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Sex is the most powerful, all-pervasive force in human experience. It may be intensely personal, meaningful, and creative at one moment, and depersonalized, meaningless, and careless the next. Much of its glory is that it can bring us as close as we may get in life to experiencing the mystery of our mortality, and because of this it is sanctified. Yet it can also be a blind, nearly irresistible force seeking wanton release on the biological level, and in this way its sanctity is perverted. Paradoxically, sex—the most chaotic, powerful, and untutored drive—can only be fully experienced when it includes...

The Baal Shem Tov once said that he was capable of rising to heaven in a fiery chariot as did Elijah, but he would rather undergo the transformation of “…and to the earth you shall return.” (Genesis 3:19) Because through the initial dip downward—as far down as you could possibly go—you can reach much higher. So if it seems to you at times that your life has made a sharp turn downward, or that the world around you has taken a great leap backward, Know that this is only a necessary prelude to a great spring forward and upward yet...

Joseph wanted to raise the Egyptians to a higher spiritual and moral plane. So he arranged that they be circumcised. That way, perhaps the exile destined upon his people would be shortened. The plan backfired. Rather than alleviating the Egyptian exile, Joseph empowered the Egyptians to oppress his people yet more viciously. Joseph believed he could shortcut the Egyptian exile. We sometimes delude ourselves that we can hot-wire our own darkness. We imagine we can bring thousands more to Torah, if we just would compromise with electronics on Shabbat. Or that we could achieve so many more mitzvahs, if we...

NYC Mayor-Elect Eric Adams @ Menorah: ‘We NY’ers Know What the Rebbe Did for Us’ Shares Chanukah message of hope By Dovid MargolinNovember 30, 2021 11:15 AM On the first night of Hanukkah, New York City Mayor-elect Eric Adams helped light the world’s largest menorah at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 59th Street, sharing the message of Chanukah as taught by the Rebbe—Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory. On the first night of Hanukkah, New York City Mayor-elect Eric Adams helped light the world’s largest menorah at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 59th Street, sharing the message...

Login Contemporary Voices Personal Journeys Contemporary Stories Daily Life Fiction Chassidic Sci-Fi Fantasy Bookshelf Related Blogs Musing for Meaning Heaven Exposed: Kabbalistic Sci-Fi/Fantasy Dear Guad Jewish Practice Learning & Values Community & Family Inspiration & Entertainment More Sites Tools Contact Us|​Ask The Rabbi|​Donate ב"ה Inspiration & Entertainment Contemporary Voices Daily Life Meaning Behind the Mundane Thanksgiving: A Jewish Perspective By Naftali Silberberg We, the American citizenry, are a thankful lot. Our calendar is dotted with days when we express our gratitude to various individuals and entities. On Veterans Day, we thank the members of the Armed Forces for their dedicated...

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This is life, all of it: Sitting like a small child upon the shoulders of the Creator of heaven and earth as He carries us out of slavery in Egypt to eternal life in the Promised Land. Everything along the journey is sweet and good, if we will only embrace it with love. Even the pain is good, a pain that cleanses body and soul as we rise to a place higher than our little minds can conceive. And yes, even those paths we believe we’ve stumbled down by our own fault, He carries us tenderly through those as well,...

For each thing that exists in time and space, says the ancient Book of Formation, there is a place within the human soul. The seven nations that occupied Canaan exist within the human soul. They are the seven raw emotional modalities that every human being must conquer and transform—such as selfishness, anger, impatience and jealousy. But before entering Canaan, the Israelites first had to battle with Midian. Midian is the place in the human soul where there is no room for another. It is not rational, nor can it be reasoned with. The holy Zohar connects Midian to the word...

....officers with the Hallandale Beach Police Department arrested Jeffrey Carl Fleming, 39, on Monday. He is facing charges of stalking and hate crime after a video showed him dropping off a bag of feces on Friday at the Chabad of South Broward. He is also accused of spitting at the menorah before riding away. “It’s rooted in hate and antisemitism,” said Rabbi Mendy Tennenhaus....

For Further Information, Contact:Assistant U. S. Attorneys Emily W. Allen (619) 546-9738,Andrew Young (619) 546-7981, and Oleksandra Johnson (619) 546-9769 SAN DIEGO – Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein, former director at Chabad of Poway, and five of his associates pleaded guilty in federal court today and Monday to fraud charges, admitting that they participated in a complex, years-long, multi-million dollar tax-evasion scheme and other financial deceptions involving theft of public money.According to his plea agreement, while Rabbi Goldstein was director of the Poway synagogue, he received at least $6.2 million in phony contributions to the Chabad and affiliated charities and secretly refunded...

