The Trapped Soul of the Autistic Child

HT: Moriah

Carly Fleischmann has severe autism and is unable to speak a word. But thanks to years of expensive and intensive therapy, this 13-year-old has made a remarkable breakthrough.

Two years ago, working with pictures and symbols on a computer keyboard, she started typing and spelling out words. The computer became her voice.

"All of a sudden these words started to pour out of her, and it was an exciting moment because we didn't realize she had all these words," said speech pathologist Barbara Nash. "It was one of those moments in my career that I'll never forget." [More at ABC News]

Olympic Games 2012

The 2012 Olympic Games - July 27 to Aug 12 - are shaping up to be a monumental event.  Iran threatened to boycott the Games due to the official Logo, which they say spells the word ZION - and indeed it does spell the word Zion as you can see. Whether it is by Divine Providence as a hint to the Geula..... or some sinister plot, I do not know.

Judging by the preparations currently underway in London, with the Thames looking like a battlefront, the Olympic organisers are taking no chances in attempting to ensure that all goes well.

Terror on the Thames? Thankfully it's just an exercise as armed police and special forces prepare to protect the Olympics in Britain's biggest peacetime security operation. Read more at: Britain's Biggest Peacetime Security Operation

A History of the Games and The Lubavitcher Rebbe's Warning
compiled and written by Rabbi Elozor Reitchik

The Olympic Games began over 2700 years ago and was a religious event in honor of one of the many Greek gods.

- The original Olympic Games took place in Olympia, where temples for idolatry were situated. The modern-day Olympics, which resumed in the year 1896, are directly connected to the ancient games since they begin with the lighting of the Olympic Torch. The Torch is ignited by the sun's rays in the temple on Olympia, and from there it makes its way to the country where the Games are held.

- Even the fact that the Games take place every four years, as well as the Olympic symbol of five interlocking rings, are connected to idol worship. The five intertwined circles represent Venus, which traces a perfect pentacle across the sky every 8 years. To the ancient Greeks, Venus became the symbol of perfection and beauty, qualities prized in athletes' bodies. As a tribute to Venus, the Greeks used "her" 8-year cycle to organize their Olympic Games. The 4-year schedule follows Venus' half cycle.

Sourced in Idolatry

The Olympic Games took place in Munich, Germany in 1972. The Lubavitcher Rebbe referred to this in a sicha on Shabbos parshas Vayeishev, Shabbos Chanuka, 5733, and said that this was an inyan of avoda zara. Free translation follows:

The entire concept of the Olympic Games is connected with idol worship. These games began with the Greeks, who had a custom of going to a certain place and running there, jumping on stones and bones, dancing, fighting, and killing, etc. The modern version is the Olympic Games, but the source is idol worship.

In those days, the Greeks attained very high levels of wisdom, even the wisdom of mathematics and astronomy. After reaching very high levels of wisdom, they began to think -- what about faith?

There was a mountain near the city, and it wasn't a high mountain, but a mountain that goats and sheep, cows and oxen, and people too, could climb. This mountain wasn't in some forsaken place in the mountains of darkness, but right near the city. So the wise men of Greece declared that their two idols were there, that one had hit the other and killed him, and they did all sorts of evil things there. Including every possible bad trait, and even those you can only think of, and they said that these idols were their gods, and were omnipotent -- the name of this mountain was Olympia.

Then they decided, that once every few years they would gather there, and each one would take his cat, etc., with him, and one would strike another, and jump, and celebrate a holiday there.

All this was in the time of the Greeks. In recent years, this became the Olympic Games, which take place every four years. Therefore, the Olympic Games that take place in our generation are sourced in idol worship.

The Olympic Torch

On Chanuka 5732, a few months before the start of the Olympic Games in Munich, the Olympic Torch was carried through Eretz Yisrael on its way to Munich. The Rebbe spoke sharply about this and in a talk said on Shabbos parshas Chayei Sarah he said:

This was the custom of the Greeks 2000 years ago. Nothing remains of the Greeks themselves, aside from their books, and among the things written in their books, is the custom to take a torch and to run with it from place to place. Now they want to take this Greek custom and celebrate Chanuka with it!

