Lessons from the Mighty Mosquito

Bar Mitzvah in Auschwitz - video lecture Monday

SEE BELOW FOR FULL TISHA B'AV PROGRAM Question of the Week:   I am emailing you at 3:30am because I can't sleep. Nothing very dramatic, but there is a mosquito in my room that keeps buzzing in my ear and driving me crazy. So I got thinking, why did G-d create mosquitos? What possible purpose could they serve other than annoying people when they are trying to sleep?   Answer:   Be careful who you call annoying. That mosquito may deserve more respect than you think.   Indeed, the Talmud has some harsh words for mosquitoes. It says that while all creatures contribute to the grand scheme of nature, the mosquito is one exception. It is a consumer, but not a giver. It survives by sucking the blood produced by others, but doesn't itself produce anything useful for the world. To take and not give back is the exact opposite of holiness.   And yet, a mosquito may in some cases be better than a human being. Because even when a mosquito annoys you or bites you, it is just doing what it was created to do. But when a person annoys and bites, causes pain and fails to make the world better, then we are lower than a mosquito, because we are neglecting to fulfill the mission for which we were created. A blood-sucking, sleep depriving mosquito is just doing the job of being a mosquito, but a selfish, lazy or spiteful person is not what a person is supposed to be.    In this way, the mosquito does actually make a valuable contribution to the world. It teaches us this very lesson, that being a good mosquito is not being a good person. Unless you want to be worse than an annoying insect, you had better be contributing to the world in a positive way. A day cannot go by without doing a mitzvah. We are not on this earth to eat and party and sit around watching our life go by, we are here to create a buzz about goodness and fix the world. The mosquito is doing his buzz, you do yours.   For that you might need to get some sleep.   Good night, Rabbi Moss   Sources:  Talmud Gittin 56b, Sanhedrin 38a, Tanya Chapter 24, Sicha Achron Shel Pesach 5744 To subscribe CLICK HERE or email rabbimoss@nefesh.com.au  ASK US ABOUT FLEXIBLE PAYMENT OPTIONS BOOK NOW SHABBOS SERVICES TIMES AND COMMUNITY INFO  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Friday, 28 July, 2017 |5 Av 5777 Candle Lighting................ 4:55pm  Mincha............................ 5:05pm Friday Evening Service.......6:00pm Kiddush sponsored by the Barukh family in memory of Farha Na'ima bat Lulu a"h.   Shabbos, 29 July, 2017 | 6 Av 5777 In depth Parsha Class NOT ON THIS WEEK Children's program................. 10:45am Shabbos Morning Service ........ 10:00am- 12:20pm  Kiddush sponsored by Matthew & Elana Jones    Mincha with Pirkei Ovos Ch 3 followed by Seudah Shlishis ............  4:50pm Gematria and story by Rev Amzalak....5:15pm Shiur with Rabbi Moss.......... ............5:35pm Shabbos ends and Maariv.................. 5:53pm Followed by Havdalah   EREV TISHA B'AV | MONDAY 31 JULY FAST BEGINS 5:15PM TISHA B'AV | TUESDAY 1 AUGUST FAST ENDS 5:42PM SEE BELOW FOR TISHA B'AV PROGRAM   WEEKDAY SHACHARIS SERVICES Sunday ............................ 8:00am Mon - Fri........................... 7:00am Latest Shema this week.......9:24am   HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO Noah Weinberg........ 2 Av/ Tuesday 25 July Charli Berkovits....... 2 Av/ Tuesday 25 July Lior Freedman......... 3 Av/ Wednesday 26 July Nicholas Levy.......... 5 Av/ Friday 28 July Toby Stein..............12 Av/Friday 4 August   LONG LIFE TO Ivan Basserabie for his late father Moshe Chaim ben Avrohom... 9 Av/ Tuesday 1 August Cecile Margolin for her late mother Esther Kaplan  Esther bat Avraham... 11 Av/ Thursday 3 August Magda Schaffer for her late husband Paul Schaffer  Pinchus ben Shmuel...11 Av / Thursday 3 August Les Regos for his late father Joseph Regos Yoseph...13 Av/ Saturday 5 August To make a donation for a birthday, an Aliyah, a Yahrzeit or anything else,  please click here.  TISHA B'AV SCHEDULE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  CLICK HERE for a brief overview on the laws of Tisha B'av Monday Night 31 July (fast begins 5:15pm) Evening Service 6:30pm and a reading of the Book of Lamentations, chanted by Rabbi Sufrin with explanations by Rabbi Moss, followed by:   Bar Mitzvah in Auschwitz - a video lecture with survivor Rabbi Nissen Mangel (see flyer above)   Tuesday 1 August Morning service 7am including Kinnos service led by Rev Amzalak with explanations and stories of the destruction of the Temple by Rabbi Moss Mincha 4:30pm (with Tefillin) followed by words of Torah and Maariv Fast ends 5:42pm   Breaking the Fast sponsored by R' Eli Barukh in memory of his grandfather R' Barukh ben Yitzchak Rachamim A"H KIDDUSH SPONSORSHIP ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FRIDAY NIGHT: Herring & L'Chaim-$60 (+ B.Y.O Whisky) | HOT SOUP $75  Basic $120 | Deluxe $200 SHABBOS DAY: Herring & L'Chaim- $90 (+ B.Y.O Whisky) | Standard $350 KIDS KIDDUSH & SHABBOS PROGRAM : $180   CURRENT DATES AVAILABLE: Friday Night 11 August Shabbos Day 12 August   Friday Night 18 August  Shabbos Day 19 August Shabbos Day 26 August  *prices quoted above are for the regular community of 120ppl

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