A Seder Conspiracy Theory

Infertility Awareness Shabbat

Question of the Week: Whoever wrote the Haggadah seems to have made a major mistake. The name of Moses does not appear in the entire Haggadah! How could the main man of the Exodus who confronted Pharaoh, brought down the plagues, and led his people out of slavery be completely left out of the story? It would be like doing Macbeth without Macbeth, or Star Wars without Luke Skywalker. I have a conspiracy theory: This was no mistake. The Haggadah was written by an anti-Moses faction who tried to write him out of history. That way they would take over the priesthood and control the Temple. Like it? Answer: That's a fantastic conspiracy theory. Really fantastic. But the question is a good one. Moses' absence from the Haggadah is indeed a mystery. To solve it we need to examine the evidence and figure out who wrote the Haggadah. There is one prime suspect. Here are the clues: 1. There is a biblical command to tell your children the story of the exodus every year on the night of Pesach 2. The Haggadah was written as a basis to tell the story 3. The first time a Haggadah would have been needed was the year after the exodus 4. One year after the exodus, the children themselves didn't need to hear the story, as they were there! 5. There was only one family whose children were not present at the exodus, and so needed to hear the story 6. It would seem that the first Haggadah would have been made by this family So whose family was it? Who was the only Israelite who himself experienced the exodus, but his children did not? It was none other than Moses himself. Moses' wife and children were not in Egypt and did not experience the exodus first hand. Moses married Tzipora and had two sons in her homeland of Midyan. When Moses returned to Egypt to free his people, his family remained in Midyan, and only joined the Israelites in the desert after the exodus. So the only person who needed a Haggadah that first year to tell his kids the exodus story was Moses. He wrote the first ever Haggadah. And being the most humble man on the face of the earth, Moses left himself out of the story. He understood that he was no more than an instrument of G-d. He took no credit for the exodus. This is one of the reasons Moses always carried a stick. He was saying, just like the stick has no power of its own other than what the holder bestows upon it, so too I am just a tool in G-d's hands. It is not I that brought the miracles, it is not I that took you out of Egypt, it is G-d Almighty. There's no conspiracy here. Just a powerful lesson. We learn from Moses what humility really means. You can be a leader who changes the course of history and still be humble. When you don't take credit for yourself, when you don't need your name mentioned, you have the infinite power of G-d behind you. Humility does not contradict greatness. It is its secret. Good Shabbos, Rabbi Moss Source: R' Yissachar Dov of Belz Notes: - In fact, Moses is mentioned once in the Haggadah. But not as part of the story, just in passing in a verse: "The people believed in G-d and in Moses His servant." - The Haggadah we have today has many later additions from the talmudic sages. The suggestion is that the kernel of the Haggadah was first composed by Moses, and all later additions left Moses out, as he himself did, to convey the message that it was G-d alone who took us out of Egypt.   To subscribe CLICK HERE or email rabbimoss@nefesh.com.au   VIDEO The Magic Number of the Seder     Good morning everyone, Excavation is now complete! Time to move on to preparation for footings. Speak next week again Shabbat shalom Brent

