Archive for February, 2021

From The Rabbi – Parshat Yitro 5781

We were saddened to receive the news, early this past week, of the passing, in Israel, of Rabbi Moshe Cohen, my predecessor,who served our congregation and community for almost ten years. Rabbi Cohen was a kind and sincere man, who served as Rabbi and Shochet (ritual slaughterer) and Principal of the Cheder (Sunday school).

Rabbi Cohen endeared himself to many members of our community and he will be sadly missed.

May Hashem comfort his wife Judith, and children, Jack, Moriah and Waev and their families, among the mourners of Zion and Jeruslaem.

On a more happy note, we are thrilled and uplifted by the formal welcome, this Shabbat, of the restored Czech Torah, which was rescued from the Shoah, as we will read from this historic Torah, dating back to 1824, at the Brisbane Synagogue this Shabbat.

Please see the following moving YouTube video clip:  https://youtu.be/aUmW2fK1_8M which encapsulates the significance of this historic restoration, and we extend our sincere thanks to John and Steven Skala for funding the restoration. Kol Hakavod to Dr Michael Briner OAM for initiating and seeing this important project through to its successful completion, and to Michael and his wife Linda for generously sponsoring the special Kiddush tomorrow, in honour of this historic occasion.

On this auspicious occasion, we will acknowledge and pay tribute to the many benefactors, who have been responsible for financially supporting our Synagogue over its long history and, in particular over the past several years.

This week we read of the most significant and transformative event in world history namely, the revelation of Hashem on Mt Sinai and the transmission of the Ten Commandments to the Jewish nation.

It is interesting to note that the name of the Parsha (Torah portion) is Yitro, who was a former priest of Midyan, who experimented every form of idol worship of his time, before joining the Jewish people and declaring “Now I know that Hashem is greater than all  the other gods”. One would have thought that the Parsha containing the epic revelation at Mt Sinai would be named after something more closely associated with the Ten Commandments, not after a person with such an uncomplimentary background.

Among the explanations for the name Yitro being nominated for this Parsha, is to convey the important message that the Torah was given precisely to struggling human beings, like Yitro, who may have experienced a life of being distant from Hashem and His Torah, yet they are able make a conscious decision to transform themselves, and follow and more morally and spiritually enriching way of life. Who better than Yitro demonstrated this transformative power.

Please mark Purim celebrations in your calendar, on Thursday, February 25, at 6.30pm at the Shul. and Purim Day on Friday, February 26 at Sinai College at 10.30am. Purim Information to follow in the coming weeks.

May we merit to witness the ultimate transformation of all negativity and struggle, into openly revealed goodness and peace, with the revelation of Moshiach speedily!

Shabbat Shalom

Levi and Dvorah Jaffe