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Rabbi Yehuda Lave

Sending you Triple Wishes

Sending wishes to you all for a

Hanukkah Sameach!

a wonderful and peace-filled Shabbat

Shabbat Shalom!

and ...

A beautiful, bright new month

filled with renewed hope and inspiration!
Chodesh Tov
Tevet!

Just Do It

There are many things that we should do, but we procrastinate. We delay taking action. Doing nothing is often much easier then taking action. What can you say to get yourself moving? You can say, "Just do it."

Sometimes we really have a good reason or reasons for hesitating. Deep down we may feel that it's better for us not to take the action we're postponing. But we aren't yet clear about the entire matter. If you have an intuitive feeling that it might be unwise to take action, then wait. Think it over some more. Consult others.

But when you know that you or others will benefit if you take action and you don't have a valid reason for procrastinating, tell yourself, "Just do it."

Love Yehuda Lave

Jaffa Road in Downtown Jerusalem

https://youtu.be/MpS_gYORmDw

We take a walking tour with Eitan Morell and the OU down Jaffa Road

Born in 1933, Francine Christophe was deported with her mother at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in 1944. Released the following year, she continues to share her experience and memories, particularly with the younger generations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXGfngjmwLA&feature=youtu.be

People believe whatever marketing campaign you tell them (Penn and Teller skit)

http://hotcopper.com.au/threads/how-market.2644220/#.VmfKUjJrXAt

incitement doll

he Palestinian leadership stops at nothing when it comes to inciting against Israel and Israelis, utilizing even child's play.

The Palestinian leadership has been engaged in all means of incitement against Israelis, including through children's TV shows and sports events, and Israeli customs officers have learned of yet a new way.

Customs officers working at the port of Haifa on Tuesday discovered thousands of children's dolls which were intended to be used as a means to incite children to hate Israelis and use violence.

Some 4,000 stuff masked figures of a Palestinian rioter holding stuffed rocks were caught en route from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to the Palestinian Authority (PA), apparently for distribution among the young and easily impressionable Palestinian children.

The dolls have a Palestinian flag affixed to them. Some have "Jerusalem is ours," while other have "Jerusalem, here we come" written on the scarves.

The officers also found other undeclared goods, including soles for military boots. The shipment containers holding the dolls were listed as containing clothing, rugs and plastic products.

Israeli customs impounded the illicit children's toys.

A customs official vowed to carry on with the war against smugglings into Israel, and especially against harmful materials and weapons, "and especially during these days."

Israel has been suffering from a three-month long wave of Palestinian terror attacks, and Israel's says that the Palestinian leadership's dissemination of lies, incitement and libels against Israel has been the driving force behind the attacks, which has claimed the lives of 21 victims.

By: Max Gelber, United with Israel

incitement doll

What lobsters can teach us all. Lobsters and stress. .who knew?

https://www.facebook.com/cheskib/videos/10153715018255449/

"Number one: Get a gun. Buy one legally. Learn how to shoot. And be primed to use it." Last night on "Justice," Judge Jeanine Pirro shared her plan for "surviving" in the wake of the ‪#‎SanBernardino‬ terror attack. http://bit.ly/1SGTOGO

https://www.facebook.com/FoxNews/videos/10153887625176336/

Kabbalistic Numerology and the Miracle of Chanukah

Kabbalistic Numerology and the Miracle of Chanukah	Kislev 28, 5776 December 10, 2015
By Karen Wolfers-Rapaport

Illustration by Sefira Ross.

There's a natural order to our beautiful world.

Day follows night. Sunset follows sunrise. In the autumn, the leaves turn to rust. In the spring, we witness revival. Nature flows in a rhythmic cadence. Time presses on.

This is the physical world. And it is represented by the number seven.

Where do we see the number seven? Think about it. There are seven colors in the rainbow. There are seven days of the week. There are seven directions, including the center. There are seven basic music notes.

Seven symbolizes that which has reached completion within the framework of natural law.

When do we feel it?

Whenever we have harnessed the necessary strength and energy to complete and master something, we have achieved a seven.

Where do we see the number seven?

A runner may feel like a seven when he crosses the finish line. A retiree may feel like a seven upon entering his twilight years. A seven may be the sigh of relief as a medical student finishes final exams. Seven is how I feel after a productive day. Seven represents the earthly masterpieces of our lives.

Then there is eight.

The number eight represents the metaphysical world—the world beyond our primary senses. The world we can't smell or touch. Eight is one step above the natural order. Our sixth sense, if you will. Our connectivity. Our spirit. Eight is the infinite power of love to overcome what seems impossible. Eight is the experience of transcending an unimaginable feat. Eight is the slice of eternity under the wedding canopy. Interestingly, even the mathematical symbol for infinity looks like the number eight lying on its side. Eight fills our lives with heavenly depth and meaning.

Chanukah lasts eight days. Chanukah commemorates a miracle. Miracles fall under the number eight. They are not natural. They are supernatural.

During the days of old, when Jews suffered under the yoke of the Greek empire, Jews were forbidden to practice their religion openly. With a small band of believers, Judah HaMaccabee led a revolt, taking back his city and freeing his people. In victory, the Maccabees entered the Holy Temple and found a vial of pure olive oil. The oil was used to light the seven-branched menorah, an important part of the Holy Temple rituals. Although there was only enough oil to burn for one day, the oil continued to burn for eight.

The Greeks were an advanced, educated civilization, but one firmly rooted in the world of seven. To them, the world of transcendence was an abomination. Their ultimate goal was to extinguish spirituality. Yet the offspring of Abraham had been selected to take G‑d's creation and elevate it to a higher level. To connect the world of seven to the world of eight.

The Greeks could only subtract eight from seven; they couldn't add it. But we are here and they are not.

Their goal was to extinguish spirituality

Chanukah we celebrate the merging of seven and eight, the melding of worldly oil with otherworldly luminance. We affirm our survival as a nation, proclaiming that a culture that thrives only in the world of seven, that severs itself from the divine, is no longer consequential.

"Zot Chanukah," the eighth and final day of this festival, means "this is Chanukah." On this day, the integration of seven and eight reaches its peak. It is the ultimate opportunity to join the profound with the everyday. To rejoice in the art of living within the laws of nature while being sustained by the One above.

Chanukah is a time to reflect on how we can best synthesize seven and eight in our own lives. How do we combine determination with faith? How do we mesh ambition with vision? How do we focus on the here and now while yearning for eternity? The fusion of these two numbers can create powerful moments and miracles in our own life stories.

Wishing you a Happy Chanukah filled with peace, light and blessings!

By Karen Wolfers-Rapaport More articles... |

Karen Wolfers-Rapaport is a psychotherapist specializing in Narrative Therapy. She holds a BA from UCLA, and an MA in Counseling Psychology from Boston College. She received her training from Tufts University. In addition to her therapeutic work and freelance writing, Karen works with families from Israel's Prime Minister's office and Ministry of Defense, teaching them English in preparation for their diplomatic posts abroad. A proud mother, she is blessed to live in Israel.