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Achim Newsletter
Shlach
Mazel Tov! - Mazel Tov!
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Greetings!
I hope this newsletter finds you well.
Mazel Tov! engagement
Mazel Tov to Miriam Devor and Ilya Yablonsky on their engagement!
Roman and Svetlana invite the community to join in celebrating this great moment.
Date: Monday evening, June 7
Time: 6:00 - 9:00
Location: 12 Jones Valley Circle 21209
Please park on lots marked as Guests or on Rockland Hills
Drive.
Mazel Tov! birth
This week every synagogue around the world will announce the
upcoming birth of the new moon which will usher in the coming month of Tamuz. The
birth will take place next Shabbos at one second after 5:23 in morning Jerusalem time. The New
Month will be celebrated next Shabbos and the following day, Sunday.
Although Tamuz brings with it the sadness of the following
month of Av, we must recognize that the sadness of Av carries in it the seeds
of redemption as we correct the failure of the spies.
Candle
lighting time for Baltimore
between 6:57 - 8:11 pm
Shabbos concludes
9:20 pm
Vsego khoroshego,
Paysach Diskind
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to print this as a web page click here
In G.D we trust
If experience is the best teacher then failed endeavors
become great teachers, and woe to the student that fails to learn the lesson
that is being taught for he will have to review that lesson once more.
This week's Parsha, Shlach, tells of the fateful failed
spying mission that the Jewish people embarked upon just prior to their entry
to Land of Israel. We suffered much from this
mistake which leads me to believe that there is much to be learnt from it. Let
us review the story and hopefully we will find the lesson that it teaches.
We had already been in the desert over a year. We already
received the Torah at Mount Sinai, we
committed the sin of the Golden Calf and repented to HaShem for doing it,
HaShem had forgiven us and gave us the mitzvah of building for Him the Mishkon
(temple). Finally, we were ready for the final leg of our travels; the entry
into Israel.
Just before embarking on this final journey, we asked Moshe to allow us to send
in spies to the Land
of Israel just as any
invading army would send spies before attacking the neighboring land. With
permission from HaShem, Moshe sent 12 spies, one spy from each tribe. Before
the Torah introduces the names of the spies it prefaces it by telling us that
all of the mentioned people were men of great spiritual stature. As Rashi, the
greatest commentator of the Torah, says "at this time (before they failed) they
were all trustworthy people.
Their tour of the Land took 40 days after which they
returned to the desert to give their report. Instead of reporting about the
greatness of the Land which they saw they twisted their report as follows. "We
arrived at the Land to which you sent us and indeed it flows with milk and
honey, and this is its fruit. But the people who dwell in the Land are
powerful, the cities are fortified and very great .... We cannot ascend to that
people for they are too strong for us... all the people that we saw in it were
huge!... we were like grasshoppers in our eyes and so we were in their eyes!"
Upon hearing this dire report the Jewish people lost hope in their ability to
conquer the Land. "If only we died in Egypt or if only we died in this
desert! Why is HaShem bringing us to die by the sword?!" The people lost all
trust in HaShem's ability to carry out His promise of bringing them into the
Land. This fateful day was the ninth day in the month of Av. Hence, tisha b'Av
(the 9th of Av) became a day of mourning for the Jewish people until
the end of this current exile.
Upon hearing the reaction of the people to the twisted
report of the spies, HaShem decreed that this generation could not enter the
Land, they would die in the desert just as they requested. Their children would
be the ones to enter the Land. The journey was therefore extended another 38
years. Not until that entire generation died out did the children enter the
Land. Our Sages teach us that the consequence of the people's lack of trust in
HaShem's ability to bring them into the Land was that there would be future
exiles that would be punctuated from time to time with horrific disasters. The
unfortunate reality is that in fact this decree continues to be carried out.
(It is interesting to note that many disasters that befell the Jewish people
find their starting date on tisha b'Av, the ninth day of Av which was the
anniversary of the Jewish people's loss of trust. Two famous examples are the
start date of the Spanish inquisition which started in 1492 was tisha b'Av, as
well as the beginning of the First World War which opened up the European
continent for the Third Reich's takeover.)
What a tragedy! What a mistake! If only we could cull the
lesson to be learnt from this gross error perhaps we could come that much
closer to seeing the end of our ongoing exile.
The key question is; what happened to the spies? Every one
of the spies was hand-picked by Moshe and the Torah testifies about them as
being worthy people. Where did they go wrong? Had they not seen the incredible
miracles HaShem performed in Egypt
and at the Red Sea? Did they forget their
experience at Mount Sinai when they recognized
that HaShem is the source of all energy? How could they entertain the notion
that HaShem is incapable of bringing them into the Land of Israel?
