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                         L'CHAIM - ISSUE # 757
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                           Copyright (c) 2003
                 Lubavitch Youth Organization - L.Y.O.
                              Brooklyn, NY
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             THE WEEKLY PUBLICATION FOR EVERY JEWISH PERSON
   Dedicated to the memory of Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka Schneerson N.E.
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        February 14, 2003       Tetzaveh         12 Adar I, 5763
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                            Traffic Tickets

Anyone who's driven for a while has probably gotten a traffic ticket. A
few, drive through life without a ticket. For most of us, though, it's
at least a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Sometimes we get a ticket when
young, sometimes when middle-aged, sometimes the first ticket comes when
the driver's already a "senior citizen."

And there are many types of tickets: parking tickets; speeding tickets;
and a host of non-accident related tickets such as failure to yield,
making an illegal u-turn, turning right on red when the sign says not
to. Then there are the fender-bender tickets. (We won't mention any
serious ones.)

The police issuing the ticket usually try to be polite. They don't want
a confrontation, they're just doing their job and they probably know how
you feel. Believe it or not, the sympathy may be genuine, not just
because they also get tickets, but because they've been in similar
situations. So yes, the police are authoritative, and no, they don't
give the scofflaw (interesting word, that) a break, and yes, some are
surly.

But usually it's the driver with the attitude. It's the driver who
questions the purpose of the ticket, the motive of the cop, and the
fairness of the fine.

And ironically we're as likely to be upset - actually, we probably get
more upset - if the ticket is for a minor infraction, like an expired
brake tag, than for a serious violation, like going 85 in a 55 zone.

Strange, because the fine for a parking ticket or even a small "moving
violation" may not be that much. More is often spent on an evening's
entertainment. And if we're hit with a big penalty - in the hundreds -
we probably deserve it (50 in a 25) and know it. So, yeah, that hurts,
but we don't get as angry or offended. We don't feel singled out or
victimized the same way.

Why is that? And why is it, if we're genuinely upset about the ticket,
we question the cop's attitude, but not his action - or ours? Why do we
complain that he should be out chasing "real criminals" - bank robbers
and such - when we know, and will freely admit, that we broke the law -
and there's nothing wrong with the law?

Traffic tickets are a nuisance. We're penalized for a small
transgression. So I didn't come to a complete stop at the stop sign - I
almost did. And no one was hurt. We plead ignorance - I didn't see... or
negligence - I forgot, I didn't realize it meant...

That's what bothers us, isn't it? The pettiness of the sin. It's just an
insignificant detail - so the car's supposed to be parked fourteen feet
from the fire hydrant, not twelve.

Yet, we know we didn't follow the rules, didn't pay attention to the
details - broke the law. We tried to make an exception of ourselves, and
instead made an example of ourselves.

Judaism also cares about the details. There's a difference between an
animal having one sign of kashrut (chewing its cud or having split
hooves) or two, between nineteen minutes before sunset Friday, and
eighteen. It matters if we've looked for bread in pockets and corners
before Passover. And yes, weights and measures have to be precise.

So if someone complains that Judaism is fastidious and demanding, that
Jewish law is hard to please, we can sympathize - for we've all gotten a
traffic ticket or two in our lives.

But we know - and they know - minor infractions matter.

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           LIVING WITH THE REBBE  -  THE WEEKLY TORAH PORTION
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This week's Torah portion, Tetzave, describes the special garments worn
by the high priest during his service in the Holy Temple, and enumerates
eight separate items of clothing.

The Torah makes two provisos: First, the high priest may not perform his
service unless he is wearing all eight garments, and second, he is not
allowed to even enter the Sanctuary unless he is wearing three of them -
the breastplate, ephod, and robe.

The high priest is the emissary and representative of the Jewish people,
and as such, his function is to connect them to G-d.

The relationship between the Jew and G-d exists on two levels
simultaneously: One is the result of the Jew's service through Torah and
mitzvot (commandments), the other stems from the Jew's innate connection
with G-d by virtue of his essence. Both levels are reflected in the
Torah's instructions concerning the high priest's garments.

Set into the breastplate were twelve precious stones, each inscribed
with the name of a different tribe, which the high priest was required
to wear "upon his heart." The breastplate therefore symbolizes the
highest level of connection between the Jew and G-d, as these names were
actually inscribed on the holy object itself.

