ב"ה
Vayeishev 5769 - December 19, 2008
Holidays
What Is Chanukah?
Hanukkah (Chanukah), the Jewish eight-day “festival of lights” is celebrated with a nightly menorah lighting--adding a flame each night--special prayers, dreidel playing, and fried foods.
Hanukkah (Chanukah), the Jewish eight-day “festival of lights” is celebrated with a nightly menorah lighting--adding a flame each night--special prayers, dreidel playing, and fried foods.
Why Couldn't the Jews and Greeks Just Get Along?
They could have learned so much from each other! Instead, the extremists hit the battlefield
They could have learned so much from each other! Instead, the extremists hit the battlefield
A Long Day for Morgenstern
Night was when a creature's true colors were revealed, they use the cover of darkness for their darkest deeds
Night was when a creature's true colors were revealed, they use the cover of darkness for their darkest deeds
Winter
The calendar is more than a measure of time; it is a cycle that charts our inner life and our relationship with our Creator.
The calendar is more than a measure of time; it is a cycle that charts our inner life and our relationship with our Creator.
Living
Friends Forever
Everyone wants to belong. To be loved and appreciated. But for parents of children with special needs, finding a safe haven of friendship and social activities can be daunting.
Everyone wants to belong. To be loved and appreciated. But for parents of children with special needs, finding a safe haven of friendship and social activities can be daunting.
The Carnival is in Town
Yesterday I was at a carnival. As I got on each roller coaster, I felt more alive than I had been in a while. My heart ached with joy. Life made sense. Everything fit.
Yesterday I was at a carnival. As I got on each roller coaster, I felt more alive than I had been in a while. My heart ached with joy. Life made sense. Everything fit.
The 'Case' of the Scandalous Mezuzah
I had bought a beautiful blue Mezuzah while touring Israel six years previously. I knew that it was good, a $5 price tag and an honest-faced proprietor had assured me of this...
I had bought a beautiful blue Mezuzah while touring Israel six years previously. I knew that it was good, a $5 price tag and an honest-faced proprietor had assured me of this...
Reactions to the Mumbai Tragedy
Perusing the more than 600 reflections submitted by readers to Chabad.org in the days after India’s worst terrorist attack, one thing becomes clear: In the course of their short lives, Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg managed to touch many lives.
Perusing the more than 600 reflections submitted by readers to Chabad.org in the days after India’s worst terrorist attack, one thing becomes clear: In the course of their short lives, Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg managed to touch many lives.
ABCDEF/123
Much of the strength of the Cossacks, the ferocious Ukrainian warriors, depended on their horses. How did they choose these legendary horses that they could trust with their lives?
Much of the strength of the Cossacks, the ferocious Ukrainian warriors, depended on their horses. How did they choose these legendary horses that they could trust with their lives?
What is the Jewish View on Martyrdom?
I know that there are religions in which it's a great thing to die for your faith, and doing so makes you a saint or gets you a ticket to paradise. What is the Jewish view? Is a person supposed to die for his beliefs?
I know that there are religions in which it's a great thing to die for your faith, and doing so makes you a saint or gets you a ticket to paradise. What is the Jewish view? Is a person supposed to die for his beliefs?
Parshah
The Parshah in a Nutshell
Jacob makes a colored coat for his favorite son, Joseph. Joseph’s brothers are jealous; they sell him to travelling Ishmaelites, and tell Jacob he is dead. Joseph is taken to Egypt, works for Potiphar, and is thrown into jail, where he meets the baker and the butler and interprets their dreams.
Jacob makes a colored coat for his favorite son, Joseph. Joseph’s brothers are jealous; they sell him to travelling Ishmaelites, and tell Jacob he is dead. Joseph is taken to Egypt, works for Potiphar, and is thrown into jail, where he meets the baker and the butler and interprets their dreams.
The Multidimensional Plan
On the face of it, the story of his life seems simply a succession of unhappy events; yet somehow it all works out in the end! What Joseph's experience can teach us about our own life history, as individuals and as a people
On the face of it, the story of his life seems simply a succession of unhappy events; yet somehow it all works out in the end! What Joseph's experience can teach us about our own life history, as individuals and as a people
The Child in the Pit
I remember the Rebbe thundering: “The whole Egyptian exile can be traced to Reuben’s ill-timed teshuvah! When a Jewish child is languishing in the pit, this is not the time to be worrying about your own spiritual state . . .”
I remember the Rebbe thundering: “The whole Egyptian exile can be traced to Reuben’s ill-timed teshuvah! When a Jewish child is languishing in the pit, this is not the time to be worrying about your own spiritual state . . .”
The Quest for Peace
“Is it not enough for the righteous what is prepared for them in the World to Come,” the Midrash declares, “that they also ask for a tranquil life in this world?” But why not? Does G‑d have a limited quantity of tranquility to mete out?
“Is it not enough for the righteous what is prepared for them in the World to Come,” the Midrash declares, “that they also ask for a tranquil life in this world?” But why not? Does G‑d have a limited quantity of tranquility to mete out?
Travel Begins and Ends At Home
The story is told of a fellow who dreamt that there was a treasure to be found under a bridge in a distant city...
The story is told of a fellow who dreamt that there was a treasure to be found under a bridge in a distant city...
A Rift Extending Across History
From the rivalry between Leah and Rachel, through the animosity between Joseph and his brothers, the clash between Saul and David, the split between Judah and Israel, to the dual nature of the messianic redemption—a rift and twinship that extends across history.
From the rivalry between Leah and Rachel, through the animosity between Joseph and his brothers, the clash between Saul and David, the split between Judah and Israel, to the dual nature of the messianic redemption—a rift and twinship that extends across history.
Love is strong as death; envy is harsh as the grave.
— Song of Songs 8:6
Print Magazine
How to unmask a blessing in disguise:
Stare it in the face and say, “I know you are not just a lousy day or bad luck. I know you are a good friend—even if for the life of me I cannot determine how. I know there is only one Source of All Things, and nothing can convince me that evil descends from Above. Evil descends fr...
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