FEW SPOTS LEFT BOOK NOW www.nefesh.org.au/doron   SHABBOS SERVICES & COMMUNITY INFO ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ALL SERVICES AT NEFESH POP-UP  1 FRANCIS ST BONDI BEACH (OFF CAMPBELL PDE, BEHIND NOAH'S BACKPACKERS) SHABBOS SERVICES Friday, 16 March 2018 | 29 Adar 5778 Candle Lighting............ 6:54pm (Not before 5:59pm) Mincha........................ 6:15pm Shabbos Service........... 6:30-7:20pm  Kids Program ......................................... 6:30pm Followed by Friday Night Dinner with guest speaker- Doron Kornbluth.   Shabbos Day, 17 March 2018 | 1 Nissan 5778 In depth parsha class ........ 9:00am Shabbos Service.............. 10:00am-12:20pm Kids Program ................. 10:30am Followed by Kiddush/Lunch with guest speaker from Australian Jewish Fertility Network (AJFN)- all welcome.   Early Mincha and Aufruf of Shaun Klein......... 4:45pm   Regular Mincha followed by Seudah Shlishis ....6:50pm Gematria and story by Rev Amzalak.............. 7:20pm Shiur by Rabbi Moss................................... 7:35pm Shabbos ends........................................ ... 7:48pm Followed by Havdalah   NEW MOON/MOLAD SATURDAY 17 MARCH | 3:53:4AM ROSH CHODESH NISSAN | SATURDAY 17 MARCH   WEEKDAY SERVICES Sunday ............................ 8:00am Monday-Friday................... 7:00am Latest Shema this week...... 9:57am   MAZAL TOV Shaun Klein and Lara Horak and extended families on Shaun's Aufruf this Shabbos and their upcoming wedding Cliff Baskin & Jessica Joffe on their upcoming wedding Vicky Milunsky & Adam Hendler on their upcoming wedding   HAPPY BIRTHDAY Felix Gold..............29 Adar/ Friday 16 March Noach Kessel........ 29 Adar/ Friday 16 March Michael Barel......... 1 Nissan/ Saturday 17 March Yisroel Moss.......... 2 Nissan/ Sunday 18 March Robert Goldshaft.... 4 Nissan/ Tuesday 20 March Lior Segre............. 5 Nissan/ Wednesday 21 March   HAPPY ANNIVERSARY Rabbi Aron & Nechama Dina Moss.. 29 Adar/ Friday 16 March Ben & Laurel Weinberg................ 2 Nissan/ Sunday 18 March CONDOLENCES TO Les Regos on the passing of his sister Sue Josef    LONG LIFE Toni Kleiner, Ann Saltoon & Jacki Saltoon (mother & grandmother), Edna Isaacs Esther bat Menachem Mendel.............. 1 Nissan/ Saturday 17 March Victoria Hoch (father) Ruben Jorge Rachitzky Reuven Yaacov Ben Avraham.............. 4 Nissan/ Tuesday 20 March Jaqueline Eliovson (mother) Bessie Behrman Basha Bat Yaacov............................... 7 Nissan / Friday 23 March   To make a donation for a birthday, an Aliyah, a Yahrzeit or anything else,  please click here.  Kiddush Options ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Friday night: Soup $75 | Basic $120 | Deluxe $200 Shabbos Day: Basic $350 Lunch $450-$1200    Dates available: Fri 23 March, Fri 13 April, Sat 14 April.    To arrange, just email office@nefesh.com.au

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Do Your Kids Know Your Secrets?

Friday Night with Guest Speaker NEW KABBALAH CLASS

Question of the Week: My kids get very excited about the Seder, but I find that the thing they are most excited about is the Afikoman. As soon as I break the middle matzah they start begging me to hide the larger part so they can find it. I always do, but sometimes it seems to distract from the rest of the Seder. Is the Afikoman supposed to be such a focus? What are we teaching our kids? Answer: The Seder night is not just a festive meal. It is the ultimate hands-on educational workshop. Every move we make at the Seder, every sentence and every tradition contains volumes of pedagogic wisdom and practical advice, as we pass over to our children the story of who we are and what we believe. The Afikoman is a prime example of this. At the beginning of the Seder, we take a matzah and break it in two. The smaller part is left exposed on the table, while the larger part we call the Afikoman and hide it away for the kids to find later on. This is not a distraction from the Seder, but its very essence. The Hebrew word 'matzah' is connected to the word 'mitzvah'. Matzah represents our good deeds. So the two parts of the matzah, the smaller part on the table and the bigger part hidden away, symbolise two types of good deeds, our public mitzvahs and our private mitzvahs. There is the good you do that everyone knows about, and then there are the good deeds you do away from the public eye. Whenever possible, it is better to do a mitzvah quietly. Our good deeds need not be flaunted. We should do good without seeking attention, without needing to be recognised and without asking for anything in return. The greatest acts of charity are anonymous, and the most altruistic kindness is one that no one will ever know about. There is nothing wrong with doing good in public. But the mitzvahs that you do in the open should be only a fraction of what you do when no one sees. That is a secret between you and G-d. But there are some people who need to know your secret. Your own children. They need to learn from you, so they need to be made aware of what you do when no one is looking. It is not showing off to tell your children about your private good deeds. It is educating them. If we hide our mitzvahs from our children they will not learn to be discreet about their mitzvahs. So indeed the big piece of matzah is hidden away, but the kids need to find it. It's great to be modest, but we can't expect children to learn if we don't show them who we really are. Be explicit and open with them, so one day they too will do good when no one is looking. Good Shabbos, Rabbi Moss Source: Imrei Noam (Dzikov) on the Haggadah To subscribe CLICK HERE or email rabbimoss@nefesh.com.au      Hi All, Presenting our new Mikva :-) just joking this is the elevator pit that has just been dug out. I always love to notice the different layers of earth as you are digging down into virgin soil. It's amazing how nature makes such neat layers and beautiful colours over time. Speak again next week and have a good weekend. Brent

