During the Second Temple, the Greek empire reigned (over Israel),1 and they (the Greeks) passed decrees against the Jews and (tried) to erase their religion, and did not allow them to carry out Torah (study) or the commandments. They put their hands on their property and their daughters. They entered the Temple, destroyed and made the pure unclean. The Jews were in great distress because of them and were much oppressed, until the G-d of their fathers had mercy on them, delivering them from their hands and saving them. Then overcame, the sons of the Hasmonean High Priest, (the Greeks) and killed them and saved the Jews from their hands. They appointed a king from the Priests, and the kingdom of Israel was restored for more than 200 years until the destruction of (the) second (Temple). When the Jews overcame their enemies and destroyed them, it was the 25th of Kislev2 when they entered the Sanctuary (inner room) and did not find pure (olive) oil in the Temple, except one jar sealed with seal of the High Priest, and it did not contain enough to light except for one day only. But they lit from it the lamps of the Menorah3 for eight days, until they could crush olives and produce a (new quantity) of pure oil. For these reasons, decreed the Sages of that generation that these eight days that begin on the 25th Kislev, will be days of joy and praise. One lights on them lamps at evening at the entrance to the houses, every evening of the eight nights to show off and demonstrate the miracle. These days are called ''Hanukah'' that is to say ''they rested'' (chanu) on the ''25'' ('th of the month) because on the 25th they rested from their enemies. and also because of those days they (re)-dedicated the house (Temple) which their foes had defiled. Also some say that it is a commandment to increase slightly the festive meals on Hanukah. Another reason is because the work of (building) the Sanctuary (in the desert) was completed in these days. One should tell one's children the story of the miracles that were done for our fore-fathers in those days, (see Josephus) However, these meals are not considered as part of the commandment unless one says at the meal songs of praise. One should increase charity in these Hanukah days, for this can help mend any defects in our souls. This charity, should be given particularly to poor Torah scholars. (KSA 139:1)
1) 352 BCE until 70 CE
2) 139 BCE
3) The Menorah was made of gold and had seven branches.
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Our Torah and Mesorah are being challenged. Liberal Jewish groups are gathering tens of thousands of votes for the upcoming WZO Congress American Election in order to advance their agenda in Israel and the Diaspora. It’s up to us to stop it.VOTE TODAY VOTE NOW
Every 5 years, The World Zionist Organization (WZO) holds an election to vote in the members of its Congress (the decision-making body of the WZO) and executive board members of the other national Israel organizations. This is a unique opportunity for the American Orthodox community to affect the culture and atmosphere of Eretz Yisroel.
152 delegates are voted in from the United States. These American delegates will be selected to:
Decide leadership positions in key national Israel organizations
Create policy th...
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 28, 2020 - BJL wishes a hearty Mazel Tov to Naftali Spero on his Bar Mitzvah this Shabbos.
Mazel Tov Mr. & Mrs. Yehuda Spero
Some American beer drinkers are avoiding Corona, the beer, amid the deadly coronavirus outbreak, according to a new survey.
A surprising 38 percent of beer drinkers insisted that they would not, under any circumstances, buy Corona as the deadly virus spreads across the globe, according to the survey conducted by 5W Public Relations.
“There is no question that Corona beer is suffering because of the coronavirus,” Ronn Torossian, founder of 5WPR, said in a statement.
Read more at NY POST.
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 28, 2020 - The following message was emailed by Rabbi Moshe Hauer today to the members of Bnai Jacob Shaarei Zion:
Friday, February 28, 2020
Dear Friends,
I hope this note finds you all well.
All of us are aware of the current fears regarding the current wave of Coronavirus. It is important for us to pray for all those affected, and for the containment of this virus.
We must also be properly informed and to employ appropriate precautions.
Towards these ends, we are sharing two notes that have been shared nationally: one, encouraging Tefillos; the other, providing basic information and instruction written by Rabbi Dr. Aaron Glatt.
I hope this will be helpful to all of us, and pray that G-d remove this plague from our midst, וה...
