Weekly Announcements
Ahavat Yisrael of Wesley Hills Announcements
Eikev
Aug 7 – Aug 14
17 Av – 24 Av
Thank you to Moti Elkobi for fixing the shul generator.
Unfortunately a number of local medical facilities have reported that patients who were tested for Corona were positive, these are facilities serving the local orthodox community; please be aware and be careful.
Reminder, that a mask covering both mouth and nose is required at all times in the Shul. Thank you for your cooperation.
SCHEDULE At Shul & Home
FRIDAY (8/7)
Shacharis 8:00 AM
Mincha: 7:00 PM
Candles no later than: 7:46 PM
SHABBAT (8/8)
Shacharit: 9:00 AM (with R. Yishmael, say brachos at home)
Latest time for shma: 9:30 AM
Mincha: 6:45 PM (Time Changed)
Family Seudah Shilishis
Shabbos ends: 8:48 PM
Maariv: 8:54 PM Maariv will be delayed to enable driving to shul (recite baruch hamavdil first)
SUNDAY (8/9)
Shacharis 8:00 AM
8:50 AM Rabbi’s Gemara Shiur via zoom https://zoom.us/j/3812539596
Mincha/Maariv 7:50 PM
MONDAY – THURSDAY (8/10 – 8/13)
Shacharis 8:00 AM
Mincha/Maariv: Monday,Tuesday 7:50 PM Wednesday,Thursday 7:45 PM
Thursday: 9:00 PM Parsha Preview on zoom https://zoom.us/j/3812539596
FRIDAY (8/14)
Mincha: 7:00 PM
Candle lighting: 7:39 PM
THOUHTS FOR PARSHAS EIKEV
Rabbi Asher Bush
A few short days ago was Tu B’av, while most famous for the matchmaking activities described in the Mishna at the end of Ta’anis, it was originally noted as the day on which the deaths ceased in the 40 years in the Desert. Among the other events that were marked on this date, the cutting of the wood for the Mizbe’ach ceased as the long hot summer days which were so good to dry out the firewood now were starting to shorten.
Related to this it is pointed out that as the nights get noticeably longer there is now more time at night to study Torah. While of course the day will always contain 24 hours, no matter how much or little daylight there is, still Chazal viewed nighttime as a special time for Torah study. The commonsense explanation to this is that daytime is worktime, and especially in the olden days when many more professions were related to outdoor work, little time existed during the day for learning. Only when the nights are longer is there more time to learn Torah.
Others suggest that nighttime is not just “free time” from work, but it is a more challenging time to learn. I am presently sitting writing this in my daughter’s house where there is power; we have had a blackout since the storm, since Tu B’av. At a certain point we came home last night, and I was learning by the light of a battery lantern, having given up on getting any useful light out of the yahrtzeit candles. It was then that I began to think with such awe and amazement what learning meant at night in the olden days, not just the olden days of one simple incandescent bulb, but of a candle or maybe even a few. How difficult, and to my experience almost impossible, it must have been; how much devotion and dedication it must have required to spend more than a few minutes reading by this poor light. Yes, they were far more used to it, but still, it is hard to see and read by such light. So perhaps what Chazal were getting at was that one who actually learns during the night, whether it is to such a poor light, or by committing to memory, this is an amazing act of devotion, one that pays great dividends in learning and in the service of God. This is certainly worthy of being a most joyous day!
The Chofetz Chaim wrote a number of lesser known smaller seforim. One of them is called Toras HaBayis, not the well know sefer of halacha that serves as a foundation for the Shulchan Aruch, but a book about Torah study in the house and everywhere else. In this sefer he strongly encourages committing a mesechta of Gemara, of Mishna or even just some portion thereof to memory since one never knows when there will be no access to seforim, and nothing would be worse than just wasting the time doing nothing.
For us this seems almost quaint, with great electrical power, and even without seforim we can just open up our phones to more seforim than the Chofetz Chaim ever could dream of, true, but aside from the fact that sometimes the power does go out, the more important point is that given how easy it is for us to read day or night, to access so many seforim at the touch of a button. Perhaps for us the most important question must be addressed in light of Tu B’av, is are we taking advantage of the countless opportunities that we have to learn Torah, in person, in shul (hopefully more soon) and on line. We rarely have to worry about being without a sefer or chance to learn, our concern is using the many opportunities we have been granted.