SHABBOS SERVICES & COMMUNITY INFO ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ALL SERVICES AT NEFESH POP-UP  1 FRANCIS ST BONDI BEACH (OFF CAMPBELL PDE, BEHIND NOAH'S BACKPACKERS) SHABBOS SERVICES Friday, 9 March 2018 | 22 Adar 5778 Candle Lighting............ 7:04pm (Not before 6:07pm) Mincha........................ 6:15pm Shabbos Service.......... 6:30-7:20pm  Kids Program ........................................ 6:30pm Kiddush sponsored by the Meyer family in honour of Lucia's Bat Mitzvah this weekend- Mazel Tov! Lechaim for Leyat Reuben's birthday - Mazel tov!    Shabbos Day, 10 March 2018 | 23 Adar 5778 In depth parsha class ............ 9:00am Shabbos Service................. 10:00am-12:20pm Kids Program .................... 10:30am Kiddush sponsored by Richard Skimin in honour of his Bar Mitzvah anniversary- Mazal Tov!     Mincha followed by Seudah Shlishis ............ 7:00pm Shiur by Rabbi Moss............................... .. 7:30pm Shabbos ends........................................... 7:58pm Followed by Havdalah   WEEKDAY SERVICES Sunday ................................................ 8:00am Monday-Friday....................................... 7:00am Latest Shema this week.......................... 9:55am   HAPPY BIRTHDAY Jojo Reuben............. 27 Adar / Wednesday 14 March Felix Gold................ 29 Adar / Friday 16 March Noach Kessel........... 29 Adar / Friday 16 March   HAPPY ANNIVERSARY Kevin & Valerie Smaller... 23 Adar/ Saturday 10 March Barry & Taryn Glick........... 24 Adar/ Sunday 11 March Allen & Jacqui Rosenberg. 24 Adar/ Sunday 11 March Sarah & Matt Michael....... 24 Adar/ Sunday 11 March Rabbi Aron & Nechama Dina Moss... 29 Adar/ Friday 16 March   LONG LIFE William Feuermann (father) Felix Feuermann, Zelig Ben Gitel HaLevi 27 Adar/ Wednesday 14 March Gavin Krawchuk (grandfather) Sam Krawchuk,  Shlomo ben Eliezer Mendel 27 Adar / Wednesday 14 March   To make a donation for a birthday, an Aliyah, a Yahrzeit or anything else,  please click here.  Kiddush Options ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Friday night: Soup $75 | Basic $120 | Deluxe $200 Shabbos Day: Basic $350 Lunch $450-$1200    Dates available: Sat 17 March, Fri 23 March, Fri 13 April, Sat 14 April.    To arrange, just email office@nefesh.com.au

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Do You Comb the Credits for Jewish Names?

