MTC EARLY SHABBOS Mincha 6:40 pm- Light candles after 7:14 pm AVOT CHAPTER 4 ROSH CHODESH TAMUZ

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1 ב"ה Sivan Friday, June 23, 2017 קרח KORACH TORAH PORTION Candle Lighting: 8:29 pm Shabbat Ends: 9:46 pm MTC EARLY SHABBOS Mincha 6:40 pm- Light candles after 7:14 pm EXPRESS AVOT CHAPTER 4 ROSH CHODESH TAMUZ MTC PRE-SCHOOL GRADUATION AND END-OF-YEAR PARTY PRE-SCHOOL MOMS AND DADS JUST BEFORE CANDLE-LIGHTING AT THE HOME OF RABBI & NECHAMA NEW Montreal Torah Center Bais Menachem Chabad Lubavitch Joanne and Jonathan Gurman Community Center Lou Adler Shul Marcia Gillman and Michael Flinker Early Childhood Center 28 Cleve Road, Hampstead Quebec H3X 1A Fax mtc@themtc.com SODIA ICONS MOSAIC EXPRESS 1

2 ANNOUNCEMENTS MTC EARLY SHABBOS Friday June 23 Mincha 6:40 pm- Light candles after 7:14 pm Schedule at themtc.com/earlyshabbat SHABBAT SCHEDULE Early Mincha & Maariv...6:40 pm Second Mincha & Maariv :30 pm Shacharit :30 am Children s Program....10:45 am Kiddush :30 pm Mincha/Shalosh Seudos...8:30 pm TORAH READING Parshat Korach...Page 741 Haftorah......Page 1267 CLASSES Chassidus :45am Women s Class.....7:45 pm Men s Class :00 pm EN FRANCAIS AVEC LE RAV M. PINTO: Talmud et Hala ha h 45 Seu'da Chelichit h 45 YASHER KOACH TO OUR KIDDUSH CO-SPONSORS! LAST WEEK Heather & Emmanuel Amar Allana & Mitchell Barr Ascher & Shani Berros David & Lori Diner John Finkelstein and family Eddie & Rissa Mechaly Taryn & Mike Nehemia Benjamin Pisarevsky (x2) Laurie & David Puterman Mardoche Sebbag, Fanny Oiknine Sebbag and family Ephram & Julie Shizgal THIS WEEK Kreina Munk and family in honour of Rabbi Itchy & Zeldie Treitel's anniversary KIDDUSH CO-SPONSORSHIP IS $136 PLEASE NOTE Monday June 26 is a legal holiday, Shacharis will be at 9:00 am 2 MOSAIC EXPRESS MTC GRACIOUSLY ACKNOWLEDGES THIS WEEK S SPONSORS OF THE DAY Robert & Joelle Burke in honour of the yartzeit of Mintzie Siminovith-Burke, Tamuz 5 OUR DEEPEST SYMPATHIES TO Hava & Eli Barouch and family on the passing of Hava's dear mother Mrs. Hanna Windwar obm. Shiva is being observed in Toronto. May the families be spared any further sorrow and know only of simchas To become a sponsor of the day, please contact ext 223 in connection with GIMMEL/THIRD OF TAMUZ TUESDAY JUNE 27 THE REBBE'S 23 RD YARTZEIT THIS SHABBOS JUNE 24 5:00 pm Farbrengen FOR MEN SPONSORED BY MEIR & ELZA HIRSCH IN HONOUR OF GIMMEL TAMUZ AND MEIR S BIRTHDAY 7:30 pm Class Pulling Back the Curtains on the Face of G-d FOR WOMEN WEDNESDAY JUNE 28 6:30-9:30 pm An evening of insight into the Rebbe s revolution in Torah, values and leadership FOR MEN AND WOMEN AT CHABAD OF THE TOWN 4054 JEAN TALON W. NEXT SHABBOS JULY 1 A Taste of the Rebbe s Teachings 8:45 am An overview of V Atah Tetzaveh FOR WOMEN WITH RABBI NEW FOR MEN WITH RABBI LEVI FOR MEN WITH RABBI LEVI 7:00-7:30 pm A Hadran on the Talmud 7:30-8:00 pm Rashi 8:00-8:30 pm Pirkei Avos 8:45 pm Shalosh Seudos: Rambam FOR WOMEN WITH RABBI NEW 7:30-8:00 pm Rashi 8:00-8:30 pm Pirkei Avos MTC WISHES A HEARTY MAZAL TOV TO Pini & Dini Gniwisch and family on the engagement of Breindy Gniwisch to Avi Eskinazi from Brazil Rosenbloom & Suss families on the marriage of Alisa Rosenbloom & Ted Suss

3 UPCOMING EVENTS MONDAY JULY 3 First Day of MTC Day Camp Themtc.com/camp TUESDAY JULY 4 An Evening for Women with Dr. Pat Rubin RSVP Themtc.com/rubin WEEKDAY PRAYER SCHEDULE SHACHARIT Sunday... Shacharis :00 am Tuesday-Fri...Chassidus...6:15 am Shacharis...7:00 am Followed by breakfast MINCHA Sunday-Thursday :45 pm MAARIV Sunday-Thursday.... 9:25 pm In cherished memory of R Yeshaya Aryeh ben Menashe Treitel obm LOST & FOUND OPEN HOUSE Please claim your items from the MTC Lobby. On July 3 rd, all remaining items will be donated to charity. View items at themtc.com/lost Mon - Thurs: 9:00-5:00 Fri: 9:00-2:00 Thank you! AND FINALLY... ALIYAH SUMMARY General Overview: Korach stages a rebellion against Moses, accusing him of a power grab. He and his entourage are swallowed up by the earth. The people protest, and a plague ensues. Of the staffs submitted by all the tribes, only Aaron's blossoms; proving that he is G-d's chosen. The Israelites are instructed the various presents due to the priests and Levites. First Aliyah: Korach, Moses' first cousin, stages a rebellion against Moses and Aaron. Together with a few ringleaders, he gathers 250 men of renown and accuses Moses and Aaron of power hoarding. "The entire congregation is holy, and the L-rd is in their midst. So why do you raise yourselves above the L-rd's assembly?" They took specific issue with the appointment of Aaron as High Priest. Moses proposes that on the following day they all participate in a test which would determine who indeed was worthy of the mantle of High Priest. Everyone would bring an incense offering to the Tabernacle, and G-d would make known His choice for High Priest. Moses then tries to placate the rebellious group, unsuccessfully attempting to dissuade them from participating in this suicidal test. Second Aliyah: Moses pleads with G-d not to accept the incense offering of the rebellious group. Korach spends the night inciting the Jews against Moses, and gathers them all to the entrance of the Tabernacle to witness the grand spectacle. G-d's glory appears. Third Aliyah: G-d is angered by the Jews' association with Korach, and