Jewish Calendar Shabbat, February 4, 2023 13 Shevat, 5783
Jewish Calendar Shabbat, February 4, 2023 13 Shevat, 5783
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Beshalach: Exodus 13:17 - 17:16 Rebbetzin
Shterna Sarah Schneersohn (1942) Wife of the fifth
Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Sholom DovBer Schneerson, and mother of the sixth
Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak, Rebbetzin Shterna
Sarah (1860-1942) lived through the upheavals of the first half of the 20th
century. She fled the advancing front of World War I from Lubavitch to
Rostov, where her husband passed away in 1920 at age 59. In 1927, she
witnessed the arrest of her son by Stalin's
henchmen the night he was taken away and sentenced to death, G-d forbid, for
his efforts to keep Judaism alive throughout the Soviet empire. After Rabbi
Yosef Yitzchak's release, the family resettled in Latvia and later, Poland;
in 1940, they survived the bombing of Warsaw, were rescued from Nazi-occupied
city, and emigrated to the United States. Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah passed away
in New York on the 13th of Shevat of 1942. On January 27, 1945,
the Russian army arrived in Auschwitz, the most infamous of the Nazi death
camps, and liberated some 7,000 survivors—those left behind as unfit to join
the evacuation "Death March." Link: This week's Torah
reading contains the "song at the sea" sung by the
Children of Israel upon their deliverance from the Egyptians, when the Red
Sea split to allow them to pass and then drowned their pursuers. Hence this
Shabbat is designated as Shabbat Shirah, "Shabbat of
song." Our sages tell us
that the birds in the sky joined our ancestors in their singing; for this
reason it is customary to put out food for the birds for this Shabbat (to
avoid the possibility of transgressing the laws of Shabbat, the food should
be put out before Shabbat). Links: Chumash Parshat Beshalach, 7th Portion (Exodus 17:1-17:16) Psalms Tanya Likutei Amarim, end of Chapter 23 Rambam 3 Chapters, 1 Chapter, Sefer Hamitzvot Hayom Yom Daily Thought Bread for the Soul We are spiritual
beings. Without nourishment for our souls, we are plagued by insatiable
cravings—like a body lacking essential nutrients. The spiritual is to
us like manna. It is our lifeline, yet we so much fear living from it. Most of us would
rather sink our teeth into a steak, or at least a potato—something that feels
like a part of our world—than to grapple with a rich but mystifying bread
from heaven. But we can't call
this life unless we reach beyond ourselves, beyond this world. For the human being,
inner peace and true life is achieved by first surrendering to the unknown. |
Halachic Times (Zmanim) Times for Jerusalem, Israel 5:12 PM Dawn (Alot
Hashachar): 5:45 PM Earliest Tallit
(Misheyakir): 6:31 PM Sunrise (Hanetz
Hachamah): 9:10 PM Latest Shema: 10:04 PM Latest Shacharit: 11:53 PM Midday (Chatzot
Hayom): 12:21 PM Earliest Mincha
(Mincha Gedolah): 3:04 PM Mincha Ketanah
(“Small Mincha”): 4:12 PM Plag Hamincha (“Half
of Mincha”): 5:16 PM Sunset (Shkiah): 5:53 PM Shabbat Ends: 11:52 PM Midnight (Chatzot
HaLailah): 54:22 min. Shaah Zmanit
(proportional hour): |
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