Exodus Magazine - July 2020

#213 | July 2020 • Av 5780

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July 2020 • Av 5780

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5 | JEWISH SOUL

What We Understand

8

10

8 | PERSPECTIVES

Leaders That Unite

Though a person realizes and understands that no thing can create itself, this is only proof of the existence of the Creator, not an understanding of what He is, even as “Creator.”

A mind cannot speak to a bleeding heart. What can we then do when we have experienced trauma? How can we concretely access the deeper light that lies within the shadows? Two holy souls enlighten us.

— From the Rebbe's correspondence

— by Simon Jacobson

6 | MADE YOU THINK

10 | LIFE ON EARTH

Universal Loss

How the Stories We Tell Mold Our Future

The whole world is stricken and cannot return to its normal and rectified state until the city of Jerusalem and the Temple are rebuilt; for Jerusalem is the center point of the world’s existence.

Our legends have been responsible for building the world in which we currently live. Our faith in those mega-stories will determine whether that world implodes, decays or flourishes.

— by Adin Even Yisrael (Steinsaltz)

— by Tzvi Freeman

7 | JEWISH THOUGHT

18 | PERSPECTIVES

Paradoxically, it was precisely at the moment of the destruction of the Temple that the cherubs were intertwined, symbolizing the most profound relationship between G‑d and Israel.

The prophets had no power. They were not members of the royal court. They were (usually) not priests or members of the religious establishment. They held no office. What, then, makes them so special?

— by Yosef Y. Jacobson

— by Jonathan Sacks

Love in Flames

The Prophetic Voice

18

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Without a physical Temple, the fight to keep Jerusalem alive is waged in the Temple within.

The primary form of worship in the Temple was the animal sacrifices. Similarly, there is also an animal within each individual that needs to be coaxed to offer itself as a sacrifice on the altar of the Temple within. The animal is you. The sacrifice is to give of yourself, of your desires, your selfishness, your ego, your talents, your idiosyncratic worldview, your fire… use your gifts to love someone else, to assist someone in need, to feel the oneness of nature, to connect with the divine. Because as long as the beast within is roaming free, one is enslaved by its animalism, and one can never be free to experience the transcendent fire it can awaken.

The beast within can take on many forms, just as there are different species of animals used in the Temple service. The beast can take on the characteristics of a sheep – gentle, harmless and even cute and charming, aside from the smell. But an overall lazy animal, preoccupied with grazing, sleeping, fornicating and otherwise pursuing its own selfish desires (sound like anyone you know?).

Or the beast within can be a bull, with tremendous abilities in productive labor, but potentially angry and domineering and a menace to anyone who gets in its way (sound like anyone you know?). Or the beast can be a bird, graceful and transcendent, but totally self-absorbed and interested only in its own high, completely oblivious and insensitive to others, capable of excreting on those who simply pass underneath (sound like anyone you know?).

Some people think that sacrificing the beast means that you have to bring it down to its knees and destroy it. But, ultimately, such an approach denies the fact that the animal within has a purpose, too – one that

is intrinsically tied to the purpose of the individual. Ultimately, the animal needs to be sensitized and educated, it needs to learn to dance to the tune of the soul. And the soul needs to harness the energy and intensity of its fire, its ability to burn with desire, because the soul, for its part, tends to chill and bask in the radiance of the divine rather than yearn for it.

Metaphysically then, the experience of the Temple within is no different than that of the physical Temple, with the same potential for spiritual euphoria and consciousness of the divine. The only difference is that it is no longer handed to us on a silver platter; then, all we had to do was show up, but now generating the experience is up to us.

And like the physical process of generating energy, it ain’t always pretty – the machinery sputters and makes all sorts of horrific grunts and noises, the friction is tremendous and the breakdowns all too common. But, if at the end of the day some light turns on, then you can be confident that progress is being made.

Despite the most valiant efforts of the most heroic soldiers, the struggle for Jerusalem is not fought on the battlefields. Despite the skillful oratory of the defenders of Israel and the Jewish people in the universities, the media and the sphere of international governance, the struggle for Jerusalem is not fought in public debates. My intent is not to detract from the importance of their work, nor the enormity of their dedication; their contributions are indeed extraordinary, but they alone will not determine the outcome.

The struggle for Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the Holy Temple takes place at every moment in the relatively obscure battlefield – the obscure, yet monumental battlefield – within the heart of every individual. And it is there, more than anywhere else, that the battle will be won.

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jewish soul

What We Understand From the Rebbe's correspondence

I

n answer to your query, in which you ask to explain the concept of shechinah (the divine immanence; lit. “indwelling”), which is mentioned many times in the teachings of our sages: The concept is extensively expounded upon, particularly in the books and discourses of chassidic teachings—you can look it up in the indices published in the back of Tanya, Torah Ohr, Likkutei Torah and other works. Here I will offer a brief explanation, obviously not a comprehensive one, as space does not allow.

Since G‑d is the ultimate perfection and is free of all limitations and definitions, it is self-evident that, in the words of the Alter Rebbe, “The fact that He creates universes does not express what G‑d is.” At the same time, He is, as Maimonides writes in his Laws of the Fundamentals of Torah, “the one who brings every existence into being; all existences exist only as derivatives of His ultimate existence” and the one whom “all existences are utterly dependent upon Him.” It is also obvious that just as no creature can comprehend the nature of G‑d’s creation of reality ex nihilo, so, too, no creature can comprehend the nature of G‑d, even the nature of G‑d as the creator of the world and the source of every existence.

In the words of the great Jewish philosophers: “If I knew Him, I would be Him.” So though a person realizes and understands that no thing can create itself, and that one must therefore conclude that the created reality has a source that generates its existence, this is only proof of the existence of the Creator, not an understanding of what He is, even as “Creator.”

Nevertheless, G‑d desired that the divine influences upon creation… and the divine immanence in the world should also include elements that the human mind can comprehend. In the words of the sweet singer of Israel, “When I see Your heavens, the work of Your fingers…” Indeed, this includes an instruction to man regarding the service of his Creator: “Lift your eyes upward, and see who created these…” (As

July 2020

Holy Temple, this is not to say, G‑d forbid, that only that “aspect” of the divine that is called shechinah is there, but to stress that there the divine reality is present in such a way that it “dwells within” and “clothes itself” to the extent that it is observable with our physical eyes, in the fact that “the space of the ark did not take up space,” in the ten miracles that regularly occurred in the Holy Temple, and so on.

As we said, the above is but one approach to explain the concept of shechinah; many other approaches, and many other points in this approach itself, are elaborated in a number of books and discourses of chassidic teaching.

My hope is that you have set times for the study of the teachings of chassidic thought every day, and to an even greater extent on Shabbat, the day sanctified to G‑d.. EM

the Alter Rebbe elaborates on this verse in a discourse that is also the basis of Sefer Hachakirah, authored by his grandson, the Tzemach Tzedek.)

This aspect of the divine reality—that which pervades our world to the extent that it can be discovered by G‑d’s creatures—is what is meant by the term shechinah, i.e., that which dwells within and enclothes itself.

It is important to emphasize that one cannot categorize the divine reality into various aspects or areas, G‑d forbid; it is only that from the perspective of the contemplating creature, there are things that he can comprehend and things that he cannot comprehend. In truth, however, there are no categories, in the plural, but a singular, utterly abstract reality.

Consider the soul of man: obviously, it is not divisible into 248, 365 or 613 components; nevertheless, the observing eye differentiates between the vitality of the foot and the vitality of the brain, though both are of a single essence—the soul that vitalizes the body. How much more so (to distinguish ad infinitum) is it so regarding the divine reality. Thus, when we say that the shechinah is present in the

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made you think

Universal Loss Adin Even Yisrael (Steinsaltz)

O

n the night of Tisha B’Av, when the Jewish People devotes itself again to mourning for all that it has lost during its long exile; after everyone is seated on the ground and before the Kinot (lamentations) are recited, there is a custom that the prayer leader rises and proclaims to the congregation, “Today marks such-andsuch many years since the destruction of our Sanctuary.” The essence of the mourning over the great catastrophe, over the years of exile and all that they have entailed, returns to the focal point of this mourning — to the destruction of the Temple and city of Jerusalem.

The destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple is more than the destruction of our historical capital and our most sacred site. It is not merely a memory of a tragic event that occurred long ago. Rather, it is a blow to the vital center of the Jewish People.

Moreover, the whole world is stricken and cannot return to its normal and rectified state until the city of Jerusalem and the Temple are rebuilt; for Jerusalem is the center point of the world’s existence.

The Midrash (Derekh Eretz Zuta 9, end) describes Jerusalem’s essential place in the world: Abba Hanan said in the name of Samuel the Small, “This world is like a person’s eyeball.

The white of the eye is the ocean surrounding the world; the iris is the inhabited world; the pupil of the eye is Jerusalem; and the face [the reflection of the observer] in the pupil is the Holy Temple. May it be rebuilt speedily in our days.”

Harm done to Jerusalem is therefore harm done to the apple of the world’s eye; the light of existence is diminished and obscured when the pupil of the eye is damaged.

The whole world consciously or unconsciously feels Jerusalem’s destruction.

As our Sages say, “Since the day that the Temple was destroyed, there has been no day without its curse…and the curse of each day is greater than that of the one before it” (Sotah 48a, 49a). “Since the day that the Temple was destroyed,” we are taught, “the sky has not appeared in its full purity, as it says: ‘I clothe the skies in darkness and make their raiment sackcloth'” (Berakhot

6

59a citing Isaiah 50:3) The mourning over Jerusalem is universal; it is a tragedy from which the whole universe suffers.

Even G‑d Himself participates in the mourning of Jerusalem. One of the Sages relates what he heard in a ruin in Jerusalem: “I heard a heavenly voice cooing like a dove and saying, ‘Woe to the sons because of whose sins I destroyed My House, burned My Sanctuary, and exiled them among the nations’” (Berakhot 3a). The Sage was then told that G‑d says, “What is there for the father who has exiled his sons, and woe to the sons who have been exiled from their father’s table” (ibid.) Thus, “Since the day that the Temple was destroyed, G‑d has had no laughter” (Avodah Zarah 3b.).

The destruction of Jerusalem is for us the ruin of all of existence, and ever since, a curtain of sadness and darkness has covered the face of reality. The mourning over Jerusalem is more than a one-time memorial of a once-a-year day of mourning.

All of Jewish life is continually suffused with mourning — in remembrance of the hurban — destruction).

For us, the sharply worded verses “If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill; let my tongue adhere to my palate if I fail to remember you, if I do not raise Jerusalem above my highest joy” (Psalms 137:5-6) are not mere oratory; they are a living reality, practical and actual guidance on the path of life, in remembering Jerusalem at all times.

The memory of Jerusalem casts a shadow

of eternal gloom on the Jewish people. “One may not fill his mouth with laughter in this world” until the coming of the redemption, when “our mouths will be filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy” (Psalms 126:2.). Until then, everything is enveloped in sadness. Ever since the destruction of the Temple, all profane music and singing have been prohibited.

This sorrow and loss should be recalled at all times, even in joyous moments. When the table is set to host guests for a meal, something should be left incomplete, in remembrance of the hurban. When a house is built, it must not be completed entirely; part is left unplastered, in remembrance of the hurban. The memory of Jerusalem should be raised at the forefront of every joyous occasion. Even amidst the joy of a wedding, ashes are placed on the groom’s head; even under the huppah (marriage canopy), before all the celebrants, a glass is broken. For it is impossible for us to rejoice fully, as long as Jerusalem lies in ruins.

Thus, the mourning over Jerusalem has continued for nearly 2,000 years, like a thread of tears running through our lives. EM

Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz is internationally regarded as one of the leading rabbis of this century. The author of many books, he is best known for his monumental translation of and commentary on the Talmud. To learn more visit his website, steinsaltz.org.

Av 5780

jewish thought

Love

in

Flames

Yosef Y. Jacobson

T

he Talmud relates a profoundly strange incident that occurred moments before the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple: “When the pagans entered the Holy Temple, they saw the cherubs cleaving to each other. They took them out to the streets and said: ‘These Jews ... is this what they occupy themselves with?’ With this, they debased [the Jewish people], as it is written: ‘All who had honored her have despised her, for they have seen her nakedness.’”

The meaning of these words is this: The innermost chamber of the Jerusalem Temple, the most sacred site in Judaism, was known as the "Holy of Holies" and seen as the spiritual epicenter of the universe. Two golden cherubs – they were two winged figures, one male and one female -- were located in the "Holy of Holies." These cherubs represented the relationship between the cosmic groom and bride, between G‑d and His people.

The Talmud teaches that when the relationship between groom and bride was sour the two faces were turned away from each other, as when spouses are angry with each other. When the relationship was healthy, the two faces of the cherubs would face each other. And when the love between G‑d and His bride was at its peak the cherubs would embrace “as a man cleaves to his wife.”

Now, the Talmud is telling us, that when the enemies of Israel invaded the Temple – during the time of its destruction in the Hebrew month of Av -- they entered into the Holy of Holies, a place so sacred that entry into it was permitted only to a single individual, the High Priest, and only on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year.

There they saw the cherubs embracing each other. They dragged them out of the Temple and into the streets, vulgarizing their sacred significance.

This seems bizarre. When the enemies of Israel invaded the Temple to destroy it, the relationship between G‑d and His people was at its lowest possible point, for that was the reason for the destruction and the subsequent exile. The Jews were about to become estranged from G‑d for millennia.

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The manifest presence of divinity in the world, via the Temple in Jerusalem, would cease; Jews and G‑d would now be exiled from each other.

Yet, paradoxically, it was precisely at that moment that the cherubs were intertwined, symbolizing the most profound relationship between G‑d and Israel. How are we to understand this?

The most daring explanation was given by the heir to the founder of Chassidism, Rabbi Dovber, known as the Magid of Mezrich (d. in 1772). Quoting the injunction of the sages that a man ought to consort with his wife prior to leaving home on a journey, the Maggid suggests that G‑d, prior to His long journey away from home, expressed His intimacy with the Jewish people. Prior to the onset of a long exile, the cherubs were intertwined, representing the intimacy preceding the journey.

What the Chassidic master was conveying through this dazzling metaphor – and it is a central theme in Chassidic thought -- was that it was at the moment of the destruction that a new relationship between G‑d and His people was beginning to develop. The greatest moment of crisis was also a moment of intimacy. As the Temple was going up in flames, and with it so much of Jewish life and history, G‑d impregnated (metaphorically speaking) a seed of life within the Jewish soul; He implanted within His people the potential for a new birth.

For two millennia, this "seed" has sustained us, giving the Jewish people the courage and

inspiration to live and prosper. Judaism flourished in the decades and centuries following the destruction of the Temple in an unprecedented fashion: The Mishnah, Talmud, Midrash and Kabbalah were all born during those centuries. The very tragic conditions of exile became catalysts for unparalleled rejuvenation. The closing of one door opened many more.

Many empires, religions and cultures attempted to demonstrate to the Jewish people that their role in the scheme of creation has ended, or that it has never began, luring them into the surrounding, prevailing culture. But the “intimacy” they experienced, so to speak, with G‑d just moments before He "departed" from them, left its indelible mark. It imbued them with a vision, a dream and an unshakable commitment. Throughout their journeys, often filled with extraordinary anguish, they clung to their faith that they were in a covenant with G‑d to transform the world into a divine abode; to heal a fractured world yearning to reunite with its own true reality.

This grants us a deeper understanding into the ancient Jewish tradition that the Moshiach (Messiah) was born on the ninth of Av. At the moment the Temple was about to be engulfed in flames, the dream of redemption was born. There was an intimacy in the flames and it produced a hidden seed that would eventually bring healing to a broken world. Think about it: The very possibility for the rabbis of those generation to declare that Moshiach was born on the ninth of Av, was nothing but testimony to the intimacy that accompanied the milieu of estrangement and exile.

Now we are finally ready for the birth. EM

Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak (YY) Jacobson is one of America’s premier Jewish scholars in Torah and Jewish mysticism. He is a passionate and mesmerizing communicator of Judaism today, culling his ideas from the entire spectrum of Jewish thought and making them relevant to contemporary audiences.

Rabbi Jacobson founded and serves as dean of TheYeshiva.net.

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jewish thought

Leaders That Unite Simon Jacobson

A

s we enter this dark mourning period on the Jewish calendar, we are comforted by the fact that precisely in this time, when the ‘light’ becomes entirely concealed and the ‘teacher’ falls completely silent as he withdraws into the deepest recesses of his mind, the greatest revelation is being born Indeed, the Nine Days begin with Rosh Chodosh Menachem Av (the new moon of the month of Av). Menachem means ‘to comfort.’ We are comforted by G‑d – and we comfort each other – in these difficult times. As the new moon is born we do not immediately see its light. It will take fifteen days for the moon to grow into a full illuminating sphere; but when it does it becomes the greatest holiday of the year (the 15th of Av which the Mishne describes as being a holiday like no other), because light born out of darkness can never be extinguished.

In these days Moses has returned to Sinai (for what would be the second period of Moses being on the mountain for 40 days) to beseech G‑d that He forgive the people for their grave sin of the Golden Calf. Down below we do not see and hear; but above true hope is being hatched – hope that would enter our hemisphere on Yom Kippur (at the conclusion of the third period of 40 days).

Finally, the final and last Shabbos before Tisha b’Av is called Shabbat Chazon, literally the ‘Shabbos of Vision’ (named after the first word of this week’s haftorah about Isaiah’s prophetic vision). Reb Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev tells us that on this Shabbos everyone is shown ‘from afar’ the third Holy Temple, in order to inspire and motivate us to do our part in preparing ourselves and the world for the great revelation of the Third Temple in the final Redemption.

Again, we see how the greatest structure and revelation is being born in the throes of loss and destruction.

The big question is: What can we do to facilitate the process? True, these teachings are wonderful philosophies, informing us that the deepest growth is achieved in pain and loss and we should therefore not be demoralized by the darkness. But it’s ‘easier said than done;’ when we find ourselves at

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a loss in emotional pain, philosophy simply isn’t enough. A mind cannot speak to a bleeding heart. What can we then do when we have experienced trauma? How can we concretely access the deeper light that lies within the shadows?

To help us answer this question we have with us two great leaders, whose yahrzeits we observe and comfort us during these Nine gloomy days: Aaron the High Priest and the holy Arizal (Rabbi Isaac Luria), whose yahrzeits are respectively on Rosh Chodosh Av and the 5th of Av. Of all luminaries, why are these two yahrzeits in this particular time period?

In times of crisis we are in need of the most powerful strengths and most vital tools to endure and grow through our challenging experiences.

Aaron the High Priest and the Arizal were distinguished in their ability to unite all the people. When Aaron passed away, the Torah states that the ‘entire nation cried’ and mourned after him – a statement that is reserved for Aaron alone, distinguishing him even from Moses. Rashi explains that Aaron was a pursuer of peace, he fostered love between all the people and as such was beloved and remembered by the entire nation.

The Arizal was a unique phenomenon of his own, perhaps unprecedented in history as one who united all factions and

denominations.

And this is no small feat. Historically we always find different schools of thought within Judaism. The school of Shammai and the school of Hillel is the classical example.

The entire Talmud is essentially a document driven by differing if not opposing views.

Diversity in Torah is not seen as a negative, but actually a fundamentally positive force.

We are not discussing petty, political and ego-driven disputes, nor are we addressing arguments driven by people’s personal opinions. But even within the framework of Torah discussion, indeed the Torah process itself is built upon dialogue, disagreement, challenges and counter challenges. The fundamental basics are indisputable as is the final ruling on any given matter. However, like musical notes, the essential notes are unwavering, yet music is a result of the infinite combinations of these notes.

Torah scholarship in all generations is characterized by the variety of opinions.

Teachers and leaders were not always unilaterally embraced right from the outset.

Even Moses was not initially accepted by the Jewish people, and even after he was, we still find the insurgent Korach and other dissenters.

There were scholars who opposed Maimonides (Rambam), to the extent that some of his books were burned!

(Maimonides was not universally accepted

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jewish thought

until Nachmanides (Ramban) came out with a strong defense on his behalf). Same with the Baal Shem Tov. Among the few exceptions – if not the only exception is the holy Arizal. Though he lived a mere 38 years (1534-1572), and all his teachings took place in a period of 20 months (!), all the great leaders and scholars of the time, including many his senior, embraced him immediately as an absolute authority. To this day the Arizal remains the pre-eminent and final authority in all areas of Jewish mysticism and also Jewish law. Ashkenazim and Sefardim, Chassidim and Misnagdim, Litivish or not – everyone embraced the Arizal. His many students include Reb Chaim Vital, The Alsheich, the Beis Yosef (Reb Yosef Karo), compiler of the Shulchan Aruch. The Mogen Avraham (Shulchan Aruch gloss) cites the Arizal countless times in matters of law universally accepted today.

The Arizal’s unifying achievement is absolutely amazing considering how rare it is to find unanimous approval of anyone even in early generations, let alone in later ones.

Here’s a man who united all Jews from all backgrounds and beliefs, and achieved this in 20 months!

What was unique about the Arizal that caused this unprecedented acceptance and unification?

No mortal can presume to know the complete answer. Yet, perhaps we can be enlightened by looking for another unifying leader: The Talmudic sage and mystic, Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai. Rebbe Shimon was one of the few students of Rabbi Akiva who survived the plague that struck 30,000 of his colleagues as a result of their disrespect for each other. Rebbe Shimon was a prime example of his master, Rabbi Akiva’s fundamental teaching: “Love your fellow as yourself – this is the cardinal principle of Torah.”

Throughout the Talmud we find that Rebbe Shimon had unique attributes which made him stand out among all his colleagues.

And like the Arizal, Rebbe Shimon is a unifying force – his yahrzeit on Lag B’Omer is celebrated by Jews of all backgrounds.

His is the only yahrzeit that has become a

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holiday among all the people.

What was the uniqueness of the Rashbi (Rebbe Shimon Bar Yochai) and what commonality does he share with the Arizal?

Both of them openly united and integrated both dimensions of Torah –the esoteric and the exoteric, the Talmudic and the mystical – the body and soul of Torah. Rashbi is both one of the greatest Talmud scholars and the author of the Zohar, the classical work of Kabbalah. Same with the Arizal.

True unity and love is only possible when we connect with the soul. Materialism divides. Spirituality unites. The physical – the corporeal – is inherently divisive. Everything material occupies its space (and time), and thus precludes another from occupying its space. If you give some of your material possessions to another, you have less quantitatively. Qualitatively – spiritually – you however become wealthier. Spirit unites.

Two people can occupy different spaces but their soul, which transcends space (and time) unites them as one.

Even in Torah we must connect the study of the “body” of Torah with its soul. As the Talmud tells us, one who studies Torah and forgets to acknowledge G‑d through the blessing on Torah will ultimately forsake the Torah! Strong words… Words that would serve us well and we should take to heart as we witness far too many abuses of Torah law, and people living perhaps by the letter of the law but entirely missing its spirit. It therefore should be no wonder that when the soul of Torah is missing or not integrated with its body, Torah can cause people to be divisive and even obnoxious or hateful to others. When the soul is missing, when G‑d is taken out of the picture, Torah itself is fundamentally compromised and lost.

The Rashbi and the Arizal united the ‘body and soul’ of Torah, so they also united the body and soul of people – and thus united all people, regardless of background and school of thought.

Of all days of the year, this message of unity is necessary more than ever in the loneliest Nine Days of the year. When we experience loss, what is even worse than the initial pain is the loneliness it creates.

We feel alone in the world. The book of

Lamentations (Eicha) recited on Tisha B’Av begins: “Eicha yoshvo bodod,” “Oh, how [sad it is that] she sits alone…”

Aaron and the Arizal (whose yahrzeits are in these days) teach us – in the difficult Nine Days – what it takes to reverse pain and destruction (as does the Rashbi on Lag B’Omer during the other sad period of the calendar: the 49 days of Omer between Passover and Shavuot). The Temple was destroyed because of ‘baseless hatred.’ The antidote is ‘baseless love.’ By connecting to our own soul and the soul of others we learn to transcend our material pettiness, our superficial differences, and embrace each other as one. Looking at another’s physical being alone does not unite us. We may even be repulsed by another’s appearance or behavior. By looking at the other’s soul – and recognizing its Divine features – we can learn to love everyone.

In these Nine Days we should all intensify our Torah study, particularly the ‘soul’ of Torah (as taught by the Arizal), and in charity – both which unite us with each other. When we study spirituality it broaden our horizons, helping us transcend our differences.

Raise you eyes, set your sights to higher spiritual vistas, and you will find your ability to co-exist and to love – both yourself and others – grow in direct proportion to your own spiritual awareness.

So, here’s the answer to the question: What can each of us do to access the inner light in times of darkness? We can – and must – become more spiritual and more loving. “Be of the disciples of Aaron, loving peace and pursuing peace, loving your fellow creatures, and bringing them near to the Torah.” Our loving acts open up the inner resources that lay hidden in the Nine Days.

With all that is going on in the world today, what better message is there than this, and what better messengers do we have than Aaron and the Arizal?

They are here with us during the Nine Days. Are we accessing them? EM Rabbi Simon Jacobson is the author of Toward a Meaningful Life: The Wisdom of the Rebbe and the director of the Meaningful Life Center (meaningfullife.com).

exodusmagazine.org

9

life on earth

How the Stories We Tell Mold Our Future Tzvi Freeman

F

rom some observation deck up in your brain, there’s a voice broadcasting a play-by-play narrative of your life.

Sometimes we are aware, sometimes not, but our minds are perpetually telling a story.

There are times when that voice constructs a full-blown drama of intrigue. There are also times when an entire tale is told with just a quiet sigh deep in the liminal recesses of the mind, whispering “Ugh, what a waste of time!”

Raw reality provides none of that. That narrative your mind is telling is not a passive record of facts, a mere shadow cast by the actors, a neutral frame for a snapshot of time. Rather , much as our sense of touch knows a thing through our manipulation of it, so too our minds, observing, processing and spewing out their commentary in the background, provide structure, meaning and import to every experience of our lives. All with those little stories.

And they’re not necessarily benign.

The narratives of humankind have driven tribes to conquer and grow to empires, sustained civilizations and allowed them to

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fall—and then regenerated them from the dust. More than any other tool of humankind, our legends have been responsible for building the world in which we currently live. Our faith in those mega-stories will determine whether that world implodes, decays or flourishes.

So too, the micro-stories each of us tell of our own private dramas determine the conquest of our personal destinies. Stories are the channels we dig within our psyches through which our past will flow into our future.

Let’s say the story we tell of today is of time wasted with no good outcome, of utter frustration in which we were the dog chasing its tail, the ant following a futile recursive path of its own making.

