Chai Lifeline

Yet another incredible video about chai lifeline
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0Z1ooG4vjQ

unbelievable clip

click here:

A Tragic Episode

A Tragic Episode

SEFER CHOFETZ CHAIM — Laws of Rechilus 6:3-4



The Chofetz Chaim continues his discussion of the prohibition against accepting rechilus as fact. In this segment, he describes a very common scenario in the business world: a case of a buyer who is seeking the lowest possible price for an item.



The story begins with a gentile who negotiates a price with a Jewish wine merchant for several barrels of wine. They conclude on a price and the gentile brings his own empty barrels to be filled by the Jew the next day. That evening, the gentile goes to another Jewish merchant and, without telling him that he had already concluded the deal with the first merchant, prices this particular product. The second merchant is a bit more anxious than the first for some business, so he offers the wine at a slightly lower price. The gentile returns to the first merchant and cancels his order.



The merchant is astounded. “But we had a deal and you even have your barrels sitting here in my house! How can you break the agreement?” The gentile, not wanting to look bad, says, ”I’ll tell you the truth. I met your competitor on the street and he asked me, ‘Why don’t you buy from me? My wine is much better than that fellow’s merchandise and besides, my prices are cheaper!’”



This is all the first merchant needs to hear. “How could he have done such a thing?” he wonders about the other merchant. “He literally took the bread out of my mouth!” Having accepted the gentile’s word as fact, the first merchant harbors great hatred towards his competitor and feels fully justified in launching an all-out-war against him. He tells himself — and his friends — that his competitor is a wicked soul and that it is a mitzvah to speak against him and run him out of business.



Meanwhile, the second merchant responds in kind and a full-scale war erupts. And how did it all begin? By accepting one report of rechilus.



The Chofetz Chaim reflects: Had the first merchant told himself the truth, that the second merchant had no idea that he had already concluded a deal with the gentile, the story could have ended so beautifully. The first merchant would fulfill the positive commandment to grant a fellow Jew the benefit of the doubt. He would avoid transgressing several negative commandments, including accepting rechilus, harboring hatred towards a fellow Jew and seeking revenge. When the second merchant would be told of what the gentile did and of his competitor’s reaction, he would tell himself that in the future he would be careful to check that the buyer has not already concluded a deal with someone else. The result of all this would be: No loshon hora, no price wars, no hatred.



The Chofetz Chaim declares that this path would bring the two merchants blessing and joy both in this world and the World to Come. He cites the verse: “Who is the man who wants life, who loves days, to see good? Guard your tongue from evil…” (Tehillim 34:13-14). The Chofetz Chaim comments: “Who is the man who wants life”— in the World to Come; “who loves days”— in this world.



By contrast, the sin of one who accepts rechilus is even greater than that of the one who speaks it.

Yoel

Tzioni or not, this man is a hero. We can all learn volumes from his strong sense of Ahavas Yisrael and Ahavas Eretz Yisrael.

Happiness =) Rav Noach Weinberg

A young man with an unusually happy disposition once came to meet me in Jerusalem. I asked him, "What's your secret?"
He told me, "When I was 11 years old, God gave me a gift of happiness. I was riding my bicycle when a strong gust of wind blew me onto the ground into the path of an oncoming truck. The truck ran over me and cut off my leg.
"As I lay there bleeding, I realized that I might have to live the rest of my life without a leg. How depressing! But then I realized that being depressed won't get my leg back. So I decided right then and there not to waste my life despairing.
"When my parents arrived at the hospital they were shocked and grieving. I told them, 'I've already adapted. Now you also have to get used to this.'
"Ever since then, I see my friends getting upset over little things: their bus came late, they got a bad grade on a test, somebody insulted them. But I just enjoy life."
At age 11, this young man attained the clarity that it is a waste of energy to focus on what you are missing, and that the key to happiness is to take pleasure in what you have.
Happiness is not a happening; it's a state of mind. You can have everything in the world and still be miserable. Or you can have relatively little and feel unbounded joy.
As the Talmud says, "Who is rich? The one who appreciates what he has" (Ethics of the Fathers, 4:1).
That's why the morning prayers begin with a series of blessings thanking God for the simple and obvious:
Thank you, God, for giving me life Thank God I can see, that I can use my hands and feet, that I can think.
Happiness comes from mastering the art of appreciating and consciously enjoying what you already have.

