Eretz Yisroel - Aish Kodesh Journey to Ukraine and Eretz Yisroel - June 4-7, 2015

Continuing the summary of the Torah, sights, and sounds the Aish Kodesh chevra experienced in Berditchev and Mezhibuzh and in Breslov and Uman, the chevra came to Eretz Yisroel on June 4, 2015 on Ukrainian International Airlines (after davening in the Kiev airport). The flight was not as bad as the airline's name implies it would have been.

When we arrived, we first checked into the King Solomon hotel.

Whenever Rav Weinberger refers to the maareh mekomos sheets, you can follow along by downloading those here. 

Reb Gamliel Rabinovitch, Shlita

After settling in to the hotel, we left to have a private meeting wth Reb Gamliel Rabinovitch, shlita. That meeting was remarkable. For those who have not met Reb Gamliel, he is a tremendous gadol in both the revealed and hidden Torah and is the Rosh Yeshiva of the kabbalah yeshiva, Shaar Hashamayim. The Rav is very humble, however, and hides his greatness behind a somewhat eccentric and self-effacing way of acting. Reb Gamliel helped set up the tables and chairs in his apartment himself and at one point even grabbed Rav Weinberger's hands and placed them on his head and would not let go until Rav Weinberger gave him a bracha. Here are some pictures from that visit, including some here of Rebbe with Reb Gamliel.

Click here for the mp3 recording of Reb Gamliel's words to our group. You can see a video of the meeting here:

[Video Coming Soon]

Kivros Hata'avah

Following the meeting with Reb Gamliel, the chevra had dinner at Papagaio, a Brazilian-ish style carnivorous restaurant in Yerushalayim. A good time was had by many a boich. After dinner, everyone was free for the rest of the evening.

Rav Kook Shiur and Kever Rochel

After davening and having breakfast Friday morning June 5, 2015, Rav Weinberger gave a short shiur in Rav Kook. You can listen to the mp3 of that shiur here. A number of young folks from the Shul who are in Eretz Yisroel for the year joined up with the chevra for this portion of the trip as well.

Rabbi Simcha Hochbaum of the Hebron Fund met us in Yerushalayim in a bullet-proof bus. He shared a lot of Torah and history with us as we made the short drive to visit our mother Rochel in Beis Lechem. It was troubling to see how Rochel is closed in on all sides by gigantic concrete walls to protect us from our cousins who wish to hurt us. It was also disheartening to see how we are live like prisoners behind walls at our own holy places in our own land. But it gave us more to daven for as we asked Hashem to remove the degradation of the Jewish people and bring Moshiach.

After the chevra said their own personal prayers and Tehillim, Rav Weinberger led the group in several Tehillim together. Here are some pictures from Kever Rochel.

Chevron and Me'aras Hamachpela

For many people, the highlight of the entire trip was our visit to Me'aras Hamachpela in Chevron, which was surprising since almost everyone had been there many times before.

The visit to Chevron started with Rabbi Hochbaum speaking with us about the history of the Jewish yishuv going back to the time of Avraham in Chevron and how there was literally a Jewish community there from that time (except the period of the Egyptian exile) until 1929, when the local Arabs massacred the Jewish community. He led us around the Jewish community and explained how they fought political and court battles for each and every home, building, and trailer that they built there were great mersirus nefesh. Here are some pictures from our tour of Chevron.

We climbed a hill in Chevron where, at the top, there was a natural spring and a number of olive trees believed to have been alive at the time of Avraham Avinu. Rabbi Hochbaum pointed out that the spring was the only one known to exist in the area, so it is entirely possible that it is the spring referred to in the pasuk when Avraham said to the angels which appeared as men (Bereishis 18:4), "Please take a little water and wash your feet." And it could be that one of the olive trees standing near the spring was the tree about which Avraham told the angels (ibid.), "And rest under the tree." With a fair warning that the water was freezing, many of the chevra immersed in the spring, which was quite an adventure! Here are some pictures of what we saw in Chevron and Mayan Avraham.

We then went down into Me'aras Hamachpela to visit one of the only sections at our holy site where Jews are allowed to pray. Many of us said heartfelt prayers and Tehillim while one of our Yishmaeli "cousins" gave an impassioned drasha in the next room over. The real highlight of the trip was when Rav Weinberger led the group in Tehillim, announcing, "Let us now say Tehillim with all of our strength and drown out the sound of impurity from the next room." I don't know if I've ever heard such heartfelt Tehillim before. One of the loudest lines was when we reached the pasuk, "Pour our Your wrath on the nations who do not know you and who do not call out in Your name!" I know that we shook the ceiling and shterred our neighbors' kavvanah.

But the most amazing part was feeling the electricity in the room of Avraham Avinu and Sorah Imeinu, Rav Weinberger led the group in screaming out the 13 attributes of Hashem's mercy: "G-d, G-d, merciful and compassionate G-d, patient, with great kindness and truth, who gives kindness to thousands [of generations], who carries sin and iniquity, and error, and who cleanses." Everyone cried out those words (in Hebrew obviously) seven times in unison at the top of their lungs. Rav Weinberger then led everyone in saying "Ana Hashem Hoshea Na" and "Ana Hashem Hatzlicha Na." Finally, we screamed out "Shma Yisroel Hashem Elokeinu Hashem Echad!" There are no words to describe the feeling at that moment except, perhaps, for the words chosen by one of the chevra to describe that moment: "We rocked Shamayim." When the moment was over, we had a nice rikud. No one was able to take out a phone to film the davening, but [here] is a video of a portion of the dancing [coming soon].

After we took a group picture on the steps of Me'aras Hamachpela, our fearless organizer, Yitzchak Mordechai Feder, told us that Rabbi Hochbaum was trying to raise $10,000 to build much needed bathrooms for Chevron residents and run a summer program for the children of Chevron to give them chizuk in their pressure-filled life because of the area in which they live. He then began taking pledges and reached over $11,000 in approximately 60 seconds. It was gevaldik! Many people made their payments right then and there, rather than relying on their memory to fulfill their pledges later. It was a beautiful moment and a great conclusion to a very, very high visit to Chevron and Me'aras Hamachpela.

