest. Just as corporations can finance by issuing equity, we can loan money to an individual with special agreements in which our return on this investment depends on how the individual makes out. We call this "heter iskal", and we can put this provision in our agreements. 

 We discussed that there is a possible leniency with organizations such as banks, in that we may be able to accept interest from a bank, as a bank is a separate entity and it would not make sense to not accept interest so we could feel the bank's "suffering". However it is desirable to put in the heter iskal provisions even in agreements involving organizations. With this type of arrangement, if an individual we loan money does not do well, we will feel his pain with him as he is not required to pay back the investment.  On the other hand if the individual does well, we can feel his success with him as we realize some of this upside.

We discussed some more how it is a mitzvah to feel someone else’s suffering, the same way Hashem feels our suffering. When we go to a shiva we should feel the pain of the mourners, but also what is going on with the souls that are now being judged. One of the interesting discussions we had is how do we feel hashem’s suffering? The way we do this is by trying to be a Kiddush hashem, to honor hashem and Judaism by doing mitzvah and representing hashem in the best possible way here on earth.

This Shabbos we also had a discussion of the upcoming holiday of chanakuh. We discussed what exactly was the miracle. Did we divide the oil up into 8 equal amounts expecting to just get 3 hours a day, and then were miraculously given a full day from each amount? Or did we start off using all the oil, expecting to only get one day out of it?  We concluded that on each day we actually used all the oil that was available, not expecting any miracle at all. On each day the oil was consumed at 1/8th of its normal rate, which resulted in the oil lasting 8 full days. This was the miracle, and why we celebrate a miracle on each of 8 days. This is all an inspiration to all of us, that just like the oil, we all have a miraculous potential to do more than we expect.

Yaki shared about how the biggest miracle is that we were able to preserver over the Greek. Yaki shared that the light of the candles illuminates the darkness, which symbolizes what our spirituality means to the world. Yaki commented that the three things the greeks tried to take away from us, were brit milah, Shabbos, and Rosh Chodesh. These are the three ways in that we shine light. It is a great miracle that we preservered, and we should realize that miracles are possible in our own lives.

Dave W talked about the growing Jewish community in Destin, Florida, and how this is a great place that hashem created for us to take a possible vacation during the winter. There is a synagogue there called Achdut Israel, that follows the Sephardic tradition. I have not been to the beach in a long time and may check it out.

Finally, I want to say that my father’s name is Joseph ben Abraham, and his yeirzeit is this week, and mozel tov again to David on his accomplishment of achieving his MBA.

Recap for this Shabbos, 14 Kislev 5775 (Parsha Vayishlach)

This Shabbos we discussed parsha Vayishlach. David Schlesinger led discussion. This Shabbos was a special Shabbos, as we welcome back Efroni Schlesinger from Israel.  We discussed Rav Yeager’s commentary on the parsha, as well as additional commentary from Efroni .

We discussed this Shabbos the emotion of fear, including Rav Yeager’s commentary on this. We discussed how our fear is often based on what is happening in the short term physical world, when perhaps our focus should be on longer term, spiritual issues.  We discussed how we may need to have more faith that our physical needs will be met, as long as we do our part. We may worry too much about what is going to happen tomorow, even after doing all we can, when maybe what we should be worrying about is what is going to happen to us and our soul in the long run.

We discussed what it means to have a fear of Hashem. This fear may be very different than the type of fear we have about physical things. We discussed how a healthy fear of hashem is desirable, when it is manifested as an awareness of Hashem.  It is healthy to be aware that now is the time to study Torah, do mitzvah, and grow spiritually, before we miss out on the opportunity.  David suggested that we should ask ourselves every day if we did something significant. We should consider whether or not what we did contributed towards our long term spiritual goals.

Efroni gave a dvar Torah on the parsha, discussing the main differences between Jacob and his brother, Esau. Esau was the oldest son of Isaac, but was willing to give away his oldest son rights to his younger brother Jacob. Efroni commented that Jacob was most concerned with spiritual matters, and continuing to father a nation, whereas Esau seemed more concerned with the physical, and with the here and now.  Jacob was able to give Esau physical things in order to make peace with his brother.

David commented this Shabbos on how we should not judge people as either “good” or “bad”, but that it is actions that fall into these categories. We discussed whether the world is “good” or “bad” overall. David commented that most of the world is oriented towards construction rather than destruction. We discussed how it is much easier to construct something, than to destroy.

We discussed why Hashem may allow a world with some destruction, especially that which is a result of nature.  This allows for a perfect world by maximizing our opportunity to have a virtuous response.   David talked about how he would ask his father about this, and how it could be that some suffering does not seem to allow for a virtuous response. The answer seems to be that the virtuous response goes on for a long time.  Even today we are in the process of a virtuous response to suffering that happened a long time ago.  This includes making sure buildings are earth quake proof, and constructing the state of Israel which is a response to the Jews not having any homeland.

Efroni discussed the idea of how the 2 different parts of tefillin represent our thoughts and actions. The head (rosh) tefillin represents our thoughts, and the arm tefillin represents our heart and our actions. It is not enough to have good thoughts and knowledge of Torah - we have to have good actions as well. Our actions need to be aligned with our thoughts and what we have studied from the Torah and know of our commandments. Efroni commented that only those whose actions are aligned with their thoughts should be eligible to join the army.

Efroni talked about how we should trust those who are expert on a subject, even though when coming up with dvar torah it may be desirable to come up with original material. This brought up an issue, that was raised by Ellie, as to how we can trust a rabbi whose judgement may now be obsolete in the modern world. David commented that during each period of time we get a “layer” of Torah by the current day experts, who should be trusted. We discussed how Judaism is a religion without an official central authority, and that it is good to have debate, but not trusting experts can lead us into trouble.

This Shabbos we discussed the haftorah and why it came about. Efroni talked about how the haftorah complements the parsha. David talked about how we may sing the haftorah in a minor key.  Efroni also talked about how repetition helped him learn at his Yeshiva, but even with this knowledge we should still trust experts.

Finally, Brett from the all Torah team came up with an answer. He talked about how a marriage can be declared null and void if the man was deliberately not told of the woman’s inability to have children.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for this Shabbos 29 Chesvan 5775 (Parsha Toldot)

This Shabbos we discussed parsha Toldot. David Schlesinger led discussion. In the parsha, Esau is the first born, but he gives up his birth rights to his brother, Jacob. Although Jacob is more well known as being renamed Israel, and being the father of the 12 tribes, Esau has a special role to play and is the one who is actually favored by Isaac, his father.

Avishai Schlesinger commented that Esau is really not “that bad”.  Although Esau seemed to be more interested in hunting, and pursuits other than studying and being a scholar, maybe it is important in life to play up to our strengths whatever these may be, rather than play up to what our strengths should be.  David has made the point that our mission in life is to do what we are good and passionate about, rather than choosing missions that force us to struggle to overcome weaknesses.

