When something happens to us – when we “chance upon” a scenario in life – we have to realize that it was not by chance at all. On the contrary! Hashem is giving us a handpicked, finely tuned, personal opportunity to elevate ourselves towards our fullest spiritual potential. We must train ourselves to be aware of this concept at all times, even when things are made to look as if they are merely “happenstance.”
The two pesukim at the very end of Sefer Yoel (4:20,21) deal with the restoration of Bnei Yisroel in their land, which involves Hashem punishing the Gentiles for shedding the blood of His people. All other sins can be overlooked and forgiven, but spilling the blood of His children? For that, Hashem says He cannot ignore – He cannot forgive. It was with these two pesukim that the late, great, multifaceted dynamo R’ Eli Teitelbaum, z’l and long-time arranger and conductor Yisroel Lamm composed our featured tune.
Ki Lecho, one of Abie’s first compositions – the one that he says gave him the confidence to continue composing – ended up being the title track of this 1971 release.
Hashem doesn’t expect us to be as great as any other person. What He does expect of us is to maximize our own potential. A person who has a deep mind or is a quick learner is expected to learn more Torah than those who don’t. A person blessed with wealth is expected to give more tzedakah than those who have less. A person who is naturally influential has the responsibility to influence others for the better. Each person is expected to use the tools and talents that he was given to serve Hashem to the best of his ability.
The words that we say each morning in Yehi Chivod is the promise Hashem gave His people – the Jewish people – to forever protect them in the face of all danger. May this song and the meaning of these words give us tremendous strength in times of need.
After taking a moment to collect himself, the boy closed his eyes and began to sing, in Yiddish, the famous Seder song Echod Mi Yodea. The boy only knew it starting from seven and so he slowly began, “Zibin iz der heiligeh Shabbos….” This turned out to be the highlight of the night.
Moishe Oysher’s voice was rich, warm and colorful. In his recordings, he attains a depth and a celebration that affect the listener to the core of his emotions. He was a natural actor and would use his theatrical aptitude to entertain his audience through his masterful gift of song.
At seventeen feet tall, Gedaliah Goomber may not have been the largest personality in Jewish history, but I think we can all agree that he was probably the first shomer Shabbos deep-sea diving construction worker that anyone had ever heard of.
I find it to be one of life’s oddities that we don’t ever feel the need to hear how important achdus is, and yet….. we most definitely need to hear how important achdus is.
Even after Stalin’s death in 1953, the policy of Jewish persecution continued, and it became clear to the rest of the Jewish world that the Soviet Jewish community was suffering a slow death of assimilation.