top 10 ways to Sweeten your Life
בס״ד
stories from around the world// what's new in kosher food { fall 2010 || }תשרי תשע״א
kosher trends/soul fitness/chasidic thought
The Solar
Powered Chasid
One Surprising Source of Alternative Energy
Who Really Wrote the Bible? And Why it Should Be Taken Seriously
Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson The Inspiring Life of the Rebbe's Mother
the
Sweet
issue
feature articles:
how i see it
by Sam Glaser
The Gold Medal Champ
with Amnesia
holiday guide inside
review | products
Dedicated to the love and inspiration of the Lubavitcher Rebbe on the cover: this year, you can sweeten everything
soul market what’s new in review
a jewish fruit?
In all my time as editor of this magazine, I’ve never seen a sweeter issue.
In this issue you will read how the Rebbe taught a struggling diamond dealer how to sweeten his burden, and the chasidic way to view your annoying cousin. Plus, our new and exclusive soul fitness is designed to keep your soul feeling fit and sweet all year round. As you read through the stories I hope you start seeing the common thread that binds them all: The amazing power of a new perspective. Like a wise man once told me, you may not need a new house or new car to make you happy, all you may need is a new perspective. The Rebbes of Chabad always spoke about the power of thinking positively and the power of small actions. And it seems the world is picking up on it. Newsweek just named Rabbi Krinsky, Chairman of the Chabad Lubavitch World Headquarters, as the most influential rabbi in America. Why? Simple, the Rebbe’s influence has reached all parts of the world for good reason: The amazing power of a Torah perspective and the power of small actions are working for people all over the globe. So, why not make your New Year’s resolution to study Torah and get a new Jewish perspective? Start right now with small mitzvah actions and watch the sweetness happen. Happy Reading, Miriam Liberman, Editor
An imprint of SoulWise Magazine EDITOR IN CHIEF: Miriam Lieberman EDITOR: Rabbi Shmuel Marcus DISTRIBUTION: Rabbi Avraham Green MANAGING EDITOR: Rachel Moss COPY EDITOR: Lisa Burstein CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Dr. Ben Sherman, Rabbi Nechemia Vogel, Moshe Yess, Chabad on Campus, Rabbi Shmuel Marcus, Kehot.com, Debbie Lew, Karen Caplan, Kosher Spirit Magazine, Chabad.org, Lubavitch.com and AskMoses.com. ART DIRECTOR & DESIGN: Nechama Marcus CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS: Yossi Belkin, JJ Raskin SPECIAL THANKS TO: Bluma Marcus, Sarah Lieberman, Shalom Laine, Mendy Fisher, Bill Pinkeson, the staff at InvisionCA.com, and Gary Winkler. Website: www.SoulWiseMagazine.com ©2010 by Soul Wise Magazine (Over 150,000 copies printed nationally) All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce any portion of This magazine in any form, without prior written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who wishes to quote brief passages. Printed in the USA
>>Send us your comments to editor@soulwisemagazine .com
Have you ever tasted New Zealand’s Chinese gooseberry? a little
tradition
It's that unique blessing of "Shehecheyanu" that has Jews all over the world searching for the perfect new and exotic fruit for the second night of Rosh Hashanah. The reason? Jewish law mandates the "Shehecheyanu" blessing to be said on the newness of a fruit or garment or holiday. But what about the second day of the same holiday? Well, that's where the "new fruit," i.e. a seasonal fruit which we have not yet tasted since its season began, enters the picture. The sages found a simple solution to this dilemma. Jewish law states that "On the second night of Rosh Hashanah, while reciting the Shehecheyanu blessing after candle-lighting and after the kiddush, one should have the new fruit." This fruit is eaten following the kiddush, before washing for bread. Before partaking of the fruit we say the following blessing: Ba-ruch a-tah Ado-nai E-lo-hei-nu me-lech ha-olam bore pri ha-etz. Blessed are You, L-rd our G‑d, King of the universe, who creates the fruit of the tree.
Chances are you have. And it’s all thanks to a nice Jewish bubby named Frieda. In 1962 she began marketing the Chinese gooseberry as “kiwi.” The name is for its resemblance to New Zealand’s fuzzy kiwi bird. Now you know why the Kiwi is a Jewish fruit. Its mother is Jewish. Frieda’s followed that with spaghetti squash, which is now a regular in supermarkets. Rosh Hashanah has everyone looking for that perfect new fruit, and we asked Karen Caplan for one. She sent us a Quince.
By Karen Caplan, CEO of Frieda's Inc.
"Sometimes I live in my own little exotic fruit world. I just assumed that when I wrote the word “quince,” everyone would know that I was referring to a fruit. That’s until one of my Spanish-speaking friends said, “fifteen?” I am referring to QUINCE (pronounced "kwins"). Let’s start at the very beginning. Quince is a member of the pome family (which is the same as the apple). Interestingly, some believe that the apple which Eve tempted Adam with was actually a quince. Harvested in California’s Central Valley during the late summer and imported from Chile the rest of the year, this fruit is becoming increasingly popular in the USA..." Read more of this article at: www.whatsonkarensplate.blogspot.com.
Karen Caplan is President and CEO of Frieda’s Inc, the specialty produce company her mother founded. Based in southern California, Frieda’s inc., is a leading distributor and marketer of unique and exotic fruits and vegetables to supermarkets and foodservice distributors in North America.
food
Snapple Gives Refund for Non Kosher It's never been so easy to go kosher. Since, the late 1990's the kosher consumer has seen a sharp rise in the amount of certified products. Now, a 24 pack – 20 oz plastic bottles of SNAPPLE has been incorrectly labeled OK Pareve. The 24 pack contains 3 flavors: Mango Madness (awesome and kosher) and Kiwi Strawberry (a little too sweet for my taste, but kosher however.) The Fruit Punch is not certified and is NOT KOSHER. The company is going crazy getting the new labels corrected. In the meantime, stores are taking the mislabeled Snapples back for a refund.
