Dear Friend,
We know how important we all are as individuals, and how valuable each person is. Good people and societies truly believe this and live their lives by this code.
There inevitably comes a time in each of our lives, when this ideal is challenged, when one individual loses their value in our eyes regardless of the reason, and our strong belief in the potential and value of each individual becomes compromised.
The Torah portion in this week of Bamidbar speaks about counting the Jewish people. In many cases we see numbers being assigned to people in order to dehumanize them, but it is precisely the act of seeing each individual as a number, that keeps the value of each individual sacred and untouchable.
In regard to money for example, our bottom line is made up of all the numbers that came before it. If we don't like a number in the middle somewhere and we remove it, one might think that this is an isolated case, it's just one number and it won't make a difference. However any child can tell us that removing a number will always subtracts from the bottom line, numbers are not isolated, they affect the grand total.
G-d wants us to see people as a series of numbers, where each individual adds up to a beautiful grand total.
This allows for the greatest opportunities and potentials in life where each person is a complete, unique individual representing a number, with that number being a vital instrument in determining the grand total, and the grand total being completely dependent on each individual.
In this way, we can never discount the importance of any individual, even those individuals who challenge our value of the importance of each individual.
May we earn the unity we believe in with the coming of Moshiach now!!
Sincerely,
Rabbi Mendel & Elke Zaltzman
Supporting our community
Helpful Information and resources as we stay strong through challenging times
All Synagogue services are currently suspended, instead we present you with Online Connection. In order to maintain as much of a regular schedule as possible, please join online for learning and services.
UPCOMING COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS
Pre Shabbat Inspiration: Friday, May 22 : 7:30pm
Online Connection Havdalah Service: Saturday night, May 23: 9:20pm
SHABBOS TIMES
Friday, May 22 Pre Shabbat inspiration 7:30pmClick to join
Candle Lighting 7:56pm All services are currently suspended until further notice.
Saturday, May 23
Shabbos Ends 9:04pm
Online Havdalah Service by Rabbi Mendel 9:20pmClick to join
Join us to put on your tefillin daily with Rabbi Mendel.
You can watch on Facebook Live
or join on Zoom for an interactive experience.
Meeting ID: 844 5830 8774
Password: Tefillin
Scotch and Torah
Tuesdays 8-9pm
Talking everything and anything Jewish
Also taking your questions live, or in advance.
Meeting ID: 815 3401 3112
Password: scotch
Storytime with Rabbi Mendel
Mondays and Thursdays 8-8:30pm
We will be meeting online for story time every Monday and Thursday at 8pm.
You can watch on Facebook Live or join the meeting for an interactive experience.
Meeting ID: 850 5673 3633
Password: story
A BISSELE HUMOR
Rivkah gets into work late one Monday morning and goes to see her boss to apologize.
"I’m sorry I’m late, but I had to move some furniture this morning before I came into work. In fact my back is killing me after my efforts."
"So why didn’t you wait until your husband gets home tonight?" asks her boss.
"I could have," says Rivkah, "but the couch is easier to move if he's not on it."
WEEKLY eTORAH
After detailing the census of the Jewish people in the desert, the Torah describes how the Jewish people traveled and camped in the desert. The Tabernacle and the Levites were in the center, surrounded by four camps, one on each side. Each camp consisted of three tribes, one of which was the leader of the camp.
Reading all this detail leaves the reader puzzled. The Torah’s messages, stories and teachings are eternal, so why do we need to know precisely how the tribes organized in the desert? How is this relevant to our lives today?
We each have many aspirations and goals in our lives. We want to succeed in multiple realms simultaneously; we work to advance our career, our relationships, our health and fitness, and our values. It often seems that we struggle to keep a healthy balance between all of our sometimes conflicting aspirations. The story of the tribes organizing and traveling in the desert is the story of our life. We too should organize and prioritize our values on our figurative journey through the often complicated desert en route to the Promised Land.
The four camps of tribes symbolize the four general pursuits we value: (1) wisdom, (2) character, (3) physical strength and health, and (4) wealth. The order in which the Torah places the four camps tells us that they are all critical, yet we must remember the hierarchy of their importance. The first camp, east of the Tabernacle, led by the tribe of Judah, embodied wisdom. The second camp, south of the Tabernacle, led by Reuben, embodied humility and good character. The third camp, on the north side, led by the tribe of Ephraim, embodied physical strength. And the fourth camp, led by Dan, on the west side, embodied wealth.
Naturally, these values will conflict and undermine each other. Too much of one will take away from the focus on the other. Some of these values are more spiritual and abstract, while others are more physical and concrete; thus, appreciating the value of one may lead to underemphasizing the other. The lesson is that in order for these values to create a wholesome life, they must be organized around the Sanctuary, the house of the Torah. Our core, the center of our own personal figurative camp, is the Torah. Wisdom, good character, health and wealth are all valuable and must be pursued because they are the means by which we express the Torah and its teachings. Once these values are not an end unto themselves but rather a means to express a deeper, unified value, they can coexist peacefully, each enhancing the other, creating harmony and serenity in our life.