Norm, however, pointed out that it may be possible to play to our strengths too much. Tiger Woods played to his strengths so much, that they actually changed the rules and format of the game on him. So it would seem we don’t want to ignore overcoming our weaknesses, however gravitating towards what we do well and are passionate about seems to make sense.  Yaki commented that our weaknesses may be spiritual in nature, and regardless of what we gravitate towards in the physical world, we are going to face spiritual challenges.  We should be able to bring spirituality into any career. Brett has shared how in his career, he brings in Torah and spirituality, in getting ideas to use in his arguments.

We may be able to pick a career or mission that we are passionate about, but Judaism involves a lot of sacrifice for everyone and may be difficult to practice at times. Norm commented that what we get with Judaism is not a “fun” religion, but there is an intrinsic feeling of joy that does come with the deal.  And this feeling can come from more than just a belief in Hashem.  Avishai commented how he has a friend who is “sticking” with Judaism, although not necessarily a believer.  David commented how our practice of observing shabbot has kept us all together for thousands of years.  Even for atheist and agnostics, if they participate in our practices, it can provide to them great benefits.  David asked what else we would be doing on a Saturday morning.

We discussed how in the past, we were forbidden to read and study certain texts, that covered material outside of the Torah. We were told that those who studied these subjects, would not receive a portion in the world to come.  We discussed how the reason for these prohibitions were not a fear we would discover the truth, but a fear that it would be difficult for us to overcome the temptation to go with that which is easier and feels good.  David talked about how today, all this “foreign” material is everywhere, and having a prohibition is no longer practical.  David talked about what we have to do today, which is to confront ideas, such as arguments that Hashem does not exist, etc. etc. David’s father, HaRav Natan Ben HaRav Shmuel (aka Dr. Rabbi George N Schlesinger, is well known for his articles providing plenty of convincing evidence of Hashem’s existence.

We discussed how the model of Judaism, as a religion in which observance is optional, is not sustainable. There is a problem in not thinking for ourselves, and thinking something is ok because others do the same. David told a story from his father about someone who makes the same bids at an auction, simply because a “Dr. Goldstein” is doing the same.  In our religion, we need to do what is right because it is right, and not simply do whatever others seems to be doing.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 22 Chesvan, 5775 (Parsha Chayei Sarah)

This Shabbos David Schlesinger led discussion. This Shabbos was a special Shabbos because it was the anniversary of Yaki’s barmitzvah parsha and Yaki’s Hebrew birthday.  And this Shabbos we welcome Avishai back from Israel.

We discussed parsha Chayei Sarah, including commentary by Rav Yeager. In the parsha, Sara passes away and then Abraham sends out his servant, Eliezer, to find a wife for Isaac.  Eliezer uses a test to see who will offer water to not only him but to his camel as well.  The test seems to be too easy of a test to pass, and a a wife is quickly picked out.

Why did this “well test” end up working, even though it was so easy to pass? Avishai Schlesinger pointed out that the reason the test worked, was because of divine intervention and the fact the test did in fact represent a necessary condition. There is a story of another test, in which the first thing that leaves out of a yard is chosen.  Avishai points out, however, that in this later case, there is absolutely no correlation at all between passing the test and any conceivable necessary condition so Hashem does not help out at all.  

Norm commented that Eliezer may have been trying to come up with a test that would pick a wife as quick as possible, so that he would not be tempted by the evil inclination to offer up his own daughter to be the wife of Isaac.

One of the discussions we had which is brought up by Rav Yeager, is why a slave was chosen to do this test.  What are the differences between a slave and and a child. Who is better able to carry out the wishes of the master?  It would seem that a slave would feel more pressure to be “like” the master and carry out his wishes, but Avishai points out that a slave has spent most of his life somewhere else and is simply with the master for economic reasons.  Perhaps a child would be more likely to represent the wishes of his father.

Efroni points out in his commentary that we can learn more about the parsha, and perhaps help answer our questions by taking a look at the Midrash. He starts out making the comment about the midrash that those who do not believe any of them have no heart, and those who believe all of them have no brain. He then goes on and says that all of the midrash are true, but they are not true. Efroni then clarifies that what is not true is that the literal events took place. But the stories that are told help teach us truths and help us learn concepts from the Torah that we may have otherwise missed.

We discussed Efroni’s commentary.  Efroni comments that just like Abraham and Sara are compliments for each other, so too are Isaac and Rivka.  Efroni comments that, Sara was more of the “indoors” person, whereas Abraham was more of the “outdoors” person. With Isaac, the roles are reversed. Isaac was more of an “indoors” person, which necessitated finding an “outdoors” person to be his wife. Efroni concludes his commentary with the observation that the jewish people are not a bunch of independent people all with different goals. We are one “organism” all descendant from Abraham – all with the same goal of finding wholeness, that can be achieved by finding people that compliment ourselves.

This Shabbos was the anniversary of Yaki’s barmitzvah parsha, as well as his Hebrew birthday! David talked about how Yaki is a person who has a lot of patience. Yaki waited many years to finally have a great neighbor.  Yaki finally received this neighbor with not only an open gate, but an open house as well. David talked further about the importance of resisting short term temptation and inclination, and remaining focused on long term goals, and how this is a major challenge that we all face.

Yaki posed a series of questions, with respect to why it would seem that Sara would pass away upon hearing such bad news about her son. Yaki later answers the questions, that Sara would have passed away anyhow at this moment of time. Yaki has given many interested dvar Torah. Many of them conveying to us that we all have purposes and missions to carry out. In his commentary, Yaki has noted that we often have obstacles in our path that are there by design and part of our mission is to overcome these obstacles.

David commented last Shabbos that sometimes our mission may be that which we find easiest and seem to gravitate towards. This seems to contradict Yaki's commentary that our mission is that in which we face obstacles. Perhaps the truth is somewhere in the middle. It is not Hashem’s plans that I become a NFL quarterback, as there would be a very large number of obstacles to achieving that, but it is not his plan that I find the easiest thing possible.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 15 Chesvan, 5775 (Parsha Vayeira)

This Shabbos David Schlesinger led discussion. We began by discussing how this week’s parsha is similar and different to last week’s parsha.  In both parshas Abraham presents Sarah as his sister.  In this week’s parsha this is done with Avimelech, and in last week’s parsha this is done with Pharaoh. Abraham does this in order to protect his own life.  He does not want to be seen as a threat to the leaders who may desire his wife.

In his dvar torah, Efroni Schlesinger discusses some of the differences between the parshas. Abraham tells Avimelech that he has no reverence of God.  However, Abraham says nothing to Pharaoh.  Efroni comments that perhaps Pharaoh already has a fear of God and does not need to be told.  Efroni comments that Avimelech simply took Sarah without even checking whether she was available, whereas Pharaoh made more of an effort to proceed cautiously.  Efroni also comments that Hashem had to tell Avimelech more directly not to take Sarah, whereas with Pharaoh he came across as more aware of the consequences of his actions.