wishes to destroy them. Moses and Aaron pray on the Jews' behalf and the decree is averted. The earth opens up and swallows Korach and his family, and a heavenly fire consumes the rest of the 250 rebels. Moses instructs Aaron's son Elazar to retrieve the frying pans which were used for the incense offering, to flatten them and plate the altar with them--a visible deterrent for any individual who ever wishes to challenge Aaron's priesthood. The next day, the community complains that Moses and Aaron are to be blamed for the deaths of "G-d's people." Fourth Aliyah: G-d instructs Moses and Aaron: "Separate yourselves from the community, and I will destroy them in an instant." And indeed, a plague struck the nation, and many thousands were dying. Moses tells Aaron to quickly take a firepan with incense and go into the midst of the congregation and atone for their sin. Aaron does so. He stands "between the living and the dead," and the plague is halted. Fifth Aliyah: This section describes the "test of the staffs." G-d tells Moses to take a staff from each of the twelve tribes, with the name of each tribe's prince written upon their staff. Another staff was taken to represent the tribe of Levi, and Aaron's name was written on that staff. These staffs were placed overnight in the Holy of Holies chamber of the Tabernacle. Next morning they were removed, and miraculously Aaron's staff had budded with almond blossoms and almonds. This was further proof that Aaron was G-d's choice for High Priest. Sixth Aliyah: G-d commands Moses to return "Aaron's staff" to the Holy of Holies, where it is to remain for perpetuity. The Jews express to Moses their fear of mistakenly entering a restricted area of the Tabernacle, and dying as a result. In response, G-d commands the priests (Continued on page 5) When a marathon runner had ill fitting shoes, he suffers the agony of defeat. WOMEN S EVENT AN EVENING WITH DR. PAT RUBIN Intimacy Counselor and Therapist. Founding member of the Montreal General Hospital Human Sexuality Unit and former guest therapist on Radio Mix 96. Tuesday, July 4th Dinner 7:00 pm MTC Lounge Couvert $25 Space is Limited! RSVP before July 2nd noon Chair: Osnat Feldman - MTC'S DOCTOR EVENT SERIES MOSAIC EXPRESS 3

4 BY TZVI FREEMAN Rava said: When a person is judged in the heavenly court, the first question asked is Did you buy and sell with integrity? Talmud, Shabbat 31a REAL VALUE What is a human being? A human being is a creature that looks at what is and sees the value of what could be. That is how we farm, how we prepare food, how we conduct commerce, how we create art and how we build our lives. In simple math, we make one plus one equal three. In business talk: We create value. It s not possible to create real value and create it for yourself alone. Everyone and everything is a shareholder in that value. If this field now yields crops, there is more food available in the world. Once you cook that food, there are more calories available in the world. Go to market to sell that food, and there is more availability of food in the world. Do it with integrity, and there s more trust and goodwill in the world which means there s more business to be made. Create music or art, the entire world gains beauty. Doing any sort of meaningful business means there is now more of something for others, and the sum total value for everyone has increased. This is the human being: We are not just productive. We fix up. We create with foresight. We save our seed for the coming year, invest our profits in further profits, make our dreams come true. But is that all there is to the human being? Is there no higher purpose? Certainly, for the Creator, there is value in creatures that create value. He didn t create the world so it should sink into nothingness, says the prophet. He created it to be settled. (Isaiah 45:18) Sinking into nothingness that s the natural force of entropy, by which all things tend towards death and decay. Life, and particularly human life, defies entropy. Instead, we create synergy putting things together to grow and keep growing in a sustainable way, a way that promotes trust and goodwill and leaves behind a better world for the next generation. Settling the world with life. TFS Young Leadership is in full Simcha mode celebrating the recent marriage of Shir Herman and Jarrod Ouaknine, and the engagements of Marie-Esther Berkovich and Jonathan Maman, Ashley Burko and Matthew Dennick, and Nadia Nachtigall and Mark Sasson! But the question remains: Is that all there is to the human being? Are we here only to form a sustainable world? Or to fix it up into something yet greater? REASSEMBLING If you ask the right questions, often they lead you to the right answers. Here s a simple question: Why does it work? What s behind this strange phenomenon of synergy, this potential the world provides us to increase value? What s behind it is that the entire universe began as a single and singular thought, a thought that contains infinite information. That thought traverses time and space, holding every event and particle of a great big universe in a single point. March of the Living 2016 participants enjoy a Shabbat dinner reunion at the home of Rabbi & Nechama New. Photo taken just before candle lighting. But the universe we perceive from our position within time and space has been fractured into uncountable parts. With each fragmentation, more information is lost. Until we are left with parts that appear meaningless and worthless. Imagine picking up a volume of Moby Dick, throwing it in the air and watching all the letters fly out of the book, scattering in the wind and falling to the ground. The story is gone. The characters are gone. All meaning has disappeared. You are left with nothing but lifeless letters, as lifeless as grains of sand, with no story to tell, no meaning to share. 4 MOSAIC EXPRESS

