$0/$300
for Feb | Toda Raba! We thank you for your gifts & generousity. |  | 
|  |
Archive for Marheshwan / Kislev 5772 - November 2011
Biblical Faith – with Shmuel “Sam” Peak
Chapter 6
All Yisra’el has a share in the World-to-Come
Torah and mussar complement each other. Torah illuminates the path that leads to the World-to-Come, while mussar is advice to deal with worldly temptations that draw us away from that path. The living practice of the study of the mussar is called derech eretz—the discipline of civilized behavior and good qualities of character. Avot, as a work of mussar, is clearly a close companion of Torah, as the Rabbis stated. “If there is no Torah, there is no derech eretz; if there is no derech eretz, there is no Torah.
Temple Talk is a weekly internet radio webcast with Rabbi Chaim Richman and Yitzchak Reuven of the Temple Institute.
This week features:
The Roots of a Soul: Yitzchak and the Secret of Resurrection
The Matriarch Sarah’s 127 Years as the Measure of a Life Well Spent
As rains of blessing fall in the Land of Israel, our hosts reflect upon the Torah and prophetic readings and allude to endless depths of meaning, recalling the dew of the future, which will signal the heralded and promised resurrection of the dead. A deeper look into Torah traditions reveals that our patriarch Yitzchak already experienced this moment, and like the secret contained within Yitzchak’s very name, in the future all of his progeny, the people of Israel, will indeed laugh at the illusion of death. Tune in to this week’s Temple Talk as Yitzchak Reuven and Rabbi Richman reveal that long before James Taylor, Yitzchak was really the man who’s seen fire and seen rain!
In this week’s Torah portion of Chayei Sarah, the matriarch Sarah is laid to rest in the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron. Like the Temple Mount and Joseph’s tomb in the city of Shechem, the full purchase of the double cave of Hebron is witnessed and recorded by the Torah itself, but ironically these very places have become a symbol of the struggle for Israel’s sovereignty in her land. Yitzchak Reuven and Rabbi Richman explore the life of Sarah and the significance of why the Torah measures the “years of her life” for the generations to come.
Temple Institute Links:
Program Link – Website – Support – Newsletter – Contact Us
Sara imenu – our matriarch Sara – was a woman of unparalleled beauty and spiritual strength, whose power of prophecy was greater, our sages teach us, than that of her husband Avraham. Yet, according to Midrash, she was ultimately felled by an enemy common to us all: the satan who feeds on our own fears and casts stumbling blocks along our way.
Chayei Sara (Genesis 23:1-25:18)
Parashat Chayei Sara is read on Shabbat:
Cheshvan 22, 5772/November 19, 2011
Temple Institute Links:
Program Link – Website – Support – Newsletter – Contact Us
Biblical Faith – with Shmuel “Sam” Peak
Chapter 5
Summary of Chapter Five
The mishnayot progress from the level of performing mitzvoth: “Be bold as a leopard . . . to carry out the Will of your Father in Heaven” . . . to the study of Torah, which is superior to doing mitzvoth. “The reward is in proportion to the exertion,” concludes the chapter with the highest level of all, for our ultimate destiny is the reward of the World to Come.
Torah was not given to angels and they cannot earn reward for they do not change and improve, nor do they earn reward for duress, for they experience no difficulty in performing the will of their Creator.
In memory of Jerry Dean
Why was Avraham Avinu interceding on behalf of the wicked people of the decadent city of Sodom? Was he your typical bleeding-heart liberal who can’t distinguish between right and wrong? On the contrary, Avraham was showing his faith to the one true G-d and to the role that G-d granted him as guarantor of humanity.
Vayera (Genesis 18:1-22:24)
Parashat Vayera is read on Shabbat:
Cheshvan 15, 5772/November 12, 2011
Temple Institute Links:
Program Link – Website – Support – Newsletter – Contact Us
Temple Talk is a weekly internet radio webcast with Rabbi Chaim Richman and Yitzchak Reuven of the Temple Institute.
This week features:
The Book of Genesis: Road Signs for the Children of Israel
Rachel’s Tears, Abraham’s Tests & Us: Restrain Your Voice From Weeping
“Rachel died, and was buried on the road to Efrat, which is Bethlehem. Jacob set up a monument over her grave; it is the monument of Rachel’s grave until today” (Gen. 35)
“Thus said Hashem: A voice is heard on high, wailing, bitter weeping, Rachel weeps for her children; she refuses to be consoled for her children for they are gone…Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears… there is hope for your future… and your children will return to their border” (Jer. 31).
This week marks the passing of our matriarch Rachel, who sheds tears for her children’s exile to this very day. But a visit to the beautiful and moving Rachel’s tomb, just minutes outside of Jerusalem, is a passage into “Palestinian” controlled area, where Rachel’s tomb is now enclosed in a concrete, militarized bunker… for the protection of her children, who come there daily to pray. Who’s crying now? Who’s crying louder, and wailing more bitterly – Rachel, over her children’s exile, or the children, over the degradation, exile and “imprisonment” of their dear mother? Yitzchak Reuven and Rabbi Richman reflect upon the character of our mother Rachel, her selfless heroism, and the legacy she passed down to her children.
Abraham passed down a legacy as well… in fact, the entire life of Abraham, as well as the other patriarchs and matriarchs of Israel as recorded in the book of Genesis, form an intricate and detailed plan for their children’s future. The events along the road of Abraham’s spiritual odyssey instruct us in what we must do, as well as what we must expect.
Our hosts are joined in the studio by good friends, our special guests Glen and Kevin Harlan of Snyder, TX, who are also on a spiritual odyssey in the Land of Israel, as they seek to connect with Hashem, Torah and Israel on a deeper level.
Temple Institute Links:
Program Link – Website – Support – Newsletter – Contact Us
“Always the bride’s maid,” the quiet month of Mar Cheshvan will yet have its day in the sun. Our sages teach us that the dedication of the future Holy Temple will be in the month of Mar Cheshvan, but for that to happen, we will need to roll up our sleeves and get serious about making it happen!
Temple Institute Links:
Program Link – Website – Support – Newsletter – Contact Us