watch this

Pure Love

i know Channuka has come and gone, but the lesson we learn from this holy holiday is appropriate all year round. Rabbi Wallerstein gave a shir about the neis of Channuka and why we put our menorahs in the window. He said that the reason why we put our menorahs in the window is not for the goyim to see, it is for everyone to see and to remind not only of the neis that Hashem performed for us, but of the love that was so strong during that period in time. Why were we zoche to see such a miracle? Rabbi Wallerstein said that the rabbis of that time said that when the tzibbur is impure, it is muttar for them to use impure oil. the yidden in that generation had such a great love for Hashem that they would not settle for giving their beloved Ribono Shel Olam anything but the best. they had the rebbeims blessing to use that tamei oil but they said NO we will not give Hashem something that is not worthy. they decided as a group to light the menorah with the small amount of PURE oil they had because Hashem only deserved the best. Hashem saw that the hearts of these yidden were SO pure and SO sincere and middah kneged middah Hashem said, if thats how much true and pure love u are showing ME then of course in return i will go beyond for you and let these pure lights burn beyond natures limitations.
Rabbi W asked us.. how often do we do mitzvot because we LOVE Hashem, how often do we do things for Hashem when we dont have to.. so often we find ourselves saying "oh man i HAVE TO bench now, or i HAVE TO go daven mincha now.." back then, the yidden were SO excited to do things for Hashem they had true love and excitement in their avodas Hashem. This is what the menorah in the window shows US. we look at the lights and think back to the time where not only was that pure oil burning for much longer than expected , but there was a pure love that existed and because of that we were zocheh to see miracles.
lets try to show Hashem that our love is still pure so many years later and that we can still do mitzvos FOR Hashem and not for other potential benefits we may gain from that mitzvah.... for example... besamim... it is a mitzvah to make a bracha on besamim so next time u have the chance ... make a bracha having in mind that this mitzvah is PURELY for Hashem's sake and iyHashem in return you will be zocheh to see many miracles in all of your lives
Have a great week and Hatzlacha to everyone who has finals !

Am Yisrael is in NEED.
480 children had to evacuate from their home, Yemen Odre the orphanage in Carmel, Israel.
The buildings were severely damaged. The children's homes, including furniture and personal items were badly burnt. Unbelievably, the two things which were left standing- a shul and an Israeli flag! As tough as the situation, Yemen Odre will rebuild! They want to send their children back to a safe and warm environment; and they need our help.

Elianna Kaufman and Mikhayla Bibi will be baking and selling challah for the upcoming shabbat. All sales will be made through orders.

All donations will be sent to the Yemen Odre orphanage to help rebuild! We can still help thousands of miles away. Am Yisrael Chai!

PRICES:
Rolls- $6 each, $10 for two
Braided- $15
Round/pull apart- $20

Contact for orders:
Elianna Kaufman- 516-353-0070 OR Elianna29@aol.com

Mikhayla Bibi- 516-589-2175 OR MikhaylaBB@aol.com

Great article from Aish.com! MUST READ

A number of years ago, I read Lee and Bob Woodruff’s book, In An Instant, the moving and revealing story of how their lives were affected when an IED went off near the tank Bob was riding in while embedded with the US military in Iraq. The book contains many tales of perseverance, of kindness, and of what marriage, family and friends really mean, some of which I have written about previously.
What I want to focus on now is the title, In An Instant. The book has taken up semi-permanent residence in our restroom and I find myself frequently confronted by the title, In An Instant. And it makes me reflect. Our lives can be changed – dramatically so – in an instant. It focuses me on how precious and important even a nanosecond can be. And how we need to maintain our alertness and consciousness even for the briefest of instants.
Someone I know described how she briefly turned around to hand her child a drink in the car and hit a pedestrian crossing the street. An engineer turned away momentarily to text some young friends and, in an instant, caused a massive train wreck. In a drunken instant a broker may move millions of dollars to the wrong investment and bankrupt himself and his company. In an instant, some fanatic can put their finger on the trigger of a nuclear warhead and destroy the lives of thousands of civilians.
Instants matter. And it’s not just in other people’s lives, in other people’s stories. In an instant we may utter hurtful words that ruin friendships, careers, marriages – words that can’t be taken back. In an instant we can say something demeaning to our children, a harsh line of criticism that may cause serious damage to their sense of self. In an instant, we can give the wrong advice to a friend and grave harm may result. In an instant, we may turn our head away and not see that child run into the street.
Lives are shaped by those instants. And it’s hard to be constantly vigilant. But the yetzer hara – that part of us that tries to trip us up and lower ourselves – lies in wait for those lax moments and we need to be ever battle-ready. In fact, we need to be proactive – on guard, on hyper-alert – and take initiative in a positive direction.
After all, it’s not just negative situations or behaviors that occur in an instant. Positive differences can be made in an instant as well.
In an instant, our smile can brighten someone’s day. In an instant, our “Good morning” can make another person feel noticed. In an instant, our “How are you?” can show a fellow human being we care. In an instant, we can pick up papers that someone else dropped. In an instant, we can put change in someone’s meter so they don’t get a ticket. In (slightly more than) an instant, we can help carry someone’s groceries to their car. In an instant, we can hold open a door or give up a seat or let someone with two items in front of us in line. In an instant, we can invite a new acquaintance to join us for an evening out. In an instant, we can make a lifelong commitment to marriage. In an instant, we can say “I love you” – and mean it. In an instant, we can say thank you to the Almighty for all the blessings He has given us.
Instants are powerful. We shouldn’t dismiss them or treat them cavalierly. Lives – ours and those around us – can be changed - in an instant.

