The Brisbane Synagogue

Archive for January, 2024

We are currently travelling down to Sydney for a family Simcha – celebration, and extend our thanks to Yossi White for his kind assistance in leading the services.

Although we do not usually attend the cinema, this past week we went to see “One Life’, and it moved us deeply. Among the many important lessons to be drawn from this powerful movie is the idea that, with determination and resolve, there is much that we can and must all do to improve the lives of others, and the good that we do does not necessarily need to be openly publicized. The sole motivation of the hero for the story, Sir Winton, for have story told publicly, was to inspire others to take an active role in standing up to positively influence the lives of others. This important message applies also to the positive impact we can all have on the spiritual lives of others too, as this is what keeps us alive as a nation, and constitutes our purpose in this world.

The above message is connected to the Parsha (Torah portion) this week, as we are introduced to the the first seven of the ten plagues, which were instrumental in bringing about the redemption of the Jewish people from ancient Egypt. Much has been discussed about why these specific punishments were brought upon Egypt, and the deeper message contained within them, as everything in the Torah serves as guidance to us in our daily lives.

The Hebrew word for Egypt – Mitzrayim comes from the word Meitzar, meaning confined or restricted. Among the insights we glean from the first two plagues, blood and frogs, which are associated with heat represented by blood, and cold associated with the frogs, as they are cold blooded amphibians, is that in order to remove the spiritual Egypt – the constraints from within us, it is important for us to ensure that our excitement and warmth are directed and focused on goodness and spirituality, and to apply coldness and apathy towards negativity and material indulgences.

May we all be blessed with material and spiritual success, and share good health, happiness and Simchot.

Kol Hakavod and thank you to everyone who is making a special effort to attend services, especially during the holiday period, when we often struggle to secure a Minyan. 

Shabbat Shalom and may we share good news.

Rabbi Levi & Dvorah Jaffe

It was a real nachas – pleasure to have been in Melbourne (actually Geelong) yesterday, to participate in the Chuppah – marriage ceremony of our dear Erez Tvina and Toni Gam, surrounded by so many of our Brisbane community members and, in particular, many of the contemporaries of Erez, who are now living in Melbourne, Sydney, and overseas. It was very special to catch up with them all and to witness their growing families. We wish Erez and Toni much Mazal and Brachah, and may we share many Simchot together in good health.

This week, as we begin the second book of the Torah, Shemot, the Exodus story, we are introduced to Moshe – Moses, and his first meeting with Hashem, with a description of the ‘Burning Bush’, which the Torah describes in the following words, “the (thorn) bush was burning, but was not being consumed”.

The Chassidic masters present the following spiritual and psychological symbolism behind this powerful imagery.

“Man is a tree of the field,” states the Torah. All humans are compared to trees and bushes, as we humans contain hidden roots, motives and drives buried beneath our conscious self. Just like trees and bushes, we also possess a personality that is visibly displayed, each in a different from and shape.

Some human beings can be compared to tall and splendorous trees, with strong trunks enveloped by branches, flowers and fruits. Others may be compared to bushes, humble plants, lacking the stature and majesty commanded by a tree. Some may even see themselves as thorn-bushes. Like a thorn, their struggles and conflicts are a source of constant irritation and frustration, as they never feel content and complete within themselves.

All people, all trees and bushes are aflame. Each person has a fire burning within him or her, yearning for meaning, wholesomeness, and love. Yet, for many human trees the longing flame of the soul is satisfied and ultimately quenched by their sense of spiritual accomplishment and success. These people feel content with their spiritual achievements; complacent in their relationship with G-d, satisfied with the meaning and love they find in their lives.

The human thorn-bushes, on the other hand, experience a different fate. The thorns within them never allow them to become content with who they are, and they dream for a life of truth that always seems elusive. Thus their yearning flames are never satisfied. Their thirsty palates never quenched. Since the ultimate peace they are searching for remains beyond them, and the ultimate sense of oneness eludes them, their internal void is never filled, leaving them humbled and thirsty, ablaze with a flame and yearning that is never sated.

With the sight Moses beheld in the wilderness, he was shown one of the fundamental truths of Judaism: More than anywhere else, G-d is present in the flame of the thorn-bush. The prerequisite to Moses’ assuming the role of the eternal teacher of the people of Israel was his discovery that the deepest truth of G-d is experienced in the very search and longing for Him. The moment one feels that “I have G-d,” he might have everything but G-d.

After having concluded the entire book of Bereshit, the first book of the Torah, with may of our brothers and sisters still remaining in captivity in Gaza, and the loss and injury of too many of our precious Chayalim, and many innocent civilians, as we begin the second book of Shemot – Exodus, we pray and demand of Hashem to please listen to our cries, as He had listened to the prayers for our ancestors in Egypt, and redeem our people, and all the world from all the pain and suffering, and to usher in our long-awaited redemption.

Kol Hakavod and thank you to everyone who is making a special effort to attend services, especially during the quieter holiday period, when we typically struggle to secure a Minyan. 

Shabbat Shalom and Chodesh Tov

Rabbi Levi & Dvorah Jaffe

Thank you Rabbi YY Jacobson for extracts of the above message