We have a partial video here, but here is a longer video of the dancing after the Tehillim and tefilos at the end of our visit to Me'aras Hamachpela:

[Coming Soon]

Shabbos in Yerushalayim

We took taxis to the Kosel in time to finish mincha before candle lighting time in Yerushalayim. We davened mincha in the Kosel plaza, but had to go into the interior area of the Kosel because one of the groups behind us was too loud for us to hear ourselves. We had a beautiful kabbolos Shabbos and Maariv led by Yitzy Halpern. Many people of all stripes, including chassidim, tourists, and everything in between joined with us. The dancing and Lecha Dodi was great. A non-observant father and two sons from San Diego davened with us and a couple of us helped them keep up with the pages in an Artscroll siddur. It turned out that the younger son was there for his bar mitzva and, in the middle of Maariv, blurted out to one of the chevra, "This is awesome!" IY"H, our davening was a kiddush Hashem not only for us but for those around us as well.

There were two other amazing things about davening with Rav Weinberger at the Kosel. First, a lot of old friends came to meet us there, so we saw former members who had made aliyah, and other long-time fans and chassidim of Rebbe. The second was the fact that wherever we went, it was obvious that Rav Weinberger is someone big because all people saw was a group of thirty men following closely behind a holy looking rabbi. So everywhere we went, people asked members of the chevra, "Who is that?" and then gave a knowing look when the answer was "Rav Moshe Weinberger."

Shabbos morning many people davened in the shul in the hotel. Others davened in a shul on the ground floor of a nearby apartment building. And another small group joined Aish Kodesh's friend Chaim Dovid at a small minyan at the Kosel led by an elderly Lelover chossid and mekubal, Rav Scheinberger. The chevra all got aliyos so they could say Hagomel and then went with everyone in the minyan to Rav Scheinberger's apartment in the Old City for kiddush and a drasha. One of the guys had a personal matter about which Chaim Dovid requested a bracha from Rav Scheinberger. Rather than giving a bracha, the Rav gave very specific directions regarding a specific series of actions the person was to take as a segulah to help with his issue. It was very intense. The guys by Rav Scheinberger were very eclectic ranging from chassidim to misnachalim types, to Americans and others. We sat very close to Rav Scheinberger and he was very friendly, asked us about ourselves and our Rav (he was familiar with Rav Weinberger) and wanted to make sure we ate everything we were served at the table.

Following kiddush and Rav Scheinberger's drasha, the Aish Kodesh chevra enjoyed a tour of Chaim Dovid's home and the beautiful view from his roof overlooking the Kosel and the Old City, including a number of beautiful Jewish homes in the "Muslim Quarter" which sported large, flowing Israeli flags. As he walked us out back toward our hotel, we met Motti Dan, one of the major figures at Ateret Kohanim, a group which purchases property in the "Muslim Quarter" of the Old City, Silwan, and other parts of Yerushalayim. It was fascinating to walk with him and see his home in the middle of the Arab neighborhood and other nearby Jewish buildings smack in the middle of that area, each sporting large, beautiful Israeli flags. The whole Shabbos morning was one adventure after another. Baruch Hashem!

Shabbos afternoon at shalosheudos, Rebbe spoke about many things, including the "Hungarian Wine" we had tasted during the trip and pressed us to consider how we would bring what we gained back to Woodmere to lift up the community and not allow the effect of the experience to be lost. Ephrayim Nudman, our faithful president, adjured the chevra to think about this when he spoke at one of the Shabbos seudos. So people should please continue discussing this after the trip is over!

Melaveh Malka on Netiv Areye Roof Overlooking Kosel with Shlomo Katz

We were zoche to have a Melaveh Malka led by Reb Shlomo Katz. Here are a few pictures of Rebbe with Shlomo. Some very great tzadikim and talmidei chachamim joined us as well. First, Rav Shlomo Bussu, who Rav Weinberger goes to for guidance, joined us for almost the entire Melaveh Malka, which is remarkable because he measures every single second with precision and rarely leaves his established schedule of Torah, avodah, and helping other Jews.

Rav Nosson Maimon of the Breslov Research Center was also there. In addition, Rav Yoel Rakovsky, a rebbe at Netiv Areye and mashpia to a number of the Aish Kodesh "yutes," was there. We were also happy to see Chaim Dovid there as he's a good friend of Rebbe and the shul, There were so many other great people there and old friends of the shul who came out to the Old City.

An mp3 of Rebbe's shiur from the Melaveh Malka, which was so moving and included some incredible stories, can be heard here.

Click here for a video of a portion of the Melaveh Malka which was circulated widely on Facebook and here for some pictures. And click here, here, and here for few videos taken from a nearby rooftop of our Melaveh Malka!

Here's a video of the whole Melaveh Malka:

After the Melaveh Malka was over, at about 1:30 am, Rav Weinberger walked to the Kosel with a group of people from the Melaveh Malka to say Tikkun Leah of the Tikkun Chatzos. Here is a video of a portion of that. After that, as noted above, people around the Kosel took note of the Rav wearing a shtreimel being followed by a large entourage and they posted a number of pictures, videos, and an article about Rav Weinberger's visit to the Kosel. You can see those here, here, and here. 

Meron, Tiveria

Right after davening on our last day in Eretz Yisroel, we left the hotel for good and headed up to Meron to daven by the kever of Rebbi Shimon Bar Yochai. Click here to see some pictures of that. Following individual tefilos, everyone said Tikun Klali together and then sang "Bar Yochai" and "Amar Rebbi Akiva" with Yosef Karduner. A video of that is here:

Afterward, we went to the home of Menachem Solarsh, who has a beautiful home in Meron, very close to the kever of Rebbi Shimon. Click here for some pictures from that shiur. Mr. Solarsh is the owner of the Uman Inn where we stayed in Uman, so it was a great piece of continuity. Following that, we traveled up to Tzfas and immersed in the mikvah of the Arizal and davned by the kever of the Arizal. Finally, before traveling to the airport, we went to the kevarim of Rebbi Akiva and the Ramchal in Tiveria.

Here is the mp3 of the Rebbi Shimon Bar Yochai shiur in Meron.

