Shema Yisrael Torah Network
info@shemayisrael.co.il
http://www.shemayisrael.co.il
Jerusalem, Israel
972-2-641-8801
Greetings from the Rosh HaKollel
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Recently, I met a young man whom I had taught while he was in school, but
lost contact with over the years. I was saddened to see that although he
had become successful in his chosen career, his Yiddishkeit had all but
ceased to exist. It is painful to witness this loss of vision from one's
perspective on Judaism, but it also left me with a sense of guilt. I felt
that perhaps I had not inspired this young man enough, nor kept up the
relationship and thus possibly could have prevented this unfortunate slide. These feelings came around the same time that I was thinking of sending jars of honey to the community at large as a fundraising scheme. I decided to forgo this idea, thinking of how the honey could possibly drip from its container creating a sticky mess. This thought made me recall my first observation. Part of the reason my student remained uninspired is because I didn't give him any "honey" to stick. The sweetness of Yiddishkeit more than anything is what brings the returnees of our People in from the cold. The trouble is that all too often, we don't show that side of Yiddishkeit. We keep our Yiddishkeit tightly sealed inside of us, not allowing it to "drip out" and cling to someone else. We have it within our ability everyday to touch someone with the warmth and sweetness of Yiddishkeit. With Rosh Hashana fast approaching and our concerns turning not only to doing teshuva, but to proclaiming that Hashem is King and His Torah is our way of life, we should all think about our "honey" not only for our Yom Tov table, but also for our Acheinu Bnei Yisrael. Wishing all of you a K'siva V'chasima Tova,
Rabbi Dovid Nojowitz
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Shema Yisrael Torah Network
info@shemayisrael.co.il
http://www.shemayisrael.co.il
Jerusalem, Israel
972-2-641-8801