Kosher Pancakes in a Can Thanks to Sean O'Conner, Jews across the US can enjoy kosher pancakes with one schpritz. The pressurized Batter Blaster looks like a whip cream canister and makes light and fluffy pancakes without the mess. The kosher pancakes in a can are Pareve and certified kosher. For more info visit www.batterblaster.com. Send us your new albums, products or any other soul findings to editor@soulwisemagazine.com
The Lulav Shake Make a blessing on the traditional four kinds known as the Lulav and Etrog. Bring your heritage home via Fedex. Lulav and Etrog sellers are now using the latest in shipping technology to bring you fresh Lulav and Etrog sets. Sets start at $36. Contact your local Chabad center and ask for your very own Lulav Set.
feature | soul gems
by Rabbi Shmuel Marcus
“...The chasid must first see others as
spiritual heroes,
former ice
skating champs, Divine gems”
A Heavy Story
M
by Rabbi Nechemia Vogel
y late father was the founder and main supporter of the Lubavitch Boys’ Grammar School in London.
Year after year, more and more of the students needed full scholarships. Once, while my father was in New York he met with the Rebbe and told the Rebbe that it was becoming very difficult for him to continue the support. The Rebbe, with his unforgettable smile, said to my father: “Ir zeit doch a soicher, you are a businessman, (my father was in the diamond business) “Vel ich eich reiden af a sochrishen shprach” so I’ll speak to you in business terms. you a carrying a heavy sack of rocks struggling up the mountain, and someone asks “Could I add another rock to
your load?” Surely you would refuse. Now, Imagine you are carrying a heavy sack, but it’s not a sack of rocks, it’s a sack filled with ‘‘bloih veisse shteyner" blue-white diamonds and then someone comes and says to you “could I please add another blue-white diamond to your sack?” What would you say? You’d say ‘Of course, I’d be delighted!”
Sure the sack is heavy, but it’s diamonds. My father got the message and the grammar school continued. It was later transformed into the Yeshiva Gedola and as they say, the rest is history. Rabbi Nechemia Vogel is the director of Chabad of Rochester, New York serving the local community and college campuses. www.chabadrochester.com
The Gold Medal Champ with Amnesia
I
recently went to visit a war hero who had swam back into a drowning helicopter to save two men. When I meet Jesse at an assisted living facility near my home his war worn body had already clammed up years ago. Jesse doesn’t talk and he stares blankly at the door. Years of post traumatic stress disorder have left him with droopy eyes and bit of a drool. Whenever I visit, I salute and say “Jesse, You are a soldier. And behind those blank eyes is a hero. And for that I salute you.“ I do that because of a Chasidic story I heard as a child: A long line of Chasidim waited to see the Rebbe. The town’s fool had also come to see the great Rebbe. Sure enough, the Rebbe met with the simple man for an extended period of time. Reb Yosef, the next chasid in line, asked the Rebbe why he had wasted so much time with the fool. “You’re a jeweler Yosef, let me see some of your samples. The man showed the Rebbe a few diamonds he had with him and the rebbe said the largest one was the most expensive. Reb Yosef said, “Rebbe stick to the Talmud, leave diamond dealing to me, for the clarity is what makes these diamonds more or less in value." “Yes, exactly!” shouted the Rebbe, “you stick to diamonds, and leave the soul dealings to me, for sometimes a great soul can be trapped in the body of a simple fool.”
So, do you have a soul worthy of talking to a Rebbe? I think so.
It is written in the Talmud, that each one of us has an old soul, a soul that was at Mount Sinai, a soul that was taught the entire Torah, a soul that was once part of the Creator. Chabad philosophy teaches that once a part of G-d, the soul is always a part of G-d. That’s why when it comes to learning Torah it’s not about teaching your soul new tricks. In truth all you need to do is remember. But, our day to day battles tend to make us forget.
So how do we remember?
Perhaps, the same way the ice skating champion with amnesia would remember to skate. Straps on those skates and you give him a little push on the ice. Wow. Somehow, the gold medal ice skater emerges again. What do you tell a Jew who wants nothing to do with a mitzvah? What do you tell a Jew who can’t remember he has a soul? Perhaps, try to strap on the tefillin and give him a little push. The Rebbe helps people remember, but
the chasid’s job is to visit, and have an extra pair of skates. To be a chasid of the Rebbe you must be able to remember yourself. You need the vision to see past your own spiritual amnesia. Sure, you may not be willing to jump back in to a raging sea, or you may not even be willing to join the army. But, don’t let that fool you. Trapped in your body is a war hero. At your essence you are a part of G-d, greater than an angel. But most important, the chasid must first see others as spiritual heroes, former ice skating champs, Divine gems, as the chasid knows that the man with amnesia may have a much greater soul than the chasid himself. And for that I salute you. Rabbi Shmuel Marcus is the editor of Soul Wise Magazine and author of Chicken Kiev and The Ballad of the Yarmulkah Kid. Marcus is also a singer/songwriter of the band 8th Day. Marcus and his wife Bluma are the founders of the Hebrew High of Los Alamitos and JewishCypress.com. He lives with his wife and four children in Cypress, California.
wise jews:“I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. The world is moved alone, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushed of each honest worker.” -Helen Keller
fitness | soul exercises
holidays | official guide
download here
The Official High Holiday
guide
r
Rosh Hashanah September 8-10
The Jewish New Year is not about popping champagne or dropping a large matzah ball in Manhattan. Rosh Hashanah means, “head of the year.” Just as the head controls the body, Rosh Hashanah is seen as the potential for life, blessing and sustenance for the entire year. // On Rosh Hashanah, the birthday of our greatgrandparents Adam and Eve, we renew our relationship with G-d. The shofar awakens our hearts and minds to make G-d's mission our mission. // Our actions on Rosh Hashanah set the tone for the year to come. We eat apples dipped in honey, wishing for a good and sweet year, and eat new fruits symbolizing new beginnings. This is reflected in the words that we say during Rosh Hashanah, “May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year.” (See "Checklist" on next page.)