Friday Night with Guest Speaker

Question of the Week: Why do the Jewish people seem to loom so large on the world stage? The numbers don't add up. Here's a nation less than 0.2% of the world's population, yet we command so much attention you'd think there were billions of us. That's like a room of two thousand people, with one puny guy sitting in the corner who everyone wants to talk to (or pick on).... Why do we always seem to be at the centre of history?   Answer:   Jews do strange things sometimes. One example is the wide-spread practice of "credit combing."   Many Jews have a habit of combing through the credits at the end of a movie, searching for Jewish names. At each discovery they beam with pride: Look! Assistant Gaffer.......Mo Goldstein! Catering Consultant........Beth Cohen!   This odd practice comes from a very deep place in the Jewish psyche. Jews share a spiritual bond with each other. If I meet a Jew anywhere in the world, there is an immediate connection, a kinship, a sense of oneness. We are like one big family, and even closer than that.   When Jews are in the news, we each take it personally. When Israel is under attack, we feel the pain wherever we are. When a Jew wins a bronze medal in croquet, we all share the victory. And when we see a Jewish name in the credits, we get excited.   Maybe other nations do this too. But I don't think so. This profound sense of connection makes the Jewish nation unique among the peoples of the world.   This is the reason why statistics cannot apply to the Jewish people.  No Jew is merely an individual. We are a collective soul, a part of something bigger than ourselves. We may be a tiny blip on the census, but we don't work by the normal rules of demography. Our strength is not measured by our numbers, but by our unity.   The destiny of the Jewish people is to be a strong voice of goodness and morality among the family of nations. When we unite with our community and commit ourselves to the shared vision of our people, then we are a formidable presence. Not because we are one billion, but because we are one.   Good Shabbos, Rabbi Moss   To subscribe CLICK HERE or email rabbimoss@nefesh.com.au  How Many Soulmates Do We Have? Final class this Monday     This is me suspended from a temporary beam that is supporting the frame of the building. This one tonne beam will remain until we pour the concrete.

SHABBOS SERVICES & COMMUNITY INFO ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ALL SERVICES AT NEFESH POP-UP  1 FRANCIS ST BONDI BEACH (OFF CAMPBELL PDE, BEHIND NOAH'S BACKPACKERS)   SHABBOS SERVICES Friday, 2 March 2018 | 15 Adar 5778 Candle Lighting.......... 7:13pm (Not before 6:14pm) Mincha..................... 6:15pm Shabbos Service.................................. 6:30-7:20pm  Kids Program ...................................... 6:30pm Kiddush sponsored by Daniel Lazarus and Megan Kessler in honour of their recent engagement - Mazal Tov!   Shabbos Day, 3 March 2018 | 16 Adar 5778 In depth parsha class ...................... 9:00am Shabbos Service............................ 10:00am-12:20pm Kids Program ................................10:30am Kiddush/Lunch sponsored by Craig & Samantha Chappelow in honour of the birth and naming of their daughter Roxie Janice Abigail - Mazal Tov!   Mincha followed by Seudah Shlishis ............ 7:10pm Gematria and story by Rev Amzalak............ 7:35pm Shiur by Rabbi Moss.................................. 7:50pm Shabbos ends........................................... 8:07pm Followed by Havdalah   WEEKDAY SERVICES Sunday .................................................... 8:00am Monday-Friday........................................... 7:00am Latest Shema this week............................... 9:53am   HAPPY BIRTHDAY David Redelman............... 16 Adar/ Saturday 3 March Ruth Cromer..................... 17 Adar / Sunday 4 March Michael Lenn................... 18 Adar / Monday 5 March Jack Reuben..................... 18 Adar / Monday 5 March Russell Klein.................... 19 Adar / Tuesday 6 March Melanie Schwartz................ 22 Adar / Friday 9 March   HAPPY ANNIVERSARY Leah & David Dennes......... 17 Adar/ Sunday 4 March Danny & Romy Lessem......... 22 Adar/ Friday 9 March   LONG LIFE Paul Ereira (mother)Ida Ereira Ida Bas Mordechai............ 16 Adar/ Saturday 3 March Magda Schaffer (mother) Yittel bat Malka............... 21 Adar/ Thursday 8 March Michael Franks (father) Leopald Franks Ephraim ben Shlomo............ 22 Adar/ Friday 9 March   To make a donation for a birthday, an Aliyah, a Yahrzeit or anything else,  please click here.  Kiddush options: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Friday night: Soup $75 | Basic $120 | Deluxe $200 Shabbos Day: Basic $350 Lunch $450-$1200    Dates available: Sat 17 March, Fri 23 March, Sat 24 March, Fri 30 March, Sat 31 March.   To arrange, just email office@nefesh.com.au

Nefesh Shul, 54 Roscoe Street, Bondi Beach, NSW 2026 Australia SafeUnsubscribe™ shmuly77d@gmail.com Forward email | Update Profile | About our service provider Sent by rabbimoss@nefesh.com.au in collaboration with Try it free today