ב"ה
CHUKAT - BALAK 5759
PARSHA SUMMARYChukat-Balak From the laws of the Red Heifer to the events on the border of Moab. 
INSIGHTThe Star Of Jacob "A star shall shoot forth from Jacob," this is how the prophecy of Balaam in this week’s Torah reading speaks about the coming of Mashiach. For Mashiach’s coming will introduce new light into our existence, brightening our horizons. Other sources in our Torah heritage explain that the star to which the verse refers is an analogy for every individual Jew. Last week's selection |
ESSAYPilgrim's Progress The June morning is perfumed with freshly mown grass in front of Cape Cod homes near the Queens-Nassau line. The lawns are dark green from being watered, and the sidewalks are dark from the water, too. The streets are wide, quiet. The sun beats down on the borderline of summer. The rebbe of Lubavitch sleeps in the Old Montefiore Cemetery that begins where the backyards end. (Jonathan Mark, The New York Jewish Week)  ESSAY "Still Waiting For The Messiah" It is difficult not to agree with Rabbi Faivish Vogel, the director of Lubavitch in Britain, when he declares the movement to be doing "extraordinarily well." (Geoffrey Paul, London Jewish Chronicle) 
CHILDRENA Ticket To Heaven Many of the townspeople often wondered how Reb Akiva was, and whether he had reached the Holy Land safely. For in those days it was a difficult and dangerous journey. Imagine their surprise when Reb Akiva suddenly returned to his native town! Hardly a year had gone by since he had left for the Holy Land, and here he was back again! |