The next level of the Jew's bond with G-d is expressed in the ephod,
which also contained stones inscribed with the names of the tribes, but
with a difference: The stones of the ephod were not worn "opposite the
heart" but rather, "upon the shoulder- pieces," in the back of the
garment.

The ephod therefore symbolizes those Jews who wage a constant war
against their Evil Inclination, a type of service of G-d that falls into
the category of "back."

The third level is expressed in the high priest's robe, the hem of which
was adorned with "pomegranates of blue and purple and scarlet yarn."

Our Sages commented that even the most unaffiliated Jew is as full of
mitzvot as a pomegranate; the ephod therefore symbolizes this level.

The high priest must wear all three garments - representing all three
levels of Jews - if he is to be allowed into the Sanctuary, the place
where the Divine Presence rests. For it is when all Jews stand together
in unity that the deepest bond with G-d is forged - "a remembrance
before the L-rd continually."

This contains a lesson for us to apply in our lives:

Every single Jew is an essential part of the Jewish people and is
therefore a "remembrance before the L-rd continually."

For the true essence of the Jew is not his external appearance but his
G-dly soul, "a veritable part of G-d," and all Jews are children of the
same Father.

                          From Likutei Sichot Vol. XXI of the Rebbe

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                             SLICE OF LIFE
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                Chicken Soup, Candles and Peace of Cake
                        by Joyce Brooks Bogartz

Mrs. Marcia Lieberman just might be America's most high-profile Jewish
mother. She has two daughters and a son, Senator Joseph Lieberman. She
shares her Shabbat, past and present

JBB: Everyone knows Mrs. Lieberman, the senator's mother, but we'd like
to learn about Marcia Lieberman, the Jewish mother. Can you share some
of your Shabbat memories?

Marcia Lieberman: Mostly, I remember my mother, sisters and brothers
sitting down at the Friday night table, enjoying the welcoming of
Shabbat. At that time there were no automatic clocks or timers to turn
the lights on and off, so we sat around the table reading until the
Shabbat candles burned out.

One of the things I learned from my mother is, when lighting the Shabbat
candles, to always keep in mind the souls of our dear ones who aren't
with us-this is one thing I've shared with my daughters and Hadassah
[Mrs. Joseph Lieberman].

I have a pair of candlesticks that were my grandmother's. She died at
97, about 60 years ago, and they belonged to her parents. I also have my
mother's candlesticks. They will go to one of my grandchildren, whom I
am sure will observe the Shabbat. That is how they are passed down.

JBB: What will be some of your children's Shabbat memories?

Marcia Lieberman: Walking into the house and smelling the chicken soup,
the dill and the parsley. The dill is the secret. About 11:00 Friday
morning, the aroma is going strong.

My kids say I "hold court" on Saturday afternoon. I come home after
shul, have lunch, take a nap and then around 4:00 people start to knock
on the door. Any number of women - a few weeks ago there were 15
unexpected - come for cake, tea, nosherei. My mother did that in her
home - women would come for tea and honey cake.

I don't know why, but everything tastes so special on Saturday. It's
like the house has a different spirit on Shabbat. I wish I could bottle
and sell it, or bottle and keep it for the rest of the week. I could
have the house just as neat during the week, but it never feels like it
does on Saturday.

JBB: What do you think your family and guests expect from your Shabbat?

Marcia Lieberman: The best answer to that question is a compliment I
received from one of the women who comes every Saturday - a very bright
woman. She said to me, "When I come to your home on Shabbat, I come away
with such peace."

JBB: What happens when you are away for Shabbat?

Marcia Lieberman: I rarely go elsewhere for Shabbat. I don't usually
leave the house on Friday nights. But when I do, I always cover my table
with a tablecloth to honor the Shabbat.

JBB: Does being in the national spotlight affect your Shabbat?

Marcia Lieberman: I don't feel any different. It hasn't affected me at
all. I enjoyed every minute of the campaign. The greatest thing was when
Friday night came, with all the work and all the running around we did,
everything stopped, and we were all together. Joe, Hadassah, all the
children that were out campaigning, the friends and families that were
observant - some of my friends aren't, of course. But we were able to
shed everything and just enjoy the Shabbat. Those hours, from Friday
night to Saturday night, gave us time to just relax and enjoy.

