Friday, January 20, 2017

Realty Check--Can Israel be Jewish and Democratic? and watch Trump be inaugurated today on computer

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Rabbi Yehuda Lave

Feeling Follows Action

Those who have internalized a "kindness consciousness" are fortunate. They act and feel in ways that enhance their life and the lives of others.

But what about those who don't yet feel "kind?" They should repeatedly do kind acts. Every kind act strengthens one's sense of being a kind person.

I do my best to follow this philosphy

Love Yehuda Lave

 

Reality Check!!! Israel can be both Jewish & Democratic regardless of What Kerry says

if Noah had to build his ark today


In the year 2017, the Lord came unto Noah,
who was now living in America and said:
"Once again, the earth has become wicked and over-populated,and I see the end of all flesh before me."
"Build another ark and save 2 of every living thing
along with a few good humans."
He gave Noah the blueprints, saying:
"You have 6 months to build the ark before I will
start the unending rain for 40 days and 40 nights."


Six months later, the Lord looked down

and saw Noah weeping in his yard - but no ark.
"Noah!," He roared, "I'm about to start the rain!
Where is the ark?"
"Forgive me, Lord," begged Noah,

"but things have changed."

 


"I needed a building permit."

 


"I've been arguing with the boat inspector
about the need for a sprinkler system."

 



"My neighbors claim that I've violated the
neighborhood by-laws by building the ark in my
backyard and exceeding the height limitations. We had to
go to the local Planning Committee for a decision."

 

 


"Then the local Council and the electric company demanded

a shed load of money for the future costs of moving power
lines and other overhead obstructions, to clear the
passage for the ark's move to the sea. I told them
that the sea would be coming to us, but they would
hear none of it."

 

 


"Getting the wood was another problem. There's a ban
on cutting local trees in order to save the Greater Spotted Barn Owl."
"I tried to convince the environmentalists that I
needed the wood to save the owls - but no go!"

 

 


"When I started gathering the animals the ASPCA took me to court.

They insisted that I was confining wild animals against their will.

They argued the accommodations were too restrictive and
it was cruel and inhumane to put so many animals in
such a confined space."

 

 


"Then the Environmental Protection Agency

ruled that I couldn't build the ark until they'd conducted

an environmental impact study on your proposed flood."

 

 


"I'm still trying to resolve a complaint with the Human

Rights Commission on how many minorities I'm
supposed to hire for my building crew."

 

 


"The Immigration Department is checking the
Visa status of most of the people who want to work."

 

"The trade unions say I can't use my sons.

They insist I have to hire only Union Workers with
Ark-Building experience."

 

 

"To make matters worse, the IRS seized all my assets,

claiming I'm trying to leave the country illegally

with endangered species."

 



"So, forgive me, Lord, but it would take at least

10 years for me to finish this ark."

 

 

 

"Suddenly the skies cleared, the sun began to shine,
and a rainbow stretched across the sky."

 

 

 

Noah looked up in wonder and asked,
"You mean you're not going to destroy the world?"

 


"No," said the Lord.
"The Government beat me to it."

An unplanned trip to an antique store catapults Israeli singing sensation Gad Elbaz back through the generations to a 19th century Ukrainian shtetl, a simpler time and place where, despite the lack of modern conveniences, happiness was all around for the taking.

Hebrew connections in the Parsha of last week

And Joseph rushed because his compassion for his brother had been stirred and he wanted (לִבְכּוֹת) to weep; so he went into the room and wept (וַיֵּבְךְּ) there (Gen. 43: 30).

 

The root 'בכה' (wept) appears seven times in the weekly Torah reading of Vayigash — more than in any other weekly Torah reading.