Chanukah!!!!!!!!

Taken from Shirat Devorah on Chanukah!!!

There are four letters on the dreydel. נ - Nun, ג - Gimel, ה - Hay, and שׁ - Shin - These letters stand for "Nes Gadol Haya Sham" - A great miracle happened there.
[In Eretz Yisrael it is a פ - Peh instead of the Shin: A great miracle happened here.]

The four letters stand for:

a) the four parts of man - Nefesh (soul), Guf (body), Seichel (intellect), HaKol (all the rest).

b) the four foundations of the world - fire, water, wind and earth

c) the four nations that put us in exile - Egypt, Persia, Greece and Rome The four letters on the dreydel have the Gematria of Mashiach (358). This is also the Gematria of Hashem is King etc. Chanukah is the season when the possibility exists for the light of Mashiach to burst forth. Then, man and the world will be restored to harmonious relationship and the last and most bitter exile of Rome will draw to a to a close, and we will see the fulfillment of the verse that Hashem will be King forever. [Bnei Yissaschar]

Chanukah and Purim have much in common. They are two holidays which will enjoy an exalted status when Mashiach comes. They were celebrations which were decreed by the Rabbis to commemorate events that took place in their time. Since the faith of the Jewish people were instrumental in bringing these holidays about, the Holidays of the Torah will pale in comparison to them, like a flashlight shining on a sunny day.

Both days have their special instrument. Purim the grogger, Chanukah the dreydel. Their use is indicative of the nature of the holiday.

Purim's gregger we hold from below to symbolize that the great Teshuva on the Jews provided an initiative from below which caused the divine initiative to bring about the miracle.

On Chanukah we use a dreydel which we hold from above to symbolize that the principle initiative for the miracle came from above, and our actions brought it to fruition.

Source: Nishmas

(Adapted and translated from Hilchos Chanuka by Rav Yoel Schwartz Shlit"a)

TIME OF KINDLING CHANUKAH LIGHTS

A: Eating, working or learning before kindling Chanukah lights: Half an hour before kindling time, one may not begin a job or a meal. Learning is permissible, while some posskim permit only learning hilchos Chanuka, or attending a regular nightly Torah lesson.

One may taste fruit or less than the size of an egg of cake or bread, even after the kindling time has arrived.

After the time for kindling Chanukah lights has arrived, one may not learn before kindling. (The Yalkut Yosef permits attending a nightly Torah lesson, if there is no possibility of moving it up earlier. Other posskim though maintain that for those lighting outdoors, they should light at the proper time, and not delay it even for a Torah lesson.)

B: Proper time for kindling Chanukah lights: There are various opinions regarding the proper time for kindling Chanukah lights. According to the Gr"a they are to be lit as the sun is setting. This ruling is followed by the Ashkenazim in Yerushalayim.

According to the Igros Moshe (OC vol 4, 101) the proper lighting time is ten minutes after sunset. According to The Chazon Ish the proper time is twenty minutes after sunset.

According to the Beis Yosef, the proper time for lighting is at nightfall, (when stars are visible, which is approx. 13.5-18 minutes after sunset). The Sefaradi custom in Eretz Yisroel is to daven Ma’a’riv immediately after sunset and to kindle Chanukah lights fifteen minutes after sunset.

The Chassidic custom in Eretz Yisroel is to daven Ma’ariv immediately at nightfall and to kindle Chanukah lights right after Ma’a’riv.

If one follows the custom of Rabbeinu tam, to consider "nightfall" seventy two minutes after sunset, he should light then.

If one is lighting before nightfall, he should put in enough fuel for the lights to burn until half an hour after nightfall. (For example, in Yerushalayim the sun sets on Chanukah at 4:40 P.M.. If a person lights then (in accordance with the opinion of the Gr"a), it should burn until half an hour after nightfall, meaning until 5:30.)

