Monthly Messages - 2014

 'Selfie'

    Due to the drastic climb in usage this year, Oxford Dictionary’s Word of the Year is: SELFIE.
    While it may be a new trend to take photos of oneself, this can actually serve as a reminder that G‑d has already provided us with a living selfie.
    Our children are miniature images of us; whether by physical looks, personality, attitude or behaviors, they mirror us.
    If something in the image doesn’t satisfy you, don’t talk to your child, work on the original!

School Closing 

Too cold – too much snow… the first thing to go are the Offices are still open as are stores and businesses, and the post office still delivers mail, yet the “houses of study” are locked.
    In the times of the building of the Temple, even though every Jew had an obligation to assist in the building of the temple, students were not only exempt, but were not allowed to leave the classroom and disrupt their education.
    Keeping the school doors open every single day, would send a strong message to our children that education is of upmost importance.  And it will certainly keep the parents happy!

Torah…..Bright

Torah Bright is an Australian professional snowboarder who competed in the Sochi Olympics.
Her name was suggested by her sister, after their Jewish piano teacher said that “Torah” meant “bearer of a great spiritual message.”
The true meaning of the word Torah, is direction, telling us that the Torah is not a history book, but rather it’s an instruction manual, intended to guide us in our day to day lives.  Every story that was told in the Bible, was meant to teach us a lesson in how to improve the world around us and make it a G‑dly place.

Go Torah!

Noah

The world is worked up about the release of the movie, “Noah”, which tells the story of this famous Biblical Personality.

Judaism actually has a message to all the Children of Noah – which is basically all humanity.   There are seven Noahide Laws that were given to Noah by G‑d as he emerged from the Ark.  Abiding by these laws, would create a civil and safe society, making the world a just and kind place to live.

If the movie Noah will ignite even a small interest in the Seven Noahide Laws, then the 100 million dollars was well worth it.  

 May

June 

 ‘Baby Moses’

On April 4th, Miriam and I were blessed with the greatest gift G‑d could grant. 

Our newborn son Moshe joined our family less than 10 months after the passing of my father, Rabbi Moshe Greenberg, O.B.M

“The sun rises and the sun sets, (Ecclesiastics) The Talmud explains this verse to mean: A man does not depart from this world until another man like him is born!

My prayerful wishes to our little “Moses” is that he should go in the footsteps of his G‑d fearing grandfather as well as all the famous Moshe’s in our history.

Mazel Tov!

 Six Day War

On June 5th, 1967 the Six Day War broke out.  Israel was attacked on three borders – by the Syrian, Egyptian and Jordanian armies.  Miraculously, not only was Israel not “wiped out” as they threatened, but conquered Jerusalem and the Kotel that until then was under Jordanian control and off limits to Jews.

Periodically, G‑d performs amazing miracles to serve as a reminder that He is in charge.   The  next time we face seemingly insurmountable challenges, whether personally or communally, we could always refer back to the miracles, and remember that G‑d is in control and everything will work out for the best.

20 Years 
July 1st we will commemorate the 20th Yahrtzeit of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, of blessed memory.

Twenty years feels like a long time, but in life there are certain relationships that transcend time.   A really close friend or relative can be far away, and not part of your daily life, and yet you never stop feeling a deep connection to them.  

This is how it is with the Rebbe. He cared so much about others, that even if you didn’t see him for a long time, you still felt a deep connection.

Twenty years later, this feeling is still here.

 Tunnels
Jews the world over are worried about the
terrorist’s tunnels that were discovered between Gaza and Israel. 

We too have tunnels. In Jerusalem, underneath the Western Wall, there are tunnels that are
major tourist attractions. These tunnels tell the story of the Holy Temple that was destroyed on Tisha B’av which we will commemorate on August 5th.

And one little secret.  According to tradition, somewhere in these tunnels still exists the
Ark of the Covenant - contrary to what Indiana Jones would have you believe !

Ice Bucket Challenge

Who would ever believe that millions of
sophisticated people will happily pour ice cold buckets of water over their heads?  And then give a donation on top of that!

To me, the catch of this success  story is in the word “Challenge.”  In our society, the moment you challenge somebody, this is the best way to motivate them to rise to the occasion.

Chassidic philosophy teaches us that in life there is no such thing as a barrier.  Every obstacle that G‑d puts in front of us is just a challenge that can be overcome.

 A Joyous Experience

The melodies are haunting and the atmosphere somber. The worshippers are hungry and the prayers continue on and on.  It’s Yom Kippur in the world. 

Does your family realize that there are more fun synagogue experiences as well?  

How about Simchat Torah – where the air is lively, atmosphere joyous and the sound of singing and dancing fills the room?

Which one will keep our children coming back? Looking forward to seeing you all on Simchat Torah, Thursday, October 16th at 7:00 pm

 Ebola on Simchat Torah

On Simchat Torah the Solon Schools were
closed  because of an Ebola scare.  The authorities took time to disinfect the schools so that G‑d forbid no one should be infected by this contagious disease.

Simchat Torah is the designated day that Jews rejoice with the Torah.  The purpose of this lively holiday and fiery dancing is to make sure that the joy of the Torah is contagious and spread throughout the year.

I hope and pray that the Fire of the Torah will  “disinfect” the Ebola virus.

Thanksgiving – to G‑d

There are three major Jewish holidays in America:  Passover, Chanukah and Thanksgiving...

It’s an age old Jewish tradition, that when a person experiences a life changing miracle, he designates the day of the miracle to be a day of celebration and thanksgiving for himself and his family for generations to come.   

There are Holocaust survivors who commemorate every year the day of their liberation from the camps, or the day they stepped foot on American soil.

Although Thanksgiving is not a Jewish holiday, the concept couldn’t be more Jewish!