I'm standing before the Kotel having just concluded saying Tehilim and davening Mincha. 

As Henya is still on the other side of the mechitza saying Tehilim - I have a few minutes to gather my thoughts. 

We've been here just over a week - although it's been so full-on it feels like a month!

We toured the fascinating excavations in the City of David, spent Shabbos in Hebron, prayed at Rachel's Tomb and overnighted near Masada. To get to these, and many other inspiring destinations, we drove on Israel's new and magnificent highway system, and frequently encountered its state of the art infrastructure and technological advances. 

We were uplifted by the icons of Israel's past and blown away by the technological achievements of her present and future. 

To experience Israel as we have is to straddle the past and future, to bridge the holy and the secular, to feel the body and soul of our people united as one. 

It is to be thoroughly Jewish and thoroughly Modern at one and the same time. 

Israelis of course experience all the difficulties of the human condition as do people everywhere - and then some, courtesy of her belligerent neighbours. But for those who want to - being simultaneously rooted Jewishly and Modernly is effortless. 

Back in Australia it's much more of a challenge. And those of us who, for whatever reason, are destined to live in Australia, must rise to it. 

And here's where our newest JLI course comes in. It's about being thoroughly Jewish and thoroughly Modern - wherever you are. And for us Aussies, it's a celebration of being both Jewish and Australian. 

To Be a Jew in the Free World" will provide a potent view of our past, present and future place in the world.

It's a really fascinating journey  -  I would be thrilled to have you join me on it!

To register or for more info please call Helen on 9371 7300 ext 4 or email  secretary@southhead.org

On behalf of the Rebbetzen and myself, I wish you all a Happy Purim Katan and a Good Shabbos.

Rabbi Benzion Milecki OAM

Friday Night Guest Speaker
Hanoch Budin

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Hanoch Budin is one of Israel's most decorated Paralympic swimmers and a well known celebrity from the Israeli TV reality show "Survivor".

He has five Gold medals in World & European Championships and 8 Paralympic medals (including two Gold!) 

As an injured soldier Hanoch found ZDVO Beit Halochem imperative for his rehabilitation. Hear this inspiring story in Shul tonight. 

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Brookie Reports

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What a great start to the new Term of Mummy and Me these past two weeks!

We've been having so much fun making all kinds of crafts in preparation for Purim and pretty soon we will be turning our attention to Pesach. 

So join us Thursday mornings from 10 - 11.30and give your child (or grandchild) a wonderful start to their Jewish education.

You can come week by week or register for the whole Term - whichever suits you best.

Our Program caters for little ones aged 18months to 31/2 years and provide a special time and place for you to spend quality time together in a warm Jewish environment.

Call me on 0404 055 643 or 9371 7300 ext 3 for more or visit the Mummy and Me homepage. Click here for all the info 

Looking forward to seeing you all in Shul and wishing you a Good Shabbos. 

Brookie and the Youth Crew

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Parasha Sheet
Ki Tisa

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Q. Our Parasha this week speaks about Moshe’s brother Aharon. The Great Torah commentators say about Aharon and his students, "..be like the students of Aharon - loving peace and pursuing peace, loving your fellow creatures, and drawing them close to the Torah." What can we learn from this?

A. Two lessons are contained in this statement. First, the use of the unusual word ‘creatures’ rather than ‘people’ implies that we are to positively approach and love all people, even those corrupted by negative influences. Aharon treated all men with love, including those of questionable character for the simple reason that we are all Hashem’s creations. Although Aharon was the High Priest, he did not consider it beneath him to reach out to a fellow Jew, a mere ‘creature’ and bring him close to Torah. 

The second lesson concerns the way in which we are to approach others. Each of us has an obligation to bring our fellow Jews closer to a complete, perfect and uncompromised Torah. In doing so however, we need to be aware of being drawn away from the staunchness of our own position in Judaism. In approaching others, we also need to ensure that we do not compromise the Torah and Mitzvot. Of course if someone is ‘drowning’ we must come to his aid, yet we must also be careful that in the process of rescuing him, we do not ‘drown' ourselves. You should not allow your love for you fellow ‘creatures’ to cause you to manipulate the Torah to suit their needs. We need to bring them close to Torah, not bring the Torah close to them! Don’t water down the Torah to their level, but present the Torah in its pure form without compromise. 

The above lesson is based on the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. 

To learn all about the Parasha, download our Parasha sheet! 

Please share our Parasha sheet around your Shabbat table and let your family and friends explore the Parasha of the week together with you. 

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Communal News

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