Rebbe gave a beautiful drasha at Mr. Solarsh's house. One small point that he made was an idea he quoted in the name of the Alter Rebbe. He said that while the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash took away the revelation of Hashem's presence from the Jewish people generally, it had no effect on the revelation of the Divine Presence for the greatest tzadikim. The specific tzadikim the Alter Rebbe mentioned were Rebbi Shimon Bar Yochai, the Arizal, and the Baal Shem Tov. He then pointed out how we are so fortunate to be going to visit each of those three tzadikim in one week. Ashreinu!


Here is a video of that shiur:

As our last "activity" in Eretz Yisroel before leaving for the airport, following our visit to Meron, the group traveled to Tiveria and davened by the kevarim of Rabbi Akiva, the Ramchal, and the Arizal. Before davening by the Arizal's kever, most of the chevra immersed in the Arizal's mikva which, as cold as it was, was a cinch compared to the Mayan Avraham mentioned above! 

Here is the mp3 of the shiur Rav Weinberger gave by the kever of Rabbi Akiva.

And here is the final shiur Rav Weinberger gave during the trip, after davening at the kever of the Ramchal, which included a Baal Shem Tov story illustrating the fact that every Jew goes to the tzadikim, waiting to hear his own story.

Finally, here is a beautiful video showing highlights from the entire trip from Betditchev to Tiveria, put together by Sara Mehlman, a powerhouse of a woman, who put together the Ukraine leg of the trip and joined us for several parts of the program in Eretz Yisroel as well:

Breslov and Uman - Aish Kodesh Visit to Ukraine and Eretz Yisroel with Rav Moshe Weinberger, Yosef Karduner and Gadi - 6-3-15

Continuing our summary of the Aish Kodesh trip to the Ukraine and Eretz Yisroel May 31-June 7, 2015 following the Berditchev and Mezhibuzh parts of the journey, this post summarizes our adventures in Breslov and Uman, Ukraine. Download the maareh mekomos sheets for the trip here. We came to Rebbe Nosson of Nemerov's kever in Breslov after Mezhibuzh. When we arrived in Uman at about 10 pm on Tuesday night, June 2nd, 2015, we first had dinner at the Uman Inn.  

Shiur by Reb Nosson of Breslov

We made the beautiful trek up the hill in Breslov to daven by Reb Nosson's kever. Here are some pictures from that. And here are a couple more. The location was truly beautiful as well, definitely the most physically beautiful place we saw in Ukraine.

HERE is the mp3 of the shiur.

Watch the video of the shiur here:

And here is a video of a little bit of the dancing with Reb Yosef Karduner and Gadi after the shiur, including another shot of the amazing view from Rebbe Nosson's ohel:

The Tziyun of Rebbe Nachman in Uman:

After davening by the tziyun of Rebbe Nachman in Uman, the chevra said Tikun Klali together, led by Yosef Karduner, followed by a rikud. Here are some pictures from that. 

Click HERE to download the mp3 audio of the shiur Rav Weinberger gave by the tziyun in the afternoon. Here are some pictures from the shiur.  And click here to see a beautiful video of some rikudim to the music of Yosef Karduner and Gadi after the shiur. 

Watch the video of the shiur:

Aish Kodesh Group picture in Sophia Park in Uman, Ukraine

Sophia Park

We had a beautiful time in Sophia Park, a botanical garden created by the Polish noble Count Potocki as a gift for his wife in 1796, where it is said that Rebbe Nachman did hisbodedus before his death in Uman (which was in 1810). Here, here, and here are some pictures from that visit.

The Visit

Our visit to Uman was noticed by many people who saw how many people were going to see Rav Weinberger speak. A Hebrew Breslov website even had an article and pictures about our visit. There were a couple of people who had set up mattresses in Rebbe Nachman's tziyun and were still sleeping when Rebbe gave the above-linked (afternoon) two hour shiur. At one point, one of the guys woke up and got out of bed to go wash. He looked quite amused and surprised to see a shiur with 40 listeners going on in his "bedroom!" 

On our last night in Uman, Yosef Karduner and Gadi Pugatch (on violin) graced us with a beautiful Melaveh Malka.  Here is a video of part of it. The amazing thing is that at the very end of the trip in Eretz Yisroel, Yoni and Sarah Melman, who made so much of the arrangements for every detail of the trip, gave out a remastered CD of the music from the Melaveh Malka, along with a "We Rocked Shamayim" magnet in remembrance of our amazing experience in Me'aras Hamachpela. It was so nice.

Click here to continue reading about our adventures in Eretz Yisroel!

Berditchev and Mezhibuzh - Aish Kodesh Ukraine/Israel 2015 - Shiurim/Pictures/Videos - With Rav Moshe Weinberger

About 30 Aish Kodesh members (not all of whom live in Woodmere) headed out to visit kivrei tzadikim with our Rebbe, Rav Moshe Weinberger, on Sunday May 31, 2015 from JFK. We were supposed to fly into Paris and then make a connection to Kiev, flying Air France the whole way. Because of weather problems in New York, the first flight was delayed 2.5 hours and everyone missed their flight to Kiev. Hashem always places obstacles in the way of one's efforts to connect to true tzadikim!

Most people were able to get onto a direct Air France flight to Kiev 7 hours later. Two people got a flight to Amsterdam with a 4.5 hour layover before heading to Kiev and one person got a direct flight to Kiev before everyone else on Ukranian International Airlines. Hooray! Much of the chevra with the Paris layover travled around to see Paris (pictures) and the two fellows with the Amsterdam layover saw downtown and the Anne Frank House (pictures).

Ultimately, even getting to Kiev 10 hours later than planned, the group made up for lost time by traveling, davening, and learning throughout the night so virtually nothing on the itinerary was left out (except sleep). Ultimately, we owe Yoni and Sara Mehlman, who traveled with us and made all the arrangements, and Yitzchak Mordechai Feder who organized things on the Woodmere end, for working tirelessly to make all arrangements throughout the trip. 

On to the exciting part; Rav Moshe Weinberger's shiurim before each of the kivrei tzadikim. First, you should download this pdf of all of the maareh mekomos we used on the trip. Rav Weinberger refers to these and learns through them in virtually all of the shiurim that will take place on this trip.

Between the Kiev airport and Berditchev, Rav Weinberger gave over two shiurim in advance of our visit to Reb Levi Yitzchak ben Sarah Sasha's kever and we made a gas station stop. 

