Achim Newsletter
Succos
Tuesday September 21, 2010
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Greetings!
I want to thank all those who made our Yom Kippur service so inspirational. I also wish to express much thanks to Frank and Danielle Storch for opening their home to us.
Succos begins Wednesday evening and continues through Saturday evening.
Candle
lighting times time for Baltimore
Wednesday 6:46 pm
Thursday not before 7:52 pm
Friday between 5:45 - 6:42 pm
Shabbos concludes 7:50 pm
Being
that this year the holiday of Succos occurs on Thursday and
Friday one is required to make an Eruv Tavshilin on Wednesday to allow
preparations to made on Friday for Shabbos.
Details how to make an Eruv Tavshilin in English / in Russian
Vsego khoroshego,
Paysach Diskind
p.s. Are you joining us for the Simchas Torah Bash?
Please RSVP
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Succos and Simchas Torah
Did you hear about the Succos Party and the Big Simchas Torah Bash? Check it out here.
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to print this as a web page click here
The Anatomy of a Relationship
With Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur behind us we now have
Succos and Simchas Torah quickly approaching. What is it about this season of
the year that we celebrate so many holidays? What is it that ties these
holidays together? What is the flow from one to the other? Why in this season?
To gain the necessary understanding of the nature of these
holidays let us highlight the historic significance of this month in the
context of the development of the Jewish people.
Before we begin must identify the bedrock of the Jewish
people, what is our motherland? In other words, what is the base upon which the
existence of the Jewish people rests? While every other nation's bedrock is
their motherland this is not the case with the Jewish people. We are able to
exist with no land at all. We are able to exist as single people spread out over
five continents with little to no communication between each group (we were in
exile for 1,500 years before the printing press was invented).
The bedrock of Jewish existence is their relationship with
HaShem. Therefore, wherever we find ourselves and whenever we find ourselves so
long as we carry HaShem's Torah with us, we have HaShem with us and are
attached to our motherland; we will continue to exist and to thrive.
Through the following timeline we will discover that this
relationship was hardened and sealed in the month of Tishrei.
We left Egypt
with tremendous miracles, the likes of which are hard to even imagine. After
traveling six days even greater miracles occurred at the Red Sea and the entire
military machine of Egypt
was decimated. By the end of 50 days from our exodus HaShem revealed Himself to
every individual Jew as they stood at the foot of Mount
Sinai.
Only 40 days following that revelation, the 17th
day of Tamuz, the Jewish people as a nation transgressed their most grievous
sin - the Golden Calf. Thousands of Jews actually worshiped the calf as a
deity! When Moshe discovered this sin, he took the Two Tablets upon which was
written the entirety of Torah and broke them in front of the people. He
demonstrated in a most profound manner that their relationship with HaShem
cannot exist in this environment. HaShem informed Moshe that He was going to
destroy this people and start all over again with Moshe's own family. Moshe,
may his name be a blessing to us, actually argued with HaShem and did not allow
HaShem to carry out His plan. (A matter worthy of much discussion.)
For another 40 days Moshe stood on the mountain and begged
that HaShem forgive His people. HaShem acquiesced. HaShem then went one step
further. He granted Moshe that not only will the people be granted forgiveness;
they will also regain their status of being HaShem's beloved people just as
they had been prior to the sin! This set of 40 days ended on the first day of
Elul.
For the following 40 days HaShem prepared a second set of
Tablets to which He was going to grant His people once again. And so for the
duration of the month of Elul and the subsequent 10 days into Tishrei HaShem
was preparing His greatest gift to His beloved people. It was the gift of
unconditional love. No matter how grievous a sin they might commit, no matter
what the consequences they might have to suffer as a result of those sins, He
will always keep them as His own and never ever allow them to be decimated. (It
is interesting to note that Elul's astrological sign is Virgo, implying purity).
This last set of 40 days occurred on Yom Kippur, the day on
which HaShem grants purity to His people on annual basis to those who wish to purify
themselves.
Before getting back to our original question it is important
we articulate the following principle in relationships. This principle applies
to all mutual relationships, whether they be husband/wife, parent/child,
friend/friend, etc.
A relationship only becomes solidified and hardened only
after it confronts a challenge that threatens to destroy it. This is found in
the natural world as well; the way to create hardened steel is to first soften
it in fire and then immediately immerse it in cold water. The very challenge
which threatens and weakens the relationship is the very catalyst of
galvanizing it to become unbreakable.
When both parties are willing to overcome the challenge,
although the work is hard their relationship will come out ever so stronger.
Let us return to HaShem and His people. The exodus of Egypt was the beginning
of a mutual relationship. It rose to it apex at the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Only 40 days later came the greatest challenge
to this relationship; the challenge that threatened to destroy it forever.
After much hard work on our part in doing teshuva and on Moshe's part in
praying to HaShem and on HaShem's part on forgiving and pardoning us, we forged
the eternal relationship upon which the world stands.
Hence, as we leave Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur behind us we
approach Succos and Simchas Torah with the joy of having achieved an eternal
relationship with the Eternal Being Itself.
No wonder Succos is referred to as "The Time our Rejoicing".
Enjoy your Succos and have a wonderful Shabbos.
Paysach Diskind
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Noteworthy links
Parsha Summary and other delights by Rabbi Osher Baddiel in English and Russian
Penetrating Russian insight to the Parsha by Shvut Ami
Programs from which you and others can learn and grow
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Хасидская притча
Говорил раби Зуся из Аниполя: -Скажешь: У Зуси нет денег,- правда
твоя.
Скажешь: Зусе не хватает денег,- ложь.
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