JBB: Thank you for sharing your Shabbat with our readers. Any final
thoughts?

Marcia Lieberman: I wish the whole world would learn the peace of
Shabbat. If more people participated in Shabbat, there would be more
peace in the world.

              Reprinted with permission from Farbrengen Magazine, a
                               publication of Chabad of California.

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                               WHAT'S NEW
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                            Studies In Rashi

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to the study of foremost Biblical commentator Rashi in English for the
very first time. Studies in Rashi contains two discourses of the Rebbe
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pages, the reader is invited to drink of "the wine" of Rashi, to embark
on a truly magnificent journey, one that promises to change forever
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                            THE REBBE WRITES
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                           Freely translated

Erev-Shabbos - Yisro, 5722 [1962]

The Ten Commandments unite within them laws of two apparently quite
different orders: The first Commandments express and reveal the deepest
truths about G-d's Unity (true monotheism); the others, on the other
hand, contain such elementary injunctions as "Thou shalt not murder" and
"Thou shalt not steal," which seem self-evident even to the average
human intellect.

However, the truth is that even "self-evident" moral precepts, if left
to human judgement alone, without the binding force of Divine Authority
and Sanction, can out of self-love be distorted so as to turn vice into
"virtue."

Indeed, interpreting the moral precepts of "Thou shalt not murder" and
"Thou shalt not steal," from the viewpoint of selfish gain, many a
nation in the world, as well as any individual, have "legalized" their
abhorrent ends, not to mention that they have "justified" the means to
those ends - as has been amply demonstrated, to our sorrow, particularly
in recent years.

If by rejecting the Commandments of "I am G-d" and "Thou shalt have no
other gods," or even by dissociating them from "Thou shalt not murder"
and "Thou shalt not steal," the safeguard against bloodshed and theft,
even their most brutal forms, were removed from humanity's conscience,
it is certainly hopeless to expect safeguards against "Thou shalt not
murder," and "Thou shalt not steal," in more "subtle" ways, such as the
"bloodshed" of character assassination, or the "theft of the mind"
(gnevas da'as) and the like.

The Ten commandments emphasize, and experience has fully and repeatedly
borne it out, that even the simplest precepts of morality and ethics
must rest on the foundation of "I am G-d" and "Thou shalt have no other
gods" - and only then can their compliance be assured.

This is one of the basic purposes of Torah-true education; to inculcate
in our children the true way of life (Derech Chayyim) in accordance with
the Law of Life (Toras Chayyim) - a way of life in every-day living, on
the solid foundations of the Torah and Mitzvos (command-ments). For the
Torah and Mitzvos alone provide the true content of Jewish life, and are
at the same time the fountains of life for every Jew and for all Jews.

                                *  *  *


                Erev-Shabbos Parshas Yisro, 5738 [1978]

Blessing and Greeting:

...We are reminded of the familiar Sicha [public talk] of my
father-in-law of saintly memory [Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, the
previous Lubavitcher Rebbe] addressed to Jewish women (Riga, 5694),
centering on the role of Jewish women in connection with Mattan-Torah
[the giving of the Torah] and, subsequently, the Mishkon [the tabernacle
in the desert]. On both occasions, as the Torah indicates, the women
took first place, before the men.

The lesson of it, as explained in detail in the Sicha, is that women
have a leading part in the preservation of the Torah and Mitzvos by
reason of their impact on the family life, the conduct of the Jewish
home, and especially the upbringing of the children, thereby also
ensuring that G-d will always dwell in the midst of our people.

The Torah is eternal, and so are its teachings. The readiness of our
Jewish women to accept the Torah, and their eager response in behalf of
the Mishkon, gladly parting with their most treasured personal
possessions, established the historic role of Jewish women in Jewish
life for all times. Moreover, Kabbolas haTorah [receiving the Torah at
Mount Sinai] was not a one-time happening in the distant past, but is an
everyday experience. Likewise the building of the Mishkon - in terms of
the inner Mishkon and Midkosh [sanctuary] that is in the heart of every
Jew is something that requires constant rededication on the part of each
and every Jew, man and woman.