The whole point of Chanuka is the Jews' victory over the Greeks, and as we see and all know, nothing remains of the Greeks aside from their language and their books. Now they want to dig up an ancient custom from the cemetery -- not from the "beis ha'chayim" ["place of the living," a jewish euphomism for a graveyard] but from the "beis ha'kevaros" ["place of graves"] -- and resurrect this Greek custom, the opposite of the whole point of Chanuka!

In 5748 (1988), before the bar mitzva of Eliyahu Schusterman, his father, Rabbi Gershon Schusterman of Los Angeles prepared a speech in which he derived Jewish lessons to be learned from the Olympic fire which burned on Mt. Olympia in Greece, from which the Olympic torch was lit to open the Olympic Games.

When he sent in the speech to the Rebbe, the Rebbe crossed it all out and wrote: as was publicized, the beginning of all this was actual idol worship.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe completely negated any Chabad activity in connection with the Olympic Games, since they are sourced in idol worship. And the Games today are connected and associated with the symbols of Greek idol worship.

The Massacre in Munich could have been Prevented

In a sicha given on Shabbos Chanuka 5733, in which the Rebbe explained the connection between the Olympic Games and avoda zara, the Rebbe also referred to the fact that a group of Israeli athletes were called "Maccabi," the opposite of what the Olympic Games are about:

The name "Maccabi" is for Yehuda Ha'Maccabi, who fought the Greeks and everything they stood for, and he won over the Greeks and killed them. How could a group called "Maccabi" participate in Olympic Games and dance before the Greeks of our time?

It's a general question about the whole issue -- what do they need this for, especially when doctors say that running is not healthy for the head and heart? The whole thing is illogical! What do they want from these men? They take away the time they could have used to sit and study wisdom.

The Rebbe also focused on the fact that the Games took place in Munich, Germany. He said that if Israel insisted on sending athletes to the Olympic Games, at least they should have announced that since the Games were taking place in Germany, which is responsible for the murder of millions of Jews, the Israeli athletes would not participate.

During the Olympic Games in Munich, eight "Black September" terrorists abducted 11 Israeli athletes. After killing two of them, they began negotiating. The terrorists and their captives were flown by helicopter to a nearby airfield. There, the West German police tried to overpower them and failed. The other 9 Israeli athletes were killed.

From Mincha Gedola to the Crack of Dawn

In my blog post about the sunken Costa Concordia, I speculated that.... if we count 266 days - [38 weeks] - which equals the nine months of a human pregnancy [chevlei Moshiach] - we end up on October 7/ 21 Tishrei - Hoshanna Rabba 5773

If you read that blog post, you will remember that the same number 266 was echo-ed by the amount the DOW fell when the Stock Market crashed on August 2nd 2011 [Mincha Gedola].

Seems that The Vilna Gaon predicted this a few hundred years ago:

...The Vilna Gaon on the Mechilta [Shmos 14:20] and the Midrash Talpiyos [Gog] say, that the Gog U'Magog war shall begin three hours before "Hanetz Hachama" [crack of dawn] on Hoshana Rabba, and shall last three hours only. This is why we say " הוֹשַׁעְנָא שָׁלֹש שָׁעוֹת " If we connect this to what the Zohar quoted above said that the war will be in the 73rd year of the century, it comes out that the war shall take place on Hoshana Rabba of 5773.

The date 773 equals "crack of dawn on Hoshana Rabba":

.תשע"ג בְּגִימַטְרִיָּא הָנֵץ הֹשַׁעְנָא רַבָּא

Read more at: Rav Fish Sod HaChashmal Gog U'Magog

Why do you need to control me?

"Let My People Go!"

But Can They Let Themselves Go?

By: Rabbi YY Jacobson

Three Boys

Three boys are in the schoolyard bragging how great their fathers are.

The first one says: "Well, my father runs the fastest. He can fire an arrow, and start to run, I tell you, he gets there before the arrow".

