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Dear Friend You still have time to make your 2015 donation to Lubavitch of New Hampshire.
As you know, Lubavitch of New Hampshire is here for you and any member in our community, regardless of observance or affiliation. It might be a Torah class, a dinner in the
sukkah, a Chanukah party, a High Holiday service, a Passover seder, a one-on-one counseling session, a Shabbat evening, or a visit to a loved one in the hospital or hospice. People find many ways to connect, and we try to be there for them.We consider you part of our family, and we hope you feel the same.
Partner with us this year so more families will experience the warmth and joy of Judasim. May we
all go from strength to strength in all our endeavors as we conclude the book of Genesis this Shabbat with the words Chazak Chazak V'Nischazek. Rabbi Levi Krinsky
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Why does this week's Torah reading -- a Parshah which describes the end of Jacob's life, his death and his funeral
-- carry the title Vayechi, "And He Lived"? This prompted one of the Talmudic sages to expound that "our father Jacob never died." Whereupon his colleagues challenged him and asked, "Did they then bury Jacob for no reason? Did they eulogize him in vain?" To which theTalmud answers: vertical-align: super; line-height: 0; font-size: 10px; text-decoration:
underline;">2 Life does not end with the grave. The soul never dies and the good work men and women do on earth continues to live on long after their physical passing. More particularly, if there is regeneration, if children emulate the example of their forbears, then their parents and teachers live on through them. When Jacob was about to breathe his last, he called his children
to gather round his bedside. Our Parshah recounts what he told each of them. But the Oral Tradition gives us a behind-the-scenes account. Apparently, Jacob was anxious to know whether all his offspring were keeping the faith and he put this concern to them at that time. They replied, Shma Yisrael HashemElokeinu Hashem Echad--"Hear O Israel,
the L-rd is our G-d, the L-rd is One." They were saying that the G-d of Israel their father would always be their G-d, too. Jacob was comforted and responded, Baruch Shem Kevod Malchuto L'3 (or in plain English, Baruch Hashem! Thank G-d!) When all of Jacob's children remained
faithful to his tradition, that was not only a tribute to Jacob's memory but the ultimate gift of eternal life bestowed upon him. His spirit lives on, his life's work continues to flourish and he is still present in this world as his soul lives on in the next. In following his path, Jacob's children immortalized him. Such a Parshah is aptly entitled Vayechi, "And he lived." Ultimately, our children make us immortal.
And so do our students, our spiritual children. May we each be privileged to raise families and disciples who will be true children of Israel, faithful to our father Jacob and the G-d of Israel. Amen.
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Your Questions
Does Hell Exist?
Who
isn’t terrified at the notion of being in a fiery furnace for all eternity? |
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10 Tevet
All About 10 Tevet
What
does this day commemorate? Well, three things, actually. |
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Video
Is G-d Real?
An
enlightening bedtime conversation between a mommy and a baby lamp. |
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Story
What Happens When a Plant Grows in Orbit
All
of a sudden, billions of dollars were being appropriated to work in a field that no one knew anything about. |
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| Shabbat Candle Lighting: |
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Friday, Dec 25 3:58 pm |
| Shabbat Ends: |
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Shabbat, Dec 26 5:04 pm | |
Candlelighting is an auspicious time to pray for your heart's desires. The custom is to pray for children who will be upright and G d fearing, and for the coming of Moshiach. Take the time also to pray for others who need blessings and good health.
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This Week
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Shabbat Chazak This Shabbat we conclude the reading of the book of Bereishit, Genesis with the final portion of Vayechi . It is the Jewish custom that upon completing any of the five books of the Torah in our cycle of weekly readings, the entire congregation calls out: ‘Chazak, Chazak, v’Nischazek – Be strong! Be strong! And may we be strengthened!’
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Quote of the Day
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| "The voice is the voice of Jacob"--no prayer is effective unless the seed of Jacob has a part in it. "The hands are the hands of Esau"--no war is successful unless the seed of Esau has a share in it. —
Talmud |
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Parshah
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Parshat Vayechi
Jacob lives the final 17 years of his
life in Egypt. Before his passing, he asks
Joseph to take an oath that he will
bury him in the
Holy Land. He blesses Joseph’s two sons,
Manasseh and
Ephraim, elevating them to the status of his own sons as progenitors of
tribes within the nation of Israel.
The patriarch desires to reveal the
end of days to his children, but is
prevented from doing so.
Jacob blesses his sons, assigning to each his role as a tribe:
Judah will produce leaders, legislators and kings; priests will come from
Levi, scholars from
Issachar, seafarers from
Zebulun, schoolteachers from
Simeon, soldiers from
Gad, judges from
Dan, olive-growers from
Asher, and so on.
Reuben is rebuked for “confusing his father’s marriage bed”; Simeon and Levi, for the massacre of Shechem and the plot against Joseph.
Naphtali is granted the swiftness of a deer,
Benjamin the ferociousness of a wolf, and Joseph is blessed with
beauty and
fertility.
A large funeral procession consisting of Jacob’s descendants, Pharaoh’s ministers, the leading citizens of Egypt and the Egyptian cavalry accompanies Jacob on his final journey to the Holy Land, where he is
buried in the Machpelah Cave in
Hebron.
Joseph, too, dies in Egypt, at the age of 110. He, too, instructs that his
bones be taken out of Egypt and buried in the Holy Land, but this would come to pass only with the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt many years later. Before his passing, Joseph conveys to the Children of Israel the testament from which they will draw their hope and faith in the difficult years to come: “G‑d will surely
remember you, and bring you up out of this land to the land of which He swore to
Abraham,
Isaac and
Jacob.”
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