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CHUMASH
Parshas Shemini - Shvi'i with Rashi
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If something touches the body of a non-kosher animal that died, it becomes tomei. If it is something that you can’t kasher, you need to break it. These pesukim teach us many of the halachos about Tumah and Tahara!
Hashem tells us to eat only kosher animals, birds, and fish because we need to be holy, just like Hashem is holy!
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In today’s Tehillim there are some kapitelach we say during Shacharis on Shabbos. The kapitel “Hodu Lashem Ki Tov, Ki Le’olam Chasdo”, also called Hallel HaGadol (Kapitel Kuf-Lamed-Vov), is one of them. We also have Al Naharos Bavel in today’s Tehillim, which we say before bentching on a weekday.
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Mem-Beis
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The Alter Rebbe is giving us eitzos to help us have Yiras Shomayim during the day.
We said that one of the ways to have Yiras Shomayim is to think about how we’re standing in front of Hashem, because when a person is standing in front of a king, he is afraid to do anything the king won’t like!
But how can we feel like we’re standing in front of a king? We can SEE a king, but we can’t see Hashem!
The Alter Rebbe tells us how we CAN see Hashem!
Are you afraid of a king when he is asleep? No! We are only afraid of the king when he is awake. We are afraid of the CHAYUS of the king, and when we see the king when he is awake, we can see that the king’s chayus is there!
Guess what?
When we look at things in the world, like the mountains and the trees and the sun and the clouds — we are looking at something that is full of Hashem’s chayus, just like we are looking at a king! If we remember this when we look at things, it can make us feel Yiras Shomayim.
We have to practice a lot and make it into a habit! Whenever we see something, we can think — everything in the world is like Hashem’s “clothes”! That will remind us that this thing is also full of Hashem’s chayus! This will help us have Yiras Shomayim.
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But we need to have Yiras Shomayim ALL the time, and we’re not always able to be thinking these thoughts! We may be busy with something, or not in the right mood.
So now the Alter Rebbe tells another eitzah for Yiras Shomayim: All we need to do is remember a few words in our mind. Then, together with the koach of emunah in our neshama, we’ll be able to always have Kabolas Ol, no matter what — anytime! These are the words to remind ourselves: Kabolas Ol Malchus Shomayim.
Just thinking these few words will remind us how Hashem is watching us, and that we accept Hashem as our King. This will help us act in a way of Kabolas Ol, just the way we realize how Hashem is our King when we say Shema Yisroel and bow to Hashem in Shemoneh Esrei!
So if you’re ever at a farbrengen, and somebody says “We need to have more Kabolas Ol!” you might wonder how it helps to just say that. But like we learn in today’s Tanya, remembering those words all the time has a koach to help us act the way Hashem wants!
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Today is the thirteenth day of the Omer!
The Alter Rebbe appointed the Mitteler Rebbe to be a mashpia for the young married Chassidim. Once, they were sitting together at a farbrengen, and they spoke about Ahavas Yisroel. At one point, a chossid lifted up his kos and gave himself a bracha, saying “Hashem should give me the zechus to have true Ahavas Hashem!”
A little bit later, the Mitteler Rebbe took his kos in his hand and said, “Hashem should give me the zechus to have true Ahavas Yisroel!”
The Chassidim who were there argued among themselves. Some said that Ahavas Hashem is much greater than Ahavas Yisroel, and others said that Ahavas Yisroel is even greater than Ahavas Hashem. For many weeks they were confused about this, until they decided to ask the Alter Rebbe.
After the proper hachana, and when the right opportunity came up, they asked the Alter Rebbe:
Ahavas Hashem and Ahavas Yisroel are two mitzvos. Even though they are both kinds of love, they are both different. Which Avodah is greater, Ahavas Hashem or Ahavas Yisroel?
As the Alter Rebbe would often do, he answered them in short and with a niggun:
Ahavas Hashem and Ahavas Yisroel are both a part of the neshama of every Yid. Still, Ahavas Yisroel is greater.
Because the posuk says, “Ahavti Eschem Amar Hashem,” Hashem says, “I love you (the Yidden).” So when you love a Yid, you have both, because you love who Hashem loves!
After they got this answer from the Alter Rebbe, they made it a regular minhag to speak about Ahavas Yisroel by farbrengens, until it became truly a part of them.