G-d has bestowed extraordinary gifts and privileges on Jewish women, and
together with it - far-reaching obligations, of which you are all surely
aware. There is no need for me to re-emphasize them here, except that
our Sages prompt us to "encourage the energetic."...

With blessing for Hatzlocho [success]

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                            RAMBAM THIS WEEK
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13 Adar I, 5763 - February 15, 2003

Forbidden Marriages

Prohibitions 330, 331, 332, 333, 334: These prohibitions forbid marriage
with various relatives and are based on Leviticus chapter 18 verses 7-
11. They include the prohibition against marriage with one's mother,
step-mother, sister, half-sister, and son's daughter. Other forbidden
marriages are detailed in a subsequent day's study.

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                        A WORD FROM THE DIRECTOR
                         Rabbi Shmuel M. Butman
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As there are two months of Adar this year (this year being a leap year),
this week contains Purim Katan (the "minor" Purim).

The day after Purim Katan is Shushan Purim Katan, Shushan Purim being
the day Purim is celebrated in walled cities such as Jerusalem.

As there are very few customs associated with Purim Katan and Shushan
Purim Katan let us take a moment to understand the significance of
Shushan Purim according to Chasidut.

The celebration of this holiday was instituted in connection with the
Land of Israel. Our Sages decreed that Shushan Purim be celebrated in
those cities that were surrounded by walls at the time of Joshua's
conquest of the Land of Israel.

In this manner, they paid respect to the Holy Land, giving its walled
cities the honor given to Shushan even though they had been destroyed by
the time of the Purim miracle.

However, the holiday's name is connected with a city in the Diaspora -
the capital city of Achashveirosh, king of Persia (and thus the capital
of the entire civilized world).

The use of the name "Shushan" expresses the completion of the Jews'
mission to refine the material environment of the world. There are
several levels in the fulfillment of this task; for example, the
transformation of mundane objects into articles of holiness. On a deeper
level, this involves the transformation into holiness of precisely those
elements which previously opposed holiness.

Shushan Purim shows how Achashveirosh's capital city was transformed
into a positive influence, indeed, an influence so great that it is
connected with the celebration of Purim in the walled cities of Israel.

May we use all of the extra spiritual energy given to us on Purim Katan
and Shushan Purim Katan to transform the mundane into the holy and that
which opposes holiness into holiness, until the whole world is
transformed into a dwelling place for G-d in the Messianic Era.

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                          THOUGHTS THAT COUNT
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And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and
for ornament (Ex. 28:2)

The commandment to make special priestly clothes comes directly after
the mitzva to prepare pure olive oil for the menora. Oil symbolizes the
intellect, which should be kept pure and unsullied. The priestly
garments symbolize the physical body, the "garment" of the soul, which
should be utilized "for glory and ornament." The Torah teaches that
purity of thought and cleanliness of body must go together.

                                                       (Sefat Emet)

                                *  *  *


Olive oil, pounded, for the lighting (Ex. 27:20)

Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, founder of Chabad, once said: "He who
wants to reach the 'lighting,' the enlightenment to be found in the
Torah, should work on himself by 'pounding' away at his ego and
nullifying his sense of self. How? By always bearing in mind that the
Torah he learns is none other than the wisdom and the will of G-d. That
is the meaning of our supplication, 'Open my heart to Your Torah.'"

                                *  *  *


Command the Children of Israel that they bring you pure olive oil,
pounded, for the lighting, to cause a light to burn always (Ex. 27:20)

The First and Second Holy Temples illuminated the world with their light
for a specific and limited period of time. The Third Holy Temple,
however, which will be rebuilt when Moshiach comes, will be in
fulfillment of the latter half of the verse, "to cause a light to burn
always." Its light will never be extinguished.

                                              (Rabbi Yitzchak Karo)

                                *  *  *


You shall command - ve'ata tetzave (Ex. 27:30)

Chasidic thought interprets this verse to mean, "You shall connect
yourself to..." Moses was commanded to establish a connection between
his essence and the Jewish people. In an extended sense, this command
can be understood as having been directed to every Jew, for each Jew has
a spark of Moses in him. "You" refers to the essence of the soul, the
fundamental core of every Jew's being. This is revealed by the
establishment of a bond with G-d's essence.