We have effectively blocked the flow of the stream of life. We have robbed both yesterday and tomorrow of their vitality, rendering them a parched no man’s land, just as dead as we cast them to be.

But if we tell a story of that same day, this time of lessons learned and wisdom gained— for there is nothing really, not even a single

moment in G‑d’s world, that doesn’t sing out infinite wisdom to anyone who will lend an open ear and clarity of mind—then we have opened wide the portals of life to gush into our world and nurture a vibrant tomorrow.

Because the streams of life that flow from Above into our world can bring only good.

The true, objective reality, wrote Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi to a friend and disciple, is nothing other than the perpetual unfolding of Divine wisdom at every moment, regenerating every detail of our world from the void—its past, present and future. And Divine wisdom is the origin of all life, goodness and pleasure, the primal Eden that waters the Garden from an unknowable place far beyond. It is up to us only to open our psyches wide and clear, so we can commune with that life in its purest form.

And all that happens through those little stories in your mind.

Let’s say the story we tell of our current sorrows is an angry one, a bitter one, a tale of the poor victim in a meaningless, G‑dless world—then we would be polluting the stream of life with harsh toxins. What hope

Av 5780

We can understand that we are lacking nothing, that if there is anything truly good for us at this moment that we could have, it would be granted to us... could there be for anything to grow?

Instead we could describe the same series of events as a story of fortitude and unwavering optimism despite all odds, of a pure and inviolate faith that one day we will see the meaning of all that has befallen us and how it was all good, pure good, such great good that it surpasses human imagination to envision in any way how it could possibly be good. Now the gates of tomorrow have been opened wide.

Sometimes we could kick ourselves for having made a lousy decision. We kick and cry and rant that we were given bad advice, that facts were withheld, that the entire world conspired against us.

But instead we can trust that even at that time when we made our decision, even then, He-Who-Knows-All-Thoughts was there, intimately there, in that thought, guiding us to make this decision, for reasons unbeknownst to us at present. But for reasons that are all good.

And with that story alone, the good is unwrapped from its package and shines in the daylight.

We could be upset and pout over the things we don’t have, things we feel we need and must have just to get by.

Or we can understand that we are lacking nothing, that if there is anything truly good for us at this moment that we could have, it would be granted to us—for the One Who Owns All Things loves us like a parent loves an only child, and desires for us only good.

We can tell a story that is the true, ultimate story that underlies all stories, a story of love between our souls and the Soul that breathes within this universe and transcends all things at the same moment, who cannot be grasped by any thought, by any understanding, yet is embraced tightly in the innermost stirrings of the human heart.

From those inner, ineffable passions come always the very best stories. Stories that give life and celebrate life.

But there really is no point in telling a lousy story, a story entirely divorced from that inner, absolute reality that you yourself recognize deep inside to be true. Nothing but a manic urge for self-destruction disguised in a cloak of realism.

Since the underlying current that drives reality is only good, a good story can be told about almost anything. And if not, a story of faith—for we cannot close the book on any story, since we cannot know its ending until a time when we will look down upon it from above. So we embrace all of life with faith that somehow all is good, and somehow that good will imminently break out of its mystery-cocoon to unravel itself and spread its wings as revealed, magnificent good. The faith itself is enough to break the cocoon.

The choice is yours. Choose to tell a narrative of your life that gives you yet more life. EM Rabbi Tzvi Freeman, a senior editor at Chabad.org, is the author of Bringing Heaven Down to Earth and more recently Wisdom to Heal the Earth. To subscribe to regular updates of Rabbi Freeman's writing or purchase his books, visit Chabad.org. Follow him on FaceBook @ RabbiTzviFreeman.

future tense

MOSHIACH MUSINGS

The Talmud declares (Brachot 3a): When Jews enter their prayer and study halls and proclaim, "May His great name be blessed," the Holy One, blessed be He, nods and says, "Fortunate is the king who is thus praised in his home. What is there for a father who has exiled his son? And woe to children who have been exiled from their father's table!"

G‑d is our father, and we are His children. And during exile we constitute a dysfunctional family. We have been expelled from our Father's home. Our relationship has been reduced to its very core. All the perceptible traces of the relationship have vanished. We don't feel or see G‑d's love for us, and we don't really feel like His children. We study His Torah and follow His commandments, and we are told that by doing so we connect with Him, but we don't feel like we are in a relationship.

This is certainly not the way the relationship should be, and this wasn't always the case. There was a time when we were coddled by our Father's embrace.

His love for us manifested itself in many forms: miracles, prophets, abundant blessings and a land flowing with milk and honey. And at the crux of our relationship was the Holy Temple, G‑d's home where He literally dwelt amongst His people, where His presence was tangible. Thrice yearly Jews would visit G‑d's home and feel His presence, feel the relationship. They would then return home invigorated by the experience, their hearts and souls afire with love for G‑d.

All the suffering which has been our lot since the day the Temple was destroyed is a result of our exiled state. When the king's son resides in the palace, when the king's love for the prince is on open display, the child is insulated against the designs of all his enemies. But when the child is expelled, the enemies pounce.

This is why we mourn the destruction of the Temples. And we believe with perfect faith that the day is near when we will be returned to our Father's home, and once again be smothered by His love.

ask the rabbi

What is Taking so Long?

Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman

Q

It’s been 2,000 years already!

Why is it taking so long? What caused the destruction of the Temple and the exile of Israel, and what can we do to correct it?

The Talmud (Yuma 9b), explains why the Babylonian exile which followed the destruction of the first Temple lasted only a predetermined seventy years, while we are languishing in this current exile for so much longer, and no end-date has been given. “The first ones whose sins were known, the end [of their exile] was made known. The latter ones whose sins were not known, their end is [also] unknown.”

This statement apparently contradicts another statement cited on the very same folio of the Talmud: “Why was the first Temple destroyed? Because of three sins of which the Jews were guilty—idolatry, promiscuity and murder. The second Temple – when the Jews were involved in Torah, mitzvahs and acts of kindness – why was it destroyed? Because the Jews were guilty of harboring baseless hatred towards each other!”

Wanton hatred is very noticeable. How can the Talmud say regarding a society where such behavior was rampant: “their sins were not known”?

The Rebbe explains that this is the unique character of hatred and fighting—it is the unknown sin. On average, an idolater, adulterer, or murderer is keenly aware of his sin. “The flesh is weak” and people fall victim to temptation, but repentance is eminently achievable, because the person himself is troubled by the sins which sully his soul.

Conversely, the person who is guilty of participating in quarrels and hate-mongering has no idea that he is at fault—in his estimation, the other party rightly deserves all the abuse being heaped on him! Indeed, baseless hatred is perhaps the most overt sin, yet so few recognize their guilt.

Why does the Talmud insist that the hate was "baseless"? Were there not reasons, both ideological and pragmatic, for the divisions amongst the Jews? But no reason, explains the Rebbe, is reason enough for hate. The commonality of our fate runs so much deeper than any possible cause for animosity. All

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hate, then, is baseless hatred.

Raw, fanatical, baseless, relentless hatred can be matched and combated only with pure, undiscriminating, uninhibited, unyielding, baseless, unsolicited love and acts of kindness.

Not just plain love – love that costs us. Love for which we get nothing back. Love that is irrational. We need to be willing to lose sleep, to suffer losses, to be uncomfortable, to sacrifice our pleasures, in order to help another human being—with at least the precision, determination and passion that evildoers employ to fulfill their mission of hate.

Every one of us can make a difference, as Maimonides teaches, each person should see himself as though the entire world is on a delicate balance, and with one deed, he or she can tip the scales. Every good act, every expression of kindness and love, tips the scale.

So if "baseless hatred" was the cause of the destruction, its remedy is "baseless love”— our rediscovery of the intrinsic unity which overrides all reasons for discord and strife.

Perhaps even more frightening is the way history is repeating itself. The Talmud describes how, instead of uniting against the common enemy, Jewish factions battled each other in besieged Jerusalem. "Because of baseless hatred between Jews," concludes the Talmud, "was Jerusalem destroyed."

This is true both in our interpersonal relations as well as our nation’s regrettable tendency to be heavily preoccupied with inter-faction squabbles. Moshiach will come when we finally recognize that differences of opinion — even if validated without a doubt by objective fact— is never a valid reason to hate. EM Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman is the Senior Rabbi of the Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario. You can Ask the Rabbi at jrcc.org or fax to 416.222.7812. To meet with Rabbi Zaltzman in person, feel free to call 416.222.7105 to book an appointment.

Appointments are generally available on Tuesday evenings after 7 p.m.

Rebbitzin Chiena Zaltzman is also available for private consultations by appointment on Wednesday evenings from 9 to 10pm by calling 416.222.7105.

