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                         L'CHAIM - ISSUE # 1053
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                           Copyright (c) 2009
                 Lubavitch Youth Organization - L.Y.O.
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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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        January 9, 2009         Vayechi           13 Tevet, 5769
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                           Breaking the Rules

Does anyone have anything positive or upbeat to say about the world
economic crisis that we are currently experiencing? (You were hoping,
maybe, that at least on these pages the hottest topic of the decade
wouldn't be mentioned!?)

Well, the first bit of good news is that we should be optimistic about
the future. Former Secretary of State George Shultz was interviewed by
Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan. She asked him if he thought
we should be optimistic about our country's fortunes and future.
"Absolutely," he said, there is "every reason to have confidence."

The second bit of good news is that despite the fact that you might have
to be making cuts in your spending, you don't have to lessen your
charitable donations. Though charity organizations around the country
have a difficult time satisfying the needs of their recipients all the
time, it is especially true in times like these. Charity is in demand
every hour of every day, recession, depression, financial crisis
notwithstanding.

When the going gets tough, not only do the tough get going, but,
unfortunately, the giving also goes - out the window. Yet, when it comes
to charity, all the rules of the economy, laws of growth, supply and
demand that you can find in most economic textbooks are completely
irrelevant.

Why? Because, as the Jewish saying goes, "G-d does not remain in debt."
For every good thing a person does, he is recompensed grandly by G-d,
with children, health and livelihood in abundance.

In Proverbs, King Solomon, the wisest of all men, states: "G-d's
blessings bring wealth." This is especially true when a person gives of
his time for the community's needs in matters of charity.

No one ever becomes poor by giving charity. The Talmud likens a person
who gives charity to a nursing mother. The more the baby nurses, the
greater is the mother's capacity to nurse. Similarly, the more charity
one gives, the more resources he will have from which to give charity.

In addition, our Sages tell us that charity, or tzedaka (a more accurate
translation of the Hebrew word "tzedaka" is "righteousness" or
"justice") is one of the three pillars upon which the world is based.
Our Sages also relate that "Charity is great because it brings the
Redemption closer."

It would be simple to fill volumes with what has already been written in
Jewish works about charity. But actions speak louder than words. A
number of decades ago, the Lubavitcher Rebbe established giving charity
daily (even just a coin or two in a charity box) as part of his ten
point "Mitzva Campaign." The Rebbe urged people to perform the mitzva
(commandment) of giving charity as a part of Jewish life. Giving charity
each weekday (except Shabbat and Jewish holidays), putting money in a
charity box before lighting Shabbat candles, actually affixing a charity
box to a wall of one's home to assure that it is a "charitable home,"
are twists to this important commandment.

You won't even miss the money, because, "G-d doesn't remain in debt for
long."

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           LIVING WITH THE REBBE  -  THE WEEKLY TORAH PORTION
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In this week's Torah portion, Vayechi, Jacob, on his deathbed, makes a
last request of his son Joseph. "Bury me not, I pray you, in Egypt!" he
implores. "I will do as you have said," Joseph promises his father. But
Joseph's promise is not enough. "Swear to me!" Jacob insists, and Joseph
does.

Why was Joseph's promise insufficient? Was Jacob worried that his son
would not fulfill his promise? What is the difference between a promise
and an oath?

An oath differs from a promise in the sense of obligation and urgency it
imposes. When a person makes a promise, he most certainly intends to
carry out his word when the opportunity presents itself, but he does not
spend all of his waking hours thinking about the promise and wondering
how to implement it. But when a person utters an oath, it becomes the
single most important motivating factor in his life. An oath is so
serious, in fact, that the person dare not divert his mind from the
matter for even a moment.

Jacob realized that what he asked of Joseph was so difficult and fraught
with obstacles that the force of an oath was necessary.

This exchange between father and son also underscores an important
difference between Jacob and Joseph: Jacob refused to be interred in
Egypt, insisting that his body be brought back to the land of Israel for
burial. Joseph, however, before his death, made the Jews swear they
would take his bones back with them to Israel when the time for
redemption came. His casket remained in Egypt for the duration of the
exile.

It is erroneous to conclude that Jacob's request was made for selfish
reasons; that he preferred to be buried in the holy soil of Israel while
his children languished in Egyptian exile. Rather, Jacob's concern was
for the welfare of the entire Jewish people.

