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Category: Other Stories and thoughts

A Meal of Herbs

Posted on Thursday, 18, August, 2022Thursday, 19, October, 2023 by Rabbi

“Better a meal of herbs where there is love than a fatted ox where there is hatred” (Proverbs 15:17). Relating to who did King Solomon refer to in this verse? It was two men he met.

During the time when he lost his kingdom and went begging from door to door in order to eat, two men met him and recognized him. One of them came, bowed down before him, and said, “My lord king, please join me in a meal today.” He went with him at once, and the man led him to an upper floor and prepared an ox and brought all kinds of fine food before him and began telling Solomon all about his kingdom, saying, “Do you remember how you ruled with kindness and wisdom when you were the king?” As soon as he reminded him of his days of royalty, Solomon the king began to weep as his heart ached and this went on throughout that meal until he rose and went away, filled with his tears.

The next day another man met him, bowed down before him, and said to him, “My lord king, would you care to share a meal with me today?” King Solomon answered him, “Do you wish to treat me as your friend did yesterday?” “My lord king,” the man answered, “I am a poor man, but I would be honored f you would share a meal with me today of the few herbs I have.” So he went to his home, and the man washed his hands and feet and fetched him some herbs. Then the man began consoling King Solomon saying, “My lord king, the Holy One, blessed be He swore an oath to your father that He would not deprive his seed of royalty. But such is the way of the Holy One, blessed be He as He rebukes and rebukes again, as it is written ‘For whom the L-rd loves, He rebukes, as a father his son for whom he cares’ (Proverbs 3:12). Yet the Holy One, blessed be He will restore you to your kingdom.”

As soon as King Solomon heard this, he felt at ease and rejoiced in that meal of herbs and rose from it feeling he had eaten his fill.

When Solomon returned to his royal throne, he wrote in his wisdom: “‘Better a meal of herbs where there is love’, which I ate with the poor man, ‘than a fatted ox where there is hatred,’ which I was fed by the rich man who reminded me of my grief,”

Mishlei Rabba 39-40

story recipes

Yevreysky Salat – Russian Jewish Salad

1 lb. cabbage sgredded (about ½ a medium cabbage)

1 small onion (red or yellow) thinly sliced

2 medium carrots shredded

3 Tbsp oil (olive, avocado, or vegetable)

2 Tbsp water

1 red or green bell pepper thinly sliced

1 medium cucumber thinly sliced

2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 Tbsp white distilled vinegar

2 Tbsp sugar, or to taste

6-7 small radishes thin

Directions

Combine all of the shredded and sliced vegetables together in a large bowl. Season with salt and toss until everything is coated.

For the dressing, whisk together the water, apple cider vinegar, white vinegar and sugar. Let the sugar dissolve for a few minutes, then whisk the oil into the vinegar mixture. Pour the dressing over the vegetables and toss the salad. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. Taste prior to serving; season with more salt if necessary. The salad keeps for up to a week in the refridgerator but will soften more each day.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

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Posted in Food, Other Stories and thoughts, Stories, UncategorizedTagged food, jewish food, Jewish recipes, Proverbs 15:17, Proverbs 3:12, Russian Jewish Salad, story recipes, Yevreysky SalatLeave a Comment on A Meal of Herbs

The Taste of the Garden of Eden

Posted on Thursday, 12, May, 2022 by Rabbi

Tam and Chacham were old friends and would frequently travel together to perform various mitzvos and to collect tzedakah for special causes. They both had many students and were repected everywhere they journeyed.

Once, Chacham went to the home of Tam to begin their journey to a faraway village, Tam, wanting everything to begin with a blessing, told his wife,Chana to prepare some­thing to eat quickly so he and Tam could set out on their holy mission.

Now, Tam and his wife were very poor. They had nothing in the house, not even wood for the stove! All Chana had in the way of food was a little bit of flour. How could she pre­pare a meal for her husband’s holy friend who was coming to their home for a meal? So she went out into the field to gather some wood chips for the stove and brought them home. Chana then mixed the flour with some water, without any fat or spices, and served this meager meal to her husband and their guest. After the meal, the two set out on their journey.

When Chacham returned home from their successful trip collecting to marry off an orphan girl, he told his wife that Tam’s wife made the most delicious dish he had ever eaten. In fact it actu­ally had the taste of the Garden of Eden.