Similar to having free downloads for a limited time, the month of Tishrei offers a wide selection of deep experiences from which we can draw sustenance all year YOM KIPPUR September 17-18 long. We just need to over 3,500 years ago, our people sinned with the Golden Calf. Moses pleaded unzip the files and with G-d and on the 10th day of Tishrei, G-d proclaimed, “I have forgiven.” That has since been named "Yom Kippur" or “Day of Atonement.” // Before Yom put them to use. day Kippur, we observe the Kapparot service by rotating a fowl or money over our
heads, which we then give to the poor. On Yom Kippur, we do not eat, drink, wash, use perfume, have marital relations or wear leather shoes. It is a custom to wear white, symbolic of purity. // Yom Kippur begins with Kol Nidrei, expressing our timeless commitment to G-d. // Yom Kippur reveals the essence of the Jewish soul,
holiday | official guide
(continued from previous page)
2
a spark of G-d united with its Source. The final prayer of Yom Kippur, when our judgment for the coming year is sealed, is called Ne’ilah, “closing the gate,” which culminates with the final sounding of the shofar.
SUKKOT september 22-29 Sukkot, the season of rejoicing, means “huts,” reminiscent of the temporary shelters in which the Jewish people dwelled in the desert. Also called the Festival of Ingathering, Sukkot is the time that the produce from the field, orchard and vineyard is collected. It is one of three Pilgrimage Festivals when Jews would travel to the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, demonstrating their unity. We express this unity by blessing the Four Kinds: The lulav (palm branch), etrog (citron), haddasim (myrtle) and aravot (willow). // During the seven days of Sukkot, we eat our meals outdoors in the sukkah. The sukkah is the only mitzvah that encompasses us, symbolizing the “clouds of glory,” which surrounded and protected the Jewish people upon leaving Egypt. //Hoshanah Rabbah, the last day of Sukkot, means “great salvation,” and marks the end of our judgment period, which began on Rosh Hashanah. We traditionally tap the floor with a bundle of willow branches, and ask G-d to seal our inscription for a good year.
SHEMINI ATZERET/ SIMCHAT TORAH Sept. 30 - Oct. 1 Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah are the culmination of the holidays of Tishrei. On Shemini Atzeret, which means “the eighth day that concludes the festival,” some customarily eat their meals in the sukkah. In the synagogue, we dance Hakafot with the Torah—processions amid singing and dancing—and pray for rains of blessing. // Simchat Torah, which means “rejoicing with the Torah,” is celebrated with exuberant dancing. Completing the annual cycle of reading the Torah, we read the final section of the Torah, after which we immediately start to read it again. The rest of the year, we approach the Torah with serious study. On Simchat Torah, we approach the Torah with joyful dance. // This holiday emphasizes that the Torah is the inheritance of every single Jew. By starting to read the Torah anew, we demonstrate that learning never ends, especially when it comes to the Torah and its infinite wisdom.
The Official High Holidays
How To Have A Blast on The Jewish New Year! The complete Holiday Guide Explains: Why that sound is not a vuvuzela. Why your Jewish friends are saying prayers at a lake. Why we lied to the Spanish Inquisition and what you should do about it.
t
he Shofar, Answer The Call: One hundred blasts are sounded from the shofar each day of Rosh Hashanah. The shofar is a ram’s horn, the oldest and most primitive of wind instruments, yet its call touches the innermost chords of the soul. Its sound is simple and plaintive—a cry from the heart, like that of a lost child for its parent. It is a call to evaluate our actions and improve our ways. // The shofar historically was used to coronate kings. At Sinai, the Torah tells us, a shofar was sounded. The Prophets talk about the great shofar that will soon herald the coming of the final redemption.
TASHLICH: Can You Hear Me Now? Performed before sunset on the first day of Rosh Hashanah (or second day, if first occurs on Shabbat). Tashlich (“cast away") is observed. We visit any stretch of water containing live fish, and recite special prayers. The Kabbalah teaches that water is a sign of blessing, and the "reception" of our prayers is enhanced by our proximity to the water. TESHUVAH-”REPENTANCE:" Return to Sender: Ten Days of Repentance between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Teshuvah means “return”—a return to real you. To your inner self that was always connected to its Source. Start with sincere regret for transgressions and the resolve to abandon those ways. You'll develop a desire to come closer to G-d. The sages suggest prayer and increased performance of mitzvot, particularly the giving of charity to the poor, which “redeem” the soul from spiritual captivity. KOL NIDREI: Look at our Hearts, Not our Clothes The first prayer of Yom Kippur, as the sun is setting, is Kol Nidrei, the cancellation of vows. The significance of this prayer dates back to the persecution of Jews during the Spanish Inquisition of the 15th Century, when Jews were forced to convert to Catholicism under the threat of death. // Outwardly, the Jews behaved like their Spanish neighbors, but in private they remained devout. Once a year they would gather in secret, declaring Kol Nidrei to vow their commitment to Judaism, despite their seemingly Catholic lives. Kol Nidrei was their proclamation that their external behavior was not who they were. // THE SUKKAH: Seven Days Under His Roof: Sukkot is a seven-day festival. A sukkah is an outdoor structure, where we dwell during the Festival of Sukkot in symbolic demonstration of our faith in G-d's providence. Its roof is composed of branches. // “Sukkah is the only mitzvah into which a person enters with his muddy boots,” goes the Chassidic saying. The sukkah, its walls and roofing, encompass us entirely. // The Zohar teaches that on each of the seven days of Sukkot, we are joined in
for Checklist Rosh Hashanah: 1. Candle lighting, both nights 2. Kiddush and festive meals, both nights and both days 3. Apple dipped in honey, first night 4. New fruit is enjoyed, second night 5. Hear the shofar, both days 6. Visit a body of water for Tashlich, first day
Checklist for Yom Kippur: •Kapparot and charity, before Yom Kippur •Two festive meals, before the fast •Yahrzeit memorial candle is lit before Yom Kippur (if applicable) •Candle lighting, before sunset •Fast, from before sundown until after nightfall •Yizkor memorial prayers during daytime services •Break the fast after the Havdalah service, marking the end of the holiday