There is the opposite position, however. David presented this opposite position that perhaps Pharaoh simply isn’t ready to be told about God and Avimelech is. There is a life lesson to this, in that we need to be ready to receive Torah and spirituality, whether directly through Hashem, or through other people. If we turn our back on Hashem, we may be “beyond” receiving anything.

Efroni goes on in his commentary, to suggest that Avraham is also saving Sarah’s life by not telling her of the plan to be his sister with respect to Avimelech. If Sarah knows what is going on, she could be committing adultery which is punishable by death. However if she does not know, she technically would not be considered guilty of this. However, Efroni comments that although technically we may not commit an avera, it can still be considered quite wrong what we do. For example, if our wife tells us she doesn’t like a cigarette in our mouth, technically we can remove it from our mouth but leave it on the table, but we have not accomplished much of anything to please our wives.

One of the other issues we discussed with the parsha is how Abraham prays for the Sodomites, but does not pray for his own descendants. Hashem tells Abraham that his own descendants will be held captive for 400 years, but Abraham seems a lot more concerned for the Sodomites.   David commented that sometimes going through something “bad” can lead us to something “good”.  In the case of going to Egypt, the slavery and captivity lead towards our freedom and receiving the Torah. Sometimes we need to hit a bottom in order to reach new heights, whether as an individual or as a nation.

Norm commented on how human beings tend to react to threats.  We either fight, flight, or freeze. We may be born with a tendency to do one of these, whereas someone else is born with a tendency to do something else.  David talked more about the virtuous response to suffering, which is why Hashem designed the world to have threats to being with.  Although we may have a tendency to fight, flight, or freeze, Norm commented that it may be possible to train ourselves to react differently.  I personally thought my tendency was towards flight but after our discussion I think I may have a tendency to freeze as well.

This Shabbos we reflected back on earlier portions of the Torah and the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve had everything they could possibly want, but were told to not take from a particular tree. Being told they could not have this, they focused on it intently.

Norm commented that human beings have this psychological tendency to focus on, and desire what they can’t have. Norm discussed a specific study that was done in which undergraduate college students are put into 2 separated groups. In the first group, the students are told to not think about white bears. In the second group, the students are not told anything. The individuals in both groups are then told to use a device to count how often they think of white bears. The individuals in the group told not to think of white bears, indicate that they actually think of white bears significantly more often than the group that wasn’t told anything.

David commented how his father, HaRav Natan Ben HaRav Shmuel (aka Dr. George N Schlesinger) would say the challenge in life is to want what we have, rather than to have what we want. There is a great lesson in this, that we should be grateful and not take things for granted. We discussed how although it may seem that Hashem created us and many things happen automatically, Hashem is continuously part of our life. Hashem is not like a CEO or king that only manages overriding principles. Hashem takes an active role in the details of the lives of all the billions of his creations. We need to be grateful for even the small things we take for granted every day, like being able to wake up, have food, breath, etc. etc.

Finally, we discussed the section of Rabbi Malamed’s books concerning the prayer of Gomel. Ashkenazi jews say this prayer whenever we escape danger to our lives. An example, would be an accident in which we survive. Another example would be if we engage in a risky activity, and are lucky enough to make it through. Sephardic Jews only say the prayer in very specific circumstances, such as when surviving the crossing of the dessert or sea, or being released from prison.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for this past Shabbos, 8 Chesvan 5775, Parsha Lech Lecha

This past Shabbos was the 5th anniversary of the early minyan and Kiddush/learning. Congratulations to everyone on this anniversary of 5 years.  As we found out this Shabbos, the early minyan and Kiddush help make Memphis attractive, and is certainly a reason I enjoy and benefit from living here.   Please continue to support the em and Kiddush/learning.  Second, We welcome Rob from upstate NY, who enjoyed the em and kiddush.  Coincidentally, Rob goes to school at Cornell which is where my family lives.  And third, the week’s parsha Lech Lecha is Norm’s barmitzvah parsha.

This Shabbos we had some discussion about Shabbos, and how Shabbos is the one day we “get out” of the physical in order to put increased focus on our spirituality. However, one of the main points that David made is that we do not reject physicality completely, even on Shabbos, but we remove physical distractions so that we can focus on “elevating the sparks of kiddusha”.

Over the last week, David sent me an article, and we had an email discussion as to exactly what is meant by “elevating the sparks of Kiddusha”.  Here is the link:  Article about elevating the sparks of kidusha. The “sparks” are the potential that the physical world has to become spiritual. In the article, “The search for spirituality”, the idea that physical objects “yearn” for the spiritual is presented. All sides of an object are spiritually attracted to the “heavens”.  The article discusses how Shabbos is the most important time to focus on spirituality, and Israel is the most important place where spirituality is most likely to occur.

It is our job to “elevate” the sparks by actualizing spiritual potential.  Physical objects have this potential, as well as human beings. In order to elevate our own sparks, we use our free will to follow the Torah and engage in mitzvah. Yaki has commented in the past, how every object has a purpose. Yaki spoke this Shabbos how each of us also has a purpose, but that we face obstacles. David suggested that Hashem created a world with these obstacles, so that we could choose to use our free will to deal with the obstacles. If there were no obstacles we would automatically carry out our purpose and this would not be the most perfect world. In the most perfect world we live in an environment with a maximum opportunity to do mitzvah.

We had an interesting discussion about the different models that have emerged for determining the itinerary for Shabbos.  In the first model, we do not have to cook, so we arrive for davening as early as possible.  After a short time we return home and have a small meal.  We then return to shul, learn, and then daven mincah.  The largest meal occurs after halakuh midday. In the second model, we start davening late in the morning because of a passage that refers to davening as taking place during the “day”. The service is longer, as we engage in singing, however we do want to get home before halakuh midday to have our first meal.  When we do arrive home, this meal is large. Later in the day we return to shul for learning, mincah, and the third meal which typically is small.

We discussed how the second model has become commonplace in the Ashkenazi communities of the dysphoria. However in Israel, and in Sephardic communities the first model is more common. Most communities have both models, which provides the most choice to those who live in the area.

I personally prefer the first model, which is what we have more or less with the early minyan. The only way I seem to attend a complete Shabbos davening is with the shorter service. And I don’t think we would do as many hours of learning with the second model. Having said this, I understand that many prefer the second model. Many communities offer both models, which is great and gives everyone the opportunity to have what is best for them.  It is my opinion that Memphis should have both models in order to be as strong a community as possible.

This Shabbos we had a discussion of the passages concerning Hashem creating multiple worlds. We cannot be sure what previous worlds were like, but we know from the Torah what has taken place in this world. There were 10 generations between Adam and Noah, and then another 10 generations between Noah and Abraham. During the generation of Noah, Hashem almost decided to start from scratch with a new world, but Noah was saved. This led to 10 more generations until Abraham arrived. Abraham was known as our father and the beginning of our religion. However, even amongst his generation certain people had to be destroyed in Sodom. Hopefully today we have it right and there will be no more need for new worlds.