Chacham’s wife, Ita Shaidel, knew how far her holy husband was from relishing simple earthly plea­sures, heard that, she hurried to see Chana to learn the se­cret of her cooking. When she arrived at the home of Tam and Chana she asked her, “With what did you season the food you served my husband? He said that it was the most delicious food he had ever eaten, that it had a taste like the Garden of Eden!”

Chana told Ita Shaindel that she really had nothing to serve or anything with which to season the food. But while she was preparing her simple meal, she was praying, “Ribbono Shel Olam – Master of the world, You know that if I had something to serve, I wouldn’t spare a thing to give to this holy rabbi! But what can I do? We don’t have anything in the house! So I’m pleading to You to add savoury spices to this dish I’m making so that Chacham will enjoy my food.” And she continued to pray this way until the food was prepared. “So it seems that the Holy One, blessed be He an­swered my prayer,” she said. “And your husband tasted the flavor of the Garden of Eden in my food.”‘

What gives food its taste is not its physical appearance alone but its spiritual elements. So many people praise their religious leaders by saying that they were so holy, so ascetic, they did not even taste their food. What is true is that many religious leaders are the only ones who really taste the food they eat! Why? Because they don’t just taste the food itself; they taste the holiness in the food, or as this tale puts it, they taste the Garden of Eden. Food served and offered with love tastes of love. Chana put her devo­tion to the Holy One, blessed be He and His servants into the dish she prepared, and Tam and Chacham were on a spiritual level to taste it.

latkes

Matzo Meal Pancakes Chremslach

INGREDIENTS

1 cup matzo meal

6 eggs

2 teaspoons salt

1 1/2 cups water

2 tablespoons sugar

3/4 cup grated onion (optional)

3/4 cup corn oil for frying

DIRECTIONS

Step 1

In a large bowl, combine matzo meal, salt, and sugar. Set aside.

Step 2

Separate egg whites and yolks. Beat egg yolks, and combine with water. Add the yolk mixture to the matzo meal mixture, and let it stand for 30 minutes.

Step 3

Beat egg whites until they are stiff, and fold them into the matzo meal mixture. Add grated onion.

Step 4

Heat corn oil until it sizzles in a deep skillet. Lower heat, and, using a cooking spoon, spoon batter into the pan, creating thin pancakes 3 to 4 inches in diameter. Fry for several minutes, turning when the pancake is firm and the bottom side is golden brown. Fry for another few minutes until the other side is done. Drain on paper towel.

Serve with cinnamon-sugar, applesauce and/or sour cream.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

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Posted in Faith, Food, Other Stories and thoughts, Pesach, Spirituality, Stories, Tam and Chacham, UncategorizedTagged food, Garden of Eden, jewish food, matzah latkes, recipes, short stories, Tam and ChachamLeave a Comment on The Taste of the Garden of Eden

The War Against the Evil Inclination

Posted on Wednesday, 11, May, 2022 by Rabbi

Man is engaged in a constant war against his archrival, the yetzer hara – evil inclination. How can man succeed against such a powerful enemy? The answer can be found in an old parable:

Two kings had been waging a fierce war for many years, with each one taking turns gaining the upper hand. One day, the kings decided to put an end to their war. The two met and agreed to wage one battle that would last a total of four days. Whoever won this decisive battle would be proclaimed the victor, and the loser would submit en­tirely to the will of the conqueror.

The kings began preparing for the deciding battle, and their finest generals taught the soldiers new war tactics and strategies.

When the war commenced, it was clear that both armies were powerful, skilled, and of equal strength. Indeed, on the first day of the fighting, one of the armies proved triumphant, and on the second day, the other was victorious. Towards evening of the third day, one of the generals gathered the commanders of his troops and ex­claimed, “Men! Tomorrow is the final and decisive day of this war, and we must emerge victorious at any cost. However, as the sides are evenly matched, we must utilize a brilliant plan. Our spies,” he continued, “have reported that the enemy’s ammunition and many of their weapons are in a specific bunker in their camp. If we were to send an elite team of sol­diers to steal the ammunition and weapons from the enemy’s camp, they would be easily defeated.”

Everyone agreed, and they carried out the plan. A squad of elite soldiers secretly entered the enemy camp and stole their ammunition and weapons.