 

In his Machberet (under the two-letter root 'בך'), Menachem ben Saruk assigns all the Scriptural occurrences of 'בכיה' to one of two subsections:

1)      verses in which the term means a מְבוּכָּה (quandary/bewilderment/entrapment).

a)    Job 28:11 — מִבְּכִי נְהָרוֹת חִבֵּשׁ[1] — From the weeping, He fashioned rivers.

b)    Job 38:16 — הֲבָאתָ עַד נִבְכֵי יָם[2] — "Have you entered the entrapped areas of the sea?"

c)    Psalms 84:7 — עֹבְרֵי בְּעֵמֶק הַבָּכָא[3] — Those who transgress, are in deep weeping.

d)    Joel  1:18 — נָבֹכוּ[4] עֶדְרֵי בָקָר — herds of cattle are bewildered.

e)    Esther  3:15 — וְהָעִיר שׁוּשָׁן נָבוֹכָה[5] — and the city of Shushan was bewildered.

f)     Micah 7:4 — עַתָּה תִהְיֶה מְבוּכָתָם[6] —now you will become perplexed.

g)    Isaiah  9:17 — וַיִּתְאַבְּכוּ[7] גֵּאוּת עָשָׁן — they will become bewildered by the intensity of the smoke.

 

2)      verses that denote weeping/wailing

a)    Jer. 31:14 — נְהִי בְּכִי תַמְרוּרִים[8] — wailing, bitter wailing.

b)    I Sam. 1:10 —  וַתִּתְפַּלֵּל עַל ה' וּבָכֹה תִבְכֶּה — She prayed to G-d, weeping continuously.

c)    Gen. 37:35 — וַיֵּבְךְּ אֹתוֹ אָבִיו[9] — And his father bewailed him.

Golda Meir discusses the Palestinian identity

Mama Rachel

Rachel is referred to as "Mama Rachel", Children of Israel would cry out to their mother on their way to exile. Rachel would in turn cry out to the Almighty, who would hear her cries and promise her that her children will ultimately return from their exile. [So it is happening these days]

Rabbi Frand related, that in the autobiography of Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau, former Chief Rabbi of Israel, he tells the following interesting and intriguing story. Rabbi Lau writes that he had a relationship with Yitzchak Rabin, the former Prime Minister of the State of Israel. He also writes that he once travelled to Cuba and met with the President of Cuba for three hours [between 2:00 am and 5:00 am, which was Castro's custom of meeting dignitaries]. At the end of the meeting, Castro gave Rabbi Lau a box of Cuban cigars that he asked him to deliver personally to Yitzchak Rabin. Rabbi Lau returned to Israel, called upon Rabin and told him he had a box of cigars from Fidel Castro for him. Rabin told him he did not smoke cigars, only cigarettes, but at least it was an interesting story.

At any rate, Rabbi Lau writes that he was able, at least to a certain extent, to have an influence on Yitzchak Rabin on a crucial matter. When the State of Israel was negotiating one of their agreements with the Palestinians following the "Oslo Accord", the question of what should be done with Beit Lechem came up. Beit Lechem is a Palestinian city, but Kever Rachel is right there. In the agreement they negotiated, the Israelis insisted that Kever Rachel remain under Jewish control.

There is a 500 yard long road from Gilo [a Jerusalem neighborhood] close to Kever Rachel. The Palestinians insisted that their soldiers control that road and Rabin signed this agreement. There was much concern in Israeli circles that if control of the road would be given to the Palestinians, it would not be safe to travel to Kever Rachel.

Rabbi Lau met with Rabin and told him, "I know you do not like to renege on an agreement, but you must insist that Israel retains control of the road and can guarantee safe access for Jews to Kever Rachel. Rabin, a secular Jew, could not understand all the fuss about Rachel's burial site. Rabbi Lau told him-"It is because Rachel is our Mama and one does not abandon his mother.

These words of the Chief Rabbi moved Rabin, and at the next Cabinet meeting, the P.M. announced his revised position on the matter. It was because of this moving plea of Rabbi Lau "One does not abandon his mother" that until this day we still have access and still come to cry and pray in large numbers at Kever Rachel, a short distance from Beit Lechem.

I guess giving Cuban Cigas to the the Israel Prime Minister is a long established custom

read the story above

U.S. NAVAL WAR COLLEGE Hanukkah Songs 2016 מחרוזת שירי חנוכה בצי ארה"ב

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Rabbi Yehuda Lave

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