David told the story from his father, Dr. Rabbi George N Schlesinger, how when it is cold Noah would put on a jacket, whereas Abraham would build a fire. Noah followed Hashem’s direct commandment, whereas Abraham would go the extra mile and use his free will to carry out Hashem’s will without being directly commanded. The best possible world is one in which we do not do things because we are directly commanded, but one in which we choose to believe and determine our purpose and carry it out because it is the right thing to do.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Elevating the sparks of kidusha

Much of the Torah and a lot of our learning is related to the idea of "elevating the sparks of kiddusha". We have discussed the purpose in life of bring spirituality to the physical world. David sent me this link to a very interesting article on this topic. The search for spirituality article This Shabbos is the 5 year anniversary of the EM and kiddush. Please try to attend!

Recap for 1 Cheshvan 5775 (Parsha Noah)

This Shabbos we discussed parsha Noah and Rav Yeager’s commentary on the parsha. David led discussion.  Norm commented that Noah often gets a “bad rap”, when in fact he was the most righteous person of his era. We discussed how perhaps if we are going to Judge Noah, we should do it by comparing him to everyone else who was alive at the same time as him.

Nevertheless, we did discuss the comparison between Noah and Abraham.  David offered up what his father Dr. Rabbi George Schlesinger would say - that when it is very cold Noah would put on a coat, whereas Abraham would build a fire.  We discussed how Noah established a foundation, that are the basic requirements that even non-jews need to follow.

One of the interesting discussions we had this Shabbos, is why there are so many narratives in the Torah, and so much material, that does not seem to convey to us any mitzvah, commandments or halakuh at all. An example we discussed is Hashem’s creation of everything from last week's parsha. Why are the details of the first 6 days of creation provided to us at all?  We discussed how it is true that this explains our observance of Shabbos.  But we are later commanded to observe Shabbos anyhow.

We discussed that one of the purposes of the Torah is simply to let us know that our actions have consequences.  These consequences can be either positive or negative.  For example, Noah survived the flood, which was a positive consequences.  But many others perished, which was a negative consequence.  The Torah not only teaches us the commandments and guides us in how to use our free will, it contains a lot of narratives that drive home the point that there is judgement and justice.

We discussed specifically the consequences faced by Adam and Eve and how they were kicked out of the garden of Eden. We also discussed the consequences of those who inhabited Canaan, and how they were defeated.   And although Hashem allocated the land of Israel to us, we too can be expelled as a consequence of our actions (or lack of actions).

We then discussed why we often do not see immediate consequences. For example, if I do not follow certain commandments, it is unlikely that I am going to be immediately struck by lightening. David brought up the point that if consequences were immediate in the short run, this would take away free will. And David further commented that human beings who automatically make the right choices, is not a world that maximizes morality and the opportunity to grow spiritually and get close to Hashem. 

David commented on one of his father’s articles, “No peace for the wicked”, in which the wicked do not suffer immediate consequences, but in the long run they always suffer consequences. In this article, the evil dictator is unwilling to seek out medical help because of his lack of trust, and ends up suffering terrible consequences as a result. But this dictator did not suffer immediate consequences after each and every action he took during his life. But in the long run, the consequences of his choices ended up determining his faith.

Human beings seem to be the only animal that has the ability to focus on the long run.  Norm commented how when training dogs, the rewards and punishments need to be immediate.  David commented on one of his father's other articles, "The Child Prodigy", in which even a child is careful not to draw attention to his mother's mistakes.

Being morality means we make the right choices simply because they are the right thing to do. We realize spiritual benefit by making these right choices. And eventually in the long run, we will realize material and physical benefits as well. Ellie brought up the point that perhaps someone who is brought up in a broken home can not be expected to use his free will and discipline to the extent that someone brought up in a healthy environment is able to do. I then brought up the point that what we should do is simply the best we can, and it is true that the best that one person can do may not be as much as someone else.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for Tishrei 24, 5775 (Parsha Bereishit)

This Shabbos David Schlesinger led discussion. We began by discussing how we can dwell on the sukkah on the Shabbos following Simchat Torah, without violating the prohibition against “adding" to the Torah.  Normally we would take the sukkah down on the 10th day, but this year Shabbos is the day after Simchat Torah.  We discussed how we have to alter the sukkah, in order to be there on Shabbos.  One example of what can be done, is bring in a garbage can.  Whatever we do, we have to alter the environment, but in a way that isn't work that violates Shabbos.

This Shabbos we discussed the situations that can come up when we are ordered to do something that seems to be against the Torah. There can be a special problem when a rabbi or the courts order us to do something that is wrong. Should we simply refuse to follow these orders?  As an example, what should we do if the religious court orders us to eat something non kosher?

We discussed how there are procedures we can follow for appealing decisions. It is very possible that judges/rabbis are very busy, and may overlook something, so it is ok to appeal decisions, but at some point we have to respect whatever the decisions are regardless of whether or not we agree with them.

David pointed out that it can really start to become a problem if rulings and orders start becoming optional because we feel it is up to us to interpret the laws for ourselves. On the other hand, we discussed the situation of the officials in Germany who performed executions, using the excuse that they were ordered to do so, so there are clearly certain orders that we are obligated not to follow.

We discussed how Judaism is a religion in which disagreement and argument is encouraged, and how we do not have a central authority today.  Our religion encourages that we express our opinions, but at some point we have to accept the interpretation of Torah that is common in our communities. We discussed how different communities, and even different synagogues, may have differing customs. Regardless of what these customs are it is important to follow the customs of our synagogues and communities. One of the examples we discussed if there is a synagogue with more than one minyan each of the minyan should be careful to follow the same customs.

This Shabbos we began the new year, by starting over with the Torah and discussing parsha Bereishit and Rav Yeager's commentary of the parsha.  We discussed how in the parsha it states Hashem “says let there be”. We discussed that the words “says let there be” means that Hashem willed into existence. We also discussed how in the parsha it states “saw that it was good”. We discussed how this means Hashem does not create things and then no longer plays a role. “Saw that it was good” means that Hashem continuously wills into existence. Everything around us exists because of Hashem’s constant will. Hashem did not create things and then leave everything on its own. Hashem plays an active and continuous role in our world and in our lives.

One of the discussions we had this Shabbos is why we study Torah that would seem to be of no practical use to us.  For example, it is unlikely anyone in our community needs to deal with the laws of slaughtering animals, but it is still considered a mitzvah to study this Torah. We discussed how the Torah is not only a “driver’s manual”, but also a way to learn the “why” of everything. The Torah helps us answer general questions such as what is our purpose. And we also need to have a large base of knowledge in order to derive new guidelines for things that may come up in the future.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 15-17 Tishrei, 5775 (First 2 days Sukkot and Shabbos Chol Hamoed)

This Sukkot, during the first 2 days, we discussed the meaning of the holiday. David Schlesinger led discussion. We disccused how Sukkot, coming after the spiritual cleansing of Yom Kippur, is the holiday with the most simchah. We discussed how it is that we be commanded to be in a good mood, and how can we find real happiness in general.