First Pre-Reb Levi Yitzchak shiur: 

Click HERE to download the mp3 audio of the shiur.

Watch the video of the shiur (please forgive the background noise and shaking due to the fact that the shiur was in a moving bus!):

Second Pre-Reb Levi Yitzchak shiur:

Click HERE to download the mp3 audio of the shiur.

Watch the video of the shiur (please forgive the background noise and shaking due to the fact that the shiur was in a moving bus!):

Short Shiur by the Tziyun of Reb Levi Yitzchak:

It is difficult to describe the energy at Reb Levi Yitzchak's kever. It was the first place we visited during the trip and watching Rebbe there was beyond words. So I will not attempt to describe it. You'll just have to talk to one of the participants about that. Here are some pictures from our visit to Reb Levi Yitzchok's tziyun (and here are a couple more).

Click HERE to download the mp3 audio of the shiur. And you can click here and here to see pictures from that visit.

Short Shiur by the Tziyun of the Baal Shem Tov:

First, after arriving and davening Shacharis at the Heichal Habaal Shem Tov, our good friend Yosef Karduner met the chevra and, along with Gadi Pugatch on the violin, led the chevra in some dancing after davening. Here is a short clip of some of that dancing and here are some pictures.

Click HERE to download the mp3 audio of the brief shiur by the tziyun.

Here is a short video from our dancing after the shiur. Also, you can see some pictures from our visit to Mezhibuzh here and here. 

Shiur on the Baal Shem Tov Given in the Reconstructed Baal Shem Tov Shul - Part 1:

Click HERE [coming soon] to download the mp3 audio of the shiur.

Watch the video of the shiur:

Yosef Karduner on guitar and Gadi on the violin led the chevra in a rikud after Rav Weinberger's shiur. Here are a couple of minutes of that beautiful rikud.

Shiur on the Baal Shem Tov Given in the Reconstructed Baal Shem Tov Shul - Part 2:

Click HERE to download the mp3 audio of the shiur.

Watch the video of the shiur (please forgive the background noise and shaking due to the fact that the shiur was in a moving bus!):

[Coming Soon - Please check back every few days - this video will IY"H be added]

Click HERE to continue on to our adventures in Breslov and Uman!

Five Towns Shabbaton for Former & Questioning "Chareidim" - Includes Shiur/Q&A with Rav Moshe Weinberger!

There is a fascinating Shabbaton for a truly under served group of Jews coming up in the Five Towns parshas Shelach, June 12-13. That group of people includes those who grew up in either chassidish or right-wing Litvish communities who have found that the way they grew up is not right for their shoresh neshama, their particular nature. 

Some who fit this description may have "gone off the derech" in the vernacular. Some may have partly left the observance they grew up with and others may not have left it at all and may still live in the same type of community in which they grew up, but feel like strangers in their own neighborhoods. 

The problem many people from this background face is that they may have a hard time accepting that anything other than the Yiddishkeit with which they grow up is really Yiddishkeit at all. 

Many people adopt their community's belief that theirs is the only "true" Yiddishkeit. Accordingly, they feel that if the Yiddishkeit they grew up with is not for them, then Yiddishkeit generally is not for them. This is exemplified by one now-non-observant Skverer chassid who recently wrote an article explaining why those who embrace a different type of chassidus than what he grew up with are not real chassidim at all. 

Because this particular problem is based on a misconception about what Yiddishkeit actually is, Allison Josephs (of Jew in the City fame), Mindy Schaper and Gavriella Lerner started a program they call Project Makom.  The purpose of the program is to provide programs, information, Shabbos hospitality, mentorship, and other resources for those "former and questioning chareidim" who are open to learning about other options within orthodoxy besides the one they grew up with. (In case there is any doubt, the purpose of the program is not to "lure" anyone away from their community of origin. As I understand it, Project Makom is geared toward those who have already come to believe [or are seriously considering the possibility] that the community in which they grew up may not be right for them.)

As a major part of this effort, they are holding a Shabbaton in less than three weeks in the Five Towns, in Long Island, NY, on June 12-13, parshas Shelach. They will have speakers like Pesach Sommer and Yoetzet Dena Bloch. Others will address the important distinctions between minhag, Deoraisa, and Derabanan. And several former chareidim will speak in a panel on how they transitioned out of the communities in which they grew up into other frum communities. The Shabbaton will mainly take place in Cedarhurst.

I'm most excited about the fact that the Shabbaton participants will be trekking over to Woodmere Shabbos afternoon to hear Rav Moshe Weinberger speak on: The Difference Between Chassidus and Modern Chassidic Culture. The really great opportunity for the participants is that after the shiur, they will have the opportunity to ask Rav Weinberger questions during a Question-and-Answer session. 

So if you grew up in a chassidish or far-right Litvish community (whether you're currently still halacha-observant or not and whether you're currently still in that community or not), CLICK HERE to sign up for the Shabbaton!

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As a Favor to Dixie Yid, Please Read!

Howdy y'all! I want to ask you to read something about my son's cheder, Siach Yitzchak, which is an amazing place, with the hopes that you will buy a raffle ticket (and write my name in the "Referred By" box) to support the school. The drawing will be this Sunday, Feb. 15th, though that date will probably be extended a bit. Tickets are $100 for one ticket and $360 for five. The prize is a choice between (i) $20,000 cash or (ii) $25,000 toward a Sefer Torah, a trip to Israel for 10, or a new car.

 

As I wrote the last two years, Siach Yitzchak is unlike almost any other yeshiva that I have heard of. Please see those links to prior posts where I detailed a few examples of things that show how Reb Dovid Sitnick (who was appointed to head the cheder by its founder, Rav Shlomo Freifeld) has created a cheder in which the boys experience how Yiddishkeit and Torah are the most precious things in the world. My son is now in fourth grade and has been in the cheder since he was three years old. In addition to the observations I related in my previous posts about the cheder, here are a few more examples of things which I feel make Siach Yitzchak stand out as such an unusual and special place:

• My daughter told me that, as my wife was dropping our son off at school after one of the major snowstorms in the past couple of weeks, she observed Rabbi Seide, the educational director of the cheder, lifting as many boys as he could over the huge pile of snow on the side of the road as they came to school.
• The rebbeim truly care about the boys and it comes across in everything. My son's rebbe from Pre-1-A (4 years ago) sat down with him the other day to ask him about his recent extra-curricular Mishnayos learning (with me) and discussed with him ideas on what to learn next!
• At PTA conferences last month, our son's rebbe advised us, when reviewing each day's kriah homework with our son, that we should go back to make sure he understands the words he had a problem with. But he added that the homework should not take more than about 20 minutes. He told us we should stop in the middle if it does because beyond that, it will just drive him crazy and it will become counterproductive.
• The previous example, along with the energy and excitement the rebbeim put in, show that their entire focus is on giving the kids not just technical learning skills, but, even more importantly, a love for learning and a feeling of satisfaction from it.

