| |
|
CHUMASH
Parshas Shoftim - Revi'i with Rashi
|
|
Moshe Rabbeinu is still talking to the Yidden about how to act in Eretz Yisroel. First he tells them about the kohanim’s job, and then tells the Yidden not to try to figure out what will happen in the future!
Each of the kohanim have turns to go serve in the Beis Hamikdash. It’s not fair for them to go work in the Beis Hamikdash when it’s not their turn!
But there are two times a kohen CAN work in the Beis Hamikdash even if it’s a different kohanim’s family’s turn:
1) If they are bringing their OWN korban, they are allowed to bring it themselves
2) On Yom Tov, EVERYONE is allowed to help!
The kohanim who are working in the Beis Hamikdash share the parts of the korbanos that belong to them.
Now we learn that Yidden are not supposed to try to figure out what will happen in the future:
Learn from the Goyim how NOT to act!
None of the Yidden should do the strange Avodah Zarah that the Goyim do. They also shouldn’t try to figure out what will happen later by looking at things — like asking a stick what to do, making real or fake magic, or asking questions to the koach of Tumah.
To Hashem, these kinds of things are very not nice, and He is sending the Goyim out of Eretz Yisroel because they act this way!
Yidden — “Tomim Tihiyeh Im Hashem Elokecha” — Act in an honest way with Hashem, don’t try to figure out what is going to happen, just have bitachon and Hashem will take care of you!
|
| |
|
|
Today’s shiur Tehillim is kapitelach Chof-Gimmel to Chof-Ches. We also say kapitelach Yud, Yud-Alef, and Yud-Beis for Chodesh Elul.
In today’s Tehillim, there are two pesukim (Kapitel Chof-Hey, pesukim ches and tes) that talk about how Hashem shows us the right way to live. The last words of these pesukim are “VeYelamed Anavim Darko” — Hashem teaches humble people His path.
The Rambam says that this is talking about two things that Hashem gives to Yidden to help them do teshuvah and do the right things:
1) He sends them Neviim (and Rebbeim) who teach them the ways of Hashem and how to do teshuva, and
2) Hashem makes a person to WANT to do the right thing when they learn about it.
These two things together make it much easier for us to do JUST what Hashem wants!
|
| |
|
TANYA
Igeres Hakodesh Siman Yud-Alef
|
|
We are learning a new letter of the Alter Rebbe today! This letter is called “Lehaskilcha Binah,” and it talks about how everything Hashem does is good, even when it might not feel like it. When we know this all the time, we will be very close to Hashem.
Sometimes a person will do something that they know they shouldn’t be doing. They daven to Hashem that nobody should see them doing it!
Does that person believe in Hashem? Of course he does. But is his Emunah making him live the way Hashem wants?
The Alter Rebbe shows us how our Emunah needs to make us happy all the time:
Sometimes, chas veshalom, something can happen to a person Begashmius that can make him sad. Maybe he got hurt, or something he likes got lost, or someone got mad at him.
That seems like a good reason to get upset, or to be very sad.
The Alter Rebbe tells us that if our Emunah in Hashem is very strong, we won’t be sad! Why? Because everything that Hashem does is really good. The only reason why we don’t see it or feel it is because Hashem hides in the world — even though He is with us all the time, He made the world in a way we won’t feel it. So we might think that something isn’t good...
But if we KNOW the truth, how can we be sad? We know it’s from Hashem, so it MUST be good — Hashem is only good!
Hashem sometimes makes things LOOK not good to test us. When we get a test from Hashem, it makes us work hard so that our neshama shines very strong. We have to use ALL of the koach of our neshama to remember that the most important thing is Emunah in Hashem. With that Emunah, we can be happy even when it’s hard.
When we are besimcha even when it’s hard, since we know that Hashem is good, we become very close to Hashem. Then we will be able to see things like Hashem sees them, and we’ll be able to see how it really is good.
|
| |
|
|
In today’s Hayom Yom, we learn our minhag for what someone does when he gets an Aliyah. We also learn about the four levels of how a person can be, and how we ALL have the koach to change!