The second one says: "Ha! You think that's fast! My father is a hunter. He can shoot his gun and be there before the bullet".

The third one listens to the other two and shakes his head. He then says: "You two know nothing about fast. My father is a civil servant. He stops working at 4:30 and he is home by 3:45"!

The First Commandment

The Biblical account of the Jewish Exodus from Egypt has been one of the most inspiring stories for the oppressed, enslaved and downtrodden throughout history. From the American Revolution, to the slaves of the American South, to Martin Luther King’s Let Freedom Ring, the narrative of the Exodus provided countless peoples with the courage to hope for a better future, and to act on the dream.

Moses’ first visit to Pharaoh demanding liberty for his people only brought more misery to the Hebrew slaves; the Egyptian monarch increased their torture. The Hebrews now would not listen any longer to the promise of redemption. Now let us pay heed to this strange verse in the weekly portion, Vaeira:  ''So G-d spoke to Moses and to Aaron, and He commanded them to the children of Israel, and to Pharaoh the king of Egypt, to let the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt.'' [1]

G-d is charging Moses with two directives: Command the people of Israel and then command Pharaoh the king. However, the verse is ambiguous: What did G-d command Moses to instruct the people? The message for Pharaoh is clear: Let the children of Israel out of Egypt. But what is it that Moses is supposed to command the people themselves?

The Jerusalem Talmud [2] says something profoundly enigmatic: G-d instructed Moses to command to the Jewish people the laws of freeing slaves.

The Talmud is referring to a law recorded later in Exodus: [3] If a Jew sells himself as a slave, the owner must let him go after six years. He is forbidden to hold on to the slave for longer. This was the law Moses was to share with the Israelites while they were in Egyptian bondage.

The Basis for the Commentary

The Talmud bases this novel and seemingly unfounded interpretation on a fascinating narrative in the book of Jeremiah: [4]

''Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying: So says the Lord G-d of Israel; I made a covenant with your fathers on the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slaves, saying: "At the end of seven years you shall let go every man his brother Jew who has been sold to you, and when he has served you for six years you shall let him go free from you."

The question is, where do we find a covenant made by G-d with the Jewish people when they left Egypt to free their slaves? In a brilliant speculation, the Talmud suggests that this is the meaning of the above enigmatic verse, “G-d spoke to Moses and to Aaron, and He commanded them to the children of Israel, and to Pharaoh the king of Egypt, to let the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt.” The commandment to the children of Israel was to set free their slaves.

Yet this seems like a cruel joke. The Children of Israel at this point were crushed and tormented slaves themselves, subjugated by a genocidal despot and a tyrannical regime, enduring horrific torture. Yet at this point in time G-d wants Moses to command them about the laws relevant to the aristocrat, the feudal lord, the slave-owner?! [5]

What is more, as the Torah puts it: “G-d commanded them to the children of Israel, and to Pharaoh the king of Egypt to let the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt.” It seems like the two instructions—the one to the Israelites and the one to the Egyptian king—are linked. And furthermore: the commandment to the Israelites preceded the commandment to Pharaoh. But what does the commandment to the Jewish people that they free their slaves one day in the future have to do with the mission to Pharaoh to set the Hebrews free from bondage?

Who Is Free?

The answer to this question is profoundly simple and moving, and is vital to the understanding of liberty in the biblical imagination.

Before Pharaoh can liberate the Jewish slaves, they must be ready to become free. You can take a man out of slavery, but it may prove more challenging to take slavery out of a man. Externally, you may be free; internally you may still be enslaved.

What is the first and foremost symptom of bring free? That you learn to confer freedom on others.

The dictator, the control freak, or the abusive spouse or parent, does not know how give others freedom. He (or she) feels compelled to force others into the mold that he has created for them. Uncomfortable in his own skin, he is afraid that someone will overshadow him, expose his weaknesses, usurp his position or make him feel extra in this world. Outwardly he attempts to appear powerful, but inwardly his power is a symptom of inner misery and confinement.

