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Yaacov Haber's Blog (72)
Abraham’s Retirement Package
When we think about a Bris Milah we immediately conjure up images of a new life, a new beginning and a fresh start. Our Parsha begins when Avrohom Avinu was ninety-nine years old. He had just had a Bris Milah. It is difficult to consider ninety-nine years old a new start for anything or anyone, yet to Avrohom Avinu - things were just starting to fall into place. His goals were starting to materialize. Avrohom now was… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on November 6, 2009 at 3:32am — No Comments
Do We Really Believe in God?
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
Believing in G-d is tricky business. We are believers. We do Mitzvos, we say the Shema every day, we keep Shabbos carefully, phrases such as “G-d willing” and “G-d forbid” are a regular part of our vocabulary.
Noach was a believer. He spent one hundred and twenty years building a boat because G-d told him that there was going to be a flood. He planted and cultivated special cedar trees so that he would have timber… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on October 23, 2009 at 5:01pm — 1 Comment
Thumbs Down
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
In Talmudic times the Sukos dancing at the Simchas Beis Hashoeva was reserved for the leaders of the generation. This was a Simcha the likes of which no other simcha can be compared. Raban Shimon ben Gamliel would dance in the middle. The Talmud reports that he would stand on his thumbs for long periods of time with his feet in the air - and the crowd would cheer him on. “What a Rabbi!”
Interestingly this great simcha took place… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on October 2, 2009 at 5:17pm — No Comments
Responsible Chinuch
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
I remember as a child growing up in ‘anywhere USA’ meeting two shluchim of Torah U’mesorah. They had come to our town to talk to parents about sending their children to a Yeshivah. They were Yeshivah bochurim that had taken from their vacation time, packed their suitcases with cans of tuna fish and sardines and spent their nights on Greyhound busses to get from city to city. They had genuine warmth that was inspiring and their… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on October 1, 2009 at 6:40pm — No Comments
Why Did G-D Create Flies?
What I couldn’t seem to find out was the purpose of the fly. What exactly does the… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on April 23, 2009 at 6:42pm — 1 Comment
Midlife Crisis?
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
If you're stuck - you can not be a leader of the Jewish people. If you're stuck - you can not be a Prophet. If you're stuck - you can not be a Torah scholar.
There were at least two million Jews traveling together with Moshe in the desert.
Amongst them were relatives of Moshe, Kohanim and elders. Yet almost from nowhere rose a protege to Moshe called Yehoshua. Yehoshua was at Moshes' side at all times. He led Moshe's… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on March 13, 2009 at 1:35pm — No Comments
How To Make Synagogues Holy
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
www.torahlab.org
An American industrialist once came to visit the Chofetz Chaim of blessed memory. The Chofetz Chaim proudly gave the man a personal tour of his Yeshiva and asked him if he too would like to be a partner in the building of Torah. The man looked at the saintly Rabbi. He observed the young teenagers studying Torah in the cold underappointed room. He witnessed the sincerity and… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on February 27, 2009 at 1:19pm — No Comments
The Pharoah Syndrome
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
Regarding the case of the Aguna of Vilna I see you are leaning toward stringency. You feel the woman should not remarry.
The reason you are leaning this way is because you are not here. You do not hear the crying of this woman nor do you see her tears. If I would be where you are I too would be stringent, but I am here. I will rule leniently for her. May G-d save me from mistakes. (Rav Chaim of Volozhin in a letter to… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on January 30, 2009 at 1:37pm — No Comments
Don’t Hog The Blanket!
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
This Tuesday we will commemorate the Tenth of Tevet.
The day Nebuchadnezar began his occupation of Jerusalem. All the Jews had lived in the Land of Israel for eight hundred and fifty years. The Bais HaMikdash in Jerusalem, built by Shlomo HaMelech, was four hundred and ten years old. Generations of Jews had never considered living anywhere else but in Israel. That was our home.… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on January 2, 2009 at 12:35pm — No Comments
Chanukah
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
I was thinking recently about Chanuka, and a new idea occurred to me. Chanuka, the Festival of Lights, occurs at the darkest time of the year—the time when you would least expect it. And this is an important characteristic of Judaism: that light, and holiness, occur where one would least expect them.
Remember the origin of Chanuka: the Greeks were conquering the world, with their ideas as well as their armies, and were bringing a… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on December 22, 2008 at 7:47pm — 2 Comments
Just Do It!
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
Shmuel Fixler A"H, a wonderful Jew who lived in Buffalo, NY, when I served as Rabbi there, once taught me a valuable lesson.