With all of the lack of excitement about Yiddishkeit and the focus on externals that we see are so prevalent in some yeshivos, I feel so blessed that we have merited to find and be able to send our son to a cheder like this.

 

As a favor, I therefore ask you to please go right away to buy a raffle ticket before the end of the day this Sunday, February 15th! Thank you!

 

In the website form, please write "Dixie Yid" or my real name (if you know it) in the "Referred By" box. If you feel more comfortable, you can also call the cheder's office number (718-327-6247) to give them your credit card info or you can give it to me at 516-668-6397 and I can take care of it for you. Note that the system allows you to pay for the ticket(s) all at once or split it up over 4 payments. Shkoyach!!

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Alex Clare - Eli Beer - Zusha: Video of Woodmere Melaveh Malka

Eliav and his Rebbetzin Ruchie Frei brought together some of the deepest musical brothers for a Melaveh Malka at his home after Shabbos 12/27/2014. It was so beautiful.

Eli Beer (http://www.elibeer.com/)created the musical gravity around which the evening revolved and the unique sound of Zusha (http://www.zusha.com/) (Elisha Mendl Mlotek [precussion], Zachariah “Juke” Goldshmiedt [guitar] & Shlomo Ari Gaisin [vocals]) brought everyone to a very deep place. 

We also merited to have a very special guest as well, Alex Clare (http://alexclare.com/), who was in New York after the tail end of his current U.S. tour but before the beginning of the European leg of the tour. He shared beautiful Torah and stories from a recent tour, as well as his own music. It goes without saying that he has a deep soul and it was a pleasure to sing with him.

And as if that weren't enough, Rav Moshe Weinberger, a rebbe to everyone present, came for a good portion of the Melaveh Malka. 

I created a full-length video of the whole Melaveh Malka, as well as separate videos for each artist. The full length video is first below, and then the separate videos for each of the artists are below that. Enjoy and share!

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Video From Eli & Dina Beer's Sheva Brachos Thursday Night (10/30/14)

I'm happy to share this video of Eli and Dina Beer's sheva brachos, hosted by the holy couple, Ruchie and Eliav Frei, in Woodmere, NY! Eli grabbed his guitar and led the niggunim much of the time and shared a many Torahs and stories. Quite awesome.

Eli is known for his song/video Ve'yiyu Rachamecho: http://youtu.be/1P2Ou-K2hQU.

And here is a video of Eli's amazing Halel from Rosh Chodesh Adar II from earlier this year: http://youtu.be/KyGjupqPNfU.

The video was taken by the inimitable Dov Perkal. Here is the info on the camera and lighting equipment he used:

Canon EOS 70D
Canon lens 18-55 mm
Polaroid 320 Vari-Temp Super Bright LED Light

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The Story of the Chozeh of Lublin and the Barber - The Power of Sacrificing for Another

Here is the story of the Chozeh of Lublin and the barber, as retold by Rav Moshe Weinberger, shlita, in the name of Reb Shlomo Carlebach, zt"l, at the Hilula (yohrtzeit celebration) for the Tzadik, Reb Kalonymous Kalmish Shapira in 2010, held by Cong. Aish Kodesh of Woodmere:

Reb Shlomo Carlebach, zt”l, told the following story of the Chozeh, the Seer, of Lublin: The Chozeh needed a haircut before Yom Tov like anyone else. But everyone knew about the Chozeh’s spiritual sensitivity and were afraid to touch the Chozeh’s head, lest he be unworthy and somehow disturb the Rebbe’s holiness. All of the barbers in Lublin spent several days before each Yom Tov fasting, praying, and doing teshuva in the hopes that whoever the Chozeh chose for his haircut would be worthy enough that the Chozeh could tolerate his haircut. 

Just before one particular Yom Tov, the Chozeh’s assistants, as usual, gave notice to the barbers to begin preparing themselves to cut the Rebbe’s hair. When the day arrived, the barbers lined up outside of the Chozeh’s room. The first barber approached the Rebbe’s chair. But when he touched the Rebbe’s head, although the Rebbe did not intend to insult him, he cried out in pain. He quickly left the room, feeling horrible that he had hurt the Rebbe. The other barbers saw how quickly he left, without giving a haircut, and they became even more afraid. The second barber went into the room and the same thing happened. As soon as he touched the Rebbe’s head, the Rebbe screamed out in pain. The process repeated itself until they ran out of barbers. They did not know what to do in order to arrange a haircut for the Rebbe for Yom Tov. 

But someone told one of the Rebbe’s assistants that he saw a strange looked Jew on the streets of Lublin, a traveler, who carried a sign around his neck that said, “I’m a barber and a little bit of a doctor.” After discussing the matter among themselves, they concluded that it was worthwhile to at least try to determine whether this Jew could cut the Rebbe’s hair. Perhaps he was an upright person. When they approached the man about cutting the Chozeh’s hair, they asked him whether he knew whose hair he was about to cut. He said that the did not but that it did not matter. He was capable of cutting anyone’s hair.  They told him that they were about to bring him to cut the hair of the Chozeh of Lublin. Unfazed, he answered, “Okay, everyone needs a haircut. So does the rabbi. And I’m a barber. No problem. Please bring me to him.” He entered the Rebbe’s room without any preparation.  

The man and the Chozeh looked at one another and the Rebbe saw the barber’s little sign and smiled. It seemed the Chozeh already liked this barber. He took out his old scissors and the Rebbe’s assistants began covering their eyes, not relishing the scream they were about to hear. But when the barber touched the Rebbe’s head, he sighed and said, “A mechaya, a pleasure!” And with every single snip, the Rebbe continued to enjoy himself, repeatedly saying, “a mechaya!” And as soon as the haircut was over, the man simply left. 