Checklist for Sukkot: •Candle lighting, first two nights •Kiddush and festive meals, first two nights and first two days •Eat all meals in the sukkah •Bless the Four Kinds each day, except Shabbat •On Hoshanah Rabbah, eat festive meal and tap the aravot (willow branches)
for Shemini Checklist Atzeret/Simchat Torah: •Candle lighting, both nights • Kiddush and festive meals, both nights and both days •Dance Hakafot, both nights and second day •Yizkor memorial prayers, first day
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our sukkah by seven spiritual Ushpizin, honored guests: Abraham, representing the divine sefira (attribute) of chesed, kindness; Isaac, representing gevurah, restraint; Jacob, representing tifferet, beauty and balance; Moses representing netzach, eternity and perseverance; Aaron, representing hod, splendor; Joseph, representing yesod, spiritual foundation, and King David, representing malchut, sovereignty. // The sukkah encompasses its visitors in unison. In this way, the sukkah reveals the simple and beautiful oneness of a people rooted in the oneness of their Creator. When all of Israel dwells in a single sukkah, our unity transcends our differences. THE FOUR KINDS: All Four One and One for All: Performed each day of Sukkot, except for Shabbat. The unity of the Jewish people is expressed by blessing the Four Kinds: The etrog (citron) has both a pleasant taste and smell, representing one who is both knowledgeable in Torah and proficient in the observance of mitzvot. The lulav is
the branch of the date palm, whose fruit is tasty but has no scent, representing one who is accomplished in Torah, though less so in mitzvot. The hadas (myrtle branch) is tasteless but aromatic, representing one who, though lacking in Torah knowledge, is observant in mitzvot. The tasteless and scentless aravah (willow branch) represents the individual who lacks in both Torah and mitzvot. When we are bound together, each individual makes up for that which is lacking in the others. The Four Kinds also represent four personas within each individual: Lulav is the intellectual within, who does not allow feeling to cloud the purity of knowledge; hadas is the emotional self, where feelings comprise the highest ideal, even at the expense of intellect; etrog is the force that strives for balance of mind and heart, while aravah is the capacity for setting aside both intellect and feeling in commitment to a Higher ideal. Dances with the Torah Feel the Beat; Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah: All reserve
disappears in the exuberant dancing of Simchat Torah. Every Jew, learned and unsophisticated, feels a natural desire to take a Torah in his arms and dance. Simchat Torah taps a point in the soul that defies the differences that exist between one Jew and another. // The source for this happiness is of course the Torah. Yet throughout the entire Hakafot dances, the Torah is never opened; we dance holding it wrapped in its mantle. Though the Torah is usually associated with disciplined study, on Simchat Torah we approach it differently, singing and dancing in a manner that bears no apparent relationship to understanding. // We are lifted beyond the realm of our individual identities and become the “feet of the Torah.” These celebrations reveal that our bond with G-d and the Torah is unconfined by the limits of intellect. // Moreover, this celebration anticipates the ultimate celebrations that will accompany the coming of Moshiach and the advent of the Era of the Redemption. May we merit it now.
holidays | insight
A
deeper look at the traditions of the Jewish New Year and how old traditions can help make a new you.
The Kabbalah of a New You
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Rosh Hashanah celebrates the creation of Adam and Eve. When Adam was created, his soul so irradiated his being, that all the creatures wanted to crown him as their creator. Adam corrected them, saying, “Come, let us worship, let us bow down and kneel before G-d our Maker” (The Zohar). At that moment, he actualized the universe’s potential—to become one with the Divine.
YOM KIPPUR:
THE SOUL ESSENCE
Yom Kippur has a special power, for “whether one repents or does not repent, Yom Kippur atones.” To quote Maimonides, “The essence of the day atones.” The soul has many levels. Though it is a spiritual entity, there is a level that is affected by our physical transgressions. For this level of the soul, repentance is required to reattach it to G-dliness. // However, the essence of the soul is literally one with G-d and cannot be affected by our physicality. On Yom Kippur, G-d reveals this essence that is hidden throughout the
year. // The Hebrew word kapparah has a connotation of “scrubbing”—meaning that on Yom Kippur, we can scrub off our transgressions and connect with our essence.
SUKKOT: AN ENDLESS JOY The spiritual light we achieve during the High Holidays through prayer, meditation and fasting is again achieved on Sukkot, but through joy. // What we accomplish through blowing the shofar is now accomplished by placing the s’chach branches on the roof of our sukkah. (The word s’chach has the numerical value of 100, equaling the amount of sounds blown from the shofar during Rosh Hashanah.) The seven days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur can elevate each day of the coming year; the seven days of Sukkot elevate the coming year with joy and spirituality. The cloud of incense offered in the Holy Temple on Yom Kippur is a manifestation of the “clouds of glory” that protected the Jews leaving Egypt; a physical sukkah is the spiritual manifestation of these clouds. // Joy is not logical; it is
SHEMINI ATZERET/ SIMCHAT TORAH: Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot are considered our engagement with G-d’s Will. Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah constitute our wedding, the time of “Intimacy with the Divine.” // A wedding brings two people together in happiness and fulfillment. Simchat Torah means “the joy of the Torah,” because we bring joy to the Torah when we bring her into our lives. Our soul comes from the essence of the Divine; the Torah is the manifestation of the Divine Will. It is only when the soul (clothed in a body) adheres to the Torah, that the Divine Will is actualized and fulfilled. // When we dance with the Torah on Simchat Torah, G-d’s essence and His
Torah are reunited, bringing purpose and fulfillment to each other.