We discussed how material goods bring about a joy that is only temporary. The example of a brand new BMW was brought up and how that would make someone happy for just a limited time until they begin to desire something more, like maybe an even fancier model of car.  On the other hand, a BMW could be used to gives rides to those who can not afford a car, and to drive to Shul and Torah studies so it could be used for spiritual purposes as well.

We discussed that the way to achieve true joy and happiness is to cling to the essence of Hashem. We discussed a few things that we should strive to do to find real joy in our life.  These 3 things include striving for achievement, showing gratitude for hashem and what we do have, and giving to others. We discussed how if we are at point A in our life, the accomplishment of moving to point B can bring us a sustainable joy and feeling of well being.

We discussed how on festivals it should be our goal to spend one-half of the time engaged in Torah study, and the other half of our time engaged in the enjoyment of physical pleasures, such as eating and drinking. Given that the festivals are 25 hours (in Israel), allowing 7 hours for sleep leaves 18 hours, thus 9 would be allotted for physical pleasures, and 9 would be allotted for study of Torah (which includes davening).

David brought up the point that we could spend the day doing both. We can eat delicious food such as barbecue and cholent and drink and study the Torah at the same time. When we do this, we are using the physical in order to realize the spiritual as well. This is known as “evelvating the sparks of Kidusha” and is a central theme of the festivals and Judaism in general, and a glimpse into why Hashem created the physical world to begin with.

We discussed how on sukkot we want to wear our best cloths. We also discussed how it is allowed to use pre-existing flames to light things, but that smoking has come to be forbidden at all times due to the health dangers. We also discussed how sukkot marks the end of the year, with respect to the Torah readings. On the Shabbos of Chol Chomed there is a special Torah reading.

This Shabbos we discussed the Daf Yomi, and the section of the Gemara which deals with the obligation to marry one’s sister-in-law and have a child in your brother’s name, in the case that your brother has passed away. This halakuh is interesting in that it involves a positive mitzvah overriding a negative one. Normally, marrying your sister-in-law would be a negative commandment.

We had a discussion of the Daf Yomi which was about the cases in which a positive commandment would override a negative one. One example, is that of a Brit Milah. In general procedures like this would not be allowed on Shabbos, and certainly not on Yom Kippur, however Brit Milah goes forth on these days. The only stipulation being that the celebration that usually includes drinking, would be after sun down (the next day).

We discussed what we would do if our parent asked us to violate Shabbos. For example, what if our mother asked us to turn on a light. I brought up the point that we would actually be dishonoring our parent by following their request. There are also specific rules that forbid us from following our parents directive to break Shabbos, as Hashem’s commandments would super-cede those of our parents. But we should not feel bad for doing so, as the best way to honor our parents is to make them aware – nicely – when they do not seem to be conscious of an entire situation.

We had an interesting discussion of when we would observe Shabbos if we were on a space ship, or even on another planet. We were not really sure about this, but there are rules for those in a location such as in Alaska near the north pole. Although it may never get dark there are ways to follow the path of the sun as it gets close to, and far away from, the horizon. It may also be possible to follow the day and night schedule of the closest town or city where Shabbos is observed. A space ship may have to follow the day and night schedule of the earth location from which it departed.

We discussed some more how in Judaism it is not so much reaching certain goals, but moving in the direction of them. David talked some more about how his father would greatly value time, and how time is a resource that we can never get back. One minute of spiritual growth is worth more than one minute in the next world, because in this world we have our opportunity to grow and move in the direction of our goal to be ready for the next world.  We should not waste time that can be used for this and other purposes.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 25 Elul 5774 (Parsha Nitzavim and Vayelech)

This Shabbos, David Schlesinger led discussion. We discussed parshas Nitzavim and Vayelech, and Rav Yeager’s commentary on the parsha. We also discussed commentary by Rav Cook, and the upcoming Rosh Hashanah holiday.

From Rav Yeager, we discussed the commitment a man and woman must make to each other before each may realize rights and benefits from the relationship. There are two formal periods of time.  During the first period, the couple is committed to each other, however as of yet do not live together in marriage, and realize the benefits of marriage.  During the second period of time, the couple are married, live together, and realize the rights and benefits of marriage. We discussed how in the Torah, the relationship we had as a nation with Hashem, needed to follow the same pattern as the relationship between the man and wife who have committed to each other.

When we received the commandments for the first time at Mt. Sinai, we were not committed and did not have any “skin in the game”.  This contributed towards our committing the “sin of the Golden Calf”.  When we received the commandments for the second time around, Hashem made sure we had more “skin in the game”.   This second time around we took more ownership, and Moshe carved out the tablets himself.  Even so, it was not until 40 years later, in this week’s parsha and on the occasion of the 120th birthday of Moshe, that we were finally ready to receive the details and make a long lasting covenant and agreement with Hashem that we would do our part and Hashem would do his. This week’s parsha marked for us the beginning of a new “marriage” with hashem in which we will benefit but must do our part.

This Shabbos we studied from another book which included Rav Cook’s commentary, and commentary on Rav Cook’s commentary. We discussed how we must believe in ourselves as a first step prior to doing T’shuva, and making self-improvements. From this week’s parsha, we had to believe in ourselves before going across the Jordan river into the land of Israel. If we do not believe we will succeed, or believe that we do not deserve to succeed, whether as a nation going into Israel for the first time, or as individuals striving for self-improvement, we are licked from the start.

David talked about how it is important to have self-worth no matter what shortcomings we may have. We discussed how we have a pure soul that is basically good, but sometimes we need to do some maintenance. We discussed how this is similar to a car that has a good engine, but perhaps has a light bulb that is burned out, or needs new tires. If we believe the car is entirely worthless, we would have little motivation to fix any of it. By believing in this car, that it is basically fine and runs well, we start off with a positive foundation in our perception and thinking, that is most effective in bringing on change for the better.

Norm brought up the topic of 12 step self-improvement programs, how they relate to this, and I shared about my familiarity with these programs as well.  We must believe in ourselves, and that we have a disease and not a moral failing.  However, even if the disease is not our fault we have a responsibility to treat it, by working and living the 12 steps and taking measures to have a healthier life in all ways.  In the first step we admit our powerlessness, and how our life has become unmanageable. We had tried to stop, change and/or control a behavior on our own only to realize we were powerless to do so. In the 12 step program, we surrender and move on to the second step in which we begin to acquire hope that a power greater than ourselves, aka Hashem, can help us.   In the third step we make an agreement with Hashem that we will do our part and he will do his.  This is similiar to the covenant that we make with Hashem in this week's parsha.

This Shabbos, we discussed the upcoming holiday of Rosh Hashanah, and how the right approach to take is the positive approach, rather than being fearful and dreading the holiday. Our goal is to do the best we can to move in the direction of having a closer relationship with Hashem by doing t’shuva. Norm pointed out how the long uninterrupted sound of the shofar, represents our moving in this right direction. This is a healthier approach, than having as our goal simply avoiding negatives. We discussed, how what is best is to identify negatives, but use them as opportunities to grow. During Rosh Hashanah we can identify these opportunities.  Identifying opportunities for growth is a large part of 12 step programs.