В последнее время мировая общественность с беспокойством следила о прошедших в США массовых беспорядках. Причина – гибель афроамериканца Джорджа Флойда после задержания полицейскими в Миннеаполисе. Мирные демонстрации переросли в столкновения с полицией. В ночь на 29 мая протестующие сожгли полицейский участок. После появления информации о смерти Флойда акции переросли в погромы. В 40 городах страны ввели комендантский час. Часть протестующих параллельно акциям протеста занялась поджогами и разграблением магазинов. Ряд акций перешёл в столкновения с полицией и Национальной гвардией. Во время массовых беспорядков в стране пострадали 114 сотрудников правоохранительных органов, 22 госпитализированы. Об этом во время пресс-конференции сообщил генпрокурор США Уильям Барр. Примечательно то, что внутри еврейской общины мнения по поводу происшедшего разделились; кто-то возмущен действиями бесчинствующих погромщиков, а кто-то оправдывает их. Мой жизненный опыт учит, что если нет единого мнения, нужно смотреть, что говорит об этом Тора. Сверяться с мнением Торы нужно не только когда существуют разногласия, но и когда мнения едины. Так как единодушие еще не является залогом правоты. Случившееся в Америке в определенном плане затронуло весь мир. Вс-вышний создал многие народы, расы, национальности. Получился своеобразный «Melting Pot». Что это означает?

The article above is excerpted from the Russian edition of Exodus Magazine. To subscribe, please visit exodusmagazine.org or call 416.222.7105.

Av 5780

‫ב”ה‬

Our

Community T H E M O N T H I N R E V I E W. U P C O M I N G E V E N T S & P R O G R A M S .

JULY 2020 | TAMMUZ 5780 COMMUNITY CALENDAR

J U L Y 2 0 2 0 TUES

PARENTING DURING CORONA See ad on page 17

TUES

9

SHABBAT COOKING DEMO See ad on page 17

TUES

SEEING THE LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS See ad on page 17

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TUESDAYS TOGETHER

The JRCC Women’s Circle introduced a series of dynamic and engaging virtual programs for women, under the banner of “Tuesdays Together,” featuring interesting and inspiring guest speakers.

On Tuesdays in June, a different event was hosted.

One June 2, the program was “Unorthodox Judaism’s perspective on marriage” with Miriam Lipskier from Chabad at Emory University. June 9 featured a screening of the documentary film “The Time in Between” Benzti Avzon, followed by a discussion – an even open to men as well. On June 16 women got energized with a “Pump it Up” session led by Dance with Shira. One June 30, women got to tap into their creative side with a “Jewish Pop Art” virtual workshop and discussion with Yitzchak Moully, aka the Pop Art Rabbi. This series is part of the JRCC’s efforts to keep people connected and maintain a sense of community during these times of (physically) social isolation.

KIDDIE CHEFS & STORY TIME

Children and parents have been missing the JRCC’s engaging Kiddie Chefs events since they were suspended due to COVID-19. So the JRCC decided to make them happen virtually, sending people a list of ingredients so they could follow along and participate in the baking workshop from the comfort of their own home. The virtual event is held every Sunday at 2pm, hosted by JRCC rebbetzins, and features a story time component in addition to the baking session.

More info at jrcc.org/KiddieChefs.

SHAVUOT ACTIVITIES If you can’t bring the people to the party, the next best thing is to bring the party to the people. Shavuot is generally a

time of communal celebration, especially focused on children, commemorating the giving of the Torah over 3,300 years ago at Mount Sinai. Since we couldn’t get together, the JRCC distributed over 500 do-it-at-home Shavuot kits to families in the community. The packages included a Shavuot guide detailing the meaning of the holiday and how to observe it, together with traditional Shavuot dairy treats like cheesecake and blintzes. Some even received a custom face mask.

In addition to the packages, the JRCC Woordbridge organized a virtual gathering the day before Shavuot, to give the holiday a communal feel (since use of technology and electronics is forbidden on the festival itself). Thank you to all who participated and all the organizers who helped create a festive holiday under unusual circumstances!

ALONE WITH G-D

On Tuesday, June 9 the JRCC hosted an evening in honor of the Rebbe with a screening of “Alone With G-d,” a deeply moving, inspiring and reflective documentary film by Betzi Avtzon. The film features readings from the personal journal the Rebbe kept during his time living in France under Nazi occupation. At once poetic and tragic, the journal entries bring to life a mind grappling with the horrors of surrounding world events while finding faith and solace in the sacred texts and ideas of his people. The file intersperses the journal entries with historic footage from that time and place. Over 450 people participated in the virtual event via Zoom and Facebook Live.

VIRTUAL HEBREW SCHOOL GRADUATION

CANDLE LIGHTING TIMES Friday, July 3, 2020

8:44 PM

Friday, July 10, 2020

8:41 PM

Friday, July 17, 2020

8:37 PM

Friday, July 24, 2020

8:31 PM

Friday, July 31, 2020

8:23 PM

www.jrcc.org

Like many educational institutions, The JRCC Hebrew School continued operating live via Zoom over the last few months. To celebrate this year’s graduation, students were treated to a creative program that included a short film called “Hebrew School on Mars 2070,” which distilled many of the lessons learned during the times of Coronavirus – namely, that the Torah is eternal, and its study and the observance of mitzvahs continues under any circumstances.

Parents and students shared their perspectives and gratitude, enjoyed a video retrospective of the current school year, and were treated to a surprise ventriloquist performance and greetings from Chuck and Ziggy. Special gift packages were delivered to each students home, containing the certificates, medals and awards celebrating their achievements over the past year, including the acclaimed Aleph Champ program. The evening ended with a music video, “Forever One,” which reinforced the feeling of unity with Jewish kids around the world and the sense of belonging to the eternity of the Jewish people.

JRCC Our Community

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Shavuot at Home with the JRCC

West Thornhill

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July 2020 / Tammuz 5780

Contact JRCC office for more info

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416.222.7105

Faces of the Community

Tuesdays Together

MILA KANEVSKY Actor

THE JRCC WOMEN’S CIRCLE INVITES YOU TO JULY 7

PARENTING IN A PANDEMIC with Rona Milch Novick, PhD

JULY 21

JULY 14

SEEING THE LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS Mrs. Leah Rubashkin

JULY 28

SHABBAT COOKING DEMO with the JRCC Rebbetzins

TAME YOUR MOOD AND DE-STRESS IN THE AGE OF CORONA, with Sara Chana Silverstein, IBCLC RH

Zoom id 416 222 7105 and zoom.us/my/jrcchq

For more info and to sponsor: www.JRCC.org/VirtualWomen Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario

Please tell us a little about your background and career.

I was born in Kiev and grew up there. I studied Engineering and obtained a degree, however, my Passion since childhood was singing and acting. In the evenings, I attended music college where I studied singing while attending engineering during the day. Shortly afterwards we left for Canada. In Canada, I established my own band and we performed at live concerts, weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, conventions, golf clubs and many other venues.

I am also an actress and host of the popular Russian Canadian broadcasting TV program in Toronto called Mix Tv. In my professional work in Canada as an actress I have gathered over 50 acting credits and made frequent guest appearances on Canadian and American TV series as well as roles in Canadian and US feature films as well as numerous TV and Radio commercials.

In my work for Mix TV, for the last 26 years I have been conducting interviews on the Red Carpet during the Toronto International Film Festivals with Hollywood and international movie stars promoting their films at the Festival. I also attend and review popular theater productions in Toronto.

When did you arrive in Canada, and where did you settle?

My family came to Winnipeg, Canada in December 1977. The Jewish Community embraced us and helped us to adjust to living in a new country after the Soviet regime.

I was fortunate to act in my first movie there and the first song I performed in public was in Yiddish. It was a song I had heard from my Father in my childhood. As I have a gift for languages, I was able to learn songs in fourteen other languages, had my show performing on CBC radio and TV, as well as performing concerts all over Canada.

When did you move to Ontario?

We came to Toronto in 1980 and since that time I have lived in North York. We chose this area because it was the place where most Jewish immigrants settled. At that time Rabbi Yoseph Zaltzman had just established the JRCC, helping new immigrants from the former Soviet Union. I love North York and still live here. My two sons live in midtown and downtown, but I chose to stay in North York.

Tell us a little about your family background.

My paternal grandparents were religious people . They were born in a little shtetel near Kiev, and later moved to Kiev. They had thirteen children, but many of them did not survive. My grandparents were killed during the Second World War while their children fought in the war as soldiers and nurses. My father shared many fascinating stories about them as I was growing up.

My father was an engineer. He had a good position in the Soviet Union. He instilled in me and my brother our Jewish traditions. My mother was a medical doctor, a neurosurgeon. Unfortunately, she passed away at the age of forty-two, when I was very little. I remember my father telling me that despite her high position in the hospital, at that time Jewish people were trying to hide their heritage and assimilate because of the fear of the system. Nevertheless, she was always proud to be Jewish.

My father later remarried, and many of the Jewish traditions continued. I recall that despite risking his safety, my father would bring home special matzah for Passover, and of course hamantaschen for Purim and latkes for Hanukkah were always present in our house.

If you could meet any person, past or present, to share a l’chaim, who would you choose, and why?

If I could have an opportunity to have a L’chaim with somebody, I would choose Steven Spielberg. Even though I may not agree with his political views, I respect him. He is very proud of his roots and when he was a teenager, he took a revenge on anti-Semites in his neighborhood while growing up. I admire his talents as one of the most popular directors and producers in film history, having one two Oscars among other awards.