"The prisoner cannot free himself from prison," our Sages have declared.
The Jewish people, subjugated and enslaved, needed an outside force to
free them from exile in Egypt. This outside force was the merit of
Jacob, whose rightful place was the holy land of Israel, from where the
Jewish people drew strength and spiritual sustenance.

Joseph, however, was exiled in Egypt with the rest of his brethren. His
positive influence came from within and was therefore closer and more
immediate. When he passed away, his remains stayed in Egypt, affording
the Jews an additional merit. Jacob wanted to forestall the possibility
that Joseph would want his body to remain in Egypt for this reason, and
insisted that he swear to his request.

We learn from this that although the Divine Presence has indeed
accompanied us throughout our exile, a Jew must nevertheless cry out for
the galut to end and for all of us to be "carried out of Egypt." With
faith and trust in G-d we will merit the coming of Moshiach and the
Final Redemption, speedily in our day.

      Adapted from Likutei Sichot vol. 25 of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

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                             SLICE OF LIFE
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                            Creme de la Krim
                         by Leah-Mindle Lipszyc


    The following stories are excerpted from the delightful and often
    humorous blog of Leah Lipszyc, co-director of Chabad-Lubavitch of
    Crimea (Ukraine), headquartered in Simferopol.
                          The Story of a Brit

One year ago, I spoke to a new boy in our school about undergoing a brit
mila (circumcision). During Communism, performing a circumcision was
illegal. Afterwards most people either didn't know that Jewish baby boys
should have a brit when they're eight days old, or didn't know to whom
to turn. The result is that almost no Jewish males in Crimea had been
circumcised for 90 years. Since our arrival, we have made nearly 100
britot to date, from babies, to school children, to adults and old men.

The boy readily agreed, and I met with his guardian, who signed the
permission slip. I contacted the mohel who would do the circumcision.
As is usual, he asked me to put together a group of people so that he
would not have to travel such a long distance just for one brit. We did
that, but one thing and another kept happening to prevent his coming to
Simferopol to perform the britot. During this time, unfortunately, one
of the men moved to Germany, and another "chickened out."  However the
original boy kept asking me "When am I going to have my brit already,
Leah?"

Finally, we thought everything was going to work out, when I got a text
message from the mohel that he had accidentally overslept, and would be
late. Okay - there was still enough time left for him to get to us
before sundown.  Then he sent another SMS - his wife was out of town,
and his babysitter had not shown up!  He had to feed and dress his
children, find another babysitter, etc....  He wouldn't be able to
arrive till the evening, and had to return early the next day, so he'd
have to do the britot at 7 a.m. in the morning.

I knew that if the boys were going to be there on time, they'd need to
sleep over at my house, and they were overjoyed to hear that! The boys
came straight from school to my house. When they arrived, I offered them
some Lemon Fanta, one of the few kosher drinks available here.  "Wow!"
they said, in awe, "We fell into heaven!  Leah, will you adopt us?"
they kept repeating.

After dinner, I took the boys downtown to pick up some small electronic
games for them to play with during the brit.  It's been awhile since
I've had little boys in the house, and I had to keep my eyes wide open
as the three of them ran around, while we searched high and low to find
something.  We went home in a taxi - another new and "luxurious"
experience for them!

The next morning, 357 days after the first permission slip had been
signed, the boys had their brit.  Artur became Aharon Sholom.  Nikita
chose three names - one that he liked, one that his mother liked, and
one that his older sister liked - becoming Aharon Eitan Daniel!  And
Maxim became Menachem Mendel, or Mendy.

Before the brit, as per the advice of Rabbi Eliyahu Shain, a leading
American mohel, I told the boys they should refrain from caffeine -
coffee, tea, cola, and chocolate - for three days, but that I would
compensate them by giving each one a two-liter bottle of Coke, a bar of
chocolate, 100 points at the school "store," a new yarmulka with his
Hebrew name, and a present. One of the boys excitedly said, "That's
great - can I have a brit every day?"  Now that it's over, he's fine
with having had it once, which of course is as it should be!

                                *  *  *

                         A Small Menora Miracle


A week before Chanuka we got permission to put up our giant public
menora on a plaza in the center of town, where it usually stands during
Chanuka.  I immediately called the man whose firm has always put the
menora up for us, and he arranged for a crane to pick up the menora from
our Beis Menachem School, and set it up.

