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| Parshas
Vayeitzei
Vav Kislev
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Volume
1
Issue 7 |
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PARSHAS
Vayeitzei
It had been a wonderful weekend. Shmuli had spent a great deal of time
with his cousin Mendy, and they both loved every minute of it. Shmuli
lives in Brooklyn. Mendy's family is on shlichus in California. The
two cousins had not seen each other for a long time. So when Mendy's
father brought him to Crown Heights for the Shluchim Convention, they
had a lot to talk about. The Convention was over all too soon. As Shmuli
helped Mendy take his bags out to the car, he said: "I'm really
sorry you're leaving. It's too bad you don't live right next door to
us."
"I had a great time here, Shmuli. I'll miss you, but I don't feel
sorry, and you shouldn't either," said Mendy.
"Don't you wish you didn't live so far away?" asked Shmuli.
"Actually, no," replied Mendy. "I feel very lucky to
be on shlichus. I'm very proud of all the things my Tatie and Mommy
do, and they allow me to help, too. They tell me that I'm a junior shliach.
If I lived in Crown Heights, I'd have to wait until I was older before
I could go out on shlichus."
If Mendy's parents had heard this conversation they would have been
just as proud of Mendy as he was of them! He was following the example
of Yaakov Avinu, which we read in this week's parshah, Vayeitzei. Yaakov
left the city of Beer Sheva and traveled to Charan. He left Eretz Yisrael,
where his righteous parents Yitzchak and Rivkah lived, and journeyed
far away, to a country he had never seen before. He was going to live
among people who were very different from him, in a place that did not
have the holiness of Eretz Yisrael.
Do you think that Yaakov Avinu journeyed to Charan just because he was
running away from Esav? Obviously, there's a more important reason!
HaShem would certainly have protected Yaakov from Esav anywhere in the
world. For example, Yaakov spent many years studying in the Yeshivah
of Shem and Ever, without having to worry about Esav. Yaakov journeyed
to Charan because he had a job to carry out, and he was ready to do
it. He was willing to move away from his home and to teach people about
HaShem. He would set a personal example of how a person should live
and behave. Yaakov went to Charan on shlichus. Actually, we are all
on shlichus. A Jewish neshamah is pure. It is a part of HaShem. What
is it doing in this world where HaShem is hidden? Our neshamos have
a job to perform. We have been sent on shlichus to make this world a
dwelling place for HaShem, and to prepare it for the coming of Mashiach.
(Please
Tell Me What the Rebbe Says, (Adapted from Sichos Shabbos Parshas Vayeitzei,
5752)
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The
answer to last week’s brain buster is Fichol (in hebrew letters)
Congratulations to Chaya Jaffe, 10 from Brisbane, Australia
for solving the brain buster.
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Parshas
Vayeitzei
Part
of me is an ocean, the rest of me is the name of a month.
Who are we?
______ ______ ______ _______ ________
Please send your answers to connections@shluchim.org
We
are so happy with all the responses we are getting to the brain busters.
Unfortunately, we are not able to print all of your names. Please
continue sending your feedback and responses as we will make a gorel
each week and pick one winner.
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Hello
to all of you—kids of Shluchim!
It was great seeing the junior Shluchim boys at the Shluchim convention
in Kislev, and I can’t wait to see the girls at the women’s
convention in Shevat. I don’t know if the boys saw me, I’m
kind of hard to spot. Maybe the girls will be able to find me. I was
very busy doing the important work of seeing. I saw camper Chaim from
the Tzeirei Hashluchim camp cheering with a lot of chayus. I saw camper
Dovid davenning in 770 with a lot of kavannah. All the boys looked
like they had such a good time!
I’m a professional at Seeing; my name is Dr. Getzel and I’m
pretty famous. It took me many years to learn how to see properly.
I went to many universities and institutions until I became an official
expert at seeing.
I know you think that that’s a silly thing to say because everyone
knows how to see. But it’s not so simple. I have an important
job of teaching people how to see; I make lots of creative glasses
which help people see correctly. You should come visit my office in
Iowa amongst the cornfields and cows. I sell glasses for looking up
at people, rather than looking down at them. I also have glasses that
improve people’s inlook or outlook. There are many tricks to
seeing and my favorite customers are kids, because they are experts
at learning seeing tricks.
