Bamidbar
From the Six-Day War to Shavuot
Dear Friend,
Exactly 50 years ago, Jerusalem was reunited under Jewish control. Even before the fighting finished, Jews from all over streamed toward the Kotel (Western Wall). Shofar blasts pierced the air, and heartfelt sobbing could be heard from even the most battle-toughened soldiers.
Barriers of political affiliation, cultural milieu, level of observance and Torah education all melted in the flaming fire of Jewish unity that was felt so powerfully by all. Everyone had witnessed the miraculous turnaround that had just happened.
This is the unity of Shavuot. When our ancestors stood at the foot of Mt. Sinai 3,329 years ago, ready to receive the Torah, they were “as one person with one heart.”
We can do it again. Let’s all gather in synagogues on Wednesday morning to hear the Ten Commandments. There is a spot for everyone at your closest Chabad synagogue, where we can all gather “as one person with one heart.”
See you on Shavuot!
The Chabad.org Editorial Team
Many have the custom to decorate the synagogue and home with greenery and flowers in honor of Shavuot. Here’s why.
A brief history of the Six-Day War and the Rebbe’s call for all Jewish men, particularly soldiers in the IDF, to don tefillin as a special merit for added security.
When Berel heard that there would be a celebration in honor of a new Torah, he naively assumed that he would be welcomed to the joyful event.
We had started out rather late—apparently too late to arrive at the hospital in time.
What is the significance of this counting? What is the connection between this counting and Shavuot?
I was about to board the train, a middle-aged man exited the train and immediately approached me. “I’m a Jew,” he said.
Food and hot drinks for police; special gathering for students.
Dual duty as a campus emissary and now a chaplain in the U.S. Army Reserve.
A search on Chabad.org by a 94-year-old woman’s friend sets off a chain of mitzvahs.
The sages say that all is in the hands of heaven except for the awe of heaven.
Which puts all the power in your hands.
Because if there is no awe of heaven, heaven is bankrupt. It owns nothing—not you, not your world, not anything at all.
That being so, the greatest power you have is your ability to surrender the delus...