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 28, 2020 - The Lewis family is requesting that people start Shabbos a little early this week in the zechus of a refuah shlaimah for Josh - Yehoshua Shalom ben Bluma
BaltimoreJewishLife.com (BJL) is proud to partner with STAR-K CERTIFICATION that realizes that there is no substitute for a person’s own Rav. In an effort to offer a possible solution, it has launched its Institute of Halachah as a public service. Over the years, the agency’s Kashrus Hotline has answered generic halachic questions from kosher consumers the world over, including inquiries regarding the kosher status of foods and certified Sabbath mode appliances. The formation of a separate official division within STAR-K testifies to the need for addressing these issues.
The Institute of Halachah is directed by HaRav Mordechai Frankel, under the guidance of HaRav Moshe Heinemann, STAR-K’s Rabbinic Administrator. It is an invaluable resource for a diverse array of rabbis to discuss general halachic matters, as well as gain access to source materials for shiurim and answers to congregants’ questions.
Shailos for regular or Kashrus shailos may emailed or discussed using this widget.
Politicians would serve themselves well to always keep in mind Rabi Yehudah Hanasi’s admonition: “An eye sees, an ear hears, and all your deeds are written in a book” (Avos 2:1).
Most public servants may not care that the Tanna was referring to a Divine “Eye” and “Ear,” and to an ethereal “book,” or that the advice was offered as means of avoiding sin. But it’s good practical counsel, too, for aspirants to governmental positions.
Many a candidate for public office has come to be haunted by some comment made years earlier of which human eyes and ears took note and of which there is a record, if not in a book, at least in a recording or internet posting.
Like presidential hopeful Michael Bloomberg, who has been con...
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 28, 2020 - BJL wishes a hearty Mazel Tov to Moishy and Yardena Gardyn on the birth of a son.
Mazel Tov grandparents Shimmy and Devora Gardyn
יה"ר שיזכו לגדל בנם לתורה, לחופה, ולמעשים טובים. אמן
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 28, 2020 - BJL wishes a hearty Mazel Tov to Racheli Epstein and Chanina Hefter on their engagement.
יה"ר שיזכו לבנות בית נאמן בישראל. אמן
Dina* called Amudim after noticing that her 13 year-old son, Moshe*, was acting out in ways completely out of character. For several weeks, he had been waking up in a haze each morning, couldn't get to yeshiva on time, and on some nights, he seemed confused and was incoherent. Worried and intent on discovering the source of the problem, Dina decided to wait for Moshe to return from yeshiva one day and see what transpired. She was shocked as she watched him head straight for the liquor cabinet and begin drinking from the assorted available bottles.
Amudim's case manager set up an appointment for Moshe and both of his parents to see a therapist; and during the first session, Moshe stated that he was just doing what "Tatty and his friends do." Dina looked at her husband, Shlo...
NEW YORK (AP) – Schools across the United States are canceling trips abroad, preparing online lessons and even rethinking “perfect attendance” awards as they brace for the possibility that the new coronavirus could begin spreading in their communities.
Districts have been rushing to update emergency plans this week after federal officials warned that the virus, which started in China, is almost certain to begin spreading in the U.S. Many are preparing for possible school closures that could stretch weeks or longer, even as they work to tamp down panic among students, parents and teachers.
President Donald Trump has worked to minimize fears about the virus, but on Wednesday he also recommended that schools to start planning for arrival of the COVID-19 virus “just i...
Lawmakers are discussing a spending package that would provide between $6 billion to $8 billion to combat the coronavirus, a source familiar with the talks confirmed to The Hill.
The zeroing in on the higher spending range comes as negotiators want to finalize a deal by early next week, which would allow for the spending package to go to the House floor for a vote shortly thereafter.
Congress has approximately 10 working days before it is set to leave for a weeklong recess, giving lawmakers a tight timeframe if they are going to finalize a deal, get it passed by both chambers and get it to President Trump’s desk before leaving town.
Read more at The Hill.
Blue and White Chairman MK Benny Gantz has fired adviser Yisrael Bachar after a recording published on Channel 12 revealed the adviser as warning against a Gantz victory in the elections, since Gantz is “a danger to Israel.”