I came to the Shluchim convention to teach looking tricks, and I have
to tell you that some of the Shluchim have a super outlook; they are
experts at seeing even though they didn’t come to Dr. Getzels’s
office in Iowa between the cornfields and cows. They taught me how
to make a new kind of lens called the COL; it means Chassidic Outlook
Lens, it is a clear and beautiful lens. I can’t wait to sell
those lenses; I know that people are going to love them. But first,
I need you to help me. In order to make the COL lens the Shluchim
told me about, I need to understand: How does a chossid look at the
world differently than other kids? Please send me your answers. I’ll
be back next week to tell you my many seeing tricks, but for now start
practicing. See ya’,
Dr.
Getzel
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Bais
Kislev
On this day the sefarim and the writings collected by the Rabbeim, which
were wrongfully removed, were returned to their rightful place—to
the Rebbe’s library in 770.
Gimmel Kislev
On this day was the Tno’im of the Rebbe with
Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka.
Hay Kislev
On this day, the Tzemach Tzedek married Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka, The
Tzemach Tzedek’s mother was Rebbetzin Devorah Leah who gave up
her life so that the Alter Rebbe can continue to spread Chassidus.
Sh
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Meir
Shemtov, age 12
Montevideo, Uraguay
My father wanted to rent a bar one Friday night and leave a kiddush
cup there. The bar tender was surprised at this strange request and
asked my father why he wanted to do such a thing. My father explained
that he wanted to make Kiddush for the local teenagers. The bar tender
agreed to the plan. My father went to the bar at 1:00 am Friday night.
He approached a guy and asked him if he was Jewish. The guy said, “of
course!” My father then asked him if he wanted to make kiddush
and he said, “yes, sure!” After he drank the Kiddush, he
told my father, “If my parents knew that I made kiddush in a bar
instead of dancing
like a "meshugene" they would faint!
Send
us a short paragraph about your shlichus and we will publish it in our
future “connections”! Please include your name, age, andlocation.
E-mail us at: cyh@shluchim.org
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This
coming Monday, the ninth of Kislev (Nov. 22), is the birthday and
yahrtzeit of Rabbi Dov Ber , the second Rebbe of Chabad-Lubavitch,
known as the Mitteler (or "intermediate") Rebbe. The following
day, the 10th of Kislev, is the day on which the Mitteler Rebbe was
redeemed from imprisonment (in 5587/1826).
In 5576/1816, The Mitteler Rebbe, Reb Dov Ber,
established a settlement of Chabad chasidim in Israel, in the holy
city of Chevron. He encouraged the chasidim already living in other
parts of Israel to resettle in Chevron. In addition, his own daughter
and son-in-law moved with their family to Chevron from Russia .
* * *
There is a famous story about the Mitteler Rebbe told by the Previous
Rebbe and often related by the Rebbe: The Mitteler Rebbe was known
for his unusual power of concentration. When he was ebusy studying
Torah or davenning, he did not hear or see a thing around him. Once,
when The Mitteler Rebbe, Rabbi Dov Ber, was studying, his baby sleeping
in a nearby cot fell out of his cradle and began to cry. The Mitteler
Rebbe did not hear the baby's cries and continued learning. But the
baby’s grandfather, the Alter Rebbe, who was in his room on
an upper floor and was also learning at that time, did hear the baby's
cries. He interrupted his studies, went downstairs, picked up the
baby, comforted him, and put it back in its cradle. Still, the baby's
father did not hear or see what went on around him. Later on, the
Alter Rebbe told his son: "No matter how important the thing
is in which a Jew is busy with, one must always hear the cry of a
child."
This story is applicable to parents, teachers and even children. We
must always hear the cry of a child, whether a child in years or knowledge.
Even when we are involved in important things, we must not neglect
or ignore the cry of the child.
* * *
About the Mitteler Rebbe it was said that he
was so involved in Chasidus that, "if his finger would have been
cut, it would have bled Chasidus instead of blood!"