The menora is constructed of a triangular base, a long stem, and the
actual menora, on top. Even though they've put the menora together many
times before, this year they accidentally attached the middle section
upside-down, resulting in the menora standing only six meters tall,
instead of its usual nine meters.  By the time we saw this, the crane
was gone, and there wasn't a possibility of changing it. Obviously we
were disappointed, but there wasn't much we could do.

The first evening of Chanuka arrived.  We had signed a contract with a
company that had a "cherry-picker" to come help us light the menora
every evening of Chanuka. The appointed time, 3:30 p.m., came and went.
No cherry-picker.  We called the company and were informed that they
were really sorry, but a vital part of the machine had just broken, and
they wouldn't be able to get the part and repair it for over a week.

Everyone, including the news reporters, was there, but no cherry-picker!
We dashed into the nearby bank and asked if they might have a very tall
ladder that we could use. They had a ladder and yes, we could use it,
but they weren't sure it would be tall enough. It was (are you ready?)
just under six meters tall!  If the menora had been put together
correctly and had been the nine meters tall it had always been, we would
not have been able to light it!

The next day, the non-Jewish guard in the bank said to me "Why did the
rabbi have to climb up the ladder himself to light the menora? I looked
out and saw him way up on the ladder and felt terrible - I would have
done it for him!"    (Frankly, I was nervous as my husband mounted the
shaky ladder to light the menora.) Everyone was very impressed that we
don't just give up. It had seemed certain that there was no way to light
the menora. But just as in other areas of our work here, we hang in
there, until G-d sends us another miracle, may the next one be the big
one that we all really need!

                                      Read more at chabadcrimea.org

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                               WHAT'S NEW
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                             New Emissaries

Rabbi Yossi and Esty Zaklikofsky will be moving to Pearland, Texas,
where they will be establishing a new Chabad House serving the needs of
the Jewish communities of Pearland, Friendswood and Alvin.

Rabbi Menachem and Rivky Lazar will be arriving soon in Rome, Italy.
They will be establishing a new Chabad House in the Palazzo Bologna area
as well as focusing their efforts on outreach to teens and
university-age students.

Rabbi Yossi and Tiferes Levy recently arrived in the Philippines to
establish a new Chabad House there. Their activities will be for the
local Jewish community as well as the many Israeli tourists who visit
there.

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                            THE REBBE WRITES
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                       From letters of the Rebbe

... I would like to point out something you are undoubtedly aware of,
and that is your son's age. He is in transition from youth to maturity,
a time of life that entails considerable strain. During this sensitive
period of adolescence, it is particularly important not to do anything
that might aggravate the strain.

This is particularly true in a country such as this ... where even
mature adults are prey to [forces of negative cultural and street]
influence, and it requires much willpower not to succumb; how much more
so where a teenager is concerned.

In light of the above, it is obviously the sacred duty of every near and
dear one, and especially of parents, to do all things possible to
promote the teenager's peace of mind and thereby make his struggles
easier, and certainly to avoid anything which might weaken his willpower
to resist the influences of the street, etc.

A further point: In the realm of faith, religion and feeling, every
individual is a world unto himself. This is not the case in the realm of
reason, where one can argue and convince and change the other person's
mind. [In the former instances,] young people, especially, become
attached to an ideal, particularly one that is expressed in actual
behavior.

It can be extremely difficult to get such a person to change his
feelings and conduct, and any effort to change his true nature, when
applied to a young person during this sensitive period of adolescence,
has serious implications.

... In reference to your stating that you have always been a loner and
do not feel close to anybody, from which you seem to conclude that once
again [in your present situation] you may have to make up your mind all
by yourself:

As you realize - and this is also obvious from your letter - being a
loner is not healthy, and this obviously has added to your confusion, as
you mention in your letter.

If one does not feel a particular closeness to one's family, it is at
least necessary to find social contact with people of one's own age and
background, more or less, since such people must have gone through life
and experienced the same general situations, allowing, of course, for
individual exceptions.

... In conclusion, I would again like to volunteer an observation,
though this time in a different vein, that you should not be so
downhearted, since it is not unusual for young people of your age to
feel a sense of confusion, or even frustration.

One needs only to feel for those who refuse to accept a helping hand
from near and dear ones, including parents. I do not mean to say that
one must readily submit to parental dictatorship, but neither does this
mean that one should always reject parental advice and help in the hope
that eventually things will straighten out themselves.

