Weekly Insights From Ellyn Hutt
One of the many advantages of living in a part of the Land of Israel that is so open to the hills and sky is that every evening we can see the moon quite easily. Being in the month of Elul, most people are watching the changes in the moon more closely as each phase shows us clearly that Rosh Hashanah will soon be here.
This Week in Pictures
What a week it was! We’re thrilled to have a few photos to share already from last night’s A Night at the Museum: Tribute to Jewish Learning. We’ll have many more to share soon, but check out This Week in Pictures for some beautiful photos from the event by Neil Rosenfeld. In addition, we’ve got more fabulous pictures from Sara Wolfe and the Olami team who are wrapping up their trip to South Africa!
75 flights of stairs
Three friends named Jim, Scott and Tom are taking a vacation together. After a particularly long and exhausting day, they check into a hotel. The friends are frustrated to learn that the elevator is out and they’ll need to walk up 75 flights of stairs to get to their room.
Climbing the Mountain
In our culture, summer overtakes our senses and we feel free and unrestricted. Certainly, we attend shul daily, have our regular classes in various topics of Torah, enjoy Shabbos meals combined with summer activities. The pressure of serving Hashem as we do the rest of the year is lessened and we spend a lot of time just relaxing.
The Next Town
A man was walking along a country road when he came upon a farmer working in his field. The man called out to the farmer, “How long will it take me to get to the next town?”
The farmer didn’t answer the man.
Surmounting The Challenge
It is interesting to note that although when the people approached Shmuel the prophet to appoint a king he was upset nonetheless there is a mitzvah to have a king. There seems to be a paradoxical situation where we shouldn’t have it yet if we do, then it’s a mitzvah. Furthermore, the Talmud states that there were three mitzvos that we were commanded to do when we entered into the Land of Israel.
This Week in Pictures
This week in pictures is all about the incredible Olami visit to South Africa! Sara Wolfe is there now, but we’re thrilled to share some amazing photos from this trip. Take a look at this week in pictures with The Jewish Experience
8/14/23 – ELUL: Inspiration from Chaya Parkoff
Dear Ladies
I have run several half-marathons. I had to train for several months in order to prepare to run those 13.1 miles. Had I just shown up on marathon day with no preparation, it would be a missed opportunity.
Where It’s All At
We are prohibited from offering sacrifices randomly wherever we want. We must bring them to the Beis Hamikdash and offer them on the altar that is specifically prepared for that role. Chasam Sofer quotes his Rebbe, the Hafla’ah, who explains that this an allusion to the Sanhedrin, the ‘think tank’ of the nation where the greatest Talmudic scholars gathered and rendered their halachic decision which define our nation’s very character.
Laughing on the Subway
One day, Benny the psychiatrist was on the subway coming home from work one day when he saw an elderly gentleman talking to himself and then laughing aloud. Every so often, the man would put up his hand, stop talking then start all over again.
Benny had to find out more.
How’s My Driving?
“How’s my driving?” We’ve all seen those bumper stickers on the backs of company trucks, as companies know how their employees drive reflects positively or negatively on their company. Interestingly, those signs appear on trucks here in Israel as well.
Praiseworthy
The parsha discusses the many attributes of Hashem. One is that He is our praise. Does that mean that we should praise Him or is there another meaning to this verse? Netziv cites the Talmud that the great Sage Rabbi Elazar ben Pedas was very engrossed in learning. Therefore, when he left the upper marketplace in Tzipori and trekked down to the lower area, his robe was still entangled in the upper area.