The Rebbe’s assistants followed him, “Sir, sir! Can we ask who you are? Where are you from?” But he simply answered, “You can see on my sign. I am a barber.” Apparently, he did not want to say anything about himself. They formulated a plan, however, to find out more about him. They invited him to a local establishment that served alcoholic beverages. Once he had enjoyed a couple of drinks and they saw that he was in a good mood, they asked  him again, “Tell us who you are. When every other barber in Lublin touched the Rebbe’s hair, he screamed out in pain, but when you cut his hair, it was a mechaya. We have never seen anything like that. What is your story? 

Even with a couple of drinks, however, he did not want to talk about himself. But they persisted and asked him repeatedly, “Tell us about yourself? Who are you?” Finally, the barber stood up, pulled up the back of his shirt, and they saw that his entire back was covered with horrible, disgusting welts. They chassidim recoiled and asked him, “What happened? What is that?” So he told them the following story:

I travel from place to place. I am a barber and a little bit of a barber. I cut people’s hair and do what I can for them. In one town I went to, I saw some sort of commotion. When I approached, I saw that the non-Jewish authorities were dragging a man away from his family and his wife and children were screaming. I asked someone standing there what happened and they told me that something had been stolen in the town. And as the authorities always did, they blamed the Jews and grabbed the first Yid they found. They were going to take him away and give him 100 lashes for his “crime.” The man was so skinny and small that I realized he would die. He would not be able to survive.

And because I am a little bit of a doctor, I figured that I am healthy and somewhat stronger so that I would probably survive 100 lashes. Also, no one would marry me anyway. I have no wife or children. And even if I am wrong and I die of my injuries, at least I would not leave behind a widow and orphans as this man would. So I walked over to the police and told them, “You have the wrong man. I did it.” I was a strong man and I truly thought I could handle it. But those wicked people beat me with such strength that after ten lashes I was sure that I was going to die. I cried out to Hashem, “You know I am not doing this for myself. I am doing it for this man, his wife, and children. I accepted these lashes only because that man is a Jew and I am a Jew and one must help another Jew. So please Hashem, have mercy and let me  not die.” 

And I do not know how I survived. Every blow felt harder than the one before. But somehow, I endured one hundred lashes. And that is why I walk with a limp and why my back looks this way. But thank G-d, I am alive.

 
When the Chozeh saw this Jew, he saw someone who did not turn away from other Jews. This Jew had every reason to run. But he took a beating for another Jew. The Chozeh felt that in the deepest way. His hands and his entire existence were filled with sacrifice for other Jews.

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Translation of Colonel Ofer Winter's Inspiring Letter, read by Rav Moshe Weinberger on Shabbos

Rav Moshe Weinberger was in Woodmere for Shabbos and, among other things, he read the widely circulated letter by Colonel Ofer Winter, which inspired and gave moral clarity to our entire people. Pending Rav Weinberger's review of my full write-up of the drasha, here is my translation of Colonel Winter's amazing letter (I included citations to psukim he obliquely referenced):

We have been bestowed a great privilege to command and serve in the Givati Brigade at this time. History has chosen us to be on the cutting edge of the war against the terrorist enemy, the “one of Gaza” [cf. Yehoshua 13:3] who curses, reviles, and defames the G-d of the battalions of Israel. [Cf. Dovid’s encounter with Golias, the Plishti, Shmuel I 17:10, 26, 36, 45.] Let us prepare and ready ourselves for this moment when we accept upon ourselves this mission with a sense of agency and complete humility and with a readiness to put ourselves in danger or give up our lives in order to protect our families, our nation, and our birthplace. 

Let us work with resolve and strength and with initiative, strategy, and hard work in our encounter with the enemy. We will do everything we can to fulfill our mission to cut down the enemy and to remove fear from the people of Israel. Our credo is “We do not return before the mission is done.” Let us work and do everything we can to bring back our boys in peace by utilizing every means at our disposal and with any effort that is required. 

I am relying on you, on each and every one of you, to do your duty in this spirit, the spirit of Jewish warriors who go out in in front of the camp. “The spirit which is called ‘Givati.’”  I lift up my eyes to Heaven and say with you, “Shma Yisrael, Hashem Elokeinu, Hashem Echad.” May Hashem, the G-d of Israel, bring success in our mission in which we stand to do battle for the sake of Your people Israel against the enemy who curses Your Name. 

In the name of the warriors of the IDF generally, and in particular, in the name of the warriors and commanders of our Brigade, may Hashem act and fulfill in us that which it says in the pasuk, “Hashem your G-d goes out with you to do battle with your enemies for you to save you” [Devarim 20:4], and let us say Amen.

 

"Together, and only together, will we be victorious."

 

Ofer Winter, Aluf Mishneh

 

Commander, Givati Brigade

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What the Chareidim Doing During the Gaza War - Nachal Chareidi and Lomdei Torah

Nahal Haredi Chayalim

Rabbi Tzvi Klebanow, CEO of the Nahal Haredi foundation, sent me this article which describes what Nahal Haredi is doing now.

 

According to the article, dozens of Netzach Yehuda (the actual name of Nahal Haredi) chayalim have joined the battle in Gaza and many Netzach Yehuda reservists have also joined through other units.

 

The unit's primary mission, keeping the Jenin and Tulkarem areas in Yehuda and Shomron secure is also continuing. They are handling security there, where periodic rock throwing and riots are breaking out.

 

Meanwhile, Nahal Hareidi employs many rabbonim to serve the chayalim in Netzach Yehuda. And they have called upon the yeshivos and kollelim to dedicate their learning to the success of the IDF in general.

 

IY"H, with everyone doing their part, all of the chayalim and all of Am Yisroel will not see any more injured or killed, G-d forbid, and  will see success in completely decimating Hamas!

 

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A Pot of Soup - Possible Unfolding of Tomorrow's News - Guest Post by Mrs. Yid

My wife, Mrs. Yid., wrote the below piece of fiction as a guest post. This story does not address everything going on in Eretz Yisroel these past 3 plus weeks because it was written before that. But with what's happening, it's even more difficult to hope for the redemption. Hopefully this possible unfolding of the news can help encourage us not to give up hope on Hashem sending Moshiach very very soon.  May we be zocheh to see the story fulfilled tomorrow!