Reb Shmuel was a Holocaust survivor. He had been through Hell, and the Nazis not only murdered most of his family, they also killed his patience. Once after Morning Services I was studying with someone at the back of the Shul. When Mr. Fixler finished rolling up his Tefilin and saying his Tehilim, he… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on December 19, 2008 at 1:05pm — No Comments
Struggle and Success
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
"And Yaakov went out…”
I picture our father Yaakov leaving Beer Sheva all alone. As his ancestors before him he was walking from Southern Israel to Charan, (the area of Turkey) to search for and discover his marriage partner. He was around eighty years old as he set out on this long journey all alone. His grandfather’s emissary, Eliezer took this journey with all the gear he could possibly need to be successful. He had… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on December 5, 2008 at 12:45pm — No Comments
Hebron
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
Prince Rudolph, son and heir to the Austrian monarch Franz Josef, visited Palestine at the turn of the century and recounted his trip to Chevron in his memoirs:
Upon reaching Hebron I immediately went to the cave of Machpela. There I was overwhelmed at the realization that my feet stood at the sepulcher of the saintly Hebrew Patriarchs. Involuntarily, I knelt down, lifted my hands toward heaven, and with tears streaming from my eyes,… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on November 21, 2008 at 11:40am — No Comments
Praying For Others
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
The following Dvar Torah was given at the Saranac Synagogue in Buffalo on Shabbat Vayera 5747, (1986), and transcribed from memory by Dr. Jeffery Zucker. We dedicate this essay in memory of Jeff’s mother Ita bat Shalom, A"H, who shares her Yortzeit with Rochel Imeinu. May her neshama have an aliya.
In this week’s parsha we read how, Abraham, on his journey with his wife Sarah to Gerar, pretended that she was his sister, so that… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on November 13, 2008 at 4:07pm — No Comments
Soul Sacrifice
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
Sometimes when you sacrifice something precious, you’re not really losing it. You’re just passing it on to someone else.
(Mitch Albom)
We know about giving up some of our personal comfort to help someone else.
We know about giving up some of our spirituality to save a life or to help another human being live healthier.
We even know about giving up personal comfort to help someone… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on November 7, 2008 at 12:52pm — No Comments
After The Flood
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
Noah and his family emerged from the ark. The population of the world was gone. All the men and women who had heckled Noah on a regular basis were missing.
It was not the same world that Noah had known. The Torah doesn’t record Noah’s emotions at that time. For us it would probably have been eerie, full of mixed feelings, overjoyed at the realization of survival, depressed at the massive destruction that lay before… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on October 31, 2008 at 1:34pm — No Comments
When Blessings Conflict
We see a vision for our lives, our families, our community and the world we live in. We dream about how the world can be improved, and of the contribution that we can make. I personally dream of a life of Torah and a home of peace. For my children I dream of neshamos coming together as one in marriage, and fulfilling a great purpose that each would never be able to be accomplishing on their own as individuals.
“If someone… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on October 13, 2008 at 2:10pm — No Comments
Some Advice For the Last Shabbos
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
I’d like to dedicate this Dvar Torah to my friends Reb Chananya and Zahava Goldenberg who help so many people in need. May Hashem bless them for a wonderful New Year.
This is the last Shabbos of the year. It is, according to many, the most important Shabbos of the year.
It is not by accident that the Parsha speaks about Teshuvah. In about 445 BCE the great leader Ezra brought the Jews back to… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on September 26, 2008 at 1:35pm — No Comments
Fighting In Shul
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
Rav Moshe Feinstien ZT”l once commented that early on we used to see fierce arguments in Shul over who should get an Aliya and who shouldn’t. He observed that as the years went on things seemed to have become much more civilized and gentlemanly. “Please, you take the Aliya, I’m fine.”
Said Rav Moshe, “I’m really not sure which is worse!”
“Today,” said Moshe, “you have become a people.” (Devarim 27; 10).
Why… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on September 19, 2008 at 2:59pm — No Comments
Jewish Vision
By Rabbi Yaacov Haber
As a people we have suffered greatly in the hands of a long list of oppressors. Of the worst were the Egyptians who enslaved us, persecuted us and drowned our children. The Edomites massacred us. Yet, all of our oppressors can become Jewish. There are very few exceptions. We accept any sincere convert with open arms. However, the nations of Amon and Moav can not become Jewish. Why not? “… because they did not greet you with bread and… Continue
Added by Yaacov Haber on September 12, 2008 at 2:05pm — No Comments
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