5 That is the world we live in a scattered book. Yet the Author of this book breathes within one of its characters, the human being. And so, the human being somehow sees how these pieces must fit together, and behold, value appears. From where does that value appear? From the original great light, that infinite pack of information that filled the primordial thought of the universe. A harmonious rearrangement of a few pieces of the puzzle now resonates with that great light, and a glimmer of that light is transmitted through this new matrix. And so, here in our world we find increased value. THIS WEEK S TORAH CLASS DIVINE DIVISION Our Sages declare that Korach and his followers are the symbol of divisiveness that "will not ultimately endure", whereas the dissenting views of Hillel and Shamai represent a virtuous difference of opinion "that will ultimately endure". But why would argument of any kind, especially one that endures forever, be considered a virtue?! In answering this question, this classes traces the origins of all conflicts and reveals the ultimate resolution to them all. View this class at themtc.com home page REDISCOVERY Now we have a better idea of what we human beings are doing down here. We are not just making a better world. We are creating a magnificent one. One that can transmit to all of us who live within it the oneness and magnificence of its Creator. MTC PRE SCHOOL GRADUATION AND END OF YEAR PARTY. Mazal Tov to the graduates! You have all learned and grown so much over this past year. May Hashem bless you with good mazal all your lives. We will miss you! Where do we create that world? Not in some spiritual heaven above. Down here on earth, doing the earthly activities of earthly human beings but injected with meaning and higher purpose. That, after all, was the primordial thought from which all this universe extends: The Creator s thought of Himself being discovered within this earthly world. (Continued from Aliya Summary page 3) and the Levites to carefully guard the Tabernacle, to prevent unauthorized entry by non-priests. The Torah then lists the various gifts to which the priests were entitled. These include the privilege of eating certain sacrifices, as well as select portions of other sacrifices; receiving the five shekels for the redemption of Israelite firstborn sons; a portion of all grain, oil, and wine crops; the "first fruit"; and more. Aaron is informed that his descendents will not receive a portion in the land of Israel--instead, G-d is their inheritance and portion. Seventh Aliyah: The Levites, too, will not receive a share of the land of Israel. Instead they are entitled to a tenth of all the Israelites' crops--this in return for the Tabernacle and Temple services which they render. Upon receiving this tithe, the Levites must, in turn, separate a tenth of this tithe and give it to the priests. MOSAIC EXPRESS 5

6 PARSHA INSIGHTS From the book Daily Wisdom Moshe Wisnefsky TORAH IN VERSE ECSTATIC LOVE OF G-D THE NEED FOR SPEED In order to demonstrate conclusively that the tribe of Levi (the priests and the Levites) had been set apart from the rest of the Jewish people for their respective tasks by G-d Himself, G-d commanded Moses to take the staffs of the princes of each of the 12 tribes and place them next to the Ark in the Holy of Holies, the inner chamber of the Tabernacle. Moses did so, and Aaron s staff miraculously sprouted almonds overnight, whereas the other staffs remained unchanged. ו ה נּ ה פּ ר ח מ טּ ה א ה ר ן ל ב ית ל ו י ו יּ צ א פ ר ח ו יּ צ ץ צ יץ ו יּ ג מ ל שׁ ק ד ים: (במדבר יז:כג) Aaron s staff for the house of Levi had blossomed; it gave forth blossoms, sprouted buds, and produced ripe almonds. Numbers 17:23 Of all fruits, almonds are the quickest to blossom, ripen, and be ready for human consumption. This attribute of speed characterized the priests function in the Tabernacle in two ways: The priests blessed the people every morning. The purpose of their blessings was to enable G-d s goodness to reach the Jewish people speedily and directly. The priests performed their duties quickly and with liveliness. Inasmuch as the Jewish people are a kingdom of priests and a holy nation, we should learn from the priests quickness to fulfill their duties. We should not relate to our Divine mission in life halfheartedly or resignedly. Rather, we must respond to every opportunity quickly, energetically, and wholeheartedly. When we do so, we are assured that G-d s blessings and the success of our efforts will not delay in coming. The Jewish people finally accepted the Divinely ordained distinction between the priests and the Levites, on the one hand, and the lay people, on the other. However, they then complained that since entering designated areas of the Tabernacle compound was a capital offense for non-levites, they