In my work with Mix TV, I had the privilege of interviewing such Jewish Hollywood stars as Natalie Portman, Adam Sandler, John Goodman, Mila Kunis, Scarlet Johansson, and others. It would be an honor to interview Steven Spielberg, and I’m sure we would have many interesting topics to discuss.

What do you do in your free time? Do you have any hobbies?

My hobbies, besides my two year old twin grandsons who I obviously adore, include learning about alternative and naturopathic medicine for treatments of illnesses and proper nutrition for a healthy lifestyle. I read many articles and books on these topics by acclaimed medical and naturopathic doctors and nutritionists. I also watch podcasts and other programs to widen my knowledge. I guess my mother's gene of loving medicine brought me to this path of learning… and of course, I love music, theatre and movies.

Classes in English with

Rabbi Asher Altshul

Rabbi of Jewish Center “Nachalat Zion”, Brooklyn, NY.

FOR MEN AND WOMEN Join zoom ID: 416.222.7105 www.zoomus/my/jrcchq

www.jrcc.org

Classes on self-validation factors analyzing G-d, Cognitive Dissonance, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

Call from your telephone 647-374-4685 and enter 4162227105#

What is your impression of the JRCC and its programs?

I think that JRCC is doing an absolutely terrific job helping the our most vulnerable population, our seniors at this unprecedented terrible time of COVID-19, by delivering them groceries so they do not have to jeopardize their health by going shopping… real mitzvas. Kudos to JRCC for doing that. I read and enjoy the Exodus magazine’s profound and thought-provoking articles.

What are your plans for the future?

My plans for the future are to stay strong and healthy and enjoy life. I wish to see the success of my two sons… to continue loving them and having fun with my twin grandsons and watch them grow up happy and healthy and become “menschen.” I plan to continue my work with Mix TV, and, of course, continue going for auditions and getting as many acting jobs as may come my way. Although we are experiencing challenges during COVID-19 times, many of which may be with us for a while, we, as Jews, know there is always a hope.

JRCC Our Community

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n

416-222-7105 | www.jrcc.org Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario

VIRTUAL SENIORS PROGRAM Recognizing that we had to mobilize as a community to meet the immediate basic needs of the seniors in our community, the JRCC launched its JRCC.help project in response to the difficulties of the COVID-19 situation, which affect the vulnerable seniors more than anyone. Beyond the physical needs, such as doing their grocery shopping and picking up medications so they can avoid potential exposure and periodically checking in on their welfare, the JRCC team saw a huge need to combat the increased loneliness and isolation of seniors at this time.

Beginning in June, the JRCC launched new weekly social and educational programs. On Wednesdays at 11am there is a live interactive virtual meeting comprised of three sessions. Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman, JRCC founder and senior rabbi, begins with an engaging lecture on a timely and relevant topic, often connecting it to the weekly Torah portion or the Jewish season. The second session is a live musical concert with a professional musician, including the opportunity join in and sing along to Jewish songs.

The third part is a Russian literature session, featuring the reading of poetry or other literature, followed by analysis and discussion. In addition, on Mondays at 11am there is a class led by Esther Neft of the JRCC Rockford, followed by online sport exercises for seniors.

“When the COVID lockdown started,” explains Rabbi Zaltzman, “we immediately knew we had to do something to take care of the immediate needs of our seniors. Once we were able, with G-d’s help and the help of many dedicated volunteers and staff, to organize and cover those needs, we started to work on meeting the emotional needs: What about the heart? What about the soul? People need interaction, they need one another. If someone has all their basic needs bmet but is alone, it can be devastating. So we put a program together. This

5987 Bathurst Stre­et, #3 To­ron­to, ON M2R 1Z3 Canada Office Hours: Sun: 12 — 5 Mon to Thurs: 9 — 6 • Fri: 9 — 3hrs before Shabbat

JRCC BRANCHES

ОНЛАЙН

JRCC of Ontario: 5987 Bathurst St., #3 Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman x278 Roi Aftabi, COO x257

ВСТРЕЧИ

ДЛЯ СТАРШЕГО ПОКОЛЕНИЯ Каждый

ПОНЕДЕЛЬНИК

JRCC Woodbridge: 25 Sandwell St. Rabbi Avrohom Yusewitz x261 JRCC S. Richmond Hill & Maple: 9699 Bathurst St. Rabbi Avrohom Zaltzman x247

Занятия на русском языке Каждую

СРЕДУ в 11:00

в 11:00

ЗАНЯТИЯ С РАББИ

ЗАНЯТИЯ С

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ПРИСОЕДИНЯЙТЕСЬ К НАМ: Zoom.us/my/jrcchq Zoom ID: 416.222.7105

Набирайте с телефона: 647-374-4685 и введите 4162227105#

Информация по телефону: 416-222-7105, доб. 245

is only the beginning, and we hope to do even more.”

The program is conducted in Russian, and seniors can connect via Zoom or by phone for those without internet. For more information or to join, contact Dovid at 416-222-7105 #245. Anyone interested in sponsoring this program or other similar ones to support seniors in our community can contact the JRCC at 416-222-7105 or jrcc@jrcc.org.

Call us @ 416-222-7105 ext. 248 to get a quote for pick-up

July 2020 / Tammuz 5780

JRCC West Thornhill: 1136 Centre St., #2 Rabbi Levi Jacobson x240 JRCC East Thornhill: 7608 Yonge St., #3 Rabbi Mendel Zaltzman x227 JRCC South Thornhill: 1 Cordoba Dr., Party Room Rabbi Levi Blau x288 JRCC Steeles & Hilda: 175 Hilda Ave., Party Room Mr. Melekh Brikman x282 JRCC at Rockford: 18 Rockford Rd. Rabbi Shmuel Neft x235

JRCC Sheppard & Bathurst Senior’s Building 4455 Bathurst St., Party Room / Mr. Roman Goldstein x221

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perspectives

The Prophetic Voice Jonathan Sacks

D

uring the three weeks between 17 Tammuz and Tisha b’Av, as we recall the destruction of the Temples, we read three of the most searing passages in the prophetic literature, the first two from the opening of the book of Jeremiah, the third, next week, from the first chapter of Isaiah.

At perhaps no other time of the year are we so acutely aware of the enduring force of ancient Israel’s great visionaries.

The prophets had no power. They were not kings or members of the royal court. They were (usually) not priests or members of the religious establishment. They held no office. They were not elected. Often they were deeply unpopular, none more so than the author of this week’s haftarah, Jeremiah, who was arrested, flogged, abused, put on trial and only narrowly escaped with his life. Only rarely were the prophets heeded in their lifetimes: the one clear exception was Jonah, and he spoke to non-Jews, the citizens of Nineveh. Yet their words were recorded for posterity and became a major feature of Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible. They were the world’s first social critics and their

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message continues through the centuries. As Kierkegaard almost said: when a king dies, his power ends; when a prophet dies his influence begins.

What was distinctive about the prophet was not that he foretold the future. The ancient world was full of such people: soothsayers, oracles, readers of runes, shamans and other diviners, each of whom claimed inside track with the forces that govern fate and “shape our ends, rough-hew them how we will.” Judaism has no time for such people. The Torah bans one “who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead” (Deut. 18:1011). It disbelieves such practices because it believes in human freedom. The future is not pre-scripted. It depends on us and the choices we make. If a prediction comes true it has succeeded; if a prophecy comes true it has failed. The prophet tells of the future that will happen if we do not heed the danger and mend our ways. He (or she – there were seven biblical prophetesses) does not predict; he or she warns.

Nor was the prophet distinctive in blessing or cursing the people. That was Bilaam’s gift, not Isaiah’s or Jeremiah’s. In Judaism, blessing comes through priests not prophets.

Several things made the prophets unique.

The first was his or her sense of history. The prophets were the first people to see G‑d in history. We tend to take our sense of time for granted. Time happens. Time flows. As the saying goes, time is G‑d’s way of keeping everything from happening at once. But actually there are several ways of relating to time and different civilizations have perceived it differently.

There is cyclical time: time as the slow turning of the seasons, or the cycle of birth, growth, decline and death. Cyclical time is time as it occurs in nature. Some trees have long lives; most fruit flies have short ones; but all that lives, dies. The species endures, individual members do not. Kohelet contains the most famous expression of cyclical time in Judaism: “The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its

Av 5780

perspectives

Only by being open to a power greater than themselves do people become greater than themselves. Only by understanding the deep forces that shape history can a people defeat the ravages of history. course … What has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”

Then there is linear time: time as an inexorable sequence of cause and effect. The French astronomer Pierre-Simon Laplace gave this idea its most famous expression in 1814 when he said that if you “know all forces that set nature in motion, and all positions of all items of which nature is composed,” together with all the laws of physics and chemistry, then “nothing would be uncertain and the future just like the past would be present” before your eyes. Karl Marx applied this idea to society and history. It is known as historical inevitability, and when transferred to the affairs of humankind it amounts to a massive denial of personal freedom.

Finally there is time as a mere sequence of events with no underlying plot or theme.