Mazal Tough
The New York Magazine congratulated these two Jews with a “Mazal Tough.” And we
10 Ways to Sweeten Your Life
above our comprehension. Our Sages teach, “joy breaks all boundaries.” Through joy, Sukkot gives us the power to reach our spiritual potential, by breaking our intellectual boundaries.
SIMPLY DIVINE
keeping jews in shape
recommend you give them your seat, or anything else they ask for, at the synagogue this year. Why? Yuri Foreman and Dmitriy Salita, are both winners of the prestigious 2001 New York Golden Gloves in their respective weight classes. Many have seen them on HBO, Showtime or ESPN, but we’ve seen them in shul, and they deserve your seat.
Based on the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson
Rosh Hashanah: CELEBRATING OUR POTENTIAL
It is only through the creation of Adam (humanity) that the separate elements of the universe can unite with one purpose. Only we have the power to elevate physicality into something spiritual. When a ram’s horn is blown on Rosh Hashanah, the animal kingdom is elevated. When we make a blessing before eating an apple dipped in honey, we elevate the organic kingdom. On this day, we realize the potential and responsibility we have as human beings.
soul fitness
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Send us your comments to editor@soulwise.com
get a personal soul trainer Find a PST near you. Your PST (Personal Soul Trainers) won't ask how many spiritual push-ups you've done, but, they will teach you Hebrew, or show you how to make a challah. Whether it's Talmud or Kabbalah, daily Torah study is the sure way to prevent soul decay. Keep healthy, get your soul in shape with a PST. Contact your local Chabad center and tell them your soul sent you. Visit www.Lubavitch.com/centers for a center near you.
1. Listen up ladies, there is nothing sweeter than light. “The Friday Lights,” was specially designed for women and girls (ages 3 and up) to sweeten any home. Light candles every Friday afternoon, at least 18 minutes before sunset, and let your soul enjoy a Shabbat of total sweetness. Repeat weekly, and of course, before all Jewish Festivals. // 2. The “Sweet Boxes” are custom made for any guy (ages 13 and up). The Tefillin Therapy (black leather boxes containing small parchment scrolls) should be done daily. The sweet box only comes in black and should not be used on Shabbat or Festivals. // 3. Let your soul feel safe and secure with the sweetest house warming gift, the “mezuzah.” Experience the sweet difference between a house and a Jewish home. Try this at home. The “mezuzah” is handmade from all natural materials. According to Rabbi Simon Jacobson, the author of Please note: installation is not included. // 4. Ready to Toward a Meaningful Life, our underlying intention sweeten your mind? Try some Torah Study daily, even and motive while we discipline our child or spouse just a few lines of Torah contain the infinite wisdom of G-d. is actually...love. In other words, even when we must Make it a habit and see what sweet things you’ll learn about punish a child for spilling milk on the couch it is still yourself. // 5. The best way to sweeten your life, not vengeance; it is just another way to express our is by sweetening someone elses life. So, keep love and hopes for a correction. Our love for our a "pushkah" (charity box) handy, in your home and office, children includes wanting them to be the best they and watch what a dime will get you these days. // 6. What can and therefore making them aware of their less language does your soul read? English? Hebrew? than perfect behavior is a discipline of love. Spanish? It doesn’t matter; “Jewish Books in Your Home” comes in all languages. Sweeten your living space with as So, here's the soul exercise to try right now, ask many holy books as possible. At the very least, we suggest yourself: When I judge and criticize another is it in you get a hold of a Chumash (Bible), Psalms, and a Prayer any way tinged with any of my own contempt and Book. (Leather bound set optional.) // 7. Keep your soul irritation? Is there any hidden satisfaction in his failure? Or is it only out of love for the other? happy and healthy with our gourmet “Kosher Try this soul exercise today: Before you criticize Diet.” Once you eat differently, you’ll notice that your soul someone ask yourself is this out of care and love? won’t seem so metaphysical anymore, but part and parcel of your very being. The “Kosher Diet” will give your soul spiritual results within minutes, and there is no surgery necessary. // 8. Sweet Love. There is nothing like reaching out to your fellow with patience and love, “Ahavat Yisroel” is the sweetest thing for any soul. // 9. Get “A Jewish Education.” Ideal for the young souls, how sweet it is to know that you’re ensuring Jewish integrity, Jewish identity and a Jewish future. // 10. Sweeten your marriage with “Family Purity.” This Divine inspired formula, allows you to make the most of your marriage, bringing you and your spouse to new, undiscovered depths of intimacy, and brings a cherished sacredness into your personal, and soulful, relationship. Read more at www.chabad.org
soul exercise
feature | stories from around the world
One man travels through the Jewish topography
the way
But we were wondering: what do 6+ billion people want to know? So we googled it. And here are the relative results from mid-July 2010. (By the time you read this, the figures will have increased by the thousands). Our searching shows there are about 2 million searches for “joy” and almost 2 billion for “love.” Does this mean anything? We probably could google it, but figured we'd let you send us your theories, conjectures and hypotheses to editor@farbrengen.com. Happy googling!
