When the Torah was given, Moses was instructed to first teach it to the women, recognizing the central role that women play in both family life as well as in society.
When you are talking about setting the tone for the future of the nation, Jewish life and values, rising to the task of making this world a better place, it's the women. If you want to ensure the long term success of leading a more spiritual life, a life of Higher consciousness, of making this world a veritable home for Hashem, th
e women are uniquely capable of spearheading the effort. The rest of the nation will follow their strong example.
This weekend, Devorah is joining 3,000 Chabad women, all leaders of Jewish communities around the globe, for the annual convention known as the Kinus. They will share, inspire, and rejuvenate before heading back to their respective communities to continue impacting hundreds and thousands.
So as I am attempting to maintain some semblance of order in the house this weekend - no small feat - I celebrate all of the amazing work that Devorah does both at home and in the community and am grateful that she'll be back at the helm anchoring us and keeping the ship headed in the right direction.
If you want to see an incredible display of global Jewish women's leadership, tune in live to the grand banquet of the convention on Sunday at 2:30pm www.JewishPetaluma.com/Kinus
Talking of incredible women who change destiny, we are so excited to be hosting Marthe Cohn on Feb. 5th. She overcame all odds, spied on the Nazis gaining crucial information on their troops' movements. At the age of 98, she travels the world sharing her story, and we are fortunate to have her coming to Petaluma. Only 50 seats left! www.JewishPetaluma.com/Remember
From the Rabbi's Desk
The Power of Women
Money
This came up during one of my coffee meetings this week, trying to get to the bottom of the powerful green substance. What is the deal with money?
An important element of the exodus from Egypt was G-d's promise to Abraham that "they will leave with great treasures". In this week's Torah portion, is when He makes good on that promise. Why is this important? Is money good or bad?
As the Jewish nation was readying themselves to receive the Torah, this was perhaps the most potent and concentrated example of what they would be facing. You see, the purpose and goal of this world are that we should make the right choices. Having two options open in front of us, and then beating the odds by doing what is right.
Money, like most of the world, is neutral. It can be used like the mafia for greed, jealousy, theft, and dishonesty. Or it can be used for kindness, charity, nutrition, and healing. Hospitals, educational institutions, community centers, or even a coin to someone who needs it, are all powerful expressions of generosity. Gold can be used for the golden calf, or to build the Holy Temple. It's about transforming this world from the ordinary neutrality and tipping it to the side of special.
May we all have what we need in abundance and do incredible things with it!
The Birth of a Nation
The birth of a nation.
The most well-known stories of the Torah take place in Egypt. 400 years of slavery, Moses and the burning bush, ten plagues, and at long last, the splitting of the Red Sea.
After this miraculous sequence of events, they begin their journey to Mount Sinai to receive the Jewish constitution, the Torah, and become "the chosen nation". The question is, weren't they already a nation? Who were slaves in Egypt if not for the Jews? So what is the big deal about becoming a nation at Sinai?
When we talk about a nation, a unit of individuals, they can be associated by a shared circumstance, connected by a shared land, and they can even be linked by a shared set of values. In any one of these instances, once you remove the connector, the structure falls apart. If they think differently, believe differently, live differently, the unit is no longer.
Jewish Nation 2.0 was different. The connection went deeper than any of that. A soul-level connection. Chosen by Hashem. Now it was a simple reality, untethered to any conditions or contingencies. Of course, there are numerous Mitzvahs, myriads of Talmudic debates, plethoras of opinions and customs, but that's what we do, what we think, not who we are. To borrow from the pledge of allegiance, one Nation under God, indivisible.