This leads to the kind of historical writing pioneered by the scholars of ancient Greece, Herodotus and Thucydides.

Each of these has its place, the first in biology, the second in physics, the third in secular history, but none was time as the prophets understood it. The prophets saw

July 2020

time as the arena in which the great drama between G‑d and humanity was played out, especially in the history of Israel. If Israel was faithful to its mission, its covenant, then it would flourish. If it was unfaithful it would fail. It would suffer defeat and exile. That is what Jeremiah never tired of telling his contemporaries.

The second prophetic insight was the unbreakable connection between monotheism and morality. Somehow the prophets sensed – it is implicit in all their words, though they do not explain it explicitly – that idolatry was not just false. It was also corrupting. It saw the universe as a multiplicity of powers that often clashed. The battle went to the strong.

Might defeated right. The fittest survived while the weak perished. Nietzsche believed this, as did the social Darwinists.

The prophets opposed this with all their force. For them the power of G‑d was secondary; what mattered was the righteousness of G‑d. Precisely because G‑d loved and had redeemed Israel, Israel owed Him loyalty as their sole ultimate sovereign, and if they were unfaithful to G‑d they would also be unfaithful to their fellow humans.

They would lie, rob, cheat: Jeremiah doubts whether there was one honest person in the whole of Jerusalem (Jer. 5:1). They would become sexually adulterous and promiscuous: “I supplied all their needs, yet they committed adultery and thronged to the houses of prostitutes. They are well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing for another man’s wife” (Jer. 5:7-8).

Their third great insight was the primacy of ethics over politics. The prophets have surprisingly little to say about politics. Yes, Samuel was wary of monarchy but we find almost nothing in Isaiah or Jeremiah about the way Israel/Judah should be governed.

Instead we hear a constant insistence that the strength of a nation – certainly of Israel/ Judah – is not military or demographic but moral and spiritual. If the people keep faith with G‑d and one another, no force on earth can defeat them. If they do not, no force can save them. As Jeremiah says in this week’s haftarah, they will discover too late that their false gods offered false comfort: They say to wood, ‘You are my father,’

and to stone, ‘You gave me birth.’ They have turned their backs to me and not their faces; yet when they are in trouble, they say, ‘Come and save us!’ Where then are the gods you made for yourselves? Let them come if they can save you when you are in trouble! For you have as many gods as you have towns, O Judah. (Jer. 2:27-28) Jeremiah, the most passionate and tormented of all the prophets, has gone down in history as the prophet of doom. Yet this is unfair. He was also supremely a prophet of hope. He is the man who said that the people of Israel will be as eternal as the sun, moon and stars (Jer. 31). He is the man who, while the Babylonians were laying siege to Jerusalem, bought a field as a public gesture of faith that Jews would return from exile: “For this is what the Lord Almighty, the G‑d of Israel, says: Houses, fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land” (Jer. 32).

Jeremiah’s feelings of doom and hope were not in conflict: there were two sides of the same coin. The G‑d who sentenced His people to exile would be the G‑d who brought them back, for though His people might forsake Him, He would never forsake them. Jeremiah may have lost faith in people; he never lost faith in G‑d.

Prophecy ceased in Israel with Haggai, Zekharia and Malachi in the Second Temple era. But the prophetic truths have not ceased to be true. Only by being faithful to G‑d do people stay faithful to one another. Only by being open to a power greater than themselves do people become greater than themselves. Only by understanding the deep forces that shape history can a people defeat the ravages of history. It took a long time for biblical Israel to learn these truths, and a very long time indeed before they returned to their land, re-entering the arena of history. We must never forget them again. EM Rabbi Dr. Sir Jonathan Sacks, the former Chief Rabbi of the UK and the Commonwealth and a member of the House of Lords, is a leading academic and respected world expert on Judaism. He is a the author of several books and thousands of articles, appears regularly on television and radio, and speaks at engagements around the world.

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i n o t c u r t s De

The Weeks The 17th of Tammuz — July 9, 2020 The 17th of Tammuz is a fast day, so we refrain from eating or drinking from 3:40am to 9:35pm.

Special prayers and Torah readings are also recited.

The Three Weeks – July 9 to July 30, 2020 During the entire Three Weeks, it is customary to refrain from: • Conducting weddings. (Engagement parties — without music — are allowed until Rosh Chodesh Av.) • Playing musical instruments or listening to music.

• Reciting the Shehecheyanu blessing. Thus, we do not wear new clothing or eat fruit which we have not yet eaten this season so that we will not be required to recite Shehecheyanu.

• Getting a haircut or shaving. Many Sephardic communities permit haircuts and shaving until the week of Tisha b'Av (in other words, until Saturday night before the 9th of Av).

The Nine Days — July 22 to July 30, 2020 During the Nine Days preceding the 9th of Av, in addition to the above restrictions it is customary to also refrain from: • Eating meat or drinking wine (except for Shabbat, or a celebration such as a Brit Milah or Bar Mitzvah) • Washing clothes or wearing freshly laundered clothing (except for babies) • Swimming or bathe for pleasure • Remodeling or expanding a home • Planting trees that do not produce fruit • Buy or make new clothing (unless it’s on sale, or for the purpose of a mitzvah) • Cutting nails during the week of Tisha b'Av

Tisha b’Av, the 9th of Av — July 29 - July 30, 2020 On the the 9th of Av, beginning from sunset on the previous evening until dusk, (8:43pm on July 31 until 9:15pm on August 1) we refrain from the following: • Eating or drinking • Wearing leather footwear, or footwear that contains any leather (even if it is only a leather sole) • Sitting on a normal-height chair until midday (1:23pm on July 30) • Bathing or wash oneself, even one’s hands, unless necessary. When preparing food — for children, or for the post-fast meal — one may wash the food, even if it also, incidentally, washes the hands. When ritually washing the hands in the morning, the water should be poured on the fingers only until the knuckle joints.

• Applying ointment, lotions or creams. It is permissible, however, to bathe a baby and apply ointments to his skin.

• Engaging in marital relations or any form of intimacy.

• Sending gifts, or even greetimg another with the customary "hello" or "how are you doing?"

• Engaging in outings, trips or similar pleasurable activities.

• Wearing fine festive clothing.

• Studying Torah. It is, however, permitted — and encouraged — to study sections of the Torah which discuss the laws of mourning, the destruction of the Temples, and the tragedies which befell the Jewish people throughout our history. This prohibition actually begins at midday of the day before Tisha b'Av.

20

& RENEWAL Eve of the 9th of Av (afternoon on July 29, 2020) • Shortly before the fast begins, we eat a “separation meal.” This somber meal is not very plentiful—it follows a larger meal eaten a bit earlier.

This final meal is eaten while sitting on the floor or a low stool. It consists of a piece of bread and a hard-boiled egg dipped in ashes, a symbol of mourning.

• With sundown, all the laws of Tisha B’Av take effect.

Night of the 9th of Av (evening on July 29, 2020) • In the synagogue, the curtain is removed from the Ark and the lights are dimmed. After the evening prayers, the book of Lamentations (Eichah) is read, followed by the recitation of a few brief kinot (elegies)

Morning of the 9th of Av (July 30, 2020) • When ritually washing the hands in the morning, pour water on your fingers only until the knuckle joints. While your fingers are still moist, you may wipe your eyes with them. It is not permitted to rinse out one’s mouth until after the fast.

• Considering that we don’t wear leather footwear on this day, the blessing “Who provided me with all my needs,” which primarily thanks G-d for providing us with shoes, is omitted from the morning blessings.

• Tallit and tefillin are not worn until later in the day (see below) • Depending on one’s custom, there are minor changes in the morning prayer liturgy • After the morning prayers, it is customary to read the kinot elegies.

• Work is permitted on Tisha B’Av, but discouraged, so as not to distract from the mourning. If one must work, it should preferably begin after midday.

• It is customary to give extra charity on every fast day.

Afternoon of the 9th of Av (July 30, 2020) • It is customary to wait until midday before starting the food preparations for the post-fast meal. The intensity of the mourning lessens in the afternoon, as is evident from the relaxing of certain restrictions.

• After midday (1:23pm), it is once again permitted to sit on chairs and benches of regular height.

• In the synagogue, the Ark’s curtain is restored to its place before the afternoon prayers.

• Men don their tallit and tefillin for the afternoon prayers. Before starting the afternoon prayers, it is customary to say those prayers omitted from the conclusion of the morning services.

• Depending on one’s custom, there are minor changes in the afternoon prayer liturgy

After Tisha B’Av • Fast ends at 9:15pm.

• Before breaking the fast, one should perform netilat yadayim, this time covering the entire hand with water, but without reciting the blessing.

• The Temple was set ablaze on the afternoon of the 9th of Av, and burned through the 10th. Therefore, the restrictions of the Nine Days (such as not eating meat, swimming, or laundering clothing) extend until midday of the 10th of Av. However, if Tisha B’Av falls on a Thursday — in which case the 10th falls on Friday—one may wash and cut one’s hair on Friday morning in honor of the Shabbat.