The next day, there was a loud trumpet blast and the armies assembled to take the field. But when one of the armies rushed to arm themselves, they were shocked to discover that the bunker in their camp was empty. Left with no other choice, they surrendered.

warJeremiah 23:29

If the evil inclination, encounters you, pull it into the study hall, (go and study Torah). If it is a stone it will melt, and if it is iron it will break, as it is stated in reference to the Torah: “Is not my word like fire, says the L-rd, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?” (Jeremiah 23:29). Just as a stone shatters a hammer, so too one can overcome the evil inclination, which is as strong as iron, through Torah study. (Kiddushin 30b)

So it is with man’s war against the yetzer hara – evil inclination. The evil inclination battles a man all the days of his life. There are occasions when the yetzer hara emerges victorious and other times when man proves triumphant. It is at that point that the evil inclination devises the cunning strategy to steal man’s ammunition and weapons – the holy Torah, in the merit of which he can defeat the yetzer hara.

We must therefore take caution that the yetzer hara does not steal our powerful weapon. For even if the yetzer hara has recently prevailed, a person must not despair. Rather, they must strengthen and discipline themselves to study the holy Torah and good deeds, and only then will a person triumph over the yetzer hara – evil inclination.

On the one hand, the evil inclination is within every person; and the subjugation of kingdoms is on the other hand. Hear the ancient prayer, “May it be Your will that You will deliver us from their hands, of both the evil inclination and the foreign kingdoms, so that we may return to perform the edicts of Your will with a whole heart.” (Berachos 17a)

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

Posted in Faith, Other Stories and thoughts, Stories, UncategorizedTagged Berachos 17a, Evil Inclination, Jewish Stories, Kiddushin 30b, short stories, spiritual, warJeremiah 23:29, Yetzer haraLeave a Comment on The War Against the Evil Inclination

Fire, Stories and Teshuvah

Posted on Monday, 7, March, 2022 by Rabbi

A well traveled maggid (spiritual storyteller) was once asked whether he believed himself to be more faithful than others or above sin, and if not, why he always shared stories to others.

The Maggid thought for a moment, took a deep breath and then answered the ques­tion with a short story.

In a little town a fire broke out but the people living near the burning house did not take notice it. The owner of the house rushed out of his burning home into the street, shouting, “Fire! Fire! Let us all save our homes!”

And there was one man who said to him, “Why are you shouting at us to safeguard our homes when it is your own house that is afire?”

storytelling

The owner of the burning house answered, “Even so, my brother. If I call on you to guard your homes from fire, my house too, will be spared from growing flames and destruction.”

“This is also what I must do now,” explained the maggid (spiritual storyteller). “I call on you strengthen your faith and to do teshuvah (repent). In spite of my own shortcomings I am fully aware that I have sinned and at times lapse in my faith. The stories lead the listeners to mend their ways and thereby rescues me as well from the raging fire that attacks our faith and can lead to sin. Let us work together for the deliverance of our souls.”

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

Posted in Faith, Other Stories and thoughts, Spirituality, Stories, teshuvah, UncategorizedTagged Jewish Stories, parables, short stories, spiritual stried, Stories, Stories of faith, storyteller, StorytellingLeave a Comment on Fire, Stories and Teshuvah

The King’s Two Sons

Posted on Wednesday, 23, February, 2022Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

A king had two sons; one was very proud, always bragging, and full of conceit. The other was extremely hum­ble, modest, and pleasant.

One day, the king decided to send his sons to different lands in order to see if they would be able to add them to his kingdom. The king was hoping that his sons could influence the leaders in the different lands to peacefully agree to accepting his rule.

Proverbs 16

The arrogant and proud son arrived at the land to which his father had sent him, and he began to treat the leaders and people harshly. The prince refused to listen to anyone and make unreasonable and selfish demands.

When the people of the land saw the king’s conceited son and determined what type of person he was, they immediately understood his intentions and drove him out of their country in disgrace. “When his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and his glory was taken from him.” (Daniel 5:20)

 

On the other hand, when the second son arrived in the land to which he was sent, he quickly won the heart of its inhabitants with his pleasant manner. He learned their concerns and patiently listened to their needs, and it was not long before they asked him to rule over them.

