Weekly Parsha, Message from the Rabbi and more!

Shabbat Thoughts-Parshat Vayeshev

Among the most cherished of all human endeavors is the tucking of children into bed at night.  A hug and kiss, after the last drink of water and the last bedtime story, parents finally say “Pleasant dreams”. The Hebrew phrase is Chalomote Tovim (literally “Good dreams” ) and the less formal version is Chalomote Paz which could mean Golden dreams, or if we borrow paz from Spanish , “Dreams of peace.” This is our hope –that all children, and adults, for that matter, dream of peace and goodness. We aspire to build lives infused with hope. We aspire to dream big –to construct a beautiful world.  That is worth dreaming of.  None of us ever dreams of driving a vehicle into a crowd, with the hope of causing misery and despair.

      What would prompt such an act of brutality? Only exposure to wrong parenting and wrong instruction; education in the ways of jealousy, envy, rabid insecurity, extreme selfishness and the glorification of bullying and the trivializing of dreaming of a better life shared with many. Dreams of superiority over others cloud the perspective and lead directly to paths of extremism and fanaticism. We mourn the loss of life in a Berlin Christmas market. We mourn the loss of the restorative beauty of dreams.

       This week’s Torah reading, Parshat Vayeshev, introduces us to a dreamer. Joseph is the spoiled son of his father Jacob/Israel. Recipient of a prized coat made by his own father (coat of stripes is a better translation than coat of many colors), Joseph probably lords it over his brothers. And when he relates two dreams, both of which suggest he will be their future superior, they lose all control and tear his coat off of him, depriving him of his special status and throw him into a pit; to sell him later as a slave consigned to Egypt.

           It was not only the fact that he was dreamer that caused his brothers to beat him , kidnap him and allow their dad to think he had been torn to shreds by a wild animal by presenting the coat dipped in animal blood. It was the humiliation, the sense of owning some special status which delegitimized them that set them off. We, in our own day, see the same deligitimization proffered by extremism-extremism of any sort-religious, political, philosophical, Jewish, Christian, Islamic, American, European, Asian, Russian or beyond.

           We need to dream big; big enough to teach that all people can and do have a place in our world; a role in constructing a society wherein we can all freely walk along a boulevard  in preparation for a holiday without fear. We need to dream so big that our dreams take root in the hearts of those distant from ourselves.

Shabbat shalom. Rabbi Steve Silberman

Did you know we have a Youtube Channel?!

Ahavas Chesed started a Youtube channel about two years ago. We wanted to provide a source for prayers, blessings, and songs. We also wanted to match the translit in our bencher and siddur, and provide the melodies we use most often at the shul!  Ahavas Chesed Youtube Channel
Please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE! 

Shabbat Thoughts- Torah Tidbits December 2016

It's Nov. 29. Five days ago as wildfires swept across northern Israel, Palestinian and Israeli firefighters began to combat flames together. Standing shoulder to shoulder these soldiers against destruction risked their lives for the sake of preserving Israeli life and property. Who could imagine that Palestinians would ever risk their lives to safeguard Israelis? For too long, we have seen too much evidence of hatred between Palestinians and Israelis, hostility and conflict being the norm. To be sure, some Arab media sources have proclaimed delight over the burning of flames across Israel and have called for celebration. But let those voices only be a minority. Let the voices of destruction during cooperation be too few to be significant.

Instead, share your voice of delight and pride in the cooperation of Palestinians and Israelis. Sing to the world that those who are called enemies are fighting together. Inform everyone you encounter that 40 Palestinian firefighters and 8 trucks were shared with Israeli first responders in order that safety and security be better ensured.

It's Nov. 29. 69 years ago the United Nations General Assembly issued a call for partition of Palestine into a Jewish homeland and a homeland for Arabs. Arabs the world over roundly rejected this offer. Jews accepted the offer and extended hands in a desire for coexistence. Now 7 decades later, against the backdrop of too much violence and distrust,we see heroic Palestinians, not only risking their lives in combating flame, but also risking their lives by stepping forward to save Jews.

We live in a world of confusion and danger; a world of opportunity to care for others-even those formerly labelled "enemies". We live in a time of bluster and sarcasm,a world of instant communication with the power to uplift and console instead of ridiculing and insulting. How shall we conduct our lives with our neighbors and coworkers, with Democrats and Republicans? On this Partition day I choose to look to Palestinians and Israelis who came together to save people, not concerned with who the people are but concerned with the people themselves.

How shall we emulate their example?