I see it have the opportunity on my annual fifty city tours to divide my time between Reform, Conservative and Orthodox synagogues. A highlight of these global romps is the heart to heart chats I enjoy with the local clergy. As a rule these rabbis and cantors are entirely dedicated to their holy work and wear their love for Judaism on their sleeve. Nevertheless, when I mention how influential Chabad has been in my life, comments often slip out like, “Oh, not Chabad again.” Or, “they just opened down the street so they could siphon off our membership!” First the dig and After enough of these ripostes I was ish Community Hero in the national then, “but they do concerned that this diatribe was a Jewish Federation-sponsored online universal mantra. That was until a campaign. When I checked the webgreat work.” recent Chanukah Shabbaton in Orsite to see who else was nominated
by Sam Glaser Sam Glaser was named one of the top ten Jewish artists in the US by Moment magazine. Glaser has performed on Broadway and at hundreds of venues including L.A.'s Greek Theater, Universal Amphitheater, Staples Center, Dodger Stadium, and at the White House. He has traveled the world over in concert, from Sydney to London to Hong Kong to Tel Aviv.
lando, FL where I met Rabbi Gary Perras. He is a veteran Conservative rabbi and hanging proudly in his office is a 3x4’ portrait of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. As we lit candles together in his home on one of those ubiquitous Chabad supplied menorahs he explained his perspective. He was one of the only rabbis to welcome Chabad to Orlando when the other rabbis were protesting. He argues that one can’t “steal” members...they vote with their feet and many crave the spiritual nourishment that Chabad provides. When Rabbi Gary’s congregants opt for Chabad he considers it a success story: they will be more likely to keep kosher and marry Jewish. He stated “my job isn’t to retain members, it’s to get people into Judaism.” I was recently nominated as a Jew-
Love: 1,690,000,000 Body: 933,000,000 G-d: 523,000,000 Soul: 284,000,000 Israel: 259,000,000 Sad: 249,000,000 Jazz: 209,000,000 Hate: 196,000,000 Joy: 192,000,000 Kosher: 11,700,000 Yom Kippur: 2,020,000 Klezmer: 1,740,000 Chabad: 1,470,000 Yiddish: 38,400,000 Jewish: 80,100,000 Judaism: 13,300,000
“Not kugel, Mom, Google!”...I hear my sister explaining to our mother. The concept of googling something is unfathomable to someone who has never used a computer, let alone experienced the internet. Who would have ever thought we'd be able to search any subject in the world from anywhere in the world with an internet connection and find a gazillion results in 0.003 seconds?
I observed that the majority chosen were Chabadniks. When a rabbi friend called to encourage me to get out the vote (a $25,000 prize was in the offing,) I mentioned the skewed presence of Lubavitchers in the running. He responded, “well, that’s because they have the time to be out in the streets with the people: they run to visit the sick, they counsel addicts, they kasher kitchens, while I’m stuck behind a desk with budgets, board meetings and membership drives.”
H
ow many times has Chabad come to my rescue? With a kosher meal, a place to stay for Shabbat, a minyan. Thanks to Chabad I have otherwise secular friends who can quote chassidut. Just after my parents started to keep kosher, a miracle I thought might
We are all on the same team, fighting ignorance, assimilation & intermarriage. There is far more that we have in common than that which divides us.” never transpire, they moved to Pacific Palisades, a decidedly kosher-free zone. I feared they’d never make it without a community to support their new lifestyle. Lo and behold, that very year a new Chabad rabbi set up shop in their neighborhood. They were welcomed as founding members of the fledgling chapter that is now a full-blown shul filled with Jewish life. My positive experiences are too numerous to mention but I’ll offer one anecdote. Every year I ski, sing and study at a rabbinic convention, which is cleverly scheduled each January rotating between worldclass ski resorts. I have grown to love this bunch of learned ski addicts. We study Torah for an hour in the morning, ski all day
and then meet for more learning when the lifts close. What better way to celebrate my love of Judaism with my favorite sport! During a recent conference I was lucky enough to stay at a relative’s beautiful condominium. I figured I’d share the good fortune with some of my rabbi friends so I invited a group to gather for songs and snacks one of the nights. I scrambled back to the condo after a very intense day of back bowl powder skiing to find that the local market had just closed. Now I had a serious problem. I had no car, no knowledge of another market in the area to buy munchies and libations and my friends were on their way within the hour. suddenly remembered where to go for help: the previous year I had performed a concert in Aspen sponsored by the local Reform community in conjunction with Chabad. And that Chabad rabbi had a brother who had just set up shop in the town where I was. I looked up this rabbi whom I had never met in my life. When I called to beg for the immediate delivery of wine, sodas and snacks his response was simple: “I’ll be right over!” A smorgasbord of munchies appeared within twenty minutes just before the group of rabbis arrived. This wellmeaning Chabadnik wouldn’t accept any money from me - he didn’t want to diminish his mitzvah of kindness to strangers. When my guests arrived we sang and made toasts and I could tell that my new rabbi friend wasn’t quite ready to leave. He felt compelled to offer a word of Torah. I realized it might be a bit awkward but I figured “What could be the harm?” He spoke about the portion of the week for
about ten minutes and then said goodbye. A furious convention leader then escorted me into a bedroom. “How dare you invite a Chabad rabbi to speak to us! This whole kumzitz was a setup so that you could get that man here!” I tried to explain myself but I’m not sure if she believes me to this day.
d
ear fellow Jews, we’re all in this together. When we stand united, our collective light shines and the glory of G-d is apparent to all. “How lovely are your tents, Jacob!” All of our denominations make crucial contributions to the whole. We are all on the same team, fighting ignorance, assimilation and intermarriage. There is far more that we have in common than that which divides us. I beg my readers to please think twice before offhandedly disparaging anyone or any other movement. The world judges G-d by watching the Jews. “Jews are news.” We are held to a higher standard, whether we like it or not. Even if the term makes us uneasy, we are widely regarded as G-d’s Chosen People. Chosen to take a stand, to act as G-d’s witnesses throughout human history. Tevya would argue, “once in a while, can’t You choose someone else?” I’d like to believe we are chosen for greatness. That we have the power to bless each other and all of humanity. We glorify G-d’s name by loving each other and judging “to the side of merit.” Let us focus on each other’s attributes and not the faults. G-d knows we have plenty of faults. By working together we can make this the generation where the unity of the Jewish people creates a world where G-d’s name is truly one.