were constantly exposed to the danger of death. G-d therefore made the priests and Levites responsible for keeping non- Levites from entering off-limit areas. ע ב ד ת מ תּ נ ה א תּ ן א ת כּ ה נּ ת כ ם וגו': (במדבר יח:ז) [In the course of describing the priests duties, G-d instructed Moses to tell the priests,] I have given your priesthood [to you] as a gift of service. Numbers 18:7 We see here that there is a level of relationship with G-d that we cannot achieve on our own; it can only be given to us by G-d as a gift. This wondrous state is referred to in the Song of Songs (King Solomon s poetic description of the love between G-d and the Jewish people) as a love of delights, and is likened by the Talmudic sages to the pleasure of G- dly revelation that awaits us in the afterlife. This ecstatic love of G-d was felt by the priests regularly, but inasmuch as the entire Jewish people is a kingdom of priests and a holy nation, we can all aspire to this rapturous love of G-d, at least occasionally. DOSE OF INSPIRATION By Justice Michel M. J. Shore Ego, arrogance, false pride, jealousy, Ignorance, selfishness and lack of loyalty, Led Korach, Datan and Abiram To revolt against Moses and Aaron. The plague and contagion of rebellion Brought together two hundred and fifty men. The sanctification of G-d s name By Moses gave Aaron and generations priestly acclaim. The staff of each tribe, placed in the center of worship, Became a symbol of the strength of each tribe s grip, Giving a solid foundation to our nation, Confronting the ill-forces of sedition. And Aaron s staff did grow, sprout and blossom, Producing almonds that for the nation became a balsam. WORKING LESSONS by Tzvi Freeman If all the world is a classroom and all of life is a lesson, then certainly your profession and workplace are included. After all, He has unlimited ways to provide your livelihood why did He direct you to this way of life? What sparks of the divine await you here? 6 MOSAIC EXPRESS

7 An inspiring story for your Shabbos table HERE S my STORY Generously sponsored by the MOSES ENVY RABBI AHRON COUSIN ב ה ערב שבת פרשת קרח, כ ט סיון, תשע ז Erev Shabbos Parshas Korach, June 23, 2017 Special Edition While studying at the yeshivah in Manchester during the early 1950s, I noticed that the Lubavitcher students were somehow different from the others. At the time, there was a great mix of students in the yeshivah representing various streams of Judaism, many of them survivors of the Holocaust but the Lubavitchers stood out. They seemed to me more sincere and more serious when everyone else was out playing cricket, the Lubavitcher students would stay behind studying the latest discourse from their Rebbe. I wondered what they knew that I didn t, and eventually I found out chasidus, the teachings of Chasidism. That s when I decided that I wanted to become a chasid and learn seriously in a Lubavitch yeshivah. Many people tried to dissuade me from this path. They said that the Lubavitch way was very different from what I was used to. But I stood firm in my resolve and, in 1956, I came to learn at 770, the Lubavitcher Yeshivah in New York. Immediately upon arrival, I received an audience with the Rebbe. He had taken over the leadership of Chabad- Lubavitch just five years prior, and it he was remarkably accessible. I explained who I was, asked his secretary for an appointment with him and, a short while later, I was given an appointment. When I saw the Rebbe, one of the questions I asked him was whether I should change the prayer-book I was using for the Chabad liturgy. I was using the standard Ashkenazi version at the time, but I felt I should change to the Chabad prayer liturgy which follows nusach Ari. The Rebbe said it would be a positive change but that I shouldn t switch right away. He suggested that I change at the start of the new month which was a few days later. And then he asked me if I owned a Chabad prayer-book. I said, No, but I will buy it. He said, You don t have to do that. I will give you one. With that he started looking through his desk, but he found no prayer-books there, and he called in his secretary to bring one, but he also couldn t lay his hands on a spare copy just then. So the Rebbe said, Don t worry I will make sure that you receive one. I went outside, and I sat down to write everything the Rebbe had said to me during the audience, so I had an exact record. After about ten minutes or so, I heard a chasid calling my name Cousin! Cousin! Where is Cousin?! I responded, My name is Cousin, and the fellow said, Come quickly, the Rebbe wants you. I returned to the Rebbe s office, and the Rebbe s secretary ushered me in. The Rebbe was in a middle of a conversation with someone, but he interrupted it. He stood up and handed me a small red prayer-book. He said in Yiddish, Zolst davenen b simcha un matzliach zayn You should pray with joy, and you should be successful. I took the prayer-book, which I have to this day. It is very precious to me, but it s quite worn now, so I only use it on special occasions. While I was studying in the yeshivah, I became involved in the Rebbe s project which was initiated by his fatherin-law, the Previous Rebbe, known as Wednesday Hour or the Released Time Program. I was one of the yeshivah students who used to mentor a group of Jewish children in continued on back page An oral history project dedicated to documenting the life of the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory. The story is one of thousands recorded in over 1400 videotaped interviews conducted to date. These stories are based on the recollection of the individuals recounting them. Please share any corrections, comments and suggestions. mystory@jemedia.org

