Page 8-THE NEWS-June/July, 1988
LUBAVITCH OF N. C.
VtKjrOolli ■VWor.
Thoughts From The
Lubavitcher Rebbe
Lag B’omer Celebrated at Chabad House
A Fish Story
By Rabbi Yossi Groner
Rabbi Akivah was once asked
why he persisted in teaching
Torah publicly at a time when
such action was punishable by
death.
The sage gave the parable of
the fox who caUed out to the
fish, “Why don’t you come out
onto the land where you wiU be
safe from the fisherman, and
you and I can live together in
harmony?” Replied the fish:
“You foolish fox. If we are in
danger in the water, the source
of our life, how much more
would we be in danger on dry
land!”
Just as a Jew can not
change the fact of his Jewish
ness, neither can he change the
criterion of his existence.
What if one should stubborn
ly insist on removing the fish
from the water and placing
them on dry land? There are
no two ways about it, the fish
must soon die.
Yet this is most undemo
cratic; the fish itself declares
that it wants to live on land.
People £ilso protest loudly; it is
better, more convenient, to
keep fish out of tanks they
maintain. Unfortunately, all
their protestations are of no
avail. No sooner does the fish
leave its environment, it dies.
Whether the Jew likes it or
not, he and Judaism are inex
tricably interconnected. Being
democratically inclined, he
may conduct polls and news
paper surveys. Public opinion
may shout that he should,
must and ought to live “on dry
land” — devoid of the waters
of Torah, dry of the moisture
of mitzvoth observance.
We need no faith to refute
this opinion, the very nature of
the Jew refutes it.
Torah is “our life and the
length of our days.” True, a
day is twenty-four hours, no
more no less, but the day can
be lengthened or shortened ac
cording to its content. Eaten,
slept and gone for a walk? Was
that aU? — that day is a mere
“moment.” Studied Torah
with warmth and enthusiasm?
That day is “long;” each
minute worth another’s hour
— through immersion, like the
fish, in the life-giving waters of
Israel’s true environment.
Lubavitch Women’s Group Meets
a
Enjoying a good discussion.
Lubavitch Women of Char
lotte, a new group led by
Mariashi Groner and Chanie
Weiss, have been holding a
series of educational and social
gatherings. The purpose of
this group is to find compan
ionship and support in mat
ters of Jewish life.
The most recent meeting
was held on April 26 at the
home of Cheryl Spangenthal.
More than 25 women gathered
to discuss the holiday of
Shavuoth and the many cus
toms associated with it. The
meetings are informal and
allow for participants to ex
press thoughts and share ex
periences.
One of the high points of the
evening was sharing the most
wonderful events in life. Peo
ple were just amazed about
the good moments they have
and they talked about these
meaningful experiences. In ad
dition to all the discussion,
there was plenty of food.
Women sampled delicious
cheese blintzes, cheese cake
and other holiday delicacies.
According to Mariashi
Groner, “The women who par
ticipated created a very joyous
and positive feeling; it was
just good being there.”
Jewish Birthday Club Founded
As part of making people
aware through education,
Lubavitch has launched an im
portant campaign to celebrate
your Jewish birthday in Jew
ish style. A Jewish Birthday
Club has been founded in con
junction with Tzivos Hashem,
which is the largest Jewish
children organization in the
world. Each member of the
club will receive a free birth
day kit.
Lubavitch of North Carolina
wiU send out a colorful regis
tration form to aU Jewish
families in the Carolinas, to
enable them to receive the free
but important material.
The project was initiated by
the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi
Menachem M. Schneerson
Shlita, as a new project in
memory of his late wife the
Rebbetzin Chayah Mussia
Schneerson.
Many exciting Jewish holi
days come during springtime.
One which is sometimes ob
scured by Passover is the
significant day of Lag B’omer.
It is a day which commem
orates important events in
Jewish history and is cele
brated with joy and happiness.
One custom, in particular, is
to take to the outdoors especi
ally with children. This is to
symbolize the life of Rabbi
Shimon Bar Yochai who lived
in a cave for over twelve years
hiding from the Romans. Al
though he and his son were in
hiding, they continuously
studi^ Torah and lived on
carob and fresh weU water.
This year Lag B’omer came
on May 5 and it was cele
brated in grand fashion on the
grounds of the Chabad House.
A large banner welcomed over
250 participants.
Rabbi Binyomin Weiss and
wife Chanie coordinated the
event which began with special
games for the children. The
games, Jewish in nature, al
lowed the children to ex
perience the holiday in a fun
manner.
Since food and outdoors mix
well, everyone enjoyed a
cookout, consisting of kosher
hot dogs and beef burgers
complemented with such
items as baked beans, corn-
on-the cob, potato chips and
assorted condiments and
sodas. The cold sweet water
melon was a perfect dessert.
The main event came when
a large campfire was built in a
designated area, and aU the
adults and children sat around
the fire singing traditional
Jewish songs. Andy London
Participants enjoying warmth of the fire.
Eating and schmoozing.
All ages gathered to partake of the food.
led the' crowd with his guitar
to the tunes of “Hinei Ma
Tov” and “Uforatzto.” Rabbi
Yossi Groner explained the
significance of the day to the
children, and involved them in
his Talmudical stories about
Rabbi Akivah and Rabbi
Shimon Bar Yochai. As the
evening grew chiUy, the people
cuddled around the warm fire,
and sang some more.
Reflecting on the Past Preschool Year
Time passes very quickly
when you are having a good
time. This is certainly true at
the Gan Yelodim — the Luba
vitch Preschool, where every
day is a full day of fun and
learning, under the care of the
most qualified teachers.
“It is difficult to believe that
another school year has just
ended,” says Mariashi Groner,
administrator at Lubavitch.
“Reflecting on the past school
year, I think we had a super
year with super children.”
The last few months were in
deed busy ones as the children
learned all about spring and
its special holidays, and even
created wonder^ arts and
crafts projects.
The morning program, un
der the able guidance of Fern
Sanderson, concentrated on
outdoor life, studying plants
and insects. Their arts and
craft projects included making
caterpillars out of styrofoam
cups, forming insects out of
cotton and adding a creative
butterfly to the collection.
Even the twoyear-olds learned
about the spring and sunmier
months by mal^g their own
art projects with Debbie
Maslov, early childhood
teacher.
Hie children prepared them
selves for the Shavuoth holi
day with many creative pro-
Chanie Weiss leads children in lighting holiday candles.
jects. Chanie Weiss, Judaica
teacher, constructed a large
mountain with cotton clouds
and gold lightning rods. The
mountain had 49 steps leading
to the top, where there was a
large replica of the Tablets
containing the Ten Command
ments. Each day the children
counted the special Omer and
“climbed" one more step
towards the sununit where
they would receive the Torah.
This symbolized the journey
of the Israelites when iey left
Egypt and traveled the desert
in order to receive the Torah at
Mount Sinai The children also
constructed their own “Aron
Kodesh,” an ark which holds
the Torah. The children also
had the opportunity to hold a
real Torah and view it.
The afternoon program also
dealt with nature as it
develops during spring and
early summer. Teacher Elka
Azelson took the children to
the Nature Museum for nature
hikes and summer discovery.
Under Elka’s care, the chil
dren leam much about the
wwld around them in the most
relaxed and fun way. The chil
dren take regular trips to the
library, go for nature walks,
and participate in gymnastics
at the “J.”
By the end of the year, the
children have learned the
Alpha Bet, both English and
the Hebrew, and had so much
fun learning about life and all
its experiences that they are
eager to see what’s aheid for
them next year.