The Brisbane Synagogue

Archive for December, 2022

It was this week’s Parsha (Torah portion), Vayeitzei – ‘and he went out’, thirty three years ago when, as as a young Rabbinical Student, in 1989, ‘I went out ‘ from the strong and vibrant Jewish Community of Brooklyn, New York, down under to Sydney where, together with a group of friends, we were sent as student emissaries to study Torah and serve the community through various educational and social programs. It was during my time in Sydney that I drove up to Brisbane with a dear friend, the late Rabbi Shalom Eliovics OBM, to spend the High Holidays here, assisting with the services and conducting Jewish outreach activities.

The story of this Parsha, in which the young Yaakov – Jacob, leaves the comfortable environment of his spiritual and supportive hometown of Be’er Sheva, to the ancient Mesopotamian town of Charan, as a lone traveler into the unknown, where he eventually settles down, marries, builds a family, the foundation of the twelve tribes of Israel, and successfully navigates the various challenges along the way, always brings back nostalgic personal memories, and serves as an inspiration and important lesson to us all. When we ‘go out’ of our comfort zones and leave our familiar environment, into the world with a sense of mission and purpose, not only can we succeed, but we can grow exponentially, materially and spiritually.

While Queensland has already experienced a rainy week, we here in the Diaspora – outside of Israel, commence, this Sunday evening, to include the prayer for rain – veten tal umatar, in the section of the Amidah, in which we pray for sustenance, as we pray that Hashem send us Gishmey Brachah –  rain of blessing, so that each region will receive the rain it needs according to its particular requirements, and may they be protected from floods of devastation. Amen, kein yehi ratzon – Amen, so may it be His will!

Wishing you Shabbat Shalom, a peaceful and uplifting Shabbat

Levi Jaffe