musings | soul shorts
Illustration by Marc Lumer
He stood five foot ten in his double knit slacks / Checking all the merchandise on his racks With an alligator sowed to his golfing shirt / Everybody knows you don’t give no dirt to / Jack Schwartz // Every morning at dawn
you can see him arise / In suburbia from a bed king size / With a golf bag made from fine leather soft / Everybody knows that you don’t tee off / Jack Schwartz // When Yom Kippur arrived he just wasn’t seen / He was out puttin round on the 13th green / He knew how to swing he know how to slice / He was golfin away his good Jewish life / Jack Schwartz / Well, were all gonna miss his beloved soul / Lightning struck on the 14th hole / His life was just a big
sand trap / Cause he never overcame his handicap / Jack Schwartz // And the gates of heaven they're closed to sin / And ole Jack Schwartz was not let in / He banged on them gates with all his force / But a voice said sorry Jack par for the course / Jack Schwartz // And there’s a tombstone now by the 18th hole / Where they buried his dearly departed soul / And i guess it had to happen sooner or later / He was buried in a tallit with an alligator / Jack Schwartz.
By Debbie Lew
rofile
Modern Miracles
The Rebbe's Mother Russia/USA 1880-1964
Joni Nathanson will be the first to tell you that she is not a Lubavitcher.
l
ubavitch" is the small town in White Russia where the Chabad movement settled in the 1800's. Joni is an American Jew, but is not a member of the Chasidic community. However, in the 1950's Joni lived with her parents and siblings in a small apartment at 1418 President Street, in Brooklyn. Their apartment was right above the apartment of the "Lubavitcher Rebbe's mother." That's how Joni's family referred to Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson.
Joni and The Lubavitcher Rebbe's mother became friends and Joni fondly remembers the Rebbetzin always walking in front of the complex when Joni would come home from school. Joni would be greeted by the Rebbetzin’s daily question of, "What did you learn in school
today?" and Joni would have her answer prepared as she walked home from school. Although Joni was attending public school, the Lubavitcher Rebbe's mother always took an interest in little Joni's school work. Joni recalls the time when she was scared of the "crazy old lady” from apartment B7 who would shout from her window and scare the children playing in the front of the building. Rebbetzin Chana told Joni to stay calm as she took her little hand and slowly walked her past the scary B7 apartment door. Joni grew up as the upstairs neighbor of the Lubavitcher Rebbe's mother and even had the occasional encounter with the Rebbe himself. Oh to be playing outside when the Rebbe's wife drove up to the
building. The Rebbe would emerge from the car to visit his mother. That’s when Joni and her sister would run to hold the door for the Rebbe, not even realizing at that time what a presence he was. Recently, Joni needed a blessing for her single 34-year-old daughter to find a nice Jewish boy, and Joni decided to go to the Rebbe's grave in Queens to pray. At the "Ohel" she wrote the customary note to be placed on the Rebbe's grave. "Dear Rabbi Schneerson, I don't know if you remember me, but I'm Joni, the neighbor from 1418 President Street, I have a nice daughter who needs to find a nice husband..." Joni Nathanson is still the first to tell you that she is not a Lubavitcher, but her daughter is now married and lives in Israel. She will always remember the kind and regal
Chana Yanovsky was born in Russia in 1880. She married Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson. Her eldest son, Menachem Mendel, was to become the seventh Rebbe and leader of the Chabad Lubavitch movement. In 1946 Rebbetzin Chana left the USSR and journeyed to America and setteled in Brooklyn. On Shabbat, the 6th day of Tishrei 1964, Rebbetzin Chana passed away. She was 85 years old. Today there are many educational institutions the world over that proudly bear the name Chana. Together with the countless women and girls who have been named Chana, they serve as a fitting tribute to the remarkable life and personality of Rebbetzin Chana. May she be an inspiration to us all.
woman from downstairs who was, of course, the Lubavitcher Rebbe's mother. Debbie Lew is working on her 3rd novel. She lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband Alex.
By Chabad on Campus
I
n the early 1950s, the Rebbe began sending rabbinical students to campuses to serve as a Jewish resource for students. Since the 1960s, I, Chabad on Campus, opened my doors to every Jewish student regardless of background or level of observance. Now, some fifty years later, on an average Friday, some 7,000 students text each other, some use Facebook or Twitter, about joining me for Shabbat dinner. Collectively, I go through 972 bottles of wine, 2522 Challah Rolls and don't get me started on the potatoes. To be sure, the life of a University student is not all about food, in actuality it does involve study. As you read this, 3,479 students are attending one of my 408 Jewish study classes I offer each week at one of the Chabad’s Jewish Student Centers. I would really be glad to welcome your child into my Jewish home away from home. So, have your big college boy or maidel check out my website: www.chabad.edu or find me on facebook.
You imagine... We deliver.
538 Johnson Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11237 t 718.628.6700 f 718.628.6900 e jobs@tphny.com w tphny.com
bossing, Foil Stam m E , pin ery d g n Bi
From concept through fulfillment... all under one roof.
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Whenever the tapping of the broom was heard from below, Joni's mother would shout, "The Lubavitcher Rebbe's mother needs help with the fire in her toaster!" Joni's late mother, Helen Kershenbaum, accompanied by her three children, would run downstairs to help extinguish the fire in the toaster. Mrs. Kershenbaum would then proceed, once again, to teach the aide how to work the toaster, of course, until the next episode, when the tapping was heard again.
My Crazy Weekends on Campus
s, Envelopes, Mailings, C k o o om rs, B ple e i l te ,s F
Lyrics by Moshe Yess
Bro c h ure
Jack Shwartz
book review | torah
Who Really Wrote the Bible? By Eyal Rav-Noy and Gil Weinreich Can be purchased online at www.WhoReallyWroteTheBible.com
so, who really wrote the bible?