                                            (The Lubavitcher Rebbe)

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                            IT ONCE HAPPENED
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One wintry day a man came to the saintly Rabbi Tzvi Elimelech of Dinov.
The man braved the winter weather to seek the saintly Rebbe's help.

He told the Rebbe that he was an innkeeper in a village some distance
away, the inn having come down to him from his late father, who had
rented it from the old country squire. The old squire was a reasonable
man and made no trouble if the rent was not paid on time in a bad
season, in the wake of a severe winter. But the old squire died, and his
son, the new squire, was not so kind. Now, he threatened to throw them
out if the rent was not paid on time. He came to ask the Rebbe's help,
so that his family would not be left without food and shelter in the
midst of a terrible winter.

"Do you live in such and such village?" the Rebbe asked.

"Yes, Rebbe."

"Still in the same house, with the narrow windows and three steps
leading up to the front door?"

"Yes, Rebbe," the innkeeper replied, wondering how the Rebbe knew.

"And is the well in the courtyard still plentiful, and the water still
good?"

"Yes, Rebbe," the innkeeper answered with even greater amazement.

"I'm glad, I'm glad," the Rebbe said, stroking his silver beard. "You
have nothing to worry about."

The innkeeper's face lit up with relief and he turned to go. But then he
stopped and hesitated. He was baffled. How did the Rebbe know about the
inn and the well, and what had the well to do with it all?

"Forgive me, Rebbe, for my insolence, but how does the Rebbe know my inn
so well?" he finally asked.

The Rebbe smiled and said, "Very simple. I was there. It was a long time
ago. Let me tell you the whole story.

"Many years ago, a young man was on his way to the saintly Rebbe, the
'Seer' of Lublin. He had been traveling for three days without food and
shelter. He came to your village and stopped at the inn for a rest. He
was so tired and hungry that he could barely climb the three front steps
leading to the door. Your father was busy at that moment with peasants
and wayfarers who crowded the inn, and he did not notice the stranger.
After the young man rested a while, and seeing that no one took any
notice of him, he decided to move on. As he passed by one of the narrow
windows, he saw a small boy peeking out. The boy saw the haggard face of
the stranger and ran after him. He begged the stranger to return with
him to the inn. 'My father always welcomes poor wayfarers, and he would
not forgive himself if he knew that one had passed by his inn without a
good meal and a good night's rest. Please, come with me,' the boy urged.

"The young man returned to the inn and was immediately greeted by your
father, then led to the dining room where a sumptuous meal was set
before him. After the meal he was quite thirsty. The innkeeper sent the
maid to fetch a pail of water. In her absence the innkeeper explained
that she had to go to the village to fetch water.

" 'Have you no well in your courtyard?' the young man asked.

" 'Yes, but the water is not good. We only use it for the horses and
garden.'

" 'If you don't mind, I'd like to taste your well-water. I'm very
thirsty,' the young man said.

"The innkeeper brought a pitcher of water from the well and poured some
for the thirsty guest. He drank it and said, 'Fancy giving such good
water a bad name! Taste it, and see for yourself.' Everyone who tasted
it was astonished. 'It's wonderful! It's even better than the water from
the village well!' they said."

"Now I remember," the innkeeper said. "I was that little boy, and the
young man - he must have been you!"

"Yes," said the saintly Rebbe, "and thanks to you I had a good meal and
a good rest."

"That was nothing in comparison to the blessing which you brought into
our home. Word got around how the water in our well suddenly turned pure
and fresh. People still come just to drink our well water, saying it is
good for their health!"

"If the water in the well is still good, then you can be sure that G-d
is with you. Go home, and don't worry. Carry on with the mitzva of
welcoming guests and G-d will continue to bless you," said the Rebbe.

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                            MOSHIACH MATTERS
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A Jew says in his morning prayers each day: "I await Your salvation all
day." When a few hours have passed and Moshiach did not yet arrive, he
repeats the same words again in the afternoon service. And if Moshiach
is still not here by the evening, he repeats it once more in the evening
service. When G-d sees how the Jewish people are constantly waiting for
the Redemption (and are singing, "We want Moshiach now,") He will send
Moshiach even more quickly.

                  (The Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rosh Chodesh Sivan, 5745)

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               END OF TEXT - L'CHAIM 757 - Tetzaveh 5763
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