A proud and arrogant person is quickly recognized for what they are and therefore able to rule for only a short while. Yet a person who possesses the quality of humility — even if he may not be noticed immediately is soon noted for his pleasant nature and is willingly accepted as a ruler.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

Posted in Derech Eretz, Faith, Other Stories and thoughts, Religious Education, Spirituality, Stories, UncategorizedTagged arrogance, Daniel 5:20, humble, Humility, Jewish Stories, modest, Pride, Proverbs 16:18, Proverbs 16:33, short stories, spiritualLeave a Comment on The King’s Two Sons

A Holocaust Gilgul

Posted on Wednesday, 16, February, 2022Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

Rabbi Chaim Trappe walked along the street in Jerusalem, the Holy City appeared to be a typical religious family. If one looked they would see the determined eyes and full beard and his modestly dressed wife. His children had long golden payos (ear locks) that hung down from their temples. But Rabbi Trappe carried a dark secret that he did not to share with anyone – his father was a nazi war criminal. The rabbi was a ger tzedek (convert).

When Rabbi Trappe was in his early twenties, he discovered that his father had been an SS soldier during World War Il and had participated in many Jewish executions. Rabbi Trappe was so horrified that he fled his parents’ home in Germany.

Haunted by his father’s past, he traveled to Israel, yearning to learn about the nation that his father had so despised. After enrolling in Bar Ilan University where he pursued graduate studies in microbiology, he took some courses in religion which aroused his interest in true Judaism. Eventually, he became a ger tzedek and married a wonderful woman.

The couple had three children — all boys, who knew nothing of their sordid history. “Bubby and Zaidy live far away,” their parents told them. “They’re too old to travel to visit us in Yerushalayim ir haKodesh (Jerusalem the Holy City).” The children had no reason to suspect that their grandparents were not Jewish — and certainly not nazis.

One day, Rabbi Trappe received an unexpected letter in the mail, the return address indicating that it had been sent to him by his father. With shaking hands, he opened the letter, the only communication he’d had with his father in many years. In the letter, the old man informed his son that he was on his deathbed and begged his son to bring his family for a visit so that he could see his grandchildren before he died.

Rabbi Trappe did not know how to react. He had no desire to return to his native country and he dreaded informing his children about their shameful roots. He went to his mentor a holy rabbi for advice who instructed him, “Fulfill your father’s dying request and allow him to see his grandchildren before he leaves this world.”

A few days later found Rabbi Trappe and his family in his father’s home in Germany. Rabbi Trappe could not understand why a man who had tortured, and murdered Jewish children would be interested in seeing his own grandchildren dressed in typical Chassidic clothing. The tension in the room was palpable as Rabbi Trappe ushered in his wife and children. His father lay on the bed, very frail and a shadow of his former self.

As old Mr. Trappe stared at his grandchildren, there was a faraway look in his eyes. He motioned for them to come closer and hugged and kissed each one. Then he cried. When he finally composed himself, he turned to Rabbi Trappe and whispered weakly, “I would like to tell you something that I think you will appreciate.

 

“One day, during the war years, I was rounding up the men, women, and children of a small village in Bylorussia. We forced them onto trucks which would transport them straight to the gas chambers. Before the trucks pulled away, I accompanied some soldiers to check one last time that we had not missed anyone.

“And that’s when I saw them,” continued the old man, his voice gaining strength. “There were three pairs of dark brown eyes staring at me from underneath a parked truck. Those eyes pleaded with me to save them. For the first and only time during my Nazi service, I was overcome with mercy and I decided to allow the children to remain alive. Turning back, I called out to the other soldiers, ‘Der Platz ist leer! Wir haben sie alle. – The place is empty! We’ve got them all!’

“I have never forgotten their faces,” said the former Nazi, the faraway look returning to his eyes. “They were three little boys with sweet, innocent faces — they looked just like your boys.” Then, after a brief pause, he added, “I truly believe that the reason I have three precious grandchildren is because of the three Jewish children that I saved.”

Holocaust

No matter how evil a person may be, he will still be rewarded for the good that he has done. The Midrash teaches us that even Nevuchadnezzar haRasha, the evil king of Bavel who destroyed the First Beis haMikdash (Holy Temple), was rewarded with three generations of kings because of the three steps he took to honor Hashem’s name (Esther Rabbah 3:1).