When someone is called up to the Torah in Shul, here’s what he does before making the bracha!
1) Using your tallis, touch the words of the Torah at the beginning and end of the Aliyah we’re about to read.
2) Roll up the Torah so it’s closed.
3) Turn your face a little bit to the right side.
4) Make the Bracha on the Torah
5) We open the Torah up again, and lein the Aliyah!
We are now in Chodesh Elul, and we are working on making ourselves better and better! But CAN we really be better? Today we will see that each of us has the koach inside of us to change!
In the Torah, there are four words that we use that mean “a person.” (Like a Neshama can be called Nefesh, Ruach, Neshama...)
When we use the word “Adam,” we are talking about a person who is special with their sechel — how they understand what Hashem wants.
When we use the word “Ish,” it means someone who has good midos.
“Enosh” is a person who is missing something in their sechel, or their midos, or both.
And “Gever” is someone who works on himself to become better than before — so he won’t be Enosh anymore, but be “Ish” and “Adam”!
That teaches us that we ALL have the koach to change — we can all be “Ish” and “Adam” — to have good midos and good sechel. We just need to work on it!
|
| |
|
|
Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #14) is to wear tzitzis! We need to attach special tzitzis strings to the corners of clothes that have four corners. One of those strings is supposed to be blue, called techeiles! But even if we don’t have the blue string, we still do the mitzvah with just white strings.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Shelach: וְעָשׂוּ לָהֶם צִיצִת וְגוֹ׳ וְנָתְנוּ עַל צִיצִת הַכָּנָף פְּתִיל תְּכֵלֶת
The details are explained in Mesechta Menachos perek Daled.
|
| |
|
|
We learn the WHOLE Hilchos Tzitzis today. The Rambam explains all of the halachos in just three perakim!
In Perek Alef, we start to learn about tzitzis! Really, the tzitzis are supposed to have seven white strings, and one techeiles string. But since we don’t have techeiles, we can still do the mitzvah with just white strings.
Perek Beis: Even though there are other ways to make a color that LOOKS like techeiles, only real techeiles will stay the same color no matter what. So to check if a string was dyed with real techeiles, we soak it a strong liquid to see if the color fades! Only real techeiles is kosher for tzitzis.
Perek Gimmel: According to the Torah, only clothes made of wool or linen need tzitzis, but the Chachomim told us to put tzitzis on clothes made of ANY material with four corners.
Did you know that a kapote can have four corners? If you look at your Tatty’s kapote, you will see that one of the corners is rounded, so it doesn’t count as a corner. If it wasn’t round, you would need to put tzitzis on your kapote too!
|
| |
|
|
This perek tells us the rules of how big a piece of cloth needs to be in order to become tomei.
|
| |
|
|
The name of this month teaches us how to do our avodah during the month!
During the month of Elul we have two main jobs:
- Cheshbon (fixing up what happened last year)
- Hachana (getting ready for Rosh Hashana!)
We need to make sure that the things our lives are all about are strong.
What are those things?
We know (from the beginning of Pirkei Avos) that the world (and every person too!) stands on three things: Torah, Avodah, and Gemilus Chasadim.
So those are the things we work on during Elul.
That’s why the name “Elul” has four letters, that are the first letters (Roshei Teivos) of pesukim that talk about these things in the Torah!
- Torah: Ina Leyado Vesamti Lach (a posuk from the Chumash, which talks about an Ir Miklat, because the Torah keeps us safe like an Ir Miklat)
- Avodah (Tefilah): Ani Ledodi Vedodi Li (a posuk from Shir Hashirim, which speaks about the love a Yid has for Hashem, something which we try to feel during davening)
- Gemilus Chassadim (Tzedakah): Ish Lereiehu Umatanos L’evyonim (a posuk from the Megillah, which talks about helping other people)
And in case we ever missed a chance, then we can always do Teshuvah!
