Talk on Kabbalah draws the faithful, the curious

A sellout crowd of 115 hears about practical uses in modern life.

A lecture about Kabbalah, the ancient form of Jewish mysticism, drew an overflow crowd to the Chabad Jewish Center on Monday.

Among them were longtime Kabbalah students, as well as the merely curious, people who wanted to learn more about the movement that has gained a controversial footing in pop culture.

“The Kabbalah movement is not necessarily one that is discussed or talked about in the Jewish religion, but with all the press it has been getting… I was just curious. I really wanted to find out about this segment of Judaism, which I knew little about,” said Barry M. Alpert, a member of Temple B’nai Israel in Clearwater.

Jewish scholar is in city to discuss book on Tanya

Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz has written 60 books, established schools in Israel and the former Soviet Union, received the Israel Prize — that nation’s highest honor — and been called by Time magazine a “once-in-a-millennium scholar.”

His last name most often is followed by “Edition of the Talmud,” his monumental project of translating and reinterpreting that collection of early authoritative writings that form the basis of Judaism. He has written about Kabbalah (“The Thirteen Petalled Rose”), zoology and theology.

He also is leader of Israel’s recently reconstituted Sanhedrin, or Jewish legal tribunal, only the second of its kind in the past 1,600 years.

UPDATE: Bandits rob Brooklyn post office

Three armed bandits stormed into a Crown Heights post office just before dawn Tuesday, forcing workers to the ground, then running off with at least several thousand dollars, according to the U.S. Postal Service.

As the suspects fled the James E. Davis Post Office, they slammed an incoming employee to the ground, but she suffered only a minor shoulder injury, officials said. The facility, closed Tuesday as officials investigated the crime scene, is scheduled to be open Wednesday.

The 5:40 a.m. robbery comes nearly a year after the Foch Boulevard post office in South Ozone Park was robbed.

Australian Millionaire Visits ‘Campus Chamesh

The Jewish Australian millionaire, Reb Nosson Werdiger, visited the Campus Chamesh Beis Rivkah Complex last week in Crown Heights. The philanthropist of Melbourne is considered one of the richest Australians and he his known to support Chabad institutes in Melbourne and in other locations. Werdiger and his wife, who participated in the festive dinner of Campus Chamesh in the Hilton Hotel were greatly impressed with the wide array of guests and resolved to visit the place. “You are very privileged to get your education at Beis Rivkah”, he told the girls in his address.

The Werdigers were greeted by Rabbi Avrohom Shemtov, chairman of the executive committee of Aguach and administrators of Beis Rivkah, Rabbi Lime Minkowitz and Rabbi Benji Stock and were deeply impressed with the comprehensive efforts exerted by the dedicated staff. The visitors were was happy to recognize teachers who had formerly been on a shlichus mission to Melbourne and would be regular visitors at their home. At a shared meal, a suggestion was made to dedicate a section of the campus in the name of their parents, the renowned shliach, Rabbi Zalman Serebransky, a”h, one of the founders of Chabad in Australia. On their return route, the couple was hosted by their friend, U.S. ambassador to Italy who arranged an official reception for them in the embassy, which was also attended by Silvio Berlusconi, Prime Minister of Italy.

Swastikas Painted At Jewish Cemetery

BRISTOL, Conn. — Police are looking for the vandal or vandals who sprayed swastikas on headstones at a Jewish cemetery.

Police say the swastikas were discovered on three surfaces at the cemetery on Lake Avenue. Now they’re hoping someone will know who is responsible.

Even after efforts to clean one grave marker the image of a crudely drawn swastika remains.

Bristol police say they believe someone came to the small cemetery late Saturday night and left behind the graffiti.

Israel to ask U.S. Jewish communities to fund its foreign aid projects

Israel is trying to persuade Jewish federations and communities in the United States to finance Israeli aid programs in foreign countries, Haaretz has learned.

The first initiative of this sort was to be presented Tuesday at the United Jewish Communities (UJC) General Assembly taking place in Toronto.

Israel’s Consul General in New York, Arye Mekel, will propose to the UJC that it become an active partner in the Foreign Ministry’s projects in developing and poor countries.

From New Orleans to New Jersey:
A Torah Is Welcomed

As Eric Sion prepared to read from the Torah at his bar mitzvah, he could not have imagined that he would be reading from the last surviving scroll of a historic synagogue devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

Before Katrina was even a freakish up swell of moisture somewhere out in the Atlantic, when mention of New Orleans conjured up Mardi Gras madness instead of shocking Superdome heartbreak, an act of kindness and Jewish unity occurred that brought a lone Torah scroll’s survival, a symbol of hope where all else has been lost.