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

Posted in Derech Eretz, Faith, justice, Other Stories and thoughts, Spirituality, Stories, UncategorizedTagged Bava Kama 38b, Esther Rabbah 3:1, ger, ger tzedek, Gilgul, holocaust, Jewish conversion, Jewish Stories, short storiesLeave a Comment on A Holocaust Gilgul

Holy Challah – a Story, Some Prayers and a Recipe

Posted on Thursday, 20, January, 2022Sunday, 10, September, 2023 by Rabbi

Every Shabbos and Yom Tov (holiday), except Pesach (Passover), Jewish women prepare and bake challahs. It is a a holy task filled with love and tradition. Every ingredient is gathered with the intent of elevating the festival meal to a higher level.

Women through the many generations in their preparations of bread/challah have elevated the Shabbos and Yom Tov tables to the level of the mizbeach (alter) in the Bais haMikdash (Holy Temple). With the destruction of the Bais haMikdash, the altar became the table at which the family gathered to eat its meals. We learn that “In the days of the Temple, the altar served to atone for us; now it is our table that atones for us.” (Chagiga 27a).

So one may ask, how is making challah holy?

Prayers and rituals have come down to us from countless women. Every step in the preparation of challah elevates plain bread into a holy source of spiritual nourishment. The Torah (Scriptures) speaks of the creation of mankind saying, “then the L-rd G-d formed man from the dust of the earth, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being.” (Genesis 2:7) It is important to realize that when the Holy One, blessed be He “formed man from the dust of the earth”, He created people from the physical world. When He “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life” He created people from elements of the spiritual realm. At this point something truly amazing happened, “and the man became a living being.”

In other words people exist in the physical world and the spiritual world and have the ability to take the mundane everyday stuff from the physical world and elevate it to a spiritual and holy level.

Challah

Challah, Prayers and Meditation

INGREDIENTS

4-1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon yeast

3-6 tablespoons sugar or honey

2 teaspoons salt

4 eggs, at room temperature

1/2 cup lukewarm water

1 egg yolk, at room temperature

DIRECTIONS AND PRAYERS

Before Beginning to prepare the challah say:

Thank you Hashem for all the blessings you have given me and my family. Thank-you for always protecting us and doing what is best for us.

Please Hashem help me prepare this challah with holiness and love.

Pour 4 1/4 cups of flour into a large bowl and say:

Please Hashem help me to separate the good from the bad, help me to get rid of my negative character traits and my Yetzer Hara, help me to focus on the positive and incorporate positive character traits so that I may be an example to my family.

Combine 2 teaspoons of salt with the flour

In a separate bowl wisk together 4 eggs, ½ cup of water and ¼ cup olive oil until well blended.

Add sugar or honey to taste and say:

Please Hashem, help me to have a sweet din(judgement) help me to have Ayin Tova ( a good eye) help me and my family to have a sweet life, to always be able to love. Help me to help others and to do chesed (acts of loving kindness).

Mix well and then add 1 tablespoon of yeast and say:

Help me to have simcha and nachas (happiness and joy) in my home and in my life. Grant us your protection (as yeast in Hebrew is called shimarim which translates to protection) now and always. Please Hashem, allow me to feel joy for others as well. Bless me with an inner peace so I can continue doing mitzvos for those around me.

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and knead until you have a sticky dough that clings to the bottom of the bowl, (5 to 7 minutes). The dough may seem a bit wet and sticky but have faith—it’s supposed to be.

Dust your hands generously with flour, then scrape the sticky, elastic dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Dust the top of the dough lightly with flour and knead briefly into a soft, smooth ball. Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick cooking spray. Place the dough in the bowl, flip it over once so the top is lightly oiled, and then cover the bowl with a damp dish towel. Allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft-free spot until it’s puffy and doubled in size, 2 to 3 hours. (see note below)

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and dust with flour. It will deflate.

Pinch off a piece of dough the size of a large olive and set aside.

Cut the dough into four even pieces, and then stretch and roll each piece into a rope about 16 – 20-inches long. Lay the ropes parallel to one another (vertically). Pinch them tightly together at the top, and then fan them out. If the ropes shrink a bit, just work them back into their original length.

Begin by taking the strand farthest to the right and weave it toward the left through the other strands using this pattern: over, under, over. Take the strand furthest to the right and repeat the weaving pattern again: over, under, over. Repeat this pattern, always starting with the strand farthest to the right, until the whole loaf is braided. Tuck the ends under to give the loaf a finished look.

Carefully transfer the braided loaf to a lightly oiled baking sheet. Cover the loaf loosely with a damp towel and let it rise in a warm, draft-free spot until about 1 1/2 times the size (1 to 2 hours). Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. (Note that the loaf will continue to rise significantly in the oven.)

Take the small piece of challah dough and say:

Baruch ata adonoy eloheinu Melech haOlam asher kideshanu b’mitzvosav v’tzivanu l’hafrish challah.

Blessed are You O L-rd our G-d King of the Universe who has made us holy with His commandments, and commanded us to separate challah.

“May it be Your Will, Eternal, our G-d, that the commandment of separating challah be considered as if I had performed it with all its details and ramifications. May my elevation of the challah be comparable to the sacrifice that was offered on the altar, which was acceptable and pleasing. Just as giving the challah to the Kohein in former times served to atone for sins, so may it atone for mine and my family, and make me like a person reborn without sins. May it enable me to observe the holy Sabbath (or Festival of…) with my husband (and our children) and to become imbued with its holiness. May the spiritual influence of the mitzvah of challah enable our children to be constantly sustained by the hands of the Holy One, blessed is He, with His abundant mercy, loving-kindness, and love. Consider the mitzvah of challah as if I have given the tithe. And just as I am fulfilling this mitzvah with all my heart, so may Your compassion be aroused to keep me from sorrow and pain, always.

Amen

Wrap it in a piece of foil and set in the oven.

In a small bowl, beat the remaining egg and brush the beaten egg generously over the risen dough. (Note: If you like, sprinkle poppy or sesame seeds onto the challah before putting it in the oven.) Place the baking sheet atop another baking sheet; this will prevent the bottom crust from browning too much. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the crust is a rich brown color and the internal temperature is between 190°F and 200°F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove the bread from the oven and place it on a rack to cool. Challah is best enjoyed fresh, but leftovers will keep for a few days in a sealed plastic bag.

Note: When baking yeast breads, rising times are only a guide; the temperature in your kitchen, the humidity level outdoors, and how you knead the dough will all affect the rising time.

While the Challah is baking add a short prayer:

Ribbono shel olam, Master of the Universe. I beg You that when the (husband or man of the house) says the blessing over these challahs, he has the same holy intentions I have now when I’m kneading and baking them!

Husband and wife are partners in the Jewish spiritual quest of be­coming holy. Traditionally, the woman bakes the challahs for Shabbos and Yom Tov, and the man makes the blessing over them at the table. If both have holy intentions, in the baking and the blessing, the bread flies up to heaven as it is eaten.

May your prayers ascend to the highest levels and be answered with joy and happiness

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two.

Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

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Posted in Faith, Food, Holiday, Holidays, Other Stories and thoughts, Prayer, Rosh haShanah, Rosh haShanah, Shabbat, Shabbos, Shabbos, Shavuous, Spirituality, Stories, Uncategorized, Woman, WomanTagged Chagiga 27a, Challah, challah bread, Genesis 2:7, halla, holiness, Jewish Stories, Prayer, Shabbat, Shabbos, short Jewish Stories, short stories, Spirituality, story recipe, women, yom tovLeave a Comment on Holy Challah – a Story, Some Prayers and a Recipe

The Rabbi, The Businessman and Learning

Posted on Monday, 3, January, 2022Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

We mention the Patriarchs (Avraham (Abraham), Yitzchak (Isaac) and Yaakov (Jacob)) at the beginning of the Shemoneh Esrei not only to remember and praise their merits but also to challenge ourselves to try to be like them.

Once a beloved and holy rabbi was learning with his students in the beis medrash (study hall) just before the prayers that welcome in the holy Shabbos (Kabbolas Shabbos). Suddenly a stranger entered the beis medrash. From the way he was dressed, it was obvious that he was a very successful businessman. After sitting down, he asked one of the students to point out the holy rabbi. When the student did so, the businessman’s face suddenly went pale.

After the prayers were over, the man approached the holy rabbi and greeted him. The holy rabbi politely returned the greeting, assuming the man was a stranger. Then the man looked straight into the holy rabbi’s eyes and asked him “Do you know who I am? I was your chavrusa (study partner) over thirty years ago.”