F
"The heart of this debate is whether or not the or roughly 200 years there have been just two mutually exclusive Torah is a fraud."
perspectives regarding the Torah. (1) The Torah was written by Moses. (2) The Torah was originally written by multiple authors who never met each other, who contradicted each other, who even hated each other, and who invented their stories for political purposes.
onerous demands? Moreover, if your religious leaders don’t believe in its authenticity, then they are dishonestly using the Bible for their own purposes (just as their alleged ancient politicians did) to mean whatever they want it to mean, a point mostly unknown to many of their conThe first perspective is generally accepted by gregants. Orthodox Jews and fundamentalist Christians, At the heart of this deand the second perspective is believed by aca- bate is whether or not demics in universities throughout the Western the Torah is a fraud. world and liberal Jewish and Christian clergy- If supporters of mulmen who teach or are taught that the Bible is tiple authorship such an amalgamation of contradictory sources and as James Kugel and myth, jam-packed with ancient and outdated Richard Elliott Friedpractices. man are correct, then So which of these competing views is correct? the Torah is fictitious, Whether you are a religious or secular Jew unreliable and unworor Christian, or simply love truth, the answer to thy of the demands it this question matters a great deal. If the Bible makes of us. Caught had multiple authors, there is simply no reason in the crossfire are for anyone to take it seriously since, at a mini- church and synagogue mum, multiple authorship would establish that members, and college the Torah is untruthful about its own claim that students, who trust in Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, led them their leaders (clergy or to Mount Sinai where they heard the Ten Com- professors) a little too mandments, and then wrote the entire Torah much, fearing to delve into esoteric concepts over a 40-year period. And if the Torah is not the book that Moses and make up their own wrote (by Divine dictation), but rather a book minds. that Hebrew politicians wrote to feather their Now they can. ancient nests, why should you or I live by its Who Really Wrote the
Bible? exposes the intellectual bankruptcy of academic Bible scholarship. It shows how the Bible professors’ arguments are based on fundamental misunderstandings of basic concepts. And after demonstrating the intellectual fallacies of Bible criticism, Who Really Wrote the Bible? takes the argument one step further by revealing the unmistakable literary unity of the Torah. When readers see with their own eyes the patterns and parallels embedded on every page of Torah, they will never look at the Torah the same way again. By correcting centuries of bad Biblical scholarship and showing how the Bible is a unified text with a single author, Who Really Wrote the Bible? enables thoughtful, truth-loving people to begin taking the Bible seriously again. The false campaign of delegitimization of Torah has weakened the values underpinning our society. A renewed appreciation of the defining text of Western Civilization will go far to reinvigorate hope for our future.
U
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story | rebbe
wise jews: "Perhaps the greatest sense of purpose for many Jews is to get their children into a prestigious college.
by Shira Gold
But this is neither transcendent nor life filling - if your child gets into Stanford, then what? And if your child doesn't get into Stanford, then what?" Like everything else, academic success is a tool. Depends what you do with it." -Dennis Prager:
I
One Surprising Source of Alternative Energy
attended the Chabad of Newton Center Friday Night Dinner and had expected the gefilta fish and the oseh shalom sing along. The surprise was sharing the table with a man who at first looked like many Chabad rabbis I had seen over the years (with the black fedora and white beard and trade mark kind smile). But, when he introduced himself as Dr. rather than Rabbi, he got the attention of all present and the gefilta fish chatter stopped. The chasid was Dr. Jack Hanoka.Turns out, the solar panels I recently installed on top of my home are in part thanks to this white bearded Chasid. So, here is the fascinating story of how the Lubavitcher Rebbe took a personal interest in a young student’s career and how the saintly Rebbe ultimately impacted the solar community through his young disciple from Penn State.
I
t was the sixties and Jack Hanoka was exploring what it meant to be a Jew and eventually found himself at the Chabad Yeshiva in Brooklyn. Jack studied the Talmud and explored many books on the Torah. Like many of his peers at the yeshiva at 770 Eastern Parkway, Jack was on his way to becoming a rabbi. During his stay at the yeshiva Jack wrote the Rebbe a note about traveling back to visit some friends at Penn State and the Rebbe asked to meet with young Jack. In the Rebbe’s office Jack was told that "You must feel like a pioneer." But Jack did not feel like a pioneer at the time, “I just felt like this is something I had to do, but the Rebbe apparently viewed me as
a pioneer because nobody else had done this before.” When the Rebbe told him to ‘Speak to the students about the mitzvot of the upcoming holiday of Purim.” Jack said he wasn’t ready to represent his faith and heritage on campus. But the Rebbe countered that "Every Jew has to be an example." So, Jack went to Penn State and spoke with students and was surprised that people were very interested to hear what he had to say and how intrigued the students were with his yeshiva experience. During a Farbrengen, a Chasidic gathering, the Rebbe asked for “Professor Jacob Chanukah” and encouraged him to “Become a professor to spread Yiddishkeit amongst professors.” From that moment on, Jack was called “Professor” by all the yeshiva students.
L
ater When the Rebbe told his young “Professor” to go back college and to finish his studies and get a PhD. Jack suggested that he would like to stay and become a Rabbi. The Rebbe nodded and insisted
that Jack go back to school saying “You'll do more for Yiddishkeit with three initials after your name.”
T
he elder chasid next to me looked like a rabbi, but wasn’t because of the Rebbe. It was an honor to enjoy a Friday night dinner with this esteemed man. I, of course, googled him the minute Shabbat was over. I found that Jack is an internationally renowned materials scientist with 28 US and foreign patents to his name. Thanks to Rebbe, Dr. Hanoka is co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Massachusetts-based start-up 7Solar Technologies. don’t think people know that the Rebbe offered to loan Jack the money to go back and graduate. It turned out he didn’t need it. Dr. Hanoka, like all good Chasidim, listened to his Rebbe and got the PhD. He also spent 16 years as a Research Associate at the Mobil Solar Energy Corporation, developing many key breakthroughs in photovoltaic technology still in use to this day.
Read more about the Rebbe's thoughts on science and religion at www.therebbe.org