This has been a week of whiplash, and also a week that reminded us what our people are made of.
Rabbi Chaim spent 24 hours at the CYP Kinus in Austin, together with young shluchim from around the world, watching one of the fastest growing corners of our movement gather to strengthen each other for the work ahead. It was genuinely energizing to see that kind of growth and commitment in one room. Before and after, we were pulled between a funeral, two shivas for children who lost young parents far too soon, and a bris.
Life does not organize itself into neat categories, and this week proved it. A newborn entered the covenant of Avraham the same week families sat low to the ground processing a loss with no easy explanation. But even in the hardest moments, there was so much light. A new soul welcomed into our people. A room full of young shluchim building the future. Communities showing up for each other in shiva homes with real love.
This week is called Shabbos Chazon, the Shabbos before Tisha B'Av, when we read Parshas Devarim. The name comes from the opening word of the haftorah, Chazon Yeshayahu, Isaiah's vision. There's a well known teaching among the Chassidic Masters that on this Shabbos every Jew is shown a vision of the future Beis Hamikdash, even if we don't consciously perceive it. It's a vision worth holding onto, especially this week.
We are deep in the Nine Days now, and next week we arrive at Tisha B'Av itself, the day our sages tell us the Moshiach will be born. The same day marked for our deepest mourning is also the day associated with our greatest birth. That alone tells you everything about how our tradition sees darkness, never as the final word.
That's the lesson for life. We don't get to choose when joy and sorrow show up. We do get to choose to hold onto the vision anyway.
Good Shabbos,
Rabbi Chaim & Chanie
THE COHEN CORNER
People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.
Preparing the Jewish people to enter the Land of Israel, Moshe’s unusual farewell speech revisits some of the nation's most painful failures. Yet he does so in code, mentioning only the names of places that quietly allude to those episodes. Moshe wanted the people to reflect on their mistakes without reliving the embarrassment of having them publicly rehearsed. After forty years of leading, defending, and sacrificing for them, he knew that preserving their dignity would accomplish far more than recounting every detail of their shortcomings.
Have you ever had a manager tell you, "You're doing it wrong"? Your first instinct was probably not to improve, but to explain or defend yourself. Yet when we are correcting a spouse, guiding a child, or advising a friend, we often forget what it feels like to be on the receiving end. Moshe teaches that lasting influence comes not from exposing another person's faults, but from preserving their dignity. When people feel respected, they become far more motivated to change.
Have a fantastic Shabbos!
Rabbi Yosef, Chanale, Mushka & Mendel Cohen
UPCOMING EVENTS & CLASSES:
- Shabbos, July 18, 9:00 am - Likkutei Torah - Kabbala of the Parsha - Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi's Masterworks on the weekly Parsha.
- Sunday, July 19, 6:00 pm - Women’s Mahjong Social - Beginners welcome, come alone or bring a friend. RSVP at chabaduptown.org/mahjong
- Tuesday, July 21, 12:00 pm – Lunch & Learn: Hashem's Hidden Home. Discover the Beis Hamikdash that was never destroyed and the eternal sanctuary that still exists today. Lunch included. RSVP: chabaduptown.org/lunch
- Wednesday, July 22, 8:50 pm – Tisha B'Av Evening of Study & Reflection - Join us for the reading of Megillat Eicha as we commemorate the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash. Fast begins at 8:21 pm, Maariv at 8:48 pm followed by Eicha.
- Sunday, July 26, 5:00 pm - YJP White Party at the Lanes: White Out or Strike Out at Lucky Strike Houston, 925 Bunker Hill Rd. Bowling, drinks, eats and vibes! www.yjphouston.org/whiteout
- Shabbos Weekend, August 21-23 - Men’s Shabbos at the Ohel - Whether it’s your first visit or a return trip, this Shabbos is a chance to recharge, reflect, and connect with the Rebbe’s timeless vision during an inspiring weekend of Jewish growth and brotherhood.
- Sunday, August 23, 12:30 pm - FCYA Shofar Factory with Friends - Create it, blow it, own it! Join volunteers of YJP Houston with FCYA (Friendship Circle of Houston - Young Adults) to fabricate shofars together with Young Adults with special needs for a morning of fun, camaraderie and integration. $10 prepaid with coupon code “advance,” $18 at the door. RSVP at yjphouston.org/fcyashofar.
SHABBOS CHAZON PARSHAS DEVARIM
FRIDAY, JULY 17, MENACHEM AV 3
7:30 pm Mincha & Shabbat Services
8:05 pm Shabbos Candle Lighting
RSVP for Shabbat Dinner www.chabaduptown.org/shabbatdinner
SHABBOS, JULY 18, MENACHEM AV 4
9:00 am Chassidus
10:00 am Services
Shabbos Lunch Kiddush & Farbrengen
8:05 pm Mincha
Ethics of our Fathers, Chapter 2
9:02 pm Maariv, Havdalla and Shabbos ends
Living Torah
SUNDAY, JULY 19, MENACHEM AV 5
8:00 am Shacharis
MONDAY, JULY 20, MENACHEM AV 6
6:45 am Shacharis
WED,, EREV TISHA B'AV, AUG. 22, 8 MENACHEM AV
6:45 am Shacharis
1:28 pm Refrain from general Torah Study
Seudah Hamafsekes, egg dipped in ashes.
8:21 pm Fast Begins
Refrain from eating and drinking, bathing, wearing of leather footwear, and marital relations
8:48 pm Maariv
8:55 pm Eichah Reading (Lamentations)
THURS., TISHA B'AV, AUG. 23, 9 MENACHEM AV
Ritual wash (negel vasser) only to knuckles
6:45 am Shacharis with Torah Reading
No Tallis and Tefillin at Shacharis
7:45 am Kinos - Lamentations
1:26 pm Midday - Resume sitting normally
7:30 pm Mincha – Talis, Tefillin, Krias HaTorah
8:47 pm Maariv, Havdalla & Fast Ends
Ritual wash hands fully
Nine day mourning practices of no meat or wine continue through tomorrow Friday, 1:28 pm (halachic midday).
As this year the Tenth of Av falls on Friday, bathing, cutting hair, and laundry are allowed even before halachic midday in preparation for Shabbos.