Newslink for Shabbat Parashat Balak (July 19th - July 21st)
07/18/2024 05:00:54 PM
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Announcements & Upcoming Events
Seudah Shlishit & Teen Seudah Shlishit is sponsored by Duke McCarthy. Summer Women's Shiur Series: This Shabbat afternoon, July 20th at 4:30pm at the home of Chana Jacobs - 415 Narraganset Drive with speaker Sharona Linetsky.
Vintage BBQ: Sunday, July 21st at 6:00pm hosted by Jack & Yaffa Fuchs. Address is provided with registration.Click Here to RSVP. Last day to RSVP is Today, July 18th! For more information email donnamoskowitz1@gmail.com
Semichas Chaver Program with Rabbi Davies: Wednesdays following Maariv (Approximately 8:45pm). Contact Rabbi Davies to participate or for more information. Class is on break and will resume August 7th. Women's Weekly Parsha Discussion: Wednesday evening, July 24th from 8:30-8:45pm. Join us on Zoom for a brief peer led discussion on the weekly parsha. Click Hereto Join the Zoom. We are pleased to have SOI participating in The Simchat Torah Project. The cost of the project for our community is approximately $5,000, which will cover a) the cost of one Torah cover b) all ground and travel costs of the two-day conference and global launch in Israel c) materials about the person you are remembering, for display on Simchat Torah. The initial deadline was Shavuot, but given the overwhelming global response of organizations wanting to be a part of this monumental idea, Mizrachi has extended to July 21st. We are excited to have Rabbi and Ora Davies, as our spiritual leaders, representing our community at the launch. We have collected most of the funds needed for this meaningful project for our Shul, but we still have a little more to go. Anyone who can contribute to get us to our goal would be greatly appreciated. Click Here to Contribute
I am very excited for the opportunity to share words of Torah with you. Each week, in this spot, I look to share an idea I've found that speaks to me and that I think will resonate with you as well. This week, I share with you an excerpt from an article by Rabbi Dr. Mordechai Schiffman entitled "Positive Sleep" about what Bilam’s ‘blessings’ have to teach us about our nighttime routines. The full article can be found here - https://aish.com/positive-sleep/.
[…] As much as Bilam wanted to curse the Jews, God wouldn’t let him. Instead of curses, we read of some of the most beautiful blessings that speak straight to the heart of the strong spiritual characteristics that personify Bnei Yisrael. […] Other verses praise their spirituality; […] The blessings then abruptly switch from spiritual praise to physical prowess – “The people will arise like a lion cub and raise itself like a lion; It will not lie down until it consumes prey, and drinks the blood of the slain” (Bemidbar23:24). This is quite a radical transition from spiritual loftiness to savagely guzzling down the blood of the enemy.
Rashi, following the lead of the Midrash, explains that even this physical praise is a spiritual allusion. Not lying down until consuming prey and drinking their blood is referring to the ritual of reciting the Shema before going to sleep. The connection requires some elaboration. What does saying the bedtime Shema have anything to do with slaying enemies?
The Talmud (Berachot 5a) relates in the name of Rabbi Yitzchak, that “anyone who recites Shema on his bed, it is as if he holds a double-edged sword” guarding him from evil, and that even the “demons stay away from him.” Some understand these demons, known in Aramaic as mazikin, as dangerous metaphysical entities that can physically harm people. Saying Shema in bed protects one from being damaged by them. Meiri, however, takes a more rational and psychological approach to the concept of mazikin, explaining the mazikin should be understood as irrational, rebellious thoughts that can entrap people when they are not busy. Because one’s mind tends to wander into these negative thoughts before bed, it is essential to sanctify and unify one’s thoughts for spiritual purposes. Reciting Shema at night protects us from harmful thinking patterns.
The thoughts we think right before we go to bed have a profound impact on our sleep. Many people have trouble falling asleep, disturbed by anxious and other disturbing thoughts. By mindfully reciting Shema, we can ward off whatever “mazikin” we may have, allowing us to sleep more peacefully. By so doing we also have the capability of transforming the physical experience of sleep into a deeply spiritual endeavor. Hoping and praying for a Shabbat Shalom from the Holy Land, Rabbi Davies Rabbi@SOICherryHill.org
We are excited to be partnering with Mizrachi World Movement to provide their publication of HaMizrachi Parasha Weekly.
2024-2025 MEMBERSHIP DUES All past members should have received their new dues invoice by email. Please log into your Shulcloud account to set up payment. Please email financialsecretary@soicherryhill.org with any questions. To request Financial Assistance, please complete this confidential form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdaHxVO_t2usdw8LGuJN4DDYR5RNFH-qooUOyp8CjmM1qsKRw/viewform All correspondence will be kept in the strictest confidence. NEW: Legacy Membership is now available for all past SOI members who have moved away from Cherry Hill. Please email financialsecretary@soicherryhill.com to request Legacy Membership. If you are a new family and would like to become members of SOI please visit www.soicherryhill.org and complete the Membership Application Form.
Kiddush Sponsors Needed We are grateful to all of our kiddush sponsors! We do not have any kiddush sponsors signed up for the next upcoming weeks. Please consider sharing your celebrations with the community and signing up to sponsor kiddush so we can continue to have weekly kiddush for the community to share together.
Thank you to Dan Malamud, Oze Henig, and Amelia Kaye for helping prepare last week's kiddush, to Vicki Miltz for shopping, and to Yaakov Linder for making cholent.
Thank you to Eric Klein, Jonathan Delman, Yaakov Zeffren, Matti Rosenberg, Yaakov Linder, Ezra Newfeld, and Orliana Newfeld for helping for helping with last weeks Seudah Shlishit.
Thank you to The Mod Squad (Team 1: Debbie Pester, Jeff Liss, Donna Moskowitz, Shari Solomon, Chemmie Sokolic), JFed Security Officer Bill DiCola and Sam Tilonsky for providing security on Shabbos. Speed Bumps IMPORTANT: The new speed bumps have recently been installed on the road around the SOI/Politz campus. They were placed to significantly slow vehicle traffic down and make it much safer for everyone (kids and adults) walking through our campus.
https://www.kosherwine.com/?rfsn=5940204.12e2a2 SOI members and affiliates can click the link to go to the JCommerce websites and purchase their products. You can support SOI through the commission we earn.
House of Kosher Donation Program SOI will automatically earn 2% of your total purchase when you use our code when checking out! SOI's code is 0720
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Congregation Sons of Iarael 720 Cooper Landing Road Cherry Hill, New Jersey 08002