Of course, living in a nurturing, well-ordered, and disciplined
atmosphere, willing to accept certain matters on authority without
questioning everything from A to Z until one has been personally able to
delve into all these matters - which is impossible - would go a long way
toward improving the situation.

     From Healthy in Body, Mind and Soul, vol. 3, compiled by Rabbi
                 Sholom B. Wineberg, published by Sichos in English

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                                CUSTOMS
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          Why are blessings recited before partaking of food?

Reciting a short blessing before eating is the way that we ask
permission of G-d to partake of the pleasures of His world. Through
reciting a blessing we acknowledge that "the world and everything in it
belongs to G-d." There are only six different blessings over the
thousands of types of food we eat. the longest of the six has only 10
words in it. they can be found in any prayer book or contact your local
Chabad-Lubavitch Center to obtain a blessing guide.

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                        A WORD FROM THE DIRECTOR
                         Rabbi Shmuel M. Butman
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It is the sacred mission of every Jew - man, woman and child, old and
young alike - to make the Redemption a reality. This holy task is
incumbent on all of Israel, cutting across party lines and irrespective
of external differences.

Every Jew has the innate power to bring the Redemption, for every good
deed he does serves to diminish the sum total of evil in the world, as
it states, "Little by little I will drive it out." Every positive action
draws the Messianic era closer, when G-d will remove the "spirit of
uncleanliness" from the earth.

This hidden power of every mitzva to hasten the Redemption can be
learned from the very first commandment in the Torah, the mitzva to "be
fruitful and multiply." In a discussion of this commandment, the Talmud
states that "The son of David [Moshiach] will not come until there are
no more souls in guf." "Guf," the Hebrew word for "body," refers to the
supernal storehouse of souls from which they make their descent into the
physical world to be invested in a corporeal body. Therefore, whenever a
Jewish child is born, the world takes one step closer to Moshiach.

Our Sages described the month of Tevet as "the month when the body
derives pleasure from the body." According to Chasidut, this means that
during Tevet, G-d's Essence derives pleasure from the service of the
Jewish people within the realm of physical reality.

Because the Torah's 613 mitzvot are really one united entity, every
single mitzva, being a part of that entity, has the same power to bring
us closer to the revelation of Moshiach. Just as the mitzva of "be
fruitful and multiply" entails the soul's descent from a higher sphere
and its revelation down below in the physical world, so too do all
mitzvot uncover and reveal the Divine sparks that are hidden within
physical reality and that exist within every Jew.

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                          THOUGHTS THAT COUNT
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He washes his garments in wine (Gen. 49:11)

Rabbi Shneur Zalman, founder of Chabad Chasidism explained that whenever
a Jew does a mitzva (commandment), a "garment" for his soul is formed.
Wine is symbolic of joy, as it states in Psalms (104:15), "And wine that
gladdens man's heart." "Washing our garments in wine" thus means that we
should always strive to observe the commandments out of a sense of joy.

                                                        (Torah Ohr)

                                *  *  *


And when he saw that the resting place was good...he bent his shoulder
to bear (Gen. 49:15)

Issachar recognized that although leisure is a good and pleasant thing,
it can also be dangerous. In times of peace and tranquility the Evil
Inclination intensifies its efforts to lead a person astray, which can
lead to disaster. Issachar therefore "bent his shoulder to bear" the
yoke of Torah, for Torah study is the antidote to this pitfall.

                                                  (Likutei Diburim)

                                *  *  *


Benjamin shall be a wolf that rends (Gen. 49:27)

When Joseph was born, Rachel prayed for "ben-acher" - "another son." The
task of Benjamin, whose birth ensued from her prayer, is to elevate the
"other," the animal soul of man, until it is in the category of a "son"
of G-d. For this reason Benjamin is likened to the wolf, which rips into
its prey and rends it into pieces.

                                                      (Ohr Hatorah)

                                *  *  *


G-d will surely remember you (Gen. 50:25)

When Joseph told the Jews that the time for their redemption was near,
he gave them a sign by which they would recognize their redeemer. "G-d
will surely remember you (pakod yifkod)," he said, doubling the verb "to
remember" for added emphasis. For true redemption must free both body
and soul, liberating the Jews from physical and spiritual enslavement.
Physical freedom alone is not enough; even return to the Holy Land is
insufficient without the spiritual component which signifies true
redemption. So it was in Egypt, and so is it today...