If for some reason one won’t be able to kindle Chanukah lights on time, he may light them from p’lag hamincha and on. (P’lag Hamincha is about an hour and a quarter before sunset (An hour in this case is not sixty minutes, but rather one twelfth of the day, depending on the length of that particular day). In Eretz Yisroel at Chanukah time, p’lag hamincha is about 3:35-3:40 P.M.) He should nevertheless have enough fuel for the lights to burn until half an hour after his normal lighting time.

If one kindled Chanukah lights before p’lag hamincha, he must extinguish them, and kindle them again at the proper time and recite the brochas

C: Kindling Chanukah lights on Erev Shabbos:

REMINDER: Shabbos begins no later than sunset on Friday night. Under no circumstances may one kindle Chanukah lights or Shabbos candles after sunset.

On Erev shabbos, Chanukah lights should be kindled just before lighting Shabbos candles.

Shabbos candles should be lit at their normal time, which is eighteen minutes before sunset, after the Chanukah lights were already kindled. (In Yerushalayim, where Shabbos candles are normally lit forty minutes before sunset, on Erev Shabbos Chanukah they are lit twenty minutes before sunset.)

Although the kindling of Chanukah lights on Erev Shabbos is done earlier than other nights, the lights must continue burning until half an hour after nightfall.
For example; In Jerusalem the sun sets during Chanukah at 4:40 P.M.. The Chanukah lights should be kindled at 4:20 and should burn until 5:30 P.M., half an hour after nightfall.
Note that the small Chanukah candles don’t burn that long, and bigger candles must be used.

If a women realizes after lighting Shabbos candles that she forgot to kindle Chanukah lights, she should ask someone else to kindle Chanukah lights for her. If nobody is available, she may light them herself, provided that the sun has not yet set.

D: Kindling on Motzaei Shabbos: On Motzaei Shabbos, one must be very careful not to kindle the lights before Shabbos is over. On the other hand, the kindling of Chanukah lights should not be delayed much later. Some people have the custom to daven Ma’ariv before Shabbos is over, and to kindle the Chanukah lights immediately after Shabbos is over.

Those people who normally wait until seventy two minutes after sunset before ending Shabbos (in accordance with the opinion of Rabbeinu Tam) have various customs regarding the proper kindling time for Chanukah lights on motzaei Shabbos. Some kindle the lights 35-45 minutes after sunset, as most people do, while other’s wait the full seventy two minutes before kindling. (See Igros Moshe OC: vol 4, 62 and Yalkut Yosef pg. 58.)

In Shule the Chanukah lights are kindled before Havdalah, while there are different customs regarding the procedure at home. Some kindle the Chanukah lights before Havdalah, while others recite Havdalah first.

E: Proper time for kindling Chanukah lights in Shule: The custom is to kindle Chanukah lights in Shule between Mincha and Ma’ariv, even though it is still day.

In Yeshivos where the custom is to daven early Mincha, the Chanukah lights are kindled at the proper time (at least ten people should be present).

The custom is to kindle Chanukah lights in shule at Sha’charis. No Brocha is recited when lighting in the morning.

On Erev Shabbos the menorah should be kindled in the shule after Mincha. If Mincha will end after sunset, the menorah should be kindled before Mincha. (Under no circumstances is the Menorah to be kindled after sunset.)

F: Latest time to light: The Gemorah says that the latest time to light is when there are no more people walking outside. In those days it was about half an hour after nightfall. Nowadays, this may be a little bit later, since people do walk around at later hours. (A local rabbi should be consulted to determine the proper time for that specific location.)

If a person is lighting outside, he should definitely make every effort to light within this time period, since lighting later can be problematic.

If a person lights indoors, he may light until dawn, if he has not lit at the beginning of the night. According to the Oruch Hashulchan at least one other member of the household must be present at the lighting, while other posskim require two people present. If all the members of the household are asleep, two of them should be awoken, before lighting. If nobdy else is awake he should kindle the lights without reciting the brochas.
According to the Igros Moshe (OC: vol 4, 105), one may nevertheless kindle the Chanukah lights and recite the brachos.

Tehillim for our Brothers and Sisters in Israel

Dear Friends,

Our joy and celebration of Chanukah is diminished this evening upon hearing of the wild fire that is raging out of control in the North of Israel. In a terrible tragedy, a bus carrying students in the Prison Service's prison guard course who were being brought to evacuate prisoners from the area got trapped and 40 of the 50 prison guards who were on the bus died from the flames. As our families gather this evening to light the Chanukah menorah we ask everyone to keep in mind all those families affected by this fire, many of whom are being evacuated from their homes. We suggest reciting Tehillim after lighting the Menorah on behalf of our brothers and sisters in the North of Israel, particularly chapters 20 and 142. May God bring a quick resolution to this terrible situation.