It was 45 minutes into his lecture when the rabbi pulled out an AR-15. “Who thinks, by show of hands, that we should be carrying more guns in shul?” Rabbi Raziel Cohen asked the crowd at a Westside Chabad synagogue Wednesday night, during an active-shooter seminar organized in the wake of the deadly attack at Chabad of Poway. Half the room raised their hands. In the days since the shooting, Chabad leaders in California have scrambled to secure public safety grants and to calm frightened congregants, mobilizing hundreds more through active-shooter drills and community defense training. In Southern California, religious...

Ten days after my father, Rabbi Chaim Grosz, of blessed memory, passed away, I received a large manila envelope with a beautiful card inside from a Catholic church in New Jersey. The front of the card had a woman named “Mary Queen of the Missions”. The inside had a preprinted form in which the church was going to say a Perpetual Mass for the soul of Chaim Grosz, his name carefully handwritten. How could a Perpetual Mass be said for him? My father, a prominent Chasidic rabbi, was born in January 1944 in Hungary. Miraculously, he survived being deported to...

By the Grace of G-d 25th of Shevat, 5746 Brooklyn, N.Y. Greeting and Blessing: This is to acknowledge receipt of your letter of Jan. 26th, in which you write about a serious problem. As requested, I will remember you in prayer for the fulfillment of your heart's desires for good. While all blessings come from HaShem [G‑d], a Jew is expected to do what is necessary in the natural order. In the matter of the said problem, you surely know that there are doctors and psychiatrists who treat it, and have been successful in many cases. I know of a...

San Diego police have detained a man in connection with a shooting incident at the Chabad of Poway synagogue, where at least four people were injured during a Passover celebration. The four victims were transported to Palomar Medical Center, but the hospital would not confirm the extent of their injuries.

Last Friday evening I put on a kippah and walked half an hour across Budapest to the Keren Or synagogue maintained by the Budapest Chabad. After violent attacks on Jews in German streets, the leaders of Germany’s Jewish community warned Jews last month not to wear a kippah or any other visible sign of Jewish identification in public. The French community issued such warnings years ago. Belgian TV could not find a single Jew in Brussels willing to wear a kippah in public. I walked across Budapest four times (for Friday evening and Saturday daytime services), and no-one looked at...

The judge, Linda Reade, handed down an unusually long sentence that critics suspected had been motivated by antisemitism. Critics pressed President Barack Obama for clemency, without success...In the cheering crowds, a few red “MAGA” hats could be seen among the traditional black fedoras. Speaking to the throngs at 770 in English, Yiddish, and Hebrew, Rubashkin thanked Trump effusively: “God bless him,” he said, prompting loud cheers. Rubashkin also noted Trump’s recent decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

This week the Rabbi answers the question: "How can you live a great life despite all obstacles?" Enjoy this video of what we hope will be a weekly endeavor into spreading the educational words of our Torah. Parashat Vayechi / פרשת ויחי Next read in the Diaspora on 14 January 2017. Parashat Vayechi is the 12th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading. This is the final Genesis portion. Torah Portion: Genesis 47:28 - 50:26 Upcoming:Parashat Shemot / פרשת שמות Next read in the Diaspora on 21 January 2017. Parashat Shemot is the 13th weekly Torah...

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Wednesday evening called on the Ukrainian government to take action following the desecration of the grave of Rabbi Nachman in Uman. Netanyahu’s comment came during an online chat with Facebook users. During the chat, the Prime Minister was seen taking a phone call from a person named Yuval, believed to be Yuval Rotem, Director General of the Foreign Ministry. "This must be taken care of,” Netanyahu told Yuval. "The ambassador there should go to the government and tell them that it is simply unacceptable, simply awful, I want them to deal with it.” He added,...

At 6 pm EST begins the live broadcast of the annual gathering of Chabad emissaries-- rabbis "stationed" in college campuses and cities all over the world. The live broadcast of the gala banquet includes the famous roll-call, with countries as far as Chabad of Napal to as close to home as Park Slope in Brooklyn. Tune in, celebrate, and dance with the chassidim of the Rebbe, as they aspire and inspire each other to "turn over the world" for G-d.

During the darkest times, Hashem sent Mordechai to shine a light and renew people's faith. His battle wasn't limited to the physical and the natural. As a first step, he strengthened the Torah education of Jewish children and gathered the people to return to Hashem. The darkest part of the Egyptian exile caused Hashem to send Moshe Rabbeinu (Moses) into the world. Were one to pin their success to some characteristic of theirs, no matter how lofty a trait, one would miss the mark. No one set of attributes allowed Moshe to bring the 10 plagues upon the enemies of...