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Going the extra miles for charity
BRITAIN’S BIGGEST JEWISH NEWSPAPER 2 May 2019
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27 Nisan 5779
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Issue No.1104
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@JewishNewsUK
Marathon runners raised tens of thousands of pounds to enable charities to continue their vital work Page 3
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A MESSAGE FOR THE MONTH OF IYAR RABBI ANDREW SHAW CEO MIZRACHI UK For some, Iyar is simply a month with no real days of note, save Lag B Omer on the 18th. However, for the Modern Orthodox and Religious Zionist world, Iyar contains two miraculous days where Hallel is recited as we give praise and thanks to God for our return to our homeland and our capital city after 2000 years of exile. Those days being on the 5th and 28th Iyar, the joyous days of Yom Ha’atzmaut and Yom Yerushalayim. The Talmud (Megillah 6b–7a) discusses the question of when it is a Jewish leap year, which Adar do we celebrate Purim and when do we read the megillah? There is a disagreement between Rav Eliezer who holds it is the first Adar and Rav Shimon ben Gamliel who holds the second. The Gemara concludes that we should go according to Rav Shimon ben Gamliel and celebrate Purim in Adar Sheni. However, the Gemara wishes to understand the logic of Rav Shimon. Rav Tavi explains that he wished to juxtapose the celebration of one redemption (Purim) to the celebration of another (Pesach) – ‘Somech Geulah l’ Geulah’. With the events of the last 71 years, I think we can conclude that we now have three successive months of Geulah, as the month of Iyar also contains modern days of redemption for the Jewish people.
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A most remarkable idea comes from the students of the Vilna Gaon which shows how the days of Iyar were waiting to be established as Jewish festivals in our days. Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Rivlin, a student of the Gaon in the early 1800’s wrote:
‘The days during which we count the Omer are best suited for rising to higher levels of sanctity, but on the other hand they are more susceptible to infection for it is a well-known principle that whatever is more sacred in time or place, in all manner of sanctity, is more likely to be harmed by the forces of evil. For this reason one must take extra precaution during the Omer not to come into contact with bad company and to avoid danger, apart from two specific days during the Omer on which evil has no dominion, and these days are the 20th day of the Omer and the 42nd day of the Omer.’ How incredible are these words by Rabbi Rivlin! Over 150 years later, the 20th day of the Omer would become Yom Ha’atzmaut and the 42nd day would become Yom Yerushalayim! Jewish giants of old understood the miraculous way that God works in history. However, they never merited to see our return in 1948 and the establishment of Yom Ha’atzmaut as a Festival by the Chief Rabbinate of the modern State of Israel. We know that the lowest point of the Jewish year is the three weeks between the 17th Tammuz and the 9th Av where we mourn the destruction of the Bet Hamikdash and the beginning of our long exile. There are another ‘three weeks’ in the Jewish
year. From the 5th Iyar to the 28th Iyar we celebrate the end of the physical exile and the beginning of our spiritual redemption – ‘Reishit Tzmichat Geuloteinu.’ The month of Iyar for Mizrachi is a month of celebration to recognise that we are living in wondrous times. We will be performing our memorable ‘Dreams of a Nation’ production on Lag B’Omer in Southgate and on Yom Yerushalayim in Western Marble Arch. We will also be joining Bnei Akiva for Yom Ha’atzmaut celebrations at Kinloss as well as coming together with Likud Herut UK and Hendon communities for a Yom Yerushalayim celebration. However, most importantly we will be linking these miraculous days with a remarkable weekend of Torah learning when we will be bringing 26 of the top educators from Israel for the Weekend of Inspiration. Four days of Torat Yisrael, which will be held all across the country in three cities and nearly fifty separate communities culminating in the Day of Inspiration in both London and Manchester on Sunday 19th May – right in the heart of the three weeks. In this wrap there is a guide of ‘The Day of Inspiration’ at Kinloss. Please read the full line up of speakers and titles and book your place . We urge the community to engage with this wonderful celebration of Torah from Israel which we believe adds the crown of Torah to this month of redemption for our remarkable nation. Chag Atzmaut Sameach, Rabbi Andrew Shaw
01/05/2019 16:21