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Our Deepest Sympathies to the families of: Yosif Raices Zyama Rozenberg Hitzle Brown Manya Zelter David Sulsky Bella Treister Gregory Mirand Vitali Lukatsky Galina Adler Daniel Berenzon Asya Ostrovsky Sergey Seredenko Levana Kriger Boris Meerson Dima Vadim Kostin Michael Simin Klara Vainerovsky Eugene Berkovich Bella Abramov Lilia Livshits Chana Miriam Tarshish Leibel Singer Jullia Ekeslassy Tina Sepiashvili Ester Peres (Pres) Dina Baijanov Elisabeta Yudashkin Ludmila Saks Ella Feller Alex Lelchuk Lev Leizerovich Anatoly Kovler Vladimir Burdo Henric Brudno Alex Babitch Tsilia Vaynshteyn Shaul Marjasz

From the rabbis of the Jewish Russian Community Centre Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman (Senior Rabbi) Rabbi Levi Blau Rabbi David Davidov Rabbi Chaim Hildeshaim Rabbi Levi Jacobson Rabbi Shmuel Neft For all your family bereavement needs (funeral, Rabbi Avraham Weinstein unveiling, kaddish services, shiva, yahrzeit and Rabbi Avrohom Yusewitz memorial plaques) the JRCC rabbis are here to Avrohom assist you,Rabbi 24 hours a day. Zaltzman Services available Rabbi Mendel Zaltzman in Russian, Hebrew, English and Yiddish.

416.222.7105 x221 Rabbi Yisroel Zaltzman

July 2020

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KADDISH SERVICES

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MAY MAY MAY MAY MAY

SHAVUOT KVINT (acronym for Kon’iaki, vina i napitki Tiraspol’ia ("divins, wines, and beverages of Tiraspol") is a winery and distillery based in Tiraspol, the administrative center of Transnistria.GRADUATION Even though it underwent through many difficulties, being twice destroyed by

JRCC.HELP

Shop for the best selection of Kvint Wine :

KVINT CABERNET SAUVIGNON KOSHER 2015, LCBO #455138

Are you 70+?

This wine is made under control of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of New York (USA), OU, it has the status of Kosher for PASSOVER, Mevushal (approved for Passover, pasteurized). This wine is made from the selected grapes grown in own vineyards of KVINT. It features pleasant astringency and harmonious acidity. Its bouquet is complex with aroma of nightshade berries enriched with hints of morocco leather.

LET US GET IT FOR YOU

KVINT MERLOT KOSHER 2015, LCBO # 455112

Bright berry aromas: hints of cassis, and delicate nuances of prunes and cherry.

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ExodusMay Magazin2020 e / Iyar 5780

The JRCC is offering

It is velvety on the palate, with barely perceptible services to assist Russianastringency and freshness.

speaking* seniors stay at home during this difficult time.

Are you in need of groceries/ medication or get to a doctors appointment?

LET US HELP YOU.

It is made by special production process with eauxde-vie and wine-distilled spirits aged in oak barrels * This service is offered free of charge (aside from not less than a year. It features fine golden purchasing expenses)color, and is available to the community harmonious taste and bright floral with lightages 70+ and 2) live alone or that is aroma 1) Russian-speakers tones of maturity. with no younger family members and 3) live in the areas

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE JRCC HEBREW SCHOOL VISIT WWW.JRCCSCHOOLS.ORG

Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario

Also Kvint is focusing their efforts on making a wide assortment of wines. Along with ordinary table dry, Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario semi-sweet and dessert wines, the KVINT’s portfolio Еврейский Центр Русскоязычной Oбщины Онтарио can boast of some excellent varietal and blended wines matured in oak barriques, according to traditional production process from 9 months to 3 years.

WWW.JRCCSCHOOLS.CA 3

10 17 24 31

Online Torah Lectures & Programs.

For more information please visit

Now a days this wars, becoming a part of prohibition law in the 80s, company with the company is now an important economic player in more than 118 a region, producing more than 20 million bottles of years of history alcoholic beverages per year. holds a OSCAR leading YOLLES position among the Although the distillery's roster includes an assortment manufacturers of of wines, gins, and vodkas, by far the most famous of alcoholic beverages its products are its award-winning brandies. Like all in Moldova. Unique top-notch spirits, the high quality of this liquor begins with the region's grapes. Occupying the land east of the OSCAR climate, fertile soil, YOLLES hilly terrain and River Dniester, Transnistria is in the heart of the ancient vicinity of the river Bessarabian wine region, a gem of viniculture perched Dniester created above the Black Sea that has also survived the many most favorable ups and downs of centuries of Russian rule. conditions for Plucked from the Bessarabian vine, the grapes fortunate growing best grapes; enough to make their way to Tiraspol are transformed modern equipment, into brandy using a process identical to that used to advanced technologies, original recipes, respect make Cognac in France—double distilled in copper to ancient traditions and passionate work ofREST KVINT pots, aged inYEAR? oak barrels, and then carefully blended WANT TO JOIN OUR HEBREW SCHOOL FOR THE OF THE SCHOOL professionals – all these factors allow to produce with water and sugar. The grapes are of a typical JOIN USbeverages, ONLINE FOR THE COMING WEEKS. admirable which compete with world Cognac variety, an assortment that includes Colombard, renowned brands.

Riesling, and Ugni Blanc. Despite the company's rigid Contact us at Locals consider KVINT a national treasure and a adherence to the French production methods, Kvint is notEDUCATION located in Cognac, France and therefore cannot GIVE CHILD THE GIFT OF A JEWISH symbolYOUR of their country. formally call their products "Cognacs." Instead they Its factory is shown on the 5 Transnistrian ruble use the Moldovan word divin, hence Kvint's name, banknote. which is an acronym for the Russian phrase "divins, wines, and beverages of Tiraspol." But in a land where Kvint distillery is the oldest enterprise still in operation international laws don't seem to really apply, most local from 1897 in the region. KVINT is one of Transnistria's people still refer to Kvint's products as Cognacs, and it AHAVAT largest exporters, to Italy and ChinaYISRAEL as well as Russia is called Brandy everywhere else in the world. and Ukraine; its brandy has gone to the Vatican and into space.

BRANDY KVINT KOSHER and DIVIN KVINT KOSHER FOR DAY PASSOVER are now available at LCBO stores, LAGproduced BAOMER & MOTHER’S Kvint XO brandy was first by the Tiraspol Vintage # 577817 and # 540039.

Wine & Cognac Distillery KVINT in 1967 as a dedication to the jubilee of the October Revolution. It is made from It is made under control of the Union of Orthodox ISRAEL spirits seasoned Jewish Congregations of New York (USA), OU, it the premium quality “eaux-de-vie” in oak barrels not less than 20 years according to has the status of Kosher for Passover (approved for classical “French methode”.

Passover).

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ONLINE CLASSES

We’re here to try to ensure that the mourner’s Kaddish will be said in their merit at a minyan of ten men.

of Major Mackenzie to Eglinton and Dufferin to Yonge.

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BREAKING NEWS!

To help our community deal with the financial fallout of the pandemic, Jewish Free Loan Toronto has created a new, emergency COVID 19 LOAN

Up to $8000 available completely interest-free APPLY NOW

• Phone interviews • Direct deposits into your accounts • Quick turn around

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If you need help paying for childcare, making up lost wages or compensation for any COVID related loss, we are here to help.

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416 635 1217 x 5269 | irakrush@jewishfreeloan.ca Charity Registration # 108122417 RR0001

FIERA FOODS COMPANY IS HIRING! As one of North America’s largest, privately-owned large-scale bakeries, Fiera Foods Company and affiliated companies has an incredible history of expansion, innovation and quality over the past 30 years.

We’re looking for outstanding people to join our outstanding team.

• Production (Mixers, Scalers, Oven Operators, Production Line Operators,

General Production Staff, Forklift Operators, Shipper/Receivers); • Skilled Trades (Electricians, Mechanics, Refrigeration Mechanics, PLC Technicians) • Sales (Canada and US); • Management (Lead hand, Supervisory, Management, Project Engineers)

Our commitment to quality, excellence, and responsiveness are critical to our team and our success. Superior communication, teamwork and attention to detail are expected of everyone.

Please submit your resume and your compensation expectations to jobs@fierafoods.com or call (416) 746 1010 (ext. 258).

We thank all in advance for their interest, however only those selected for interviews will be contacted.

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Beynon Fields Public School 258 Selwyn Road Tuesdays: 6:00 PM to 7:45 PM

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Nellie McClung Public School 360 Thomas Cook Ave. Sundays: 10:00AM to 12:30 PM

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411 Confederation Pkwy., Unit 14 Mondays: 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM Address correction requested

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25 Sandwell St. Tuesdays: 4:00 PM to 5:30 PM

7608 Yonge St. Unit #3 Wednesdays: 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM

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18 Rockford Rd. Sundays: 11:00 AM to 1:30 PM

WILLOWDALE

Questrade Learning Centre 5700 Yonge St., Unit G1 Sundays 11:00 AM to 1:30 PM

HEBREW SCHOOL ONLINE Tuesdays at 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM