Beshalach
Dear friend,
Do you sometimes feel stuck, not knowing what to do next, with no options in sight?
The Jews found themselves in such a position. This week we read how, shortly after leaving Egypt, they were facing a formidable challenge: the Egyptian army behind them, and the sea in front of them. An argument ensued, with different groups offering different ideas: to fight, to surrender, to pray, or to simply give up and drown in the sea. But G‑d disagreed. “Speak to the children of Israel and let them travel!” He told Moses, and the rest is history.
This week, 63 years ago, the Rebbe assumed the mantle of leadership of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement. At that time, the Jewish people were still recovering from the ravages of the Holocaust, and many were sinking into despair. Taking a lesson from this week’s reading, the Rebbe insisted: “Move onward! We must grow, expand our reach to wherever a Jew can be found. We mustn’t get stuck in the past . . . or in the future. Our action today is what counts.”
So, if you find yourself stuck, whether on a personal or communal issue, remember this lesson: March forward, focus on today’s G‑dly task to make this world a better place, and G‑d will take care of the rest.
Rabbi Mendy Kaminker,
on behalf of the Chabad.org Editorial Team
One camp proposed to throw themselves into the sea. A second group advocated return to Egypt, a third wanted war, a fourth prayer. G‑d rejected all four strategies . . .
The fledgling nation which left Egypt was in its spiritual infancy, and a return to the bankrupt values of the depraved Egyptian lifestyle was a real risk. War, therefore, had to be postponed for some time . . .
We might be at home, or in the synagogue. We might be praying in Hebrew, or in another language. What are we trying to do when we pray?
Pharaoh changes his mind, and chases the Israelites. Trapped between their pursuers and the Reed Sea, the Israelites panic, and G‑d splits the sea for them. In the desert G‑d provides water, manna and quails. Two portions of manna must be collected on Fridays, enough for Friday and the Sabbath.
A thought-provoking poem shedding light on the week's Torah portion. A great discussion starter.
She was about to return it when she noticed that the pages were filled with smears from trying her hand at the recipes.
Isms are the creation of the Hegelian mind, which is compelled to pigeonhole all human thought into theses and antitheses and their tidy resolution—a cute paradigm that tells us a lot about academia, and almost nothing about Jews and Jewish thought.
I am beginning to understand that I do not need to abandon all of the old me, because it is a part of who I am.
Praising our spouse reminds us that the person we share life with is wonderful in his or her own way.
These picture-perfect scenes are the stuff of my childhood, yet I know they’re not mine.
This day, so relevant to every Jew in our generation, is surely a day for reflection, learning, prayer, positive resolutions and acts of loving-kindness.
Before you can understand “what is a rebbe,” you must first ask, “What am I?” Light, to be light, must have something to illuminate.
The power of praying together as a community, the prohibition against tattoos, and the custom of visiting and praying at a cemetery.
These men are Klezmer musicians. Klezmer Jewish music is a big part of any simcha.
The tenth day of the Hebrew month of Shevat is a special one for every Chabad Chassid, and a group of senior yeshivah students have been burning the midnight oil preparing for a gathering that will attract thousands.
Thousands around the world this week will celebrate their completion of Maimonides’ magnum opus, the Mishneh Torah. Learning three chapters a day, it took them the better part of the past year to plough through the 1,000-chapter monograph.
Why is Torah compared to light? Because it tells us the place of each thing.
Because, in truth, there is no need to change the world. Everything is here.
Each thing has a place, and in that place it is good. Altogether, it is very good, a beautiful world. All that’s needed is a little light.
What is light? Light...
