Schlagwort: judaism

Without Title

I have been thinking about what should and can be for a long time. Hashem does not demand anything impossible from us and we should never settle for what we have achieved – as Jewish people with passions and desires. Yes, I am referring to the Torah as a law and at the same time also a guide to a life that makes Hashem smile. Our interpersonal relationships are not based on our religiosity or our faith; we all have that. They are based on Jewish ethics and the desire of our soul to serve Hashem. Therefore, all 613 commandments are equally important and relevant. They cannot be reduced, relativized or defined as superfluous, because they were given to the Jewish people in love and enable us all to connect with the Eternal. Torah is unchangeably written in stone, just as Moshe Rabbeinu received and delivered it at Sinai; supplemented by Hosea bin Nun (Joshua).

„Everyone should do what they can and not do what they cannot.“

(Marcus Günther Michael Gundlach)

Ja’akow!

In Parasha Toldot we get to know Ya’akov and with him the first biography in world literature. Even before his conception and birth we are told about our forefather Ya’akov (Bereshit/Gen. 25, 22) and we then follow his life through childhood, youth, adulthood, and into old age. The narrative thread focuses on Ya’akov and provides an overall picture of a human life with all its human struggles, achievements, failures and successes. We learn a lot about his suffering and pain, about jealousy and competition, about property disputes and the difficulties of raising children. We follow Ya’akov on his path with these various challenges that we as average people can easily identify with. Unlike his grandfather Avraham, Ya’akov did not have to pass any divine tests, nor was he exposed to a serious trauma like his father Yitzchak during the Akeda (binding of Yitzchak).

Ya’akov achieved everything through winding paths. His birthright and father’s blessing, his wife, his wealth and his new name came only after tenacious efforts and numerous failures. Yet he was given the privilege of receiving divine visions and G-d appeared to him three times. It is Yeshayahu Leibowitz who points out that it was Ya’akov who struggled with man and G-d and became Israel. We are all named after him and are his responsibility and duty.

Shavua Tov

Words

The Jewish people must never give up the certainty that they are loved by Hashem as long as they engage with the Torah. It is instructive to remember that the Torah is 613 according to Gematria. All 613 commandments of the Torah are equally important and eternally relevant. We must all never give up the hope and love that we live according to the Torah and therefore become aware of Hashem’s love. This is why Gematria is so important at this time. The Hebrew word for hope, Hatikva, has the numerical value 600 and Ahava (love) has the value 13. We can all have the hope of being led back in love to our goal of Yisrael and Zion if we hold on to the Torah.

אסור לעם היהודי לוותר על הוודאות שהוא נאהב באמצעות ה‘ כל עוד הוא עוסק בתורה. מאלף לזכור שלפי הגימטריה התורה תואמת את הערך המספרי 613. כל 613 מצוות התורה הן בעלות חשיבות שווה ונצחית. אסור לכולנו לעולם לוותר על התקווה והאהבה שאנו חיים על פי התורה ולכן נהיה מודעים לאהבת ה‘. לכן הגימטריה כל כך חשובה בזמן הזה. המילה העברית לתקווה, התקווה, היא בעלת הערך המספרי 600 ולאהווה (אהבה) היא בעלת הערך 13. לכולנו יכולה להיות תקווה להוביל בחזרה באהבה אל המטרה שלנו, ישראל וציון, אם נאחז בתורה.

The Jewish people must never give up the certainty that they are loved by Hashem as long as they engage with the Torah. It is instructive to remember that the Torah is 613 according to Gematria. All 613 commandments of the Torah are equally important and eternally relevant. We must all never give up the hope and love that we live according to the Torah and therefore become aware of Hashem’s love. This is why Gematria is so important at this time. The Hebrew word for hope, Hatikva, has the numerical value 600 and Ahava (love) has the value 13. We can all have the hope of being led back in love to our goal of Yisrael and Zion if we hold on to the Torah.

אסור לעם היהודי לוותר על הוודאות שהוא נאהב באמצעות ה‘ כל עוד הוא עוסק בתורה. מאלף לזכור שלפי הגימטריה התורה תואמת את הערך המספרי 613. כל 613 מצוות התורה הן בעלות חשיבות שווה ונצחית. אסור לכולנו לעולם לוותר על התקווה והאהבה שאנו חיים על פי התורה ולכן נהיה מודעים לאהבת ה‘. לכן הגימטריה כל כך חשובה בזמן הזה. המילה העברית לתקווה, התקווה, היא בעלת הערך המספרי 600 ולאהווה (אהבה) היא בעלת הערך 13. לכולנו יכולה להיות תקווה להוביל בחזרה באהבה אל המטרה שלנו, ישראל וציון, אם נאחז בתורה.