The holy rabbi looked at him closely and said, “Of course I recognize you, I am eternally grateful to you, because you are the one who helped me develop my potential in learning.”

After they chatted for a while, the businessman said, “I feel devastated. Look at you, you are now a holy rabbi, respected by all and held in high esteem as a talmid chacham (Torah scholar well versed in Jewish religious law). Yet we both know that when we were students, I was the one who helped you and explained the finer points of our beloved teacher and rabbi’s lessons. How can you ex­plain why you developed so much in learning, while I just stagnated?”

Ari haKodesh

The holy rabbi thought for a few moments and replied, “Do you remember that when we were students, there was a library in a room next to the study hall? In that library was a copy of the biography of Ari haKodesh (Rabbi Yitzchok Luria). When you read that biography, I remember how awed you were. You came out of the reading room with your eyes shining and declared, `He was really a great rabbi and a guiding light for his generation!’ When I finished reading that biography, however, I said to myself that the life of holy rabbi was proof of the great heights a person can reach. I decided without delay that I, too, would aspire to emulate him and try to become a great leader and rabbi. This strong drive helped me to realize my potential and develop beyond my greatest expectations. That is the difference between us. I was not satisfied to simply acknowledge that he was a great rabbi and a guiding light for his generation, but I wanted to become one myself.”

Similarly, when we come to the point in our prayers when we mention the merits of our Patriarchs, it is not enough to simply acknowledge their greatness. We must also take upon ourselves the challenge and try to emulate them. Thus, we say, “When will my deeds reach the level of the Avos?” Even though we may not ever reach their level, we can consider it a great accomplishment to at least try to follow in their footsteps.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

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Posted in Derech Eretz, Faith, friendship, Other Stories and thoughts, Religious Education, Spirituality, Stories, Torah, UncategorizedTagged Ari haKodesh, forefathers, Isaac Luria, Jewish Stories, patriarchs, Rabbi Yitzchok Luria, short stories, spiritual stories, SpiritualityLeave a Comment on The Rabbi, The Businessman and Learning

The Haunted Lyra: A Jewish Tale from Greece

Posted on Wednesday, 15, December, 2021Tuesday, 20, September, 2022 by Rabbi

There was a carpenter in the city of Salonika who was called upon by the chevra kadisha to make a coffin for a man who had died. When the coffin was finished, there was one board left over. The carpenter decided that the wood was so fine and beautiful that he would use it to carve a lyra. That night, however, he had a dream in which the dead man for whom he had made the coffin came to him and warned him not to fashion the wood into a musical instrument. The carpenter recalled this dream when he awoke, but paid no attention to it, as he did all dreams.

That day he started to carve the lyra. He worked very slowly, per­fecting it over a period of weeks. When he was finished, he saw that the lyra was very well made indeed, and he was proud of himself. He polished the wood and strung the lyra and looked forward to the time that he might play it once he had made a bow. That night the dead man came back to him in a dream and again warned him not to play the lyra. But upon waking, the carpenter again ignored the dream.

That day he carved the bow and polished its wood until it shone like that the lyra. It was late at night when the bow was finished, so he decided not to try it out until the next day. That night the dead man came back to him once again, and said he was warning him for the last time not to play the lyra. But when the carpenter awoke, the first thing he did was to pick up the lyra and run the bow across its strings.

Lyra Lyre

A haunting melody rose up, as if on its own, and no sooner had he played but a single song than the room grew dark, “and there was a thick darkness” (Exodus 10:22). The darkness was twice and twice again thicker than the darkness of any other night. The carpenter ran to the window, opened it in confusion, and peered outside, “”And lo, and dread, a darkness, a great one, fell upon him” (Genesis 15:12).

Suddenly a great force from behind, like invisible hands, shoved him out the window. Before he knew it, the carpenter found himself tumbling down, and an instant later he plunged into something soft and treacherous, like mud. With horror he realized it was quicksand, relentlessly sucking him under the earth. It had already reached his arms when he understood how imminent his danger was, and he thrashed about wildly, but it was too late. The quicksand dragged him under as he drew his last breath.