- Teshuvah: Es Levacha Ve’es Levav (part of a posuk from the Chumash that talks about Teshuvah)
And finally, everything we do is to bring the Geulah! Elul has a Roshei Teivos for that too: Ashira LaHashem Vayomru Leimor (a posuk from Az Yashir which talks about the Geulah from Mitzrayim)
|
| |
|
▼ Jump to Coloring Books & Downloads ▼
|
| |
|
|
Boruch She’amar is the bracha at the beginning of Pesukei Dezimra. In Pesukei Dezimra, we speak about the greatness of Hashem. The Chachomim taught us that we should spend some time praising Hashem before asking for our needs in Shemoneh Esrei.
By speaking about Hashem’s greatness in Pesukei Dezimra, we wake up our feelings of connection to Hashem. This helps us daven with a proper kavana.
We say the bracha of Boruch She’amar at the beginning of Pesukei Dezimra, and the bracha of Yishtabach at the end. This way the whole Pesukei Dezimra is surrounded by brachos!
|
| |
|
|
It’s a Mitzvah Min Hamuvchar (a mitzvah done in the best way) not just to say the right brachos on foods, but to say them in the right order!
We look at the food that we have in front of us, and say the brachos on each kind based on the order of brachos.
(Of course we only say all of these brachos in order if we are planning on eating them! We don’t have to go look for an extra food to eat just because that bracha comes earlier in the list. It is just that the brachos we DO say should be in the right order.)
If there is a good reason why not to, we don’t have to follow this order.
For example, we are allowed to eat in the normal order of the meal. Even if we have dessert in front of us, we can first make a bracha on the main course, even if the bracha on dessert comes earlier in the list of brachos. So if you have meat and potatoes for supper, and cake for dessert, you don’t have to make the Mezonos on the cake before making the bracha on the meat and potatoes!
Health reasons are also a good reason why not to follow the order of brachos. If someone needs a drink so that he will be able to swallow, he can first make a Shehakol and take a drink, before going on to make the rest of the brachos on the list in order.
See Piskei Teshuvos siman 211, se’if Alef; Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch siman 249, Kuntres Acharon Daled
|
|
לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
שליח כ"ק אדמו"ר נשיא דורנו למדינת אילינוי
|
| |
|
|
The Navi Micha teaches us wonderful things that will happen at the end of the Golus!
The Navi tells us these things as if they already happened, because in his nevuah he was already able to see that it happened this way!
עָלָה הַפֹּרֵץ לִפְנֵיהֶם פָּרְצוּ וַיַּעֲבֹרוּ שַׁעַר וַיֵּצְאוּ בוֹ וַיַּעֲבֹר מַלְכָּם לִפְנֵיהֶם וַה׳ בְּרֹאשָׁם
Ala Haporetz Lifneihem — The Poreitz (the person who breaks through things to make the way easier) went up before them!
Some meforshim say that this is talking about Eliyahu Hanavi who helps the Yidden do teshuvah, and the Medrash says that it is talking about Moshiach, who comes from the family of Peretz!
Partzu Vayaavoru Shaar Vayeitzu Vo — They broke through a gate and went out through it!
They broke through anything that was stopping the Geulah from coming!
Vayaavor Malkam Lifneihem — And their King Moshiach went in front of them!
VaHashem Berosham — And Hashem was before them!
The Shechinah of Hashem again rested before the Yidden in the Beis Hamikdash!
See Micha perek Beis posuk Yud-Gimmel
|
| |
|
|
|
לע"נ התינוק זאב ארי' ע"ה בן יבלט"א הרה"ח ר' שניאור זלמן שי' גליק
נפטר ב' מנחם אב ה'תשע"ג
|
| |
Give children around the world the gift of Kids Chitas!
KidsChitas.org/sponsor
|
| |
|