-Dixie Yid

***

A Pot of Soup

With the Three Weeks approaching, it is a great time to work on being mitzapeh our yeshuah. For my family I have found that the best way to bring this abstract idea into a more tangible form is by using our koach hadimyon to vividly picture what it will be like when Moshiach comes. I have recounted to my children a variety of possible ways we will see the redemption unfold and have seen how this has allowed them to retain their idealism and hope for geulah. I hope other families can use this strategy as well, especially with what is going on in Eretz Yisroel today and as we approach the Three Weeks and Tisha B'Av. Below is one way I imagine it happening:

Disclaimer: When I said this was a work of fiction, that was only partially true. It is fiction, but be'ezras Hashem, it won't be for long!

***

Where was I?  I was at home, making soup.   It was a Sunday - I remember that because everyone was home. I wonder if it would have been the same if they weren't?  But they were because it was Sunday. I even remember exactly where everyone was. Isn't that weird? My husband and Racheli were in the den just off our kitchen.  Ben was writing, and Racheli was reading on the couch; legs crossed, top leg bobbing up and down as she ate chips... after I distinctly remember telling her that she was not allowed to bring food... You know what? - Never mind.  Yosef and Tehilla were on the floor playing with Lego, Ruchama was sitting on the counter, mixing the brownie batter, and telling me all about how her Morah had brought in a fake parrot that repeated everything the children said and how it was soooooooofunny! And me? I was making soup.

I had just turned the flame on when I heard it.  A horn blaring.  I remember that it startled me because I almost knocked over the rice on the counter.  My heart was hammering as I marched over to the window and wondered (with a touch of righteous indignation, I might add) who was honking their horn like that on a residential street?!  But before I got to the window, I heard it again.  This time, I knew - I just knew - that it wasn't a car horn at all.

Racheli sat up so quickly that her bag of chips spilled out onto the floor.  The most mundane thought popped into my mind. If that's what I think it is, I won't have to clean that up.  I walked towards the window and looked out.  I heard Binyomin walk up behind me and pull the curtain back. We could see all our neighbors doing the same thing we were. Peeking out and wondering...

"Is that...?" Racheli asked.

"I think it is!" My husband said as he ran back towards towardthe desk.  We were all still looking outside (I'm still not sure what we expected to see) and the blasts just kept coming! And finally the teikiah gedolah!  I'm telling you I felt it everywhere; my eyes, my heart, my teeth!!! You remember how it was, right?!  And then silence. We all turned to look to my husband.  It was so quiet I could hear the clicks as Ben hopped from one website to the next. Ruchama scrambled off the counter. She had a smear of chocolate on her cheek.

"Mommy!  Is it time!?"

"I don't know... I think."

"Malka!  Come here!!!  You have to see this!"  

Binyomin had found a live video feed from Eretz Yisroel.  People were dancing in the streets! Tzitzis flying- men losing hats left and right! One man was using a paper plate as an impromptu yarmulke! But the most beautiful part, and this still makes me tear up - even after all these years - all of them were dancing together!  Soldiers and chassidim were linking arms and laughing.  You almost couldn't tell who was who - everyone's face was mamash glowing!

"We need to get there right now," I heard myself say.

"We're going on an eagle! Are we going on an eagle?" Yosef'speyos were bouncing right along with him. "How are we going to get there?"

"I don't know."

Ben brought our suitcases down from the attic just as I was getting off the phone with the airline.  

"They have 6 seats available but not together. And we're leaving in," I looked at my watch, "about an hour so everybody start packing!!!"  

What were we going to take with us? I, like many others, decided to take the things I could not replace. Not that it would make a difference right? If I knew then what I know now I wouldn't have stressed so much! But at that time I didn't know, so I started by packing our photo albums, and the photos that I hadn't yet put into photo albums, (I really was going to get around to it) a lock of hair from Yosef's upsherrin, some of mychildren’s projects.  By then my suitcase was bursting at the seams and if I wanted to take the silver challah bowl my grandmother gave me I would need to wear it as a hat. I put whatever clothes I could fit in my pocketbook along with our passports and left Binyomin to sort which soforim we would bring.

I went upstairs to see how the kids were doing.  Not much better than me it seemed.  I remember thinking how my children's suitcases said so much about them.  Ruchama's was filled with princess dresses, plastic high heels, 2 crowns and a wand.  When I suggested she add some "everyday" clothing, she reluctantly tossed in a pair of sneakers and a denim skirt, but the look she gave me told me that I knew nothing about geulah couture.  Tehilla was trying to convince Ruchama to give up some room in her suitcase "for the greater good,"- the greater good being her books- but in all fairness she was probably the most practical out of all of us, having filled her suitcase with actual clothes.  Yosef was sitting on the floor reading a book about hamsters who take over a pet store.  Inside his suitcase was a pair of pants, and one sock. I quickly packed up his clothes because really, what was the point in arguing now? Racheli had carefully packed as many of her models as she could, but the models were very big and there wasn't much room. Still, she managed to pack a decent amount and still had some room left for "necessities." We spent our last few minutes running around shoving variousodds and ends into our suitcases, and then we were off!

When we finally boarded the plane, I was completely wiped out, and by the time we took off, I was sleeping. I woke up to a ding!and the voice of a flight attendant telling us that we could now take off our seatbelts. I saw that some of the passengers were already being served their dinner.  I leaned over to see what was on the tray...soup...vegetable maybe? Something was niggling at my brain…something I forgot... And that's when I remembered the soup!  I left it on the flame! I took a deep breath. There was nothing I could do now.  It was on low, so this wasn't an urgent matter.  Yet.  I could text my friend from work once we landed.Or call the fire department. Did I lock the door? Did I even close the door?!

I couldn't help but notice that the woman to my right was looking at me. Was I talking to myself? Did I say that out loud? She must think I'm crazy!  But no, I looked again and I saw that she looked as if she wanted to say something.  Finally she did. "You're Jewish right? And religious?" She didn't wait for me to confirm, but just kept going. "I'm also Jewish, but I don't really know anything - well anything about religion anyway. And I heard that sound today, and I felt...no I knew what I had to do. I had to get to Israel as fast as I could. But I don't know why, but lucky for me I'm sitting next to you! So tell me. Why?" I have to admit I was taken aback. Wow. My first thought was - who am I to answer her questions? But then I heard the voice of one of my teachers in my head. If you know aleph, teach aleph.  And so I did.  

