Page 10-THE NEWS-October, 1988
LUBAVITCH OF N. C.
Thoughts From The
Lubavitcher Rebbe
Love Thy Fellow—And Prayer
By Rabbi Yossi Groner
It is customary to recite
each day, just prior to the
morning prayers: “I hereby ac
cept upon myself the positive
commandment of ‘Love thy
neighbor as thyself.’ ”
Two questions immediately
arise: First, what is the con
nection between this precept
and prayer, that makes it a fit
ting introduction to prayer?
Second, how can one possibly
be expected to love another
person just as he loves him
self?
Chassidic philosophy sees
all of Jewry as one complete
body, with each individual Jew
corresponding to one of its
organs. Some correspond to
the “head” (the rabbis and
scholars), others to the
“body,” and yet others to the
“feet.”
Anyone who has ever experi
enced the pain of an ingrown
toenail will be fully aware that
a pain even in the lowest part
of the body can impair the
functioning of the head by
causing an inability to concen
trate or think clearly. This
clearly illustrates that the
body, with all its organs and
limbs, is a complete integrated
system.
Likewise, within the “body”
of Jewry a malfunction in the
“feet” can seriously disturb
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Shofar Factory Held at Chabad House
the “head.” We find that the
greatest sages, the most re
fined of people, would say con
fession, a prayer expressing
remorse for such sins as steal
ing, commiting violence, etc.
For although they were far
removed from such misdeeds,
they felt a personal involve
ment with those who had
transgressed, and consequent
ly considered themselves af
fected by their sins.
In light of this explanation,
we may understand how one
can love another as oneself; for
the entire Jewish people are
one integrated “body”and
every Jew has a part of
himself within his fellow Jew.
Hence, in loving his fellow he
is really showing affection for
part of himself!
Likewise, someone with
hatred in his heart for another
is really hating and rejecting
a part of himself. He is, in a
sense, a maimed personality
and his prayers are unac
ceptable to G-d.
The connection between
Ahavat Yisroel: Love a Fellow
and prayer now becomes clear,
and this is the reason for the
custom to take upon oneself
the command of Ahavat
Yisroel every day before
prayer, so that we may stand
in prayer before the Almighty,
not disfigured by hatred, but
as a wholesome personality.
For many children in
Charlotte, this past Rosh
Hashanah service had an addi
tional significance. This was
due to the highly successful
Shofar Factory they attended
at the Chabad House.
Sounding the shofar is a cen
tral part of the holiday. It is
biblical in origin and has en
dured throughout the cen
turies of exile. Although it is
a primitive wind instrument
made from a ram’s horn, it is,
nonetheless, the instrument
with which we perform this
most important mitzvah.
On September 5, well over
100 chil^en gathered at the
Chabad House to leam the
skill of developing a usable
shofar out of a raw sheep horn.
Rabbi Binyomin Weiss, coor
dinator of the program, in
troduced the children to
several types of horns which
were mounted onto a waU.
Some were kosher for use, like
the ram’s horn, and some were
not, like the deer’s horn.
Although the deer is a kosher
animal. Rabbi Weiss explained
that the deer horn does not
have a hoUow space to aUow
for air flow which is vital to
produce sound of the shofar.
On display were different
stuffed homed animals.
After a quick quiz. Rabbi
Weiss and Boruch Schoenes
demonstrated how a shofar is
made; first by boiling the horn
in water, then removing its
marrow and sanding the horn
Children eagerly receive instructions from Rabbi Weiss.
Rabbi Weiss demonstrating shofar making to children. Bomch Schoenes
standing in background.
to smooth its surface. Rabbi
Weiss then cut off the narrow
tip, and Boruch proceeded to
di^ a hole wide enough to pro
duce a genuine shofar. After
the demonstration, the chil
dren tried their luck in produc
ing their very own shofar. The
chUdren beamed as they fin
ished their hard work.
Chanie Weiss helped the
children decorate their own
Rosh Hashanah honey bowl
with the words of “L’shana
Tova Umsukah,” which trans
lates to “A Good Sweet Year.”
On the first night of Rosh
Hashanah it is customary to
dip a slice of delicious apple in
honey to symbolize the begin-,
ning of a new sweet year.
New Kosher Vacation Spot Opens in South
A new vacation spot for the
Jewish traveler to the South
has been announced by Chabad-
Lubavitch of Virginia. It has
made available to the general
public their recently com
pleted retreat center in Rich
mond.
The architecturally unique
building is located on 16 acres
of land. It is luxurious and
elegant throughout, from the
beautifully landscaped grounds,
to the outdoor pool and patio
area, to the magnificent arched
shul. The facility features 16
motel style rooms with private
baths. There is a lovely dining
room and large meat kitchen.
A complete Shabbas pack
age is available which includes
aU meals, minyonim, shiurim
for men and women, Mesibos
Shabbas party for children
and separate swinmiing after
Shabbas in the well-lighted
pool area.
During the week, prepared
dinners are available for sale
and it goes without saying
that the strictest kashrut is
maintained.
The Richmond area is conve
nient to many attractions such
as King’s Dominion, Busch
Gardens, Virginia Beach,
Washington, D.C., Shenan
doah Mountains, Colonial
Williamsburg and many other
interesting sites.
A recent weekend saw
several families attending
from New York, New Jersey,
Washington Heights, Queens
and Lawrence. Most had
heard of it through an ad in a
New York Anglo-Jewish week
ly-
All of the guests were
unanimous in their comments
that they enjoyed the weekend
“more than any other hotel we
ever stayed at.” They partic
ularly enjoyed the “heimishe,
warm and friendly atmos
phere” and were totally im
pressed with the beauty of the
facility.
For further information and
prices call (804)740-2000.
SINCE 1883, IT HAS BEEN OUR PRIVILEGE TO
SERVE THE JEWISH FAITH.
FUNERAL DIRECTORS
KJ
500 Providence Road
T. Earl Yarborough, Pres.
332-7133