Pearls of Wisdom

Hope you can join us today as we celebrate the last day of Sukkot in our premises of Beth Yeshua international 129 Mason St., Woonsocket, RI

Have you ever wondered what we should remember during the Rosh Hashanah holiday? We are to remember something specific, according to the biblical test. But what exactly should we remember?

What does “work” mean to you? Does it mean earning a paycheck? Breaking a sweat? As most of us know, the Torah prohibits work on the Sabbath -- but the word means different things to different people. Can you run a marathon on the Sabbath? What if it doesn’t feel like “work”? The Talmud answers these questions in detail, listing fully thirty-nine different categories of work, along with all of their sub-categories and sub-sub-categories. The Sages identify hundreds of laws that govern the observance of the Sabbath: laws about how to cut and heat your food, about what and where to carry, and about how to tie your shoes. And where do they look to formulate these laws? The Sages say that the basis for understanding what “work” is comes from this week’s parsha, Parshat Vayakhel.

In this week's parsha we read of the catastrophic debacle involving the generation that left Egypt - the episode of the golden calf. In the midst of Moshe's pleas to God to forgive the nation, we find a personal and intimate tone entering the dialogue. Alongside Moshe's request, "If now You will forgive their sin..." (referring to the nation's sin) we also find another, personal request of Moshe: "Show me Your way, that I may know You... Show me Your glory." This request is problematic; clearly a mortal human cannot perceive God, as God Himself immediately emphasizes in response: "You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live." And so God and Moshe reach a sort of compromise: "You shall see My back, but My face will not be seen." This personal discussion, which seems to concern Moshe only as a private individual and is completely unrelated to the problem of the sin and the forgiveness of the nation, a problem rendered acute by the impending threat of destruction by God, certainly requires some explanation.

La shekhinah es la transliteración en inglés de una palabra hebrea que significa "morada" o "establecimiento" y denota la morada o asentamiento de la presencia divina de Dios.

The shekhinah is the English transliteration of a Hebrew word meaning "dwelling" or "settling" and denotes the dwelling or settling of the divine presence of God.

The shekhinah is the English transliteration of a Hebrew word meaning "dwelling" or "settling" and denotes the dwelling or settling of the divine presence of God.

In this week’s portion, Tetzaveh, (EX. 27:20) The Creator tells Moses to command the children of Israel to PROVIDE pure olive oil to feed the "EVERLASTING FLAME" of the menorah. Is during this week’s portion also that the Creator explain to Moses the principles of the priestly garments, worn by the Kohanim (priests) while serving in the Sanctuary.

La construcción del Mishkán ("Tabernáculo") es uno de los puntos máximos espirituales de los hijos de Israel. Pero los detalles de esa construcción, como la Torá los transmite, no son exactamente conmovedores. Cuando lees los versos de la Torá aquí, sobre los colores de las cortinas de Mishkán, las dimensiones de su altar y los detalles de los anillos de su mesa, difícilmente se te puede culpar si tus ojos comienzan a brillar. Pero si se esfuerza en sintonizar las palabras, puede notar un detalle en particular que se destaca, un aspecto de la decoración del Mishkán que parece insinuar algo mucho más profundo que un simple plano para un edificio físico.

If there is something that we can learn in this weeks Torah portion, is the importance of doing the work when it comes to believing. That’s right! Faith requires work.