‘Snack for the Soul’

CLARKS SUMMIT, PA — Chabad’s Jewish Discovery Center posts weekly Torah readings online on YouTube

Since you can buy a car or meet up with old friends across the world online, it was only a matter of time before you could be able to experience your weekly ‘Soul Snack’ on the Internet as well.

Anytime of day, simply log onto www.jewishdiscoverycenter.org and watch the YouTube clips of a weekly ChabadCast, by Rabbi Benny Rapoport, director of Chabad’s Jewish Discovery Center, in Clarks Summit. YouTube is a video sharing web site.

The clips are made by Rabbi Rapoport and Abington Heights High School Senior Tyler Weinberger.

“I have the easy job,” Rapoport said, of his job to prepare the reading of the Torah beforehand, and speak into the camera. Weinberger on the other hand, films the cast, adds images, words and music to make them appealing to the viewer and then posts them online. Weinberger said the clips usually take about four hours to put together from the script. He said he plans on attending film school when he graduates from Abington Heights and hopes the ChabadCast will help serve as a sample of his capabilities.

“Live with the times,” Rapoport said, is the phrase that has kept him working on the project, which he had been considering for some time.

“We like to watch more than read, I would choose to watch something,” Rapoport said. He added that people make time to watch clips of their favorite shows online or a video of a song. Now there is an opportunity to watch a meaningful message from the Torah.

“We believe Torah is the eternal guide book. A book of instruction, not history,” Rapoport said of the Torah. “Timeless wisdom 3320 years ago exactly.” He added that the messages are relevant still today and can give the wisdom needed in your daily life. “In a nutshell (the ChabadCast is) an opportunity in five minutes to get a whole powerful living instruction.”

“The Torah is such a complex treasure chest of wisdom. There are layers and layers of meaningful in the original message to the deep core of what it is communicating.” Rapoport said.

He added that he feels through the ChabadCasts, it is up to him to portray that to people, and up to the viewer to take that and find the relevance for them in their life with that message. Rapoport added that he likes to think of the ChabadCasts as a way to offer the viewer, “Soul Nosh or a Soul Snack, to nourish the body and your soul and give you energy.”

With the clips online, there is an opportunity. “Someone from another country could watch the same clip and get a totally different message, as they need to use it in their life,” Rapoport said. “There is a message (in each clip that should) inspire you to do what you have to do,” he said. In addition to the weekly Torah message, upcoming Jewish holidays or current events are also discussed in the video clips.

Rapoport said that the casts are a, “Nice feature on a web site which is full of information and other resources… ”

In its third week, the site has generated not only local recognition, but people from around the country have called and asked if they could put a link on their web sites for the ChabadCast, said Rapoport

Rapoport would like to invite community participation in “Israel: The Land and the Spirit” courses offered in Clarks Summit, at the Jewish Discovery