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Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #245) is the same mitzvah again. When we sell something to another Yid, or buy something from another Yid, we have to do it the Torah way! There are many halachos that we need to follow to make sure we are doing it right.
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RAMBAM
Hilchos Zechiya U'Matana
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In today’s Rambam, we learn halachos about special kinds of presents:
In Perek Zayin, we learn about Shushvinus: In the olden days, when a person wanted to get married, his friends would all give him money. Then, he would have to give THEM money when they were ready to get married. Since this was like a loan, not like a real present, in some cases they would be able to demand the money back through the Beis Din.
Perek Ches teaches us that with a Shechiv MeRa, someone very sick, there are some special rules, to make it easier for a person to give presents to his family before he passes away. The halacha is that these presents are only given if he does pass away — if he gets better, he can change his mind or give them in the regular way.
Perek Tes has halachos about times when we might think the Shechiv MeRa’s presents shouldn’t count.
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This perek has halachos about men who are not able to have children.
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Today is Chof-Ches Nissan.
What’s special about today? There’s a very famous sicha that the Rebbe said. The Rebbe told us, “Tut Altz Vos Ir Kent Tzu Brengen Moshiach” — “do everything you can to bring Moshiach!”
In the first part of the sicha, the Rebbe spoke about how the time is special and has horaos for us in our Avodas Hashem. The Rebbe showed us how the year is special, how the month of Nisan is special, how Chof-Ches is special, and how it’s Erev Rosh Chodesh. The Rebbe showed us how “living with the time” needs to inspire us in giving more tzedakah and in doing our shlichus to bring the Geulah!
The Rebbe used very strong words to tell Chassidim that talking about bringing Moshiach won’t help unless we really WANT the Geulah! We need to be ready to work on ourselves, to take the horaos the Rebbe gives us and really make them part of our lives. This way we will be able to come out of the Golus inside of ourselves, and bring the Geulah to the whole world!
(Listen to the sicha here: http://www.chabad.org/555021 — it’s a little over 11 minutes long.)
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This week is Shabbos Mevorchim Iyar! We say the whole Tehillim in the morning, learn Chassidus (or review a Perek of Tanya), and then daven.
This week we also start saying Pirkei Avos on Shabbos. During the weeks between Pesach and Shavuos, we read a perek of Pirkei Avos each Shabbos, so that we finish the whole Mesechta before Matan Torah.
Pirkei Avos is a very good way to prepare for receiving the Torah on Shavuos! The first perek starts off with the way that the Torah was passed down to the Yidden. It teaches how to have good midos, which we work on during Sefiras Haomer. And the last perek is called Kinyan Torah, teaching us how to be able to learn and understand Torah.
The Alter Rebbe says in his siddur that we say Pirkei Avos after Mincha. It is almost like a part of davening, where the main thing is to say the words. Still, the Rebbe tells us that it is appropriate to also learn at least one Mishnah of that week’s perek with explanations.
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There are many types of things that are muktza on Shabbos.
Some kinds of muktza things are very strict. We are almost NEVER allowed to move them on Shabbos. This is called Muktza Chamur, the strict kind of muktza.
Then there are things that the Chachomim are not as strict about. We are not allowed to move these things on Shabbos to keep them from getting ruined, but we CAN move them if we need to use them for something we are allowed to do on Shabbos, or if we need it out of the way so we can use that space. This is called Muktza Kal, the less strict kind of muktza.
We will IY”H learn more about each of these kinds of muktza, and what things in our houses are each kind.
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לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
שליח כ"ק אדמו"ר נשיא דורנו למדינת אילינוי
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There are two kinds of Geulah:
The Geulah Klolis is when all Yidden are taken out of this Golus.
The Geulah Protis is when we are free of the Golus inside of us — all of the things that stop us from doing our Avodas Hashem properly. Problems with health, parnasa, and our own Yetzer Haras make it hard for us to serve Hashem.
When we have our personal geulah from things that keep us from doing mitzvos, we will be able to bring the Geulah Klolis for ALL of the Yidden!
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לע"נ התינוק זאב ארי' ע"ה בן יבלט"א הרה"ח ר' שניאור זלמן שי' גליק
נפטר ב' מנחם אב ה'תשע"ג
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