Blue and White said: “[Yisrael] Bachar fell into a planned ambush which included personal exploitation, use of inappropriate means, and fraud – which will be dealt with via the judicial system. The political sources’ manipulative involvement will also be revealed soon.”
The Likud responded: “Gantz fired his close adviser Yisrael Bachar because he told the truth: ‘Gantz cannot be prime minister. He is a big zero, he has no courage to attack Iran – Gantz is a danger to Israel’s security.'”
Read mor...
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez warned that electing Mike Bloomberg in November would pave the way for another candidate who could be “even worse” than President Trump.
The freshman lawmaker said she thinks it’s “not a good idea” to put the former three-term New York mayor in the White House even if he is the candidate who could beat Trump.
“We obviously have to beat Trump,” she told “The Breakfast Club” show on Power 105.1 AM on Tuesday. “But if we beat Trump and go back to the same policies that we had before, a worse Trump is going to come. A Trump that’s more sophisticated, whose fascism is less obvious, is going to come and things could get even worse.”
Read more at NY POST.
Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Thursday that he would remain in the Democratic primary race until the “bitter end,” even if mathematically eliminated from winning on the first ballot at the Democratic National Convention.
In an interview with NBC News, the former mayor said that as long as he viewed himself as having a chance of taking the nomination, he would not concede his candidacy.
“Why would I spend all of this money, all of this time out of my life, and wear and tear, you know, which I love…incidentally, [it] reminds me of my three campaigns in New York for mayor, which I did like, the difference here is that I have to fly from event to event,” Bloomberg said.
“But yeah sure, I love it, I am going to stay right to the bitter...
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 28, 2020 – Once again, this Purim BJL will offer a comprehensive community-wide listing of Megilla reading times within the Baltimore community. Along with times for the readings in our community’s shuls, the list will also include those reading privately in their home.Please urge your shul to send us their times ASAP if they have not already done so.
If you know of any private readings that are open to the community, in order to be added to the list, please email details to info@baltimorejewishlife.com.
A Freilichin Purim
The BJL Staff
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 28, 2020 - BJL wishes a hearty Mazel Tov to Raphael and Rochel Szendro on the birth of a son.
יה"ר שיזכו לגדל בנם לתורה, לחופה, ולמעשים טובים. אמן
New Canadian research has found that eating less than three portions of fruit and vegetables per day appears to be linked to a higher risk of having an anxiety disorder.
Led by researchers from Kwantlen Polytechnic University in British Columbia, the new study looked at data gathered from 26,991 men and women between the ages of 45 and 85 taking part in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging.
From the data, the researchers found that participants who ate less than three portions of fruit and veg per day had at least a 24 percent higher chance of being diagnosed with an anxiety disorder.
The findings, which are published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, also showed that as a participant's levels of total body fat increased past 36 perc...
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toured Magen David Adom’s national operations center on Thursday along with other senior Israeli officials and ministers as the first Israeli outside of quarantine was diagnosed with COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus.
“Today, I am announcing a dramatic step forward which is already being implemented and is to my knowledge, the first in the world,” said Netanyahu. “We are the pioneering the treatment and prevention of this virus. We ask anyone from any country in the world displaying symptoms of the virus to call MDA’s 101 Emergency Call Center, which has medical teams on staff will assess those who are symptomatic.”
“Need be, paramedics will be sent to their house to perform a test kit,&rdqu...
A United Airbus 320 flight headed to the Bahamas from Newark Liberty International Airport was forced to make an emergency landing at Daytona Beach International Airport, in Florida, after a passenger’s backup power source for a device caught fire, according to Daytona Beach airport officials.
“Fire was contained to the passenger’s bag, put in fire retardant case until the plane landed safely,” the airport said on Twitter. “No injuries or damages.”
United said the flight to Nassau was diverted to Florida because of an issue with the passenger’s portable charger for a laptop. “Emergency personnel met the aircraft and customers remained onboard prior to the aircraft redeparting for Nassau,” United spokeswoman Leigh Schramm told The Wash...