Newslink for Parshat Vayetzei (December 6th - December 7th)
12/05/2024 05:01:09 PM
Dec5
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Announcements & Upcoming Events
8AM Kiddush is sponsored by Yehuda Stuchins.
Seudah Shlishit is sponsored by Duke McCarthy.
Women's Only Kabbalat Shabbat: Friday, December 6th at 4:30pm in the SOI Chapel. Join us in song and prayer as we welcome shabbat together! For more information contact Helene Raush.
Gemara Shiur with Jeff Schwartz: Sunday evening, at 7:30 pm in the SOI Chapel. Come join for an in depth study of Talmud.
Semichas Chaver Program: Topic: Business Law, Wednesday, December 11th at 8:00pm. Contact Rabbi Davies to participate or for more information.
Women's Weekly Parsha Discussion: Wednesday evening, December11th from 8:30-8:45pm. Join us on Zoom for a brief peer led discussion on the weekly parsha. Click Here to Join the Zoom.
Rabbi Kelemen's Inner Circle: Next session will be on Motzai Shabbat, December 14th and Monday, December 16th.You can attend one, the other, or both. Master your most important relationships — with your spouse, your kids, and God — with a proven, Torah-based personal development system from international mussar teacher Rabbi Lawrence Kelemen. Missed the first sessions? Click here to receive Rabbi Kelemen's first few presentations. Join the Shnayim Mikra Initiative! Become part of our expanding group dedicated to daily study of the weekly Parsha. Choose between in-person morning sessions or follow along with recordings on WhatsApp. Click here to join the WhatsApp group. For more information contact Rabbi Davies. Doughnuts and Discussion with Rabbi Friedman: Saturday morning, December 14th at approximately 10:30am in Politz Science Room for 6th-8th graders.
Shabbat, December 7: Vayetzei (Kislev 6) 8:00am 8AM Minyan 8:30am Sephardic Minyan 9:00am Main Sanctuary Minyan 9:30am Latest Shema 10:00am Youth Groups 10:30am Tot Shabbat 3:55pm Mincha 3:55pm Teen Minyan 4:25pm Seudah Shlishit 5:15pm Maariv 5:20pm Havdalah
Sunday, December 8 (Kislev 7) 7:00am Shacharit 8:00am Shacharit 4:20pm Mincha/Maariv 7:30pm In Depth Gemara Shiur
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. Avraham Twerski Z"L entitled "When Years Seem like a Few Days" that explains the interesting phrasing in describing Yaakov's waiting for Rachel.
So Jacob worked seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him a few days because of his love for her. (29:20) Some of the commentaries note that this appears to be the reverse of what we usually experience. Being separated from someone one loves makes each day of separation feel like an eternity. How could it be that Jacob's love for Rachel made seven years seem like but a few days?
I am indebted to one of my patients for an insight into this verse. This young man was recovering from an addiction to alcohol. He had become dependent on alcohol, and the thought that he could never drink again was intolerable. When he joined the fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous, he was told not to focus on the rest of his life, but to deal with just this day. “It is not impossible for you to abstain from drinking just today, is it? Then focus only on what you must do today. There is nothing you can do today about tomorrow's sobriety, so there is no point in contemplating it.”
I have found this principle in the works of mussar. The yetzer hara (evil inclination) says, “What point is there in trying to observe all the Torah prohibitions? There is no way you can do so for the rest of your life. You are certain to violate Torah in quest of your desires. Why fight a losing battle? Why struggle and deny yourself so many pleasures when you are doomed to fail at it? You might as well just give in now.” The response to the yetzer hara should be, “I do not have to deal with the rest of my life today. I know that today I can withstand temptation, and that is all I am concerned with. When tomorrow comes, I'll deal with that challenge then.” The literal translation of the verse above is not “they seemed to him a few days.” The Hebrew word achadim means “single days.” The delay of seven years would have been very difficult to manage. Jacob, therefore, did not think of seven years, but took each day as it came. He could tolerate the deprivation today, and that was all that was necessary.
This is an important lesson for us. It is commonplace for people to make “New Year's resolutions,” and these are soon broken. The reason for this is that a year is too great a task to undertake. One should resolve, “I will not lose my temper today,” or “I will not smoke today” or “I will adhere to my diet today.” Reducing challenges to smaller segments of time makes them much more manageable.
We are excited to announce that the second edition of the SOI Annual Calendar is on its way (Jan-Dec 2025)! The full size calendar will include ads, as well as birthdays/anniversaries, and Shabbat and holiday start & end times. Please click below to get more information, submit your ad/birthdays and be an SOI calendar sponsor!
(All SOI full members in good standing will receive a complementary calendar. Additional calendars will be available for purchase for $18 each.)
Website Update: We are pleased to share that thanks to a grant from the Jewish Community Foundation of Southern New Jersey, SOI will be redesigning our website. As a ShulCloud-based site, updates take place in real time. This means that users will see updates to the design, navigation, and pages as they take place in all phases of the project, rather than only once the project is completed. It may take a few months for the website to display in its final form. We look forward to our site being easier to navigate for our members and better communicate what we offer to those seeking information about SOI. We appreciate your patience throughout this process!
Congregation Sons of Israel wishes a hearty Mazel Tov to Ari and Jillian Daniels, big brothers Akiva and Aviel, and big sister Talia on the birth of a baby boy! Shalom Zachor will be at the Daniels home 12 Jade lane, Friday at 8:30pm
Mazal Tov to Susan and Yaakov Bagley on the marriage of their children Ilan and Shalhevet
Mazal Tov to Rabbi Chaim and Nechama Tropper on the birth of their grandson
Thank you to all the volunteers who helped with last week's Kiddush.
Thank you to everyone who helped with last weeks Seudah Shlishit.
Thank you to Team 2 (Bob Belfer, Harvey Chaitoff, Jeff Liss, Robbie Friedner), Debbie Fineberg, Chani Wiesman Berliant, Shlomo Aronoff, JFed Security Officer Bill DiCola and Sam Tilonsky for providing security on Shabbos.
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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