Pesach IS coming!
Sell your chametz, see our Pesach schedule and register for one of our delightful seders!!!
Dear Friends,
WOW! What a week! Thank you to all of you joined us with close to 200 people at Purim Cafe at Aroma Classique! It was an amazing celebration on Sat. night, only finishing at 2:30 am! Some pics here...
The next morning (8am!) found a very motivated group for BLT, megillah reading and with Bagels, Lox and Tefillin!
Following that, we caