Shalom Everyone, Pesach is coming fast and I hope all of your prep is going smoothly. Remember, Pesach is a time for celebrating freedom and not feeling like slaves. The cleaning process should NOT be arduous. Make sure you are focussing on what freedom looks like in your life:
Topics Covered Include: 1. Disclaimer (takes place at 2:48) 2. What is Chametz (bread)? 3. Selling Chametz 4. Nullifying Chametz 5. Three Foundational Principles of Kashrut (Kosher Laws): Taste, Mixtures, Heat 6. Cleaning For Pesach 7. What I Didn't Cover (It really gets started at around the 7:10 mark if you want to avoid the introductions.)
Some exciting news and upcoming events for PESACH:
1. Starting on Pesach, the Shabbat and Holiday Nursery program will be back for kids 0-6. Please feel free to drop off your kids and/or grandkids after 10am in nursery room on the lower concourse.
2. My special Pesach class for BEBY NEXTgen, SWEETER THAN HONEY: Mysical Insights into the Passover Seder, is underway. It is a DAILY 20-minute blast of the deep transformational mysteries of the Seder experience. Find the first 4 sessions herewhere I explore 1. The Purpose of Pesach, 2. Bread Brings Slavery/Matzah Make Us Free, 3. Order Out Of Chaos, 4. Secret Powers of the Seder Plate
3. Bryna and Tikka are back for Pre-Pesach songs and stories this Sunday at 3:30pm. Click the Flyer below to register.
4. BEBY NEXTgen is running a program with the Greening Committee of Beth Emeth, about coinciding of Earth Day and Pesach. An investment into our planet is an investment into our own personal freedom. This Sunday at 7:30pm. Click the flyer below to register.
4. At the end of April, Beth Emeth will be welcoming a guest Cantor from Israel, Yakov Zingboim. Watch for a NEXTgen opportunity to meet him.
There is so much happening at Beth Emeth. I look forward to seeing everyone back in shul soon!
SCROLL DOWN FOR MORE PROGRAMMING AND REGISTRATION INFORMATION!
Parshat Metzora - Safe Spaces
Last week the Torah told us about a sickness called Tza'ra'at that affected the skin. This week, the Torah goes on and we find out that Tza'ra'at can be transfered to a person's clothes, and even to the walls of their house!
Tza'ra'at is a sickness that has to do with the way a person acts towards other people. If a person is constantly speaking about others behind their backs, or making up stories about them, then that will be reflected in the way they behave in the world. Everything about that person - the way they talk, the way they move, the way they look, and even the way they smile - will show their sickness. Their clothes - the way they appear in the world - will also develop Tza'ra'at. Everywhere that person goes, their Tza'ra'at will be showing, and they won't be able to hide it.
The place where a person spends most of their time is at home. The house of a Metzora (a person who has Tza'ra'at) can also become a place that is unsafe for visitors. The moment a guest walks in, they will feel the negativity of the place. Too much negativity will cause the house to also get tza'ra'at. The Metzora's destructive and negative personality will "rub off" onto the walls of their house.
Even though there is no Tza'ra'at today, all of the same consquences exist. The way we act and speak will influence the way we appear, the way we live, our general surroundings and the way other people feel about us. If we are truly warm and welcoming to others, they will know that about us the moment they meet us.
We all need to make sure that we create a world full of safe spaces. The only way to do that is to create a positive atmosphere for others to feel welcome. The more positivity and constructive behaviour, the more we will build and construct a world full of positivity and peace.
Discussion Questions:
1. Have you ever met someone and immediately felt like they were a warm and welcoming person? What about them made you feel that way?
2. What are two ways to be welcoming and kind to others?
3. How do you think it feels to live in a house with Tza'ra'at?
4. Where do you feel the safest in the world? Why do you think that is your "safe-space"?
Beth Emeth Bais Yehuda Synagogue 100 Elder Street Toronto, ON M3H 5G7