The answer is that their mistake was not in the ability of
HaShem - they knew good well that there was nothing that stood in the way of
HaShem.
They understood that HaShem was going to grant them His Land
of Israel because they achieved a great level of closeness to Him and in that
merit they would be allowed to live in HaShem's Land. Using that line of
reasoning it follows that they will only merit conquest if they deserve it.
When they spied the Land and discovered how strong the inhabitants were and
what remarkable miracles were needed to overpower those people they realized
that to merit such miracles much greater merits would be required. Considering
that the spies were honest upstanding righteous Jews, they assessed themselves
and saw that they came up short - with not enough merits. They therefore
reported back to their people that we will not be able overpower the indigenous
population. Naturally, the people trusted the spies and the entire nation (only
the men, the women remained trusting in HaShem. They did not die in the
desert.) lost trust.
If we can glean from this experience one lesson, I believe
it is the lesson of trusting in HaShem. It is a lesson whose practical
application applies to every day of our life. It is a lesson that grants us
courage to do what needs to be done without the fear of the unknown.
I believe the lesson is as follows.
In the next Book of the Five Books, the Book of Devarim,
Moshe tells his people "Do not say in your heart when HaShem pushes them (the
indigenous nations of the Land) away from before you, saying 'it is because of
my righteousness that HaShem brings me to posses this Land...' It is not because
of your righteousness and the uprightness of your heart, but because of the wickedness of these nations ...and in order
to maintain His promise to your forefathers..." Behold! Moshe recognizes that the
people understood that they can only take possession of the land if they earn
it and are deserving of it. This is where the spies went wrong.
The spies did not realize that HaShem provides for His
people with their daily bread and all that they need whether or not they are
deserving of it. The only thing we need to do to deserve our daily needs is
trust that HaShem will provide it. (Of course we must work and do our part of
the equation.)
We need only to look at all the blessings HaShem grants us
and ask ourselves 'do I really deserve all this blessing?' When the answer
comes back "No, I do not deserve this blessing, why does HaShem grant it to
me?" then we can begin to recognize that HaShem only expects trust and
recognition that He is trustworthy even when we are undeserving.
At this point it is important to underscore the role that
prayer plays. Once you recognize that HaShem provides even when we do not
deserve; all that he requires is that we trust in Him, then prayer becomes the
demonstration of our recognition that it is HaShem who provides. Just as one
would do with any benefactor who is offering to pay your expenses, you must put
in the request for the needs before he will provide for you. However, if you
never express your need to him he will definitely not pay your expenses.
Very often the challenge in this lesson is that we so often
attribute our success to our genius, creativity and hard work. When that
happens we take HaShem out of the equation and we lose our trust in HaShem. And
then we fail.
May we all be fortunate to find great success in all of our
endeavors without losing focus on the source of success which will allow the
success to continue uninhibited.
Have a wonderful Shabbos.
Paysach Diskind
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Tuesday Evening Learning Program
Featuring
1. Dr. Keidar's Parsha Class given in Russian.
2. Paysach Diskind in depth study of the 613 mitzvos
3. Learn one-on-one with a study partner on the
matter of your choice.
4. Read, understand and speak Hebrew with Yakov Krug esq.
If you wish to have a chavrusah (study
partner) please contact me at 443.286.9338 or paysach@achim.org.
If you wish to the Hebew class contact Yakov Krug.
I encourage you to join us. Whether you
would like to learn or like to teach we need you.
The details are as follows:
Date:Every Tuesday evening
Time: 8:00 - 10:00 pm
Location:
Rabbi Berger's Shul (3209 Fallstaff Road, 21215) map
What: an
evening of Torah study -
your choice, your level
We are very grateful to Frank and Danielle Storch for providing their property for this program.
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NEW
Hebrew Reading Class
by Yakov Krug
 Yakov Krug has begun a new Hebrew reading class. The goal of this class to give the student a comfort level in reading and speaking classic Hebrew as well as common conversational Hebrew.
His curriculum is a 10 week course and will be using Ha-Yesod as his foundation.
This Hebrew class will take place as part of our Tuesday Evening Learning Program.
If you are interested in learning more information contact Yakov at yakovkrug@yahoo.com or 410-274-5446.
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The Mitzvah Class
Join me weekly at the Tuesday evening of learning in developing an appreciation for mitzvos of the Torah.
The class deals with practical applications as well as philosophical insights.