* * *
When the Mitteler Rebbe was arrested by the
Czarist government (in 1826), the doctor, who was an important specialist,
acknowledged that Chasidus was the Mitteler Rebbe's very essence and
life. The doctor told the Russian authorities that they must allow
the Mitteler Rebbe to give talks on Chasidus to his chasidim, explaining,
"Just as you provide food for prisoners to ensure their existence,
so, too, you must allow him to teach Chasidus. His very life depends
on it." They agreed to let fifty chasidim enter his prison room
twice a week to listen to a ma’amor. But the Mitteler Rebbe
was not only concerned about the ruchniusdike life of his fellow Jews,
he also worked to better their situation b’gashmius as well.
He encouraged thousands of Jews, both his chasidim and others, to
settle on the land as farmers so that they would not have to be at
the mercy of the anti-Semitic landowners or peasants. In 1815, The
Mitteler Rebbe established twenty-two Jewish farm settlements on land
near the town of Cherson, which he had convinced the government to
give for this purpose. Many of his chasidim, however, did not want
to move so far away from their Rebbe. Because of this, the Mitteler
Rebbe travled to many places to teach Chassidus to his Chassidim.
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Dear
Kids,
Please
send me a short paragraph to let me know how you are using your COL-
Chassidic Outlook Lenses to look at the world in a special way. Can’t
wait to hear from you all. Good Shabbos. - Dr. Getzel
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| Kids!
Fill out the answers to the questions about the Mitteler Rebbe below,
and fax it to the Shluchim Office to at (718) 221– 0985. We will
IY"H be mailing prizes to the winners!
What
was the Mitteler Rebbe‘s name? _____________________.
Who was the Mitteler Rebbe‘s wife? _____________________.
Who was the Mitteler Rebbe‘s father? _____________________.
Who was the Mitteler Rebbe‘s mother? ____________________.
Who was the Rebbe before the Mitteler Rebbe __________________.
Who was the Rebbe after the Mitteler Rebbe __________________.
7.
What day and year was the Mitteler Rebbe born? _____________________.
8. What day and year did the Mitteler Rebbe pass away? _________________.
9. What were the last words of the Mitteler Rebbe before he passed away?
_________________________________________.
10. Where was the Mitteler Rebbe buried? __________________.
11. What happened on Yud Kislev______________________________.
(Look in the front pages of a Yiddish Hayom Yom for some answers!)
Name:
_____________________________ Age: _____
Address: ______________________________________
City: _______________ State: _____ Zip: ____________
Phone: _____________ e-mail: ____________________
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QUESTION:
After Yaakov took his brother’s Eisav’s brochos from Yitzchok
Avinu (his father), Eisav wanted to kill him. Rivka advised Yaakov to
run away to her brother Lavan’s house in Charan. On the way, Yaakov
stopped on a mountain to rest.
The Posuk says:
"He took from the stones of the place and he placed them around
(under) his head."
Rashi says that Yaakov wanted to protect himself from wild animals.
Why did he only protect his head and not the rest of his body?
ANSWER:
From Yaakov's actions, a very important lesson can be learned. Yaakov
spent all his years studying Torah in the home of Yitzchak and in the
Beis Midrash of Shem and Eiver. Now he had to give up some of his study
of Torah - ruchnius, and be busy with gashmiyus things.
Yaakov knew that in the gashmiyus world, there are many forces that
make a person stay away from learning Torah and doing Mitzvos. Therefore,
Yaakov made a great effort to protect his "head," to prevent
any negative influences from interfering with his yiddishkeit.
(excerpts
from Vedibarta Bam)
QUESTION: Who established the 3 tefillos that we daven each day, Shacharis,
Mincha and Maariv.
ANSWER
: Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Our avos instituted the three daily
tefilos. Avraham instituted the tefilah of shacharis as it says: "Vayashkeim
Baboker", Yitzchok instituted the tefilah of mincha, as it says:
"Vayeitzei Yitzchok lasuach b'sadeh", and Yaakov instituted
the tefilah of ma'ariv, as it says: "Vayifga Bamakom".
(Midrash
Rabbah)
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"Connections"
Newsletter Editor in Chief: Chana S. Newfield
We'd
love to hear your feedback! Send us your comments, ideas and suggestions
to: connections@shluchim.org |
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