We continued our discussion of the second part of Rav Yeager commentary. We learned how we should replace fear by faith in Hashem. There is no guarantee that everything will turn out any certain way, but we can be sure it is all part of Hashem’s plan for us. This was particularly important for us in anticipation of upcoming battles that would be necessary to conquer the land of Israel. And we can apply this to our lives today, to not have fear and realize whatever happens is for the best even if it does not seem so good at the time it occurs.

We discussed how in the parsha Moses tells Joshua not to lead us into Israel, but to go with us. This indicates the importance in being humble, and realizing that our governance comes from Hashem and that even our leaders are simply servants. It is important for Joshua to realize that he will need to get guidance from the elders, and to remember who is really in charge.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 18th, Elul, 5774 (parsha Ki Tavo)

This Shabbos, David Schlesinger led discussion, as we discussed the week’s parsha Ki Tavo. Norm summarized this week’s parsha as being about crime and punishment. We discussed how this week’s parsha may give the impression that Judaism is all about laws and what is going to happen if we don’t obey them. We discussed to what extent Judaism should be a religion of fear, and to what extent the harshness of the week’s parsha applies to modern day life.  Dave W pointed out that although modern day life does not seem that bad, we have gone through periods of harshness such as the holocaust.

In modern day life, we do not stone those who stray from Judaism, and in fact usually welcome everyone without a lot of judgement.  Ariav brings up the point, that the parsha was written in a way that would have meaning at a specific period of time and under certain circumstances.  Ariav points out that in the historic past, we had a violent nature and were more likely to respond to harsh physical punishment, which is why the parsha is written as it is.  David talked about how the Torah has different layers, and that we must bring out and go with whatever layer applies for our current time period and circumstances.  However, Norm pointed out that there is a danger in allowing the Torah to be too dynamic, and that too much flexibility has led to the many different sects of Judaism that we find today.

David talked about how although the Torah is dynamic, the different layers are only determined by specific rules of interpretation.  David pointed out that we were given the Torah along with these specific rules that we must use to interpret the Torah.  The Torah can not be interpreted to mean anything we want, however there is enough flexibility that the Torah can be applied to different periods of time.  Today, we do not have to implement punishments such as stoning.

Ariav points out that it is a very unhealthy way to live to feel as though one is constantly being observed and punishment is about to be lashed out at the slightest mistake. Ariav further points out that the purpose of the Torah and this week's parsha, is so that we can live a better life today, without being concerned about the afterlife.  By living life in a way that carries out Hashem’s will for us, we have a more rewarding and happier life right here, right now. David talked about how his father would say North Carolina is a southern piece of heaven.  Heaven is right here for us, right now, if we following the Torah and this week's parsha.

David talked about how it is important to work toward long term goals and resist the temptation to “live in the moment”.  Norm commented how there is a lot of “living in the moment”, and how it is not so easy for people, communities, and nations to focus on long term goals.  Norm illustrated his point by saying how to some it is “all about rock and roll”.  Spending time listening to rock and roll does seem to be about right here right now, and most of the lyrics do not seem to be about long term goals.  But there are ways to "elevate the sparks of kidusha", perhaps by creating music with lyrics that help communicate the Torah.

This Shabbos we had a discussion of the structure of davening. We have set prayers that we say as a community, while being able to add our own individual prayers.  Jeff, compared this to giving a message to someone on a birthday or anniversary.  The best way to give this message would be with a card along with some individually picked out words.  This is better than giving a card with no message, or giving a happy birthday or anniversary message written on a regular piece of notebook paper.  Likewise, it is important that our davening include a set of prayers that we say as a community, but it is also important that we include some individual words of prayer.

This Shabbos we continued our discussion of Rav Yeager’s commentary. We discussed how the first parsha communicates to us the importance of doing mitzvah. The next few parshas communicate the specific mitzvah. And how the last parsha communicates to us again the importance of doing mitzvah.

We discussed how after we have done mitzvah, we repeat that we have done all the mitzvah. The reason for this repetition is to illustrate that we should do mitzvah with simchah. David pointed out how doing mitzvah with simchah is analogous to giving the birthday or anniversary card to one’s spouse in a way that shows you really feel like doing it.

We discussed the meaning of the different holidays. Pesach corresponds to the lowest level of physical needs, within Meow’s hierarchy of needs. Shavuous corresponds to an intermediate level. And finally, sukkot, is when we are at the highest level spiritually.  We discussed Rosh Hashanah, and how the shofer reminds us to strive for the messianic error in which Satan no longer has an opening in our mind.  From our previous discussion, Satan represents doing things in the moment, vs. doing things in order to follow the Torah and achieve longer term goals and rewards.

We discussed how certain mitzvah represent “capstone” mitzvah. David commented how there is a capstone as part of the MBA program. Likewise, the mitzvah to give fruit and tithing to the Kohen is a capstone mitzvah. We discussed how with this capstone mitzvah in particular, it is very important to do it with simchah.  We need to come across as more than happy to give to the Kohen.  In modern day, it is important to do mitzvah such as tzedakuh with simchah.   

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 11 Elul, 5774 (Parsha Ki Teitzei)

David Schlesinger led discussion of this week’s parsha and Rav Yeager’s commentary on the parsha. We also discussed the current month of Elul, and how we are getting ready for the high holidays that are coming soon.  With many of us, there is a feeling of fear during this time of year.  There is this fear that we are going to be judged harshly over the high holidays, and that somehow the purpose of these holidays is to avoid a negative.  But instead of fear, we discussed how we should have confidence, and strive to have a great positive experience.  

We discussed how T’shuva includes putting ourselves in the same situation as before, however this time around there are safeguards built in and we do the right thing.  We should look forward to t’shuva as an opportunity to turn negatives into positives and reach new heights with our spiritual growth and relationship with Hashem.

We discussed how this month of Elul corresponds to a time when Moshe had ascended Mt. Sinai and we awaited once again to receive the commandments. This is a month following the sin of the Golden Calf and now during Elul Hashem shows us a great deal of mercy.  Elul is known as the month of repentance when we should be asking for forgiveness and making a major effort at self-improvement, as we did as a nation at Mt. Sinai. We discussed how the months in the calendar such as Nissan and Elul have characteristics built in.  Nissan is a month of redemption, and Elul is a month of repentance.  Sometimes these characteristics get triggered, and this is when events occur.  These events include our being able to leave Egypt, and our being able to get another chance at receiving the commandments.

We discussed how none of us are perfect.  We also discussed how we should be satisfied to be   moving in the direction of our goals, rather than dissatisfied to have not yet achieved our goals.  David made the point that we should focus on the vector or the direction in which we are headed, and be satisfied if we are moving in the right direction, rather than dissatisfied that we are not yet there. This applies to us in our personal life, as well as our communities and our nation as a whole.