                                     (Rabbi Meir Shapiro of Lublin)

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                            IT ONCE HAPPENED
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The  shoemaker  and  his  wife  had  prayed  every  day,  begging  the
Alm-ghty to grant them a child. Alas, the answer had consistently been
"No." But their faith was as strong as their desire, and they decided to
go to the renowned tzadik, Reb Yisrael, the Maggid of Koznitz to ask for
his blessing.

When they arrived at his court and were admitted into his room they told
their story and received the Rebbe's assurance that they would be
blessed with a child. True to his word, the woman gave birth to a baby
boy, but soon after his birth, the baby became seriously ill.

The parents were sick with worry and the father went back to Koznitz to
ask for a blessing for the baby's recovery. The Rebbe assured him that
G-d would send a complete recovery. But instead of recovering, the baby
went from bad to worse.

The mother sat by his cradle day and night, her lips incessantly
reciting the words of the Psalms. But she was so exhausted, that she
dozed off. When she awoke, she was startled to see a soldier standing
over the baby's cradle holding a spoon and a bowl and gently spooning
something into the baby's mouth. She screamed in fright and the soldier
quickly disappeared.

From that moment on the baby began improving by the hour, until he was
soon completely well. The parents were overjoyed, but at the same time,
they were fearful that perhaps the soldier had been some evil spirit or
magician. They again traveled to Koznitz to relate the strange
occurrence to the Rebbe.

"Don't be concerned," he told them. "It was surely not an evil spirit or
sorcerer. Go home and enjoy your baby."

As soon as the couple left, the Rebbe summoned his attendant. "Go to the
cemetery and knock on the grave of this soldier. Tell him that I request
him to come to me." The attendant did as he was told, and the soldier
soon appeared before the Maggid.

The Maggid asked him, "Who appointed you to be a children's doctor?"

"I will tell you my story," the soldier replied. "When I was a young
child I was forced to go into the military service as a Cantonist. I was
torn from my parents and my home, and as the years passed I forgot all
about being Jewish and I lived exactly like my comrades. Only my
identity papers proved my Jewishness, and I thought no more about it.

"One day as I was walking in the countryside with my comrades, we came
upon an elderly Jew. A few of my fellows had the idea of robbing him,
and they took his 75 rubles. Then, fearing discovery, they bound him,
hanged him from a tree, and left him for dead. That was too much for me.
My long-dormant Jewish feeling rose up in my heart and I quickly and
stealthily returned to the spot and cut him down. I gave him 75 rubles
from my own pocket and sent him on his way.

"When my commanding officer noticed my long absence from base, he sent
my comrades out to find me. When they discovered what I had done, they
decided to kill me to prevent me from testifying against them. So, they
hanged me from the same tree and left me there to die.

"When I found myself before the Heavenly Tribunal I was sent to
purgatory because I had sinned all my life. But when they learned that I
had saved another Jew, and in the process had been killed myself, they
realized their error. So then, they sent me to the Garden of Eden. When
I got there, I was welcomed with great fanfare and shown to my place. I
took my seat, but when I looked out at all the great and righteous
people, I felt sad that I didn't have a very good full view of the
Throne of Glory. And I regretted that I had not done better with my
life.

"The angels, sensing my sadness approached me and tried to cheer me up,
but I felt a terrible disappointment. Then, they suggested that if I
wanted to return to the earth again, I could make up for my
transgressions and earn a better position. I eagerly agreed and that is
how I came to be the doctor of sick children. I have been given
permission to heal them in those situations where there is very little
hope. And that is how I came to heal this little baby."

When he had ended his story the Maggid said to him, "You may now return
to the Garden of Eden, for you have earned your full reward." With that
the soldier saluted and disappeared, and his soul rose to the highest
level of Paradise.

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                            MOSHIACH MATTERS
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The ultimate perfection of the days of Moshiach is a kind of birth - a
revelation of the light of G-d within the deepest recesses of a man's
heart. As it is written, "The glory of G-d will be revealed, and all
flesh together will see that the mouth of G-d has spoken"; and likewise
too it is written, "For they shall see eye to eye [when G-d returns to
Zion]."

                                                (Torah Or, Va-eira)

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               END OF TEXT - L'CHAIM 1053 - Vayechi 5769
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