Please visit our Blog for a taste of the class.
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Mom's Workshop
Delegating jobs with authority
Our next session will be this Monday June 14.
The current issue; How to get the children to listen without a fight
Date: Monday evening, June 14
Time: 8:45 - 9:45 (real
time not Jewish or Russian time)
Location: the home of Leah Mikeladze (6807 Park Heights Ave.
The Canterbury House, Apt.
3-I, 21215) To reach
Leah call 410-358-1450.
Moderator: Mrs. Brocha Skulnik
Parking
instructions; there is much parking behind
the building. However, only park around the perimeter not
underneath the
building itself. Those spots are reserved for the tenants only.)
If you have any questions call me at 443.286.9338 or
paysach@achim.org.
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Mesilas Yeshorim / Path of the Just
This
class meets Wednesday's twice a month. 
We are currently up to page 19.
Our next session:
Date:Wednesday
evening, June 9.
Time: 8:00 - 9:00
Location:
Home of Alla and Joseph Kovalerchik (101 Clarendon Road 21208)
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Хасидская притча
Моя бабушка всегда молилась, чтобы ее потомки были нищими,- рассказывал раби
Ехиэль-Михл из Злочова,
- не знаю как вы,а я не встречал другой такой
странной бабушки. Впрочем, когда я вырос, я понял ее молитву: богатому так
трудно не растерять совесть и веру!
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Gemara Class
Weekly class in Russian language
The Talmud is the exposition and clarification of the Oral Torah. Talmud and Gemara are interchangeable terms for this work. So much of classic Jewish literature is built on the teachings of the Talmud. Children 13 years old as well 80-year rabbis study this ancient text. It engages the mind and activates the thinking process in a very deep way.
Monday evenings from 8:00 - 9:00 Dr. Michael Keidar gives a class on Gemara (Talmud) in Russian. This class is designed to accommodate people with limited background in Torah study.
Dr. Keidar gives the class at the Baltimore Community Kollel (3800 Labyrinth Road 21215)
If you are interested in participating or have questions contact Dr. Keidar at keidar@gwu.edu. | |
Parsha Class
Weekly Class in Russian Language
The Torah carries within it many messages. Every Shabbos is assigned its own special portion that is read in the synagogue. This weekly portion is called the Parsha. The lessons and insights that are packed with the Parsha are timeless as they are profound.
Tuesday evenings 8:00 - 9:00 Dr. Michael Keidar presents insights on the weekly Parsha in the Russian language. Participation does not require any background in Jewish education.
Dr. Keidar gives the class Kehilas Achim's Tuesday evening of Learning.
If you are interested in participating or have questions contact Dr. Keidar at keidar@gwu.edu. |
Employment Opportunities?
Do you know of any opportunities that perhaps someone in our group might benefit? Or perhaps you are looking for an opportunity and you wish to include other people in your search. Please contact me at paysach@achim.org.
We will be posting such opportunities on our website at Employment Opportunities
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Sunday morning @ Milbrook
Shachris service
Every Sunday morning we have a morning prayer service followed by tasty donuts with coffee and lively discussions with insights on the weekly Parsha dealing with relevant applications.
People who need to recite kaddish but are embarrassed to do so will feel comfortable at our service. We provide help and support in reciting kaddish in a friendly atmosphere.
Sunday morning schedule
Service 8:00 - 9:00
For kaddish be there no later than 8:45
Donuts, coffee and discussion 9:00 - 9:45
Everyone is welcome
Special prayers are recited by the minyan for sick members of the community. If you have someone you wish to be mentioned contact me at paysach@achim.org .
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Weekly Women's Class
Continuing professional education
The Jewish woman has many responsibilities, each of which is critical to their family and to their people as whole. We can define the position of Jewish womanhood as requiring a degree in culinary arts, psychology, clinical social work, business management, human resources and education. In addition to this list, a comprehensive background in Jewish law comes in handy.
As with every profession, Jewish womanhood requires Continuing Professional Education. Achim is very fortunate to have Mrs. Tamar Englander who is an outstanding member of this elite class of Jewish Women. Tamar conducts a weekly class that provides motivational and educational approaches to practical Jewish womanhood. A sampling of the areas that are covered in her classes include perspectives on Shabbat, dealing with the challenges of stress that find themselves in life, cooking with a touch of spirituality, child rearing, marital relationships and many more.
Every Wednesday evening from 8:30 - 9:30 Tamar conducts this class at her home, 6307 Wirt Avenue 21215. All women are invited to participate in this group.
Please contact paysach@achim.org if you wish to join. |
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