8 continued from reverse Coney Island on Wednesdays. We had a very large group of boys and girls participating we would take them out of the public schools in the area and bring them to a nearby synagogue where we would teach them to say blessings, recite the Shema prayer, and other things like that. At the end of the session, we would reward their participation with prizes. One year my birthday fell on a Wednesday, and I asked the Rebbe if I should participate in the Wednesday Hour that week. Maybe it would be better for me to spend the special day studying Torah? The Rebbe s response was most amazing to me. He said in Yiddish, putting a great deal of emotion into his words, Avadeh zolstu gayn Of course, you should go! In fact, he said that I should teach the kids something extra special precisely because it was my birthday. Clearly, to the Rebbe, the Wednesday Hour was a very important project. I recall that one yeshivah student, a friend of mine, once wanted to opt out of it. He wrote to the Rebbe that he didn t think that reciting blessings with the children and giving them prizes accomplished anything much. Furthermore, it disrupted the order of his studies. It took three to four hours out of his day travelling to Coney Island and back and he felt his time would be better spent sitting and learning in yeshivah. He also argued that the thought of knowing he would have to disrupt his studies preyed on his mind all the week. So he asked the Rebbe s permission to be exempt. He didn t receive it. The Rebbe wrote back to him: I want you to know that all the souls in the Garden of Eden even the soul of Moses are envious of you, because you have the opportunity to recite the Shema with little Jewish children. The mitzvot you do with those precious children certainly will have an everlasting effect. When this fellow showed me the Rebbe s letter, it made a very deep impression on me I realized right then how important it was to teach little children, how important Jewish education was. Eventually, this realization led me to a long career in the field. I became a teacher, and after a few years, the headmaster of a boys school, a job I held for many years. There was a point along the way when I thought of going Sponsored by האחים שניאור זלמן, יוסף יצחק, ישראל, ובנציון קאזין into real estate investments with my older brother, and I wrote to the Rebbe to ask his advice on this matter. I said that I wasn t planning to leave education altogether, just to combine service with business, so to speak, in order to better provide for my large family. The Rebbe wrote back, It s a pity that you should begin leaving the holy work initiated by my father-in-law for something so mundane. I guess the Rebbe saw that once I got involved in business, I would begin to spend less and less time in education until I left it completely. I took the Rebbe s advice, and I told my brother that I couldn t join him. And even though I could have made a lot of money since people who were in that business generally doubled their investment, I have no regrets. I see the success of my students so many students over the past fifty years and I am happy with what my lot turned out to be. And, most of all, I am grateful to the Rebbe for putting me on the right path, and I am grateful to Chasidus for the wonderful way of life that it has given me. There is nothing like chasidic teachings to inspire and illuminate and to elevate a person above the mundane. And, for this gift, I will be forever grateful. Rabbi Ahron Avigdor Cousin is a veteran educator from London, England. He now lives in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn with his wife, Malka. He was interviewed at his home in the summer of לע נ ר ישראל יעקב וזוגתו מרת קריינא ע ה לאקשין ע י בניהם ר נחמן ור אברהם ומשפחתם שיחיו This week in. > , the Rebbe clarified some details of the recently launched Charity Campaign. The campaign wouldn t be geared towards raising money, rather increasing the act of giving charity. The charity boxes should thus not have any organization s names printed on them. Rather, individuals should donate to whichever cause they see fit. Additionally, by printing illustrations of the other mitzvah campaigns on the charity boxes, they could also be used as a tool to educate the public about those other mitzvahs. 2 Tammuz In loving memory of ר שמואל נטע הכהן ע ה בן יבלח ט ישראל דוד שי Yahrzeit, 2 Tammuz You can help us record more testimonies by dedicating future editions of Here s My Story A project of: JEWISH EDUCATIONAL MEDIA mystory@jemedia.org myencounterblog.com Eastern Parkway Suite 403 Brooklyn, NY Copyright, Jewish Educational Media, 2017 Generously printed by