The son of the carpenter found his father’s body lying on the floor of his workshop, a lyra in his hands. That night the same dead man who had warned his father came to the son in a dream and revealed all that had happened and told him “He that mocks the poor insults his Maker” (Proverbs 17:5).

The very next day the son burned the lyra, and as it went up in flames, he heard the voice of the carpenter crying out as if from a great distance. Then he knew that somewhere his soul was no longer tortured.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

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Posted in Horror, Other Stories and thoughts, Stories, UncategorizedTagged Greece, haunted, Jewish horror stories, Jewish Stories, lyra, lyre, short stories, Solonika, ThessalonikiLeave a Comment on The Haunted Lyra: A Jewish Tale from Greece

Why was There Only One Man?

Posted on Tuesday, 26, October, 2021Tuesday, 11, June, 2024 by Rabbi

“Man was created one and alone in the world. And why was he created one and alone in the world? That the righteous might not say, “We are the children of a righteous man,” and the wicked, “We are the children of a wicked man.”

Another explanation of why was he created one and alone? That families might not quarrel: since even now, when all men come from the same stock, they quarrel, how much more would they do so if they had come from different stocks!

Man was created last (in the order of creation). And why was he created last? Lest the heretics should say: We (mankind) were partners with G-d in his work.

Another explanation: Why was man created last? That if his mind become too proud, it may be said to him: “The mosquito preceded thee in the order of creation.” (Tosefta, Sanhedrin 8:4-9)

Why did G-d create only one Adam (man) and not many at a time?

“To teach us that he who destroys a single soul destroys a whole world and that he who saves a single soul saves a whole world; furthermore, so no race or class may claim a nobler ancestry, saying, ‘Our father was born first’; and, finally, to give testimony to the greatness of the L-rd, who caused the wonderful diversity of mankind to emanate from one type. And why was Adam (man) created last of all beings? To teach him humility; for if he be overbearing, let him remember that the little fly preceded him in the order of creation.”

He did this to demonstrate that one man in himself is an entire universe. Also He wished to teach mankind that he who kills one human being is as guilty as if he had destroyed the entire world. Similarly, he who saves the life of one single human being is as worthy as if he had saved all of humanity.

G-d created only one man so that people should not try to feel superior to one another and boast of their lineage in this wise: “I am descended from a more distinguished Adam (man) than you.”

He also did this so that the heathen should not be able to say that, since many men had been created at the same time, it was conclusive proof that there was more than one G-d. (Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5)

“Let man ever bear in mind that the Holy One dwells in him.” (Ta’anis 11b)

Creation of Man

“And G-d saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31) “Man, a miniature world in whom there is a completion of the cosmic order, and its beauty, glory and perfection.” (Chovos HaLevavos – Duties of the Heart 2:4, 1040 ce) How do we know this to be true? The term tov me’od – very good reveals an important message. The word me’od is composed of the Hebrew letters mem aleph dalet which are the same letters in the word “adam” – aleph dalet mem. When the Holy One, blessed be He, on the last day of creation, said “tov me’od” – very good it was a recognition that man-adam was not only the completion of creation but was the embodiment of creation. This is reflected in the teaching, “Every man is a composite of the heavenly and the earthly. (Zohar, Bereishis 130b)

Man is the steward of creation – the protector/preserver of creation. “When the Holy One, blessed be He created the first human beings, He led them around the Garden of Eden and said: “Look at my works! See how beautiful they are. How Excellent! For your sake, I created them all. See to it that you do not spoil and destroy My world, for if you do, there will be no one else to repair it.” (Kohelles Rabbah on 7:13)

Man is a tremendous force for change with a great potential for change. For this reason man must be proactive and strive to change the world for the good. In other words, “Where there are no men, try to be a man.” (Avos 2:5)

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

Click here for more storytelling resources

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

Please share this story with others

Posted in Derech Eretz, Other Stories and thoughts, Religious Education, Stories, UncategorizedTagged adam, Avos 2:5, Chovos HaLevavos 2:4, creation, Duties of the Heart 2:4, Genesis 1:26, Genesis 1:31, Kohelles Rabbah on 7:13, Man, Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5, Sanhedrin 8:4-9, Ta’anis 11b, Tosefta, tov meod, Zohar Bereishis 130b, Zohar Genesis 230bLeave a Comment on Why was There Only One Man?

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