Dear Friend,
There is a lot in our life that we put great effort into, but we are not always able to see results.
This makes hard work very challenging, because we thrive off of results, when we can appreciate the effort we have invested into something.
When Moses and the Jewish people put in tremendous effort to construct a temple for G-d, its inauguration lasted 7 days, as Moses trained and explained the processes of the temple and the service.
But G-d’s presence was not observed, and the people were sad. They felt that perhaps they had not invested the right kind of effort, or worse, G-d did not want to be close with them.
But on the eighth day, when Aharon conducted the service, the people observed G-d’s presence and were overjoyed.
When we invest our efforts, we don't always see immediate results and there can be many reasons for this. But one very important thing is to know for a fact, that effort placed will never go unrewarded by lack of results, we may have to wait, but the great satisfaction and enjoyment that we experience after hard and determined work is guaranteed to come.
Never stop trying and working hard in the pursuit of good, justice, peace and love.
You will succeed!!
Wishing you a good Shabbos!
Rabbi Mendel & Elke Zaltzman
Shabbos Times
Friday, March 25
Candle Lighting: 6:55pm Evening service: 7:00pm
Saturday, March 26 Morning service: 10:00am
Kiddush Brunch: 12:00pm Evening service: 7:00pm
Shabbos ends 7:56pm Kiddush Sponsored by Lina and Igor Perchuk
In honor of their son Ariel's
Bar Mitzvah
Tuesday, April 5 at 4pm
Decorate your own tambourine and learn about the role the women played in the Exodus from Egypt. Games! Snacks! Music and fun!
Open to all girls ages 11-13.
Thursdays 4pm- 5pm Geared for boys and girls in grades 6th - 8th, MVP is volunteering and Mitzvah madness, while connecting with other pre-teens and having a meaningful impact!
MVP is open to all junior teens free of charge!
A BISSELE HUMOR
"Does marriage change one's personality?" Greg asked his buddy Mike. "In a way," says Mike. "You see, when I was engaged, I did most of the talking and she did most of the listening. When we just got married she did most of the talking and I did most of the listening. Now we both do most of the talking and the neighbors do all of the listening.
WEEKLY eTORAH
This week's Parshah, Shemini, describes events of the eighth day following the seven days of inauguration of the Tabernacle. It was also a day, our sages tell us, which possessed many "firsts": it was a Sunday, the first day of the week; it was the 1st of the month of Nissan, marking the beginning of a new year, it was the first day that the Divine Presence came to dwell in the Sanctuary, the first day of the Priesthood, the first day of the service in the Sanctuary, and so on. With so many "firsts" why does the Torah refer to it—and by extension, to the entire Parshah—as "the eighth day"?
The answer is that the number "eight" defines certain qualities. Seven is the order of nature–-represented in the seven days of the week; eight is "higher than nature." On the other hand, the Torah is connecting this day to the seven days that preceded it–-it is not just a day in its own right, but the "eighth day" following a cycle of seven. This teaches us that an event or concept does not just exist in its own right, but has a link to the preceding events.
Similarly, our generation is compared to "dwarves standing on giants' shoulders"--although we may appear to be on a lower spiritual level (dwarves) than previous generations, the boost we gain from their achievements (the giants) allows us to "stand on their shoulders," reaching a higher level than they themselves could.
We also read in the Parshah about the sons of Aaron who, in their desire to come close to G‑d, sought liberation from their physical body, to be "consumed" by G‑d. It is a reminder that whilst we need a fiery determination and drive for spirituality, this needs to be channeled into our "this-worldly" existence, through mitzvot involving the physical, material world, to elevate our environment around us. It is not achieved by removal from this world, but rather by involvement with all possible aspects of it, in order for the spiritual to permeate the physical.
-adapted from www.chabad.org
