RALLY for a UNITED JEWISH JERUSALEM

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Amcha Newsletter
April 20, 2010 / 7 Iyar 5770

In this issue:
*Rally for a United Jewish Jerusalem
* We Pray
* We Mourn
* Get Connected
* Shabbat Forshpeis: A Taste of Torah in Honor of Shabbat
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Rally in Support of a Jewish Jerusalem
Protest Against the Continued Mistreatment of Israel

At 1:00 pm
On Sunday April 25, 2010
At the Permanent Mission to Israel in New York City (800 2nd Avenue)

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We pray for the complete and speedy recovery of our brave IDF soldiers who were wounded in battle defending our homeland Israel and wherever they are. We would like to express our gratitude for their sacrifice and effort.

He Who blessed our forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - may He bless the fighters of the Israel Defense Force, who stand guard over our land and the cities
of our God from the border of the Lebanon to the desert of Egypt, and from the Great Sea unto the approach of the Aravah, on the land, in the air, and on the sea.
May Hashem cause the enemies who rise up against us to be struck down before them. May the Holy One, Blessed is He, preserve and rescue our fighting men from every trouble and distress and from every plague and illness, and may He send blessing and success in their every endeavor.
May He lead our enemies under their sway and may He grant them salvation and crown them with victory. And may there be fulfilled for them the verse: For it is
Hashem, your God, Who goes with you to battle your enemies for you to save you.
Now let us respond: Amen.
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We mourn our brothers in the US Armed Forces
who were killed fighting terror this past week:

Michael K. Ingram Jr., 23, of Newport, Michigan
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If you are interested in learning more about the issues that our brothers and sisters are facing in Israel now, here are the links to the major Israeli newspapers:
• The Jerusalem Post: http://m1e.net/c?60317947-4zgJV/aggj8/E%405241554-C8cwVaNqWSgfU
• Arutz Sheva: http://m1e.net/c?60317947-AfftNzqnWBskA%405241555-cvd3SZ7lDzP8Q
• Debka File: http://m1e.net/c?60317947-JcoivfL8DhpKY%405241556-T/qJfZGZToRC%2e
• Jewish Telegraphic Agency: http://m1e.net/c?60317947-kvpyMl1UjIL9w%405241557-aXh43J3QkG8zc
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SHABBAT FORSHPEIS
A Taste of Torah in Honor of Shabbat
Parshat Acharei Mot-Kedoshim
The Lessons of Holiness Even in Death

April 23-24 2010 / 10 Iyar 5770

From a literal perspective, the names of portions are nothing more than the first major word of the part of the Torah that is read during the week. It can, however, be argued that deep meaning actually lies within the names themselves. The two portions we read this week-Acharei Mot that literally means after death, and Kedoshim that means holiness, are fine examples of this phenomenon.

What is the challenge that presents itself after death? In my early years of the rabbinate, I always felt that my challenge as a spiritual leader was to sit with bereaved families and help them undo the pain they were feeling. Death is a kind of darkness, a deep darkness. My role, I thought, was to remove that darkness.

But after my mother died, I stood before my congregation and apologized. Through that painful experience, I came to realize that the goal of removal is simply unrealistic. The goal is rather to find a way to cope with the suffering that comes with termination. I compared it to the following: Imagine walking into a dark room for the first time. Not knowing one’s way or one’s place, one trips over the furniture, unaware of which way to turn. However, after days and weeks and months and years, when one walks into that very same dark room, although the darkness still exists, with time we learn how to negotiate the furniture and we can make our way.

The truth is that after suffering a great loss, one is actually blessed if one constantly feels the darkness of the pain of termination. Such an emotion is reflective of the power of the relationship between the bereaved and the deceased. If there is no sense of darkness, it could mean that that sense of connection has been blurred-even lost. The challenge, however, as one continues to feel the darkness, is learning how to cope, to use the analogy, learning where the furniture is and while feeling the darkness, finding a way to move about.

The last time I was at my mother’s grave, my dear sister Suri, a woman of profound spirituality, turned to me and said, "Mommy is far away." I keep thinking of that comment. My mother died on Yom Kippur 1983. It is certainly a long time ago. In a certain sense my sister was right-with every year the soul seems to move further and further away.

While not denying that reality, our portions this week remind us that after life (Acharei Mot), there can always be Kedoshim - a sense of continuum that is expressed through holiness. How so? The challenge of death is to keep the person who has died alive in spirit. Indeed the Talmud says, there are some people who are actually living yet are not really alive-they're only going through the motions. On the flip side, there are others who, although physically dead, continue to live through the teachings they left behind and through those whom they have touched in life.

In Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik's Halakhic Man, his introductory page includes the Talmudic statement that in a moment of great personal conflict, the biblical Yosef (Joseph) looked up and, in the window saw the image of his father Ya’akov (Jacob). It was Rav Soloveitchik's way of saying that his writing and teachings continue to be powerfully influenced by his late father, Rabbi Moshe Soloveitchik.

I bless you and ask you to bless me that we always remember those who have passed on, like walking through the darkened room full of furniture. And I pray that we always feel those who are closest tapping us on the shoulder and helping us along the complex path of life.

Rav Avi
______________________________________
Amcha – The Coalition for Jewish Concerns
Phone: (718) 796-4730
Fax: (718) 884-3206
Email: amchacjc@amchacjc.org
Web: www.amchacjc.org


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