There are 74 mitzvah in this week’s parsha. We did not discuss all of them, but did touch on a few. We discussed the laws of kindness towards animals, and having to send a mother bird away before taking her young. We discussed certain prohibited marriages, such as those between a Kohen and a divorcee. The reason for this one is because it is the job of Kohen’s to keep marriages together. We discussed that it is not allowed to remarry someone who has been married to someone else since a divorce. We discussed some of the laws in which offenders can be sentenced to capital punishment. We discussed how although capital punishment is allowed in Judaism, we make it very hard to actually have this imposed.

We had an interesting discussion about reward and punishment. When we are children we are motivated by external rewards and punishments.  David told us how his father, Dr. George N Schlesinger, would say that the most effective way to motivate children is to make sure reward and punishment is certain. This is even more important than the size of the reward or punishment.   

As we mature, we become motivated by internal rewards. The same is true for us as a nation. We should no longer need rewards and punishments for doing mitzvah. We should be doing them based on a mature internal motivation.  As our motivation moves from external to internal, our focus moves from the short to the long term.

We discussed how the Torah and all the mitzvahs are for us, and not for Hashem. Hashem does not need us to do mitzvah. We discussed how we are all created in Hashem’s image, and thus created to do good, however we have a "layer of desire" to go after short term pleasures rather than focusing on our long term spiritual goals. The purpose of the mitzvah in the Torah, is to help us “break through” this layer and be who we were meant to be by our creator.  David talked about how we are born with the potential to do mitzvah and do good, which is analogous to potential energy.   But in order to actually do the mitzvah, analogous to kinetic energy, do good, and carry out our mission, we need to overcome obstacles, and it is the purpose of the Torah to provide us specifics that can help us accomplish this and get through this "layer of desire".

Yaki talked some more this Shabbos about how everything comes from Hashem. Yaki discussed how even our income comes from Hashem, and that an important purpose of income is to do mitzvah and give tzedukuh. Yaki discussed how when we realize everything comes from Hashem, it is a lot easier to forego work on Shabbos. In the short run it may seem we are losing out by not working, but in the long run Hashem will take care of us.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 4rth Elul, 5774 Parsha Shoftim

This Shabbos we discussed parsha Shoftim and Rav Yeager’s commentary on the parsha.  David Schlesinger led discussion.  We discussed how the levy were given a special role, and how they have certain mitzvah that do not apply to all of us. Some of these roles continue to this day.  We discussed how even today Hashem gives all of us a special role.  We have discussed in the past how Judaism is a team sport, and we all have a position on the team based on our skills and talents and how we fit in.

We discussed the section in the parsha having to do with inadvertent murder, a situation in which a person causes another person’s death but did not mean to do so.  This would be like having civil liability in secular law, even if no criminal charged were filed.   We discussed how this section teaches us the importance watching over each other.  We have discussed in the past the halakhah of loving your fellow Jew.   This love includes watching out for each other.  We have to be careful not to be reckless, especially when others are around.

David talked about the laws of bribing a judge, and how he learned this from his father, Rabbi Dr. George N Schlesinger.  In this halakhah, a person who bribes a judge is not charged with any crime, however the judge if he accepts the bribe is charged.  By not being charged with a crime, a person who bribes a judge is likely to go around and tell everyone if the judge accepts it.  This deters judges from accepting bribes, because they know if they accept it, it is likely a lot of people will find out.  Please check out our new website in honor and memory of David's father, www.georgeschlesinger.org.

Dave W commented that the Hebrew word which is pronounced as hamas, appears in this week’s parsha with a meaning of false.  The other time we see this word is in parsha Noach.  In Noach the meaning of the word hamas is corrupt.  These two words would definitely describe the Hamas organization, as well as some of the other terrorist organizations we hear about in the news.

In the parsha, there are sections concerning the structure of government.   Back in history, Kings were allowed and were given certain roles.  Marshal talked about how our democratic government we have today is different with our legislative, executive, and judicial branches.  Marshal drew a comparison between the Torah and our constitution.  We discussed how although we live in a great country, but maybe it is time for us to return to our home of Israel.

Dan B brought up some commentary on the parsha.  Dan shared about the importance of walking with Hashem.  Dan brought up the point that we should not be like robots, following the halakhah but not being conscious of Hashem and walking with him.  Dan talked about how Hashem is inside us and that is how we walk with him.  Hashem is not an external entity to us.

We had a very interesting discussion about the importance of belief in general, and belief in Hashem’s plans for us, specifically. Norm talked about his house getting flooded by hurricane Katrina, and his belief that coming to Memphis was Hashem’s plan for him.  Norm talked about how important belief is, and how a lot of therapy deals with this. He pointed out, that if he had believed Katrina was some sort of punishment, or that he and his family were unlucky and had to suffer, life would have still moved on, but he would not have connected with Hashem and would have lost the opportunity to turn this tragedy into a positive.  Even those who are not religion, can benefit by having positive beliefs.

Today I can see that it was part of Hashem’s plan for me to come to Memphis and connect with the Jewish community like Norm.  In my case I first lived downtown, and my connection to Judaism and the community here has been a slow process. It would have been quicker and happier for me if I had belief it was Hashem’s plans to begin with, rather than just believing I have to live here in Memphis. I remember when I first went to the JCC, how this was the first Jewish institution I went to, and how the idea to go there seemed to come out of nowhere.  Today, I know based on learning we had on a previous Shabbos, that Hashem no longer communicates directly with prophets, but can communicate with us by giving us ideas and solutions such as becoming a member of the JCC.

Nathan commented that a lot of people have the question of how we can know that Hashem exists if he is no longer manifested in an obvious way, such as direct communication.  David talked about how we have matured as a people.  Just like children when they are little, at first we needed to be almost forced to use our free will in a certain way.  As children grow they can make more and more decisions on their own, and realize the consequences of their actions.  The same it is with us as a nation. Today Hashem wants our free will to be as free as possible, and as a nation we should have matured to the point where we are ready for this.   If Hashem suddenly appeared in front of us in a physical form, we would have no choice but to believe in him.  So Hashem still will communicate with us, by giving us solutions like coming to Memphis to live, but we have to use our free will to believe in him.  When we use our free will we truly are human beings, created in Hashem’s image, and not robots.

This Shabbos we had some discussions about what the Torah means to us in general. Norm brought up the point that it is about responsibility, especially in the first few chapters.  Yaki brought up the point that the Torah is also a guideline, and that not everything is included.  David brought up the point that it is important to study Torah, in order to meet our needs such as actualization, represented at the top of Meow’s pyramid of needs.  We discussed as a society, how our economy can meet our physical needs at the bottom of the pyramid, but we need to be concerned with our needs at the top of Meow’s pyramid as well.  We discussed the opinion that people should work or join the army in Israel in addition to just Torah study, and be part of meeting the needs through-out Meow’s pyramid.   We learned that on Shabbos we should engage in Torah study, one-half of the time that we are not sleeping, which works out to approximately 9 hours, however we had a discussion on how we can combine physical pleasures as well as Torah study on Shabbos.