9 LA SIDRA DE LA SEMAINE PARACHAT KORA H AVOT 4 24 JUIN SIVAN 5777 VIVRE AVEC LA PARACHA KORA H Kora h, briguant pour lui-même la Prêtrise et le poste de dirigeant, confiés par D.ieu à Aharon et Moché, est l instigateur d une révolte. D.ieu donne la preuve visible aux yeux de tous de la justesse de Son choix. D.ieu ordonne qu une Teroumah («prélèvement») de chaque récolte de blé, de vin et d huile, ainsi que chaque premier-né ovin ou bovin, ainsi que d autres présents spécifiques, soient remis aux Cohanim (les Prêtres). xdiriger est une question cruciale dans la société contemporaine. Dans tous les domaines de la vie, que ce soit les affaires, la politique ou les relations sociales, nous recherchons des dirigeants qui soient visionnaires, qui puissent insuffler leur énergie dans un projet et qui y œuvrent. C est presque trop simple à dire, mais l aspect le plus important dans le fait d être un dirigeant est l aptitude à faire des adeptes. Un homme peut être intelligent, actif et plein de qualités humaines mais s il ne peut atteindre les autres ni les attirer, il ne pourra être un leader efficace. Mais comment parvenir à cette adhésion? L approche la plus fréquente consiste à faire appel au plus bas dénominateur commun. Nous avons tous des désirs fondamentaux : l argent, la satisfaction matérielle, l honneur. Certains dirigeants «en herbe» jouent avec ces besoins, promettant, ou laissant entendre, que les élire leur permettra de les combler. Mais de temps à autre, dans l Histoire, nous rencontrons des dirigeants d une nature tout autre. Ils font appel au dénominateur commun le plus élevé, enseignant à leur peuple à se concentrer sur les valeurs et les principes qui transcendent leur propre personne. Leur message passe : en partie, parce que leur extraordinaire intégrité personnelle les fait prôner les valeurs qui sont les leurs, dans leur vie personnelle, mais aussi parce que la vérité de ce que nous sommes n est pas représentée par nos désirs «mesquins» mais par notre âme qui est une véritable partie de D.ieu. Quand un dirigeant est capable d exprimer son potentiel divin profond, il inspire les membres de son peuple à exprimer le leur. Tel est le contexte dans lequel se déroula la révolte de Kora h contre Moché, le sujet de la Paracha de cette semaine. Kora h vint trouver Moché avec une protestation sincère : «Toute l assemblée est sainte et D.ieu réside parmi eux. Pourquoi t ériges-tu au-dessus de l assemblée de D.ieu?». En chaque Juif repose une étincelle de D.ieu, une véritable parcelle de Son infinité. A partir de là, comment un individu peut-il prétendre les dominer? Le potentiel divin que nous possédons tous est un facteur qui nous rend fondamentalement égaux. Une fois qu il est admis que chaque Juif possède un tel potentiel, il ne semble pas y avoir de place pour la hiérarchie. Pourquoi donc, demanda Kora h, Moché devrait-il représenter l autorité suprême et Aharon agir en tant que Grand Prêtre? Pour répondre à ces questions, l on peut expliquer qu il y a une différence entre le fait de posséder un potentiel et celui de l exprimer. Bien sûr, chaque Juif possède un potentiel divin mais il est également habité par des tendances naturelles et des attirances qui détournent son attention et le distraient, l empêchant de se centrer sur ce don divin. Certes, nous sommes tous intrinsèquement saints. Mais nous avons également d autres penchants innés et naturels. Le but d un véritable dirigeant juif est de motiver son peuple à intensifier l expression de la Divinité inhérente à chacun. Tel était le rôle unique de Moché. Il était capable d intégrer son potentiel divin à l ensemble de ses qualités humaines. C est la raison pour laquelle tous ceux qui le côtoyaient réalisaient qu ils étaient en (Continuer a la page 11) MOSAIC EXPRESS 9

10 LE RECIT DE LA SEMAINE Nous avons entamé notre Chli hout, nos efforts pour régénérer une petite communauté juive, il y a deux ans, dans la magnifique ville montagneuse de Prescott en Arizona. Des cours de Torah pour adultes et pour enfants, une colonie de vacances, des repas communautaires : nous avons consacré beaucoup d efforts pour l éducation juive à tous les âges et, D.ieu merci, nous avons réussi à obtenir des fonds pour acquérir un bâtiment où concentrer nos activités. Notre ville est très étendue et nous avons calculé que l endroit le plus propice serait dans un certain quartier. Il n y avait pas beaucoup de maisons à acheter et nous avons passé plusieurs mois à rechercher l endroit idéal. Nous avons finalement repéré une structure avec, à la fois une facilité commerciale et à la fois une partie résidentielle. Le prix indiqué était audessus de nos moyens et nous avons donc proposé un prix bien moindre mais correct et raisonnable. Le propriétaire refusa notre offre ; il accepta cependant de baisser un peu le prix. C était encore trop cher pour nous. Je discutai avec d autres Chlou him (émissaires du Rabbi) plus expérimentés que moi dans ce domaine et je reçus des réponses mitigées. Certains estimaient qu il était indispensable d acquérir ce bâtiment pour développer nos activités au maximum : les dettes seraient sans doute rapidement couvertes grâce à la générosité de futurs donateurs. D autres, par contre, nous recommandaient d agir avec prudence envers un propriétaire qui semblait coriace. 