G-d hands

G-d hands
(Times are changing)

Times are changing

In a wider frame
took me to the stars
Never look for fame

Times are changing
in me
to change myself
and to be free

Looking forward
and focuse new ways
in a mood of thankfullness
and can see all the rays

For a short time
because starting close my eyes
I feel your touch
of given soul
and be so much

Take a breath of fresh air
Being born in my tradition
To speak loud won“t be fair
Stand still and trust
Never say you are this or that and must

Now I am close to my inner self including child
To understand and hold
never running wild

So let begin new
every day
Start talking to eachother
Like a listening child
to his mother

Who wants fight must become calm
Because everything lies
in G-d’s hands

Poem by Marcus Günther Michael Gundlach, 22. Adar 5784

Thoughts at Parasha Wajera

At the moment I’m starting to deal with the Wajera section of the week for this week. I learned that binding Yitzchak was a test of HaShem to Avraham and that HaShem requires devotion from us but never human sacrifice. The Akedah Yitzchak is extremely complex, from it we learn not to rave about martyrdom. We learn that our G-d wants us to live and not die. But we also learn that in extreme cases we must lay down our lives for the Eternal Commandments, which are more important than any individual life.

This is of utmost importance to me, especially in times of war in Israel. These lessons are particularly important especially in times when radical forces – be they from the right, left or Islamist – are increasingly appearing again.

Thoughts about Parsha Ekew

I’m just studying the first words of the Parasha EKEW… G‑d promises that he will never break his covenant with the Jewish people – provided that all hear his words, that is pay attention to them, that the legal or Legal statutes are upheld and done. For me, that means that maintaining the unambiguous traditional reference to Judaism is meant and doing that these legal requirements must be followed by deeds that relate to them.Then he will love, bless and increase the Jewish people. It is important to realize that in the parsha Ekew the Lord addresses each individual and with a ‚Thou‘. This is a very close level of relationship and he is reminiscent of the patriarchs Avraham, Yitzchak and Ya’akov to whom he swore to give the land of Israel.The Parasha Ekew has an important message in its name. It can be translated on three levels… Ekew as ‚once‘, meaning all Israelites are addressed. Ekew as because, that means that the orthodoxy is meant directly, which has fulfilled mitzvot most consistently since primeval times and Ekew as „if“, that means that when the 40 years of desert migration are complete, the conquest of the land can take place.This is the case today.The prophet Yeshayahu (Isaiah) speaks the second words of comfort in the Haftarah of the Parasha. A total of 7 Haftarot of consolation will be spoken and proclaimed by him until Rosh Hashanah. We should all feel drawn to the words of the Tanakh and listen with our minds and hearts! Shabbat Shalom.

Bemidbar – an outlook at the Parasha of this week

Always before Shavuot we read Bemidbar – „In the desert“. In this Parasha the people are counted again; This is because for Hashem this is a token of love. It is important to understand that HaShem demands an active part in dealing with the Torah and at the same time extends his love to all of us. It is important to be ready and to act consciously. It has always been and will always be important to me to be trained in synagogue ministry. There must be a fundamental willingness to see this as a duty. This is exactly what I demand for myself. haShem wants a relationship with all of us – nothing else – and I am fully aware of this mutual responsibility; always aware that the journey towards Israel is only really beginning now and that I am right at the beginning. Let us all prepare ourselves spiritually and in learning to serve HaShem and soon to observe Shavuot. Then we all realize that it is not knowledge or moral standards that bind us all, but the Torah alone.

Studying and Sacrifices – virtual vs. practical

Review of the Parasha „Zaw“: The sages teach us that one who studies the laws of any korban considers it as having sacrificed it himself. But while a „virtual“ sacrifice, learning, uplifts people, actual sacrifices uplift the whole world. This is precisely why physical sacrifices are superior to virtual sacrifices – or to put it another way: prayer and learning have never replaced actual sacrifices, but are subordinate to them. The „Rebbe“ says: „Only the physical sacrifice, which includes all aspects of creation – the human (the priest who makes the sacrifice, the animal (the sacrifice itself), the plant (the wood of fire) and the mineral (the salt added to all sacrifices) – uplifts the world in its entirety.“ Therefore, he emphasizes, it is of the utmost importance always to try to find a tangible and tangible way to express the spiritual insights we gain So that they may uplift not only us but the whole world It will always be of central importance, therefore, how Moshe offered his Korbanot to establish Aharon and his sons, which included ascension offerings, sin offerings and peace offerings.