Chanuka ideas from Shaina Guttman

Sparks of Chanukah

YAY!! It’s Chanukah!!!!! I put together a few beautiful points that I heard about Chanukah that really make me happy, I hope you enjoy :)- Shaina

"Chanukah is beyond there is no words to describe it."- Rebbe Nachman.

On Chanukah we are connected to ohr Haganuz, there is always more to know.

On Chanukah we use our eyes. When were in love, we look at someone for hours, not to see what it they look like but to be able to see beyond. That the way we look at our Chanukah candles. We can tap into beyond.

Chanukah is the only chag that happened in Israel, it’s the only chag you need a house for the mitzvah, and it’s the only chag there is no mitzvah to eat a meal. Why?

Eretz yisroel is our land the center of spirituality. In eretz yisroel a person is able to see things more clear, and in a deeper way. In Israel hashem gives us his eyes to see. on Chanukah we can tap into the same ability.

The home is a very important factor in Chanukah. the house is the foundation. the house represent stability and building. in order to be able to spread your light you have to internalize it first and build your foundation. Chanukah is Chinuch, when a father gives his child the opportunity to light chanukka candles it gives him the light to be able to go out and build his own home.

the home also represents routine we should never forget to add light and newness into every routine.

Eating is limiting to your body. there is no concept like that on Chanukah. Chanukah is all about the beyond we are not limited physically.

8- going beyond

Chanukah is very connected to the number 8. 8 represents above nature

Its a time to tap into the infinite.

-we have 8 candles represents the ain sof. chanukkah is beyond physical.

- Lihodot Ulihalel.- Chanukah is connected to the 8th sfira Hod. hod is giving thanks. when someone gives thanks they are realizing somebody is going beyond for them. We have to always thank hashem for going beyond for us and giving us our every need.

-We light by the door a door is the letter Chet, Chet is 8

-Kislev is represented by the letter Samech. Samech Represents loyalty. two Samechs together make the letter 8.

-Chanukah is a time to ask for things that are beyond. Its a big time to daven for ones zivug. Zivugim are Min Hashamaim.

Light

It was the Cohens Job to light the menorah. The cohen is full of light. Whenever people would come to him he would never give rebuke. He was able to see every single persons light from within them. Even if that person did the biggest sin the Cohen would take the persons light and be able to bring it out. Aaron Hacohen was always able to make peace between two people because he would bring out the light from within people. When the Benei Yisroel sinned with the Golden calf Aaron plead forums saying we did not want to do idols we just want a leader. We should be zocheh to see the good in Everyone . (The Cohen wore 8 garments)

The lights of Chanukah have the Ability to bring back the far removed, and the ability to bring out our real Neshamas. Every time the Baal Shem tov would light his candles he wouldn't say anything he would just cry. We must be like candles. Candles are deeper than words.

The Baal shem tov says every time a Fire is lit something is burned. We can take in the light from the candles and burn our bad middot and bad energy from within us.

Rabbi Shimon Bar yochi talks about our hands to light the candles. Our hands are the only part of us the goes beyond our head its the highest part of our body, representing going beyond

The First blessing of Chanukka lehadlick Ner Shel Chukka is 13 words- 13 is the gematria of love.Chanukkah comes out of darkness, it is also a dark time of year. This teaches us that even in the darkness there is light to it. We have to be strong and when things look dark we must have Emuna that Hashem is there and we are never alone.

Rebbe Nachman talks about the parts of our face that represent the candles that through the light we can transform our whole being. Our mouth, eyes, ears and nose.

We can use the Candelas to elevate our mouth by speaking words of truth and torah. Staying away from talking bad about people and do the opposite and be able to bring people up threw our words. Our mouth has amazing ability to connect to hashem through Tfilla and Hitbodedut.

We can Elevate our eyes but shutting them in the face of evil and to be able to see the good in everyone. We can be elevated by our ears by listening to the words of Tzadikim, and not listening to sheker. Our nose can be elevated by taking long breaths of patients and staying away from anger.

The Baal Shem tov says dont change your personality on Chanukka just light it up.

We can use a candle as much as we want and the fire doesn't get smaller it is the same with our light. Every Jewish Neshama has so much light. We must all meditate on the candles to bring out the light. Chag Sameach!!!! :)