10 MOSAIC EXPRESS J envoyai un mail au Ohel, le tombeau du Rabbi à Queens, là où tant de Juifs prient pour que le Rabbi les aide et intercède en leur faveur. Je détaillais les différents conseils que j avais reçus et concluais en indiquant que, pour le moment, je mettais toute cette affaire en attente : peut-être une autre opportunité plus intéressante se présenterait. Nous avons donc continué nos recherches et, entre temps, le bâtiment que nous convoitions fut acquis par un autre acheteur. Je supposai donc que ce chapitre était clos en ce qui nous concernait. Les mois passaient et nos recherches ne donnaient aucun résultat. Tout à coup, nous avons appris que le bâtiment précédent était de nouveau proposé à la vente! Réalisant que c était peut-être là une chance à saisir, j écrivis au Rabbi ce qui se passait et demandai une bénédiction pour que, cette fois, nous puissions réussir à acquérir ce bâtiment vraiment idéal pour nos activités, quel qu en soit le prix. Je contactai notre agent immobilier en lui demandant de proposer à nouveau notre offre initiale en signalant que j étais prêt éventuellement à «faire des efforts». Un mois passa sans réponse. Un vendredi après-midi, je reçus une notification par mail : le propriétaire de notre logement actuel signalait que notre bail prenait fin dans quarante jours et qu il n avait pas l intention de le renouveler! Cela signifiait que très bientôt nous serions à la rue car il était très difficile de trouver des appartements à louer dans ce quartier surtout dans un délai si court! Nous étions affolés! Nous avons immédiatement écrit au Rabbi pour faire part de notre nouveau souci. Nous avons aussi demandé s il s agissait là d un signe que nous devions nous intéresser de façon plus urgente au bâtiment du futur Beth Habad qui avait l avantage d incorporer aussi un appartement pour une famille comme la nôtre. Littéralement dix minutes plus tard, mon téléphone sonna : l appelant n était autre que notre agent immobilier. Ma femme s écria spontanément : «Incroyable»! De fait, il nous annonçait qu après réflexion, le propriétaire acceptait de nous céder le bâtiment pour le prix modique que nous avions proposé à l origine! Bien entendu, nous n avons pas perdu de temps et, le jourmême, nous avons signé les documents nécessaires. Comme nous disposions de la somme exigée, la transaction fut très rapide et, le jour où nous étions obligés de quitter notre ancien appartement, nous avons reçu les clés de notre nouveau Beth Habad et nous avons emménagé! Ce Beth Habad est maintenant florissant et bruissant d activités en faveur du judaïsme. La bénédiction du Rabbi s est réalisée. Rav Elie Filler Traduit par Feiga Lubecki

11 (Continuer de la page 9) contact avec un saint homme et ils cherchaient alors à exprimer, eux-aussi, leur potentiel divin personnel. Le processus se déroule en deux étapes. Au niveau de notre conscience, quand nous rencontrons un homme qui est comblé et satisfait, qui ne court pas après les satisfactions matérielles et qui pourtant se sent accompli, a atteint son but et n est plus en quête, quand donc nous rencontrons un tel individu, naît en nous un sentiment de saine envie. Nous sommes prêts à accepter son autorité et ses directives parce que nous sentons qu il va nous permettre de mener une vie plus pleine et plus complète. Mais au-delà de cela, un processus spirituel est en marche, un processus qui opère à un niveau plus profond que la pensée consciente. Entrer en contact avec une personne qui a réalisé son potentiel spirituel nous inspire à développer le nôtre. Comme une bougie incandescente qui allume tous les autres combustibles, au contact de la lumière du potentiel divin d une personne, s élève naturellement la Divinité présente chez tous ceux qui l approchent. Telle était la nature de la direction de Moché. Il n était en rien animé d un désir d autosatisfaction. Il ne poursuivait aucune satisfaction matérielle et ne cherchait pas même à combler ses aspirations spirituelles. Il n était concerné que par son peuple : par ce qui leur était bénéfique et par la manière dont ils pourraient, au mieux se réaliser. Kora h argumenta : «Toute l assemblée est sainte et D.ieu réside parmi eux». Mais c est précisément pour cette raison qu il était nécessaire que ce soit Moché qui endosse le rôle du dirigeant qui les encouragerait à exprimer la Divinité qu ils possédaient. Il ne s agit pas seulement d un récit du passé. Le Zohar, œuvre fondamentale de la mystique juive, parle de «l extension de Moché dans chaque génération», expliquant que, de tous temps, il y a des Juifs qui remplissent la fonction de Moché et inspirent leurs frères à aller puiser leur potentiel spirituel inhérent. En développant une relation avec de tels «Moché», nous pouvons nous élever au-dessus de notre enveloppe superficielle et permettre à la Divinité qui est en nous de faire surface. PERSPECTIVES Le défi que lança Kora h à Moché demande que l on s interroge sur la conception juive de l autorité, en général. L une des Mitsvot demande que l on désigne un roi et chaque fois que nous récitons les Actions de Grâce, après avoir mangé, nous prions pour la restauration de la monarchie de la Maison de David. Certes, cela sera la fonction de Machia h, qui sera un Maître mais essentiellement un roi, un guide absolu. Parmi les explications de ce concept, l une souligne que la monarchie terrestre est issue de notre relation avec le Roi des rois, dont elle est une extension et une analogie. Le but de la monarchie juive est d enseigner au peuple la soumission devant le roi pour intensifier la soumission totale devant D.ieu. Faire abstraction de soi devant un roi mortel doit faire pénétrer le kabalat ol, «l acceptation du joug divin», dans chaque dimension de notre service divin et approfondir l intensité de notre engagement, jusqu à ce que cela affecte notre essence elle -même. LE COIN DE LA HALACHA COUTUMES LIÉES AU JOUR DE LA HILL- OULA DU RABBI 3 TAMOUZ (CETTE ANNÉE MARDI 27 JUIN 2017) l officiant. On étudiera les enseignements du Rabbi. Le Rabbi avait fixé un certain nombre de coutumes à respecter à l occasion de la Hilloula du Rabbi précédent. Ce sont ces mêmes coutumes qui ont été reprises pour le 3 Tamouz. En voici quelques-unes : On allumera une bougie de vingt-quatre heures depuis lundi soir 26 juin. Pendant chacune des trois prières du jour, on allumera cinq bougies devant Le matin, on donnera de la Tsedaka (charité), au nom de chacun des membres de sa famille, pour une institution du Rabbi. On consacrera un moment dans la journée pour parler du Rabbi et de sa grande Ahavat Israël (amour du prochain) à sa famille et son entourage. On étudiera les chapitres de Michnayot correspondant aux lettres qui constituent le nom du Rabbi. On rédigera un «Pane», «Pidyone Néfech», une lettre de demande de bénédictions (en y précisant les prénoms et les prénoms des mamans de chacun) qui sera lue sur le Ohel du Rabbi. N de fax du Ohel : N de fax du Beth Loubavitch : Adresse du Ohel : Francis Lewis Blvd Cambria Heights, New York ohel@ohelchabad.org MOSAIC EXPRESS 11

12 EDITORIAL GAN ISRAËL : QUAND LES «JARDINS» OUVRENT HORAIRE DE LA SEMAINE CHABBAT: Talmud et Hala ha h 45 Seu'da Chelichit h 45 Il y a comme un air de joie qui court dans les rues ces temps-ci. C est même parfois si sensible qu on en vient à s interroger : l époque y est-elle si propice, y a-t-il des événements porteurs de tant d enthousiasme que l on aurait, par mégarde, manqués? Certes, nous venons de vivre, il n y a encore pas si longtemps, la fête de Chavouot et sans doute cela est -il un véritable motif de joie intense et profonde. On l a abondamment dit : recevoir la Torah est toujours une expérience à la fois essentielle et bouleversante. Cependant, la joie qui transpire à présent semble comme plus intime que toutes les autres, comme s il s agissait d un motif quasi familial. Alors, il faut le dire : c est bien de cela qu il s agit! Nous sommes déjà sur le deuxième versant du mois de juin et, dans moins de deux semaines, commenceront les Gan Israël. Gan Israël, c est un titre naturel pour une entreprise extraordinaire. Des centres aérés ouverts à tous, où l enfant, pendant les vacances, dès le début du mois de juillet, peut vivre le bonheur en son plein sens de tels centres pouvaient-ils se nommer autrement que «Jardin d Israël»? Qu est-ce donc qu un jardin? En ces périodes où les fleurs écloses rendent le monde plus beau, la réponse est concrètement visible par chacun. Le jardin n est pas un endroit utilitaire, il n est pas fait pour produire, par exemple, des céréales, bases de la vie. Il permet, en revanche, de créer un espace de pur délice, de plaisir serein. Il est, en quelque sorte, ce lieu qui fait que la vie vaut la peine d être vécue. Le «Jardin d Israël Gan Israël» exprime cette idée de la manière la plus grande et la plus fidèle. Comme des fleurs aux mille couleurs, les enfants y trouvent l endroit de l harmonie et de la croissance, de la chaleur et du développement. Ils sont ce que nous avons de meilleur et, vivant dans un tel jardin, ils manifestent qu ils portent en eux encore bien plus et bien mieux que tout ce que nous avions pu rêver. C est pour cela qu un air d allégresse flotte aujourd hui dans les rues des villes, partout dans le monde. C est une douce musique que celle du bonheur de donner et de recevoir, celle de l étude et de l amour. Elle enchante les cœurs et entraîne les âmes. Elle donne au monde entier un visage nouveau qu il importe de savoir découvrir. Quand les enfants sont heureux, tous les hommes le sont. Il faut le dire : les Gan Israël vont, sous peu, ouvrir leurs portes. Il faut les partager, inviter ceux qui ne les connaissent pas encore. C est un bonheur infini, plus on le donne à autrui, plus il y en a pour tous. Des phrases de Torah pleines de vie dans la bouche d enfants heureux, c est un avant-goût du temps prochain de la Délivrance. MERCREDI La Torah Pratique Joignez nous pour un cours interactive et pratique pour messieurs et dames...20h00 ETINCELLES DE MACHIAH UNE DOUBLE LUMIÈRE Lorsqu il est question de la nouvelle ère que Machia h introduira, il est souvent fait référence à l intense lumière Divine qui brillera alors sur le monde. Cette notion de lumière doit, bien entendu, être comprise dans son sens spirituel : elle désigne la révélation de D.ieu. A ce sujet, il est enseigné que ce véritable dévoilement peut prendre deux formes. Il peut venir d en-haut, c est-à-dire sans que le monde change fondamentalement. Dans un tel cas, la lumière est infinie car elle ne tient pas compte des limites de la création. En revanche, elle peut aussi apparaître après l élévation du monde qui parvient au niveau de cette révélation. Dans ce sens, la lumière en question, révélée à la mesure du monde, peut le pénétrer plus profondément. Il en ressort que chacune de ces deux formes de révélation possède sa qualité propre. Aussi est-il précisé que, lorsque le Machia h viendra, elles seront réunies : la lumière divine apparaîtra révélée dans un monde à la mesure de l Infini. 12 MOSAIC EXPRESS