An hour later I was parched.  Tara, that was her name, hadn'tstopped asking questions and I hadn't stopped answering them.  I got up to get some drinks. As I walked down the aisle I saw the same scene replaying, row after row.  It seemed like everyone was either learning or teaching. I saw a little girl teaching an older woman. "Kamatz aleph ah.  Ah ah ah - now you!"  She must have felt me looking at her because she turned around.

"Ruchama?!"

"Mommy!" I wasn't expecting that. "Mommy! I'm a teacher!!!!! I'm teaching the aleph Beis!!!!!" I'm sure I would have heard more but the flight attendant's voice came on again.

"We will begin our decent in approximately ten minutes.  Please return to your seats and fasten your seatbelts." Ten minutes? That was fast.

When the plane landed everyone clapped and started singing "Evenu Shalom Aleichem" just like in the old days!  Well not old old, but you know.  After that, things moved pretty quickly.  They didn't even look at our passports.  A makeshift absorptioncenter was set up by the baggage carousel in Ben Gurion.  Families gathered in small clusters waiting for their names to be called. We were all wondering the same thing. Where were we going to go? How would we get there? And of course, when would we finally, finally! get to see the beis Hamikdash?!  

"Wolf!"  We rolled our suitcases towards a smiling chayalit with curly hair.  She reached into her pocket and gave Yosef and Ruchama a lollipop.  "Welcome home! How was your flight?"  I think we were all too dumbstruck to muster up anything coherent.  "This is your host family," she continued, gesturing towards a young Israeli couple standing behind her.  "They are going to take you to where you are staying."

It was so cool! I know, I know, the word "cool" is pas nischt and even if it weren't, no one says it anymore, but still - that's the only word I could think of to describe the achdus we saw that day!  Tens of thousands of Israelis from every part of the religious spectrum had come together and volunteered to help us "chutznikim" get around!  

Those first steps outside were...unforgettable; the smell! The sun on my face! We piled into the car as quickly as we could and were soon driving down the highway. My children had finally settled down and were waving to the passengers in the other cars. It was quiet, but a comfortable quiet.

"What's your name?" Tehilla asked.  Funny, she was the shy one.  

"I am Igal and this is my wife Chedva; and you metukah?"  

"Tehilla."

"Well Tehilla, welcome to Israel.  It's beautiful right?" Chedvasaid.  Tehilla nodded. I loved their thick Israeli accents; I loved how she put the emphasis on the end of Tehilla's name, I loved everything!  

"Where are we going?" I asked.  

Igal raised his eyebrow, "What do you mean? We are going to your house!"

We don't have a house.  

"I bet you are thinking that you don't have a house..."  

"We don't have a house," my husband replied.  

"Ahhhh but you do!  Wait! Wait!  You are going to see nissimand niflaot!"

"But," I could tell my husband was about to ask another question, or maybe explain once again (politely of course) that we didn't own a house in Eretz Yisroel when he stopped himself.

"Wait a minute! What about the Beis Hamikdash? When will we go there?" I knew what he was thinking.  We were already too late. I had told my children about how Hashem would create the third and final beis Hamikdash, how it would descend from Heaven and be the most beautiful sight we had ever seen.  But we didn't see it.  We were in America when that happened and I felt a pang of sadness that we had missed it.

"What do you mean? It's not here yet!"

Binyomin bolted up. "We didn't miss it? Then when? I thought..."

"What do you mean 'miss it'?  It will come when all of the Jews arrive! Achi, we have been waiting for the geulah for a loooongtime.  Hashem will not let you miss nothing!" And with that he began humming a tune that sounded so familiar... but I couldn't put my finger on where I had heard it.  

By then all the excitement finally caught up with us, and one by one we fell asleep to the soft bumps in the road, and the sweet sound of Igal's voice. Just before I fell asleep I recognized the tune.  It was a Bresslov traveling nigun.

I dreamt. I was in shul everyone was complimenting me on my hat, "Look! Look!" Everyone was saying, and I was strutting around like a peacock with my grandmother's challah bowl on my head thinking, I should really wear hats more often...

"Look! Look!! Wake up!"   Chedva was shaking me. Binyomin'svoice came in to my right.

"Malka you are not going to believe this." My eyelids felt like they were glued shut, but somehow I managed to open them.  

Binyomin was right. I could not believe it.  Our house from America was standing right in front of us; just as natural as you please.

"You left the door open!" Igal joked. Indeed I did.  "I told you!" He nudged Binyomin, "Nissim and Niflaot!"

"Here is our number, you have a telephone?" Chedva asked as she handed me a small piece of paper. I nodded.  "When you get settled you will come for Shabbat ok? Oy!  Don't cry!"  

Was I crying? I didn't even realize...

"My wife is a very good cook and everything is Mehadrin min ha Mehadrin!"

"Do you want to come in? Maybe for a drink?" Racheli offered.  It seemed so strange to be inviting people into a house that had basically just popped into existence!

"We would love to, but we need to get the next family! But we are going to see each other very soon yes?  Call us when you get settled-don't be shy!" He said closing the door to the car, "We are family now!"  And without further ado, they were gone.  

"Thank you!" I called out, even though by now they couldn't hear me. My kids waved until they could no longer see anything but a little puff of dust.  

"Mommy, his name was Igal!" Yosef said.

"Yes, I know."

"Mommy!  Igal!  Like Eagle?" Oh!  

"Can you believe this?!" My husband gestured towards the house.  We climbed the steps and pushed open the door. The potato chips were still on the floor - guess I was going to have to clean up that mess after all. And then the most delightful scent wafted in from the kitchen.

"My soup!" I ran to the kitchen and shut off the flame.  I absolutely could not believe it.  "Everybody get a bowl and a spoon!" Not only did Hashem redeem us, not only did He send such sweet and wonderful people to bring us home, not only did He airmail our beautiful house without a scratch, but waiting for us was a steaming pot of soup! Quite delicious if I do say so myself! Wow. Every time I think about it I get goose bumps!

...So where were you?

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