Chabad education center helps Jews break new ground

Ceremony marks community growth in Rockaway Twp.

All day on Sunday, Rabbi Asher Herson could not appear to sit still for even a moment.

The 42-year-old rabbi of the Chabad Center of Northwest New Jersey held hands with young children and danced around in circles to Jewish music. He shook hands with other men who gathered with him. He poured them drinks. He made his way through the crowd, stopping to say hello along the way to nearly everyone he saw.

“He’s very dynamic. He’s in constant motion,”said Alan Bader, a Rockaway Township resident and synagogue member.

Didan Notzach For Lubavitcher Owners Of Bungalows @ Mountain Lodge Estates

Some 64 Lubavitcher owners of summer bungalows @ Mountain Lodge Estates in Monticello, NY are breathing a sigh of relief after the village of Monticello unanimously passed a law banning and future expansion of the nearby landfill at a meeting on Monday night. In a show of force, 50 plus Lubavitchers made the 2 hour trip to attend the meeting.

In an exclusive interview with SNS contributing reporter Zalman Chein, who is also a member of the board and a bungalow owner, Chein said: “We won a major battle, but we didn’t win the war.” Chein singled out Effie Steigman and Anshil Dalfin for their efforts in ensuring the positive outcome.

Matisyahu on a Musical Mission

It’s rather easy to assert that being an atypical artist is nothing more than being a novelty —- a gimmick; something you take note of once, don’t quite understand, so return to the familiar. Taking the unusual and turning it into the standard is complicated, sometimes bordering on impossible.

It wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest that when Jimmy Kimmel invited Matisyahu on his program last year, the talk show host sought humour by having this religious Jewish man perform a combination of beat-box and reggae music.

And it wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest that Matisyahu expected to be scoffed at.

Chabad fights attacks with new security

Congregation plans to raise $30k to protect building

After two recent anti-Semitic attacks against Chabad-Lubavitch of the North Shore, the synagogue has begun a campaign to raise between $24,000 and $30,000 to upgrade its security. However, despite Chabad’s security fears, other synagogues in the area are not concerned that the attacks are part of a new surge in anti-Semitism in the Swampscott area.

The synagogue was vandalized days before Rosh Hashanah when vulgar graffiti was scrawled on interior walls. Two weeks later, a van belonging to Chabad was torched in the parking lot and deemed to be arson by the Swampscott Police Department. Both incidents are being investigated as a hate-crime by local and federal investigators. Police have not yet said whether there is a connection between the events but are continuing an investigation. A reward has been posted for any new information.

Confrontation diffused by his father!

In continuence to this story

The man seen in the center of the picture [red shirt] has received quite some attention from the local residents of Crown Heights. Driving around in an old beat up red convertible hassling people for money and giving out cigarettes to young kids, among other various accusations.

After Shomrim received numerous calls from resident complaining about this man, he was confronted and asked to leave the neighborhood, and when he didn’t comply Shomrim had taken action with the local police to have him forcefully removed. During the time it took for this to go trough he had managed to get into lots of fights with Bochurim outside 770 [up to 3 in one night] and other groups of people.

Tonight [at appx. 1:00am] Shomrim received yet another call to 770 complaining about him, and when they got there he refused to leave 770, so one of the members picked up his phone to his father, the man who had kicked his son out of his house, he was in utter shock that Shomrim had possessed this information on him, and spoke with his father who told him you are not welcome there so please just leave and go home to which he replied “what home?”, Shortly after he had left.

Tefillin Bank: Every Jew A Pair to Call His Own

Most banks give out complimentary pens. Generous banks give out toasters. But the Kushner International Tefillin Bank has given out 2,500 pairs of tefillin–for free–in the past six months. That was just the pilot phase of what will soon be the most ambitious tefillin campaign undertaken by Chabad or any organization in recorded Jewish history.

The Kushner International Tefillin Bank, a project of The Shul in Bal Harbour, FL, and the Shluchim Office of Merkos L’inyonei Chinuch, began distributing the prayer items last year. Within the first two months, the Tefillin Bank shipped phylacteries to three continents. The continent count is now up to six. A map on the future Tefillin Bank website divides the world into to green – have received tefillin, and red – no tefillin shipped there, yet. The world map turns greener by the day.