Shavuot Message 5771

B”H

Shavuot Message 5771



Dear CIKB and Friends,

The Holiday of Shavuot is upon us. Shavuot celebrates the giving of the Torah and Mitzvoth to the Jewish people and the world. 613 commandments in all, were given. 613 to the Jews, and 7 of those, to all the nations of the world. 10 of them where heard directly from G-d at Mt Sinai and are commonly called the Ten Commandments.

Our Sages taught us that the Torah existed even before creation and was studied and practiced by early generations on earth, what then is the achievement of Sinai?

The Talmud teaches that, though the Torah existed, it was in the heavens not earth. At Sinai the Torah was given to man on earth. Chassidic philosophy explains, how before Sinai the Torah, even when performed on earth, did not effect change in the physical to make it holy. After Sinai, however our actions on earth now have the power to elevate and transform the world and ourselves to holiness, when done in accord with Torah and Mitzvoth.

If I may, I would like to say by G-d giving the Torah to us as we are on earth, not heaven, He is telling us that each of us have the ability to live a Torah life. We need not be a Tzaddik; a perfect person, like an angel to serve G-d, even if we are a "Regular Jew" , “on the earth” we can and must serve G-d and bring holiness into our lives.

In others words, G-d is asking of us to use our abilities, not His ability or the abilities of others to live a Torah life. But to use our own level, in our “earth;, in our “Me” in serving Him. To bring this point home I wrote a poem:

Being Me

I may not be a Moses, who gave the world the Ten Commandments.
I may not be a Joshua, who made the walls of Jericho fall with a shofar blast.

I do not have the might of Samson, who tore Lions apart with his bare hands.
I do not have the key of rain as Elijah, who made it fall at will.

I am not yet a Rothschild, whose wealth can feed a city.
Neither do I have yet the genius of an Albert Einstein, who thought up the theory of relativity.

No Harry Houdini here, whose great escapes have yet to be explained.
Nor a Bob Dylan, whose songs still entertain.

The greatness of another is not being asked of me, The greatness that is asked of me, is to be
the greatness I can be. Who am I?.... I am me!

On this holiday it is a tradition for all Jews to go to the synagogue and hear the Ten Commandments ,which are read in the synagogue as part of the Holiday services. Please join us for the reading in our synagogue, ( see schedule attached) Let us join again in receiving the Torah this Shavuot with Joy and inwardness that leads to action.

And may we merit the coming of Moshiach soon who will teach us all Torah. Amen!

With blessing that we become all we can be and wishes for a healthy and productive summer.


Yitzchok Winner and Family