We discussed this Shabbos how we have both good inside of us, and also an “evil inclination”. It is the role of Judaism to bring out the good. Some-times we need help having the “evil inclination” beaten out of us. Brett from the “all Torah team” came up with the example of a Get. Sometimes the person needs to have the evil “beaten out of him” - in order to strip away the evil and get to the good inside him and get him to issue the get.

Norm brought up how Judaism would be an easy religion if we had no “evil inclination” at all, and everyone would be converting to become Jews.  Norm brought up how the king would put an attractive, promiscuous woman in the presence of his son in order to test him.  Hashem created our world in a way that we are constantly tested.  If we were never tested we would not have an opportunity to follow the Torah, to strengthen and to grow.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 27 Av, 5774, Parsha Re'eh

This Shabbos we discussed parsha Re’eh. David Schlesinger led discussion. In the parsha Moshe tells the people that they can be either blessed or cursed depending on their choices and actions. Yaki commented that consequences are not necessarily punishments or blessings. Yaki mentioned as an example, running out in the street without looking and getting hit by a car. It is not necessarily a punishment for running out in the street, but simply what happens.

David commented that the rewards for doing mitzvahs may be internal as well as external. We discussed the differences between these types of rewards, and that the connection between our actions and our blessings may not be immediately apparent. External rewards include money and favors people may give to us in return for our service. Internal rewards include feeling good about doing mitzvah, and spiritual growth that we may receive.  We discussed that communities and nations can also receive rewards and blessings collectively.

We discussed how during our life it is our purpose to grow spiritually, in order to get ready for the world to come. David talked about how our religion places a very large value on life, not because life is necessarily better than the world to come, but because life helps us get ready for the world to come. We discussed how it is said that one minute in the next world is better than an hour in this world. But it is also said that one minute of Torah study, is better than an hour in the next world. We say the later, because Torah study is how we prepare for the next world, when we will receive our Torah study directly from Hashem.

David commented how his father would make an analogy between getting ready for an opera, and the world to come. We all will get to go to the opera, but those who are ready for it are going to enjoy and get a lot more out of it. Unlike the philosophy of other religions, in our religion we should spend as much time as possible getting ready for “the opera” and not be in a hurry to go.

We discussed how in this section of the Torah, there is a transition from a repetition of our history over to a reminder of what are our most important mitzvahs. Dave W commented that there is a lot of repetition in these parshas. We had a discussion of the different types of mitzvahs that we do. There are mitzvahs that we do individually, mitzvahs we do as a community, and mitzvahs that we do as a nation. As a nation, we have a mitzvah to settle and defend the land of Israel. As a community, we have mitzvahs to do such things as build schools and synagogues. And as an individual we have mitzvahs to do such as study Torah, and follow commandments to keep Kosher.

In this week’s parsha, there is a section about being the children of Hashem and not making marks on our body. There is also a reiteration of the commandments to keep Kosher. Brett asked what all this had to do with “tea in China”, saying that these commandments do not seem to be related. We discussed how being a child of Hashem, means that our bodies do not necessarily belong to us, and are on loan.  We have a responsibility to use our bodies for spiritual purposes, rather than physical purposes such as having tattoos and markings.

We discussed the Kosher laws, specifically the prohibition against mixing milk and meat. We discussed how the prohibition against seething a calf in its mother’s milk is repeated 3 times. The first time is simply to command us not to mix milk and meat. The second time is to command us not to consume milk mixed with meat. And the third time is to remind us to not benefit from mixing milk and meat. We discussed how the Torah commandment does not include fowl such as chicken and turkey, but that the rabbis added the additional laws to include fowl, so that there would be no confusion.

Finally, Yaki as part of his dvar Torah talked about how we each have different personalities and talents, because we each have a unique mission to perform here in this world, and that we have unique ways to grow spiritually. We have some unique ways that we grow spiritually and get ready for the world to come, additional to the ways that we have in common such as keeping kosher and studying the Torah.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.

Recap for 20 Av 5774 (Parsha Eikev)

This Shabbos we held a siyum to celebrate the completion of tractate Megillah. David Schlesinger led discussion. We began by studying the last part of the tractate. We learned that on Yom Kippur we should be in a hurry to get to shul, and to not be in a hurry to leave. We learned that the most important aliya on Shabbos, is that of wrapping up the Torah. We learned that we do not want to add words during the Torah reading, as it may be mistaken as coming from the Torah. However, we do have the exception for the blessing, which should be obvious as not coming from the Torah. 

We had a discussion about our historical contact with Hashem. We began our history having direct contact with Hashem through our prophets. As we have gone through history, our contact has become more and more indirect, as Hashem has become more hidden. But even today, Hashem continues to communicate with us.  An example of this we discussed is when we are given a solution to a problem we have been experiencing.

David brought up how his father would say if we are immersed in a problem it is helpful to get away from it for a while and it may seem as if the mind will actually keep working on it. When we come back to the problem, we are able to see a clear solution. Norm brought up an interesting story about the inventor of the sewing machine. He had a dream in which he came up with the solution of how to design this machine.  The solution would be to have the hole in the needle on the other side of the needle.  

This Shabbos we continued our study of Rav Yeager's commentaries.  We discussed that there are 6 constant mitzvahs, with one of them being to love Hashem.  We discussed how it could be that we could be commanded to love Hashem.   We may be familiar with loving a human being, but how do we love Hashem and how can this be a commandment?

First we have to figure out what is the essence of Hashem, given that Hashem can not be sensed physically as can be a human being. We continued our discussion from last week concerning how it is that we can grasp this spiritual essence of Hashem. We discussed how this would be similar to someone who is blind perceiving the differences between colors.

We discussed how one of the things that we can do is study Hashem’s creations. We can study such subjects as science and biology. David brought up how his father would present the complexity, yet harmony of science and nature, as evidence of a creator. This evidence would include all the physical laws, and things like the behavior of molecules in a cell, being exactly what would be needed in order to support life, such as human-beings, that can think, and imagine, and be conscious of such things as a creator of everything.

One of the other things we can do is study the Torah. By studying the Torah we may be able to get a feel for Hashem. We discussed how there really is not a separation between science and Torah.  We also discussed how the desire and willingness to study science and Torah are not just a means towards an ends, they are the ends themselves. The desire and willingness to study Hashem’s creations, be it science, or Torah, or biology, or anything else, is love for Hashem, or as a friend of mine would say "this IS the program".

Finally, we continued our discussion of exactly what “sparks of kidusha” means. It means that it is our mission to bring spirituality to the physical world, and that everything that is physical can be used in order to achieve this. There can be a bit of spirituality in everything. An example could be a table. When that table is used for a Shabbos meal, we are bringing spirituality to the physical table. Another example would be food and drink. We elevate the “sparks of kidusha” by saying the blessings, and benching after our meal.

This is a summary of what we discussed.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.