Only when one learns to embrace others, not for whom he would like them to be, but for who they are, then can he begin to embrace himself, not for whom he wishes he was, but for who he is. When we free those around us, we are freeing ourselves. By accepting them, we learn to accept ourselves.

Who is powerful? He who empowers. Who is free? He who can free others. Who is a leader? He who creates other leaders.

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power,” Abraham Lincoln said. Ask yourself, do you know how to celebrate the soaring success of your loved ones and constituents? Do you encourage them to spread their wings and maximize their potentials? Can you allow others to shine?

Pharaoh may set you free physically. But former slaves can become present tyrants. People who were abused often become abusers themselves. It is what they know about life; it is the paradigm they were raised with. They grew up in abuse and slavery, so they continue the cycle with others. The first Mitzvah the Jews had to hear from Moses before even he can tell Pharaoh to let them go free was: One day you will be free. Remember that freedom is a gift; use it to free others.

To leave a comment at Rabbi Jacobson's site, or to read the footnotes, please click here

Miriam the Laundress - Yarzheit 24 Teves

Art: The Laundress by Greuze

Miriam, a worthy and modest woman, visited the house of Reb Shloimele, the Rebbe of Zevihl zt"l every week. After exchanging a few words of greeting, she would set to work doing the household laundry. Swiftly and reliably, she would soak, soap, scrub and rinse the clothes. She felt it was an honor to care for the garments of the Rebbe and the members of his household.

She was very pious and would fast frequently; all her adult life she fasted every Monday and Thursday, and every day of the month of Elul too. Prayers were constantly on her lips and her heart was always filled with a strong desire to fulfill Hashem's will.

There was always a tinge of sadness in her eyes though, even on joyous occasions, for she was childless. She never complained, neither did she speak very much about her situation. As the years passed, however, she decided to make use of her presence in the Rebbe's house and ask him to pray for her and bless her with offspring.

One day, when her work was finished, she stood in the doorway of the Rebbe's room and asked him to give her his blessing that she have a child. The Rebbe was immersed in his holy thoughts. After a few minutes he shook his head in the negative and told her, "I can't help you." She was stunned by this reply, but after a few moments the Rebbe added, "I give you my blessing that in your merit, others should merit having children . . ."

Miriam carried the Rebbe's promise with her for many years, until she passed away in 5724 [1964]. Her petiroh went all but unnoticed. She had no son to say Kaddish after her. On the stone over her grave the following words were inscribed, "Here lies the woman Miriam bas Mamah a'h. She passed away on the twenty-fourth of Teves 5724." Nobody knew about the Rebbe's promise to her.

Twenty-nine years later, in 5753 [1993], the time arrived for the promise to be kept. One of her neighbors described a dream in which Miriam had appeared to her and said: "I was the laundress in the house of the Admor, Reb Shloimele of Zevihl. I was childless and I asked him for a blessing and for salvation. The Rebbe said, `I can't help you but I give you my blessing that in your merit, others should merit having children . . .' The time has arrived for holy souls to descend to Olam Hazeh. I request that people go to my grave and pray for the elevation of my neshama. I promise barren women that they will have children. Here are the exact details of how to find the grave . . ."

The woman who had the dream told one of her friends about it and it was mentioned at a shiur for ladies in Yerushalayim. People followed the directions to the grave and found it easily, though it was just one among thousands of others on Har HaMenuchot.

On Sunday, the twenty-fourth of Teves 5753, the pathways of Har Hamenuchot were crowded with people. One after another, buses arrived and disgorged more and more visitors, all headed for the grave of Miriam bas Mamah a'h.

An avreich stood at the graveside emotionally reciting Kaddish in a tear-choked voice for the elevation of the soul of the childless laundress. "Yisgadeil veyiskadeish Shemei rabbo . . ." and the crowd responded "Amein!"

People were weeping as they called in unison: "Yehei . . .Shemei . . .rabbo . . .mevorach . . .le'olam . . .ule'olmei . . olmayo!"

There were many emotional dambursts that day; many long-pent- up tears were shed by the side of the grave that had suddenly become a source of hope for childless women.

The prayers and supplications for the soul of the deceased woman ascended Heavenward. There are thirty-two known cases of women who prayed at the graveside and had children that first year. The grave has since been renovated and enlarged. The candle flames that flicker and dance there bear witness to the power of a single righteous woman who served Hashem with all her might, in anonymity and through her love of Hashem and His people, merited becoming the bearer of their prayers to their Father in Heaven.

Some Interesting Links

1.   Rabbi Shmuley Boteach's new book Kosher Jesus has received a great deal of negative attention, notably from Chabad who are trying to dissociate themselves from it and him.... here's a few examples:

The Book "Enhances The Missionary Message"

Letter from Rabbi Chaim Rapoport #1

Letter from Rabbi Chaim Rapoport #2 : "and this is one of the biggest issues with the author of this book ....On one hand they want to break every boundary which is accepted in Judaism, and on the other hand they are interested in being the main speakers and ideologists of the same movement they break."

and here you can find Shmuley's Response

2.  Soul Mazal talks about the Venus Transit: is this the Star mentioned in the Zohar which will hang for 60 days? Real War with Gog and Magog: Computers and Money

3.  Bat Aliyah has a beautiful post about everyday life in Israel: Tandoori Salmon Photo Blog

4.  Geula Update from Rav Fish [there's a few of these, search Yaak's blog to find the rest of them, they're fascinating]

24 Teves - Yarzheit - The Alter Rebbe

The founder of Chabad Chassidism, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi - "the Alter Rebbe" [1745-1812], passed away on the eve of the 24th of Tevet, at approximately 10:30 pm, shortly after reciting the Havdalah prayer marking the end of the Shabbat. The Rebbe was in the village of Peyena, fleeing Napoleon's armies, which had swept through the Rebbe's hometown of Liadi three months earlier in their advance towards Moscow. He was in his 68th year at the time of his passing, and was succeeded by his son, Rabbi DovBer of Lubavitch.

The Alter Rebbe would often repeat in the name of the Baal Shem Tov that wealth can be Gan Eden (paradise) or it can be Gehenom (purgatory). The Alter Rebbe explained this saying as follows. If one uses his wealth for charitable purposes, then it is paradise. If one uses it for self-indulgence or holds it treasured away in order not to give charity, then it is purgatory.

The Mitteler Rebbe, when he was just 7 years old, asked his father "Why are wealthy people so haughty? Even those who are not born into wealth, yet when they become wealthy they change nature and become conceited."

The Alter Rebbe responded "God set up a system in which wealth inherently causes conceit. The chamber of wealth, in heaven, is found between Gan Eden and Gehenom. There are two doors to this chamber. One opens to Gan Eden and the other opens to Gehenom. Ze le'umas ze asa Elokim - God made one opposite the other.

Source: Chaim Dalfin: The Seven Chabad Lubavitch Rebbes

Rumors of Moshiach: Av 5772

Received via email*

Yosef Chaim Zakai Shlit"a from the Yeshiva for Mekubalim "Nachlas Yitzchak", said he heard three times from Rabbi Yitzchak Kaduri Zatza"l, that Moshiach will come in Av of 5772. 

I heard from someone who heard from Rabbi Yehudah Moalem Zatza"l, who also quoted Rav Kaduri Zatza"l referring to the same time. 

The words Av 5772 are the same letters as Tisha B'av, when Moshiach was born: .

אָב התשע"ב אוֹתִיּוֹת תִּשְׁעָה בְּאָב

And ט' בְּאָב equals David: . ט' בְּאָב בְּגִימַטְרִיָּא דָּוִד

Rabbi Meir Reich Shlit"a said that Tisha B'av of 5772 comes out on Shabbos. This connects to the Gemara Yerushalmi that says [Megilla 5B] "Rav Abba Bar Zavda said Rebbe wanted to cancel Tisha B'av [they shouldn't fast at all, that year] when it came out on Shabbos. He explained that since it is postponed, it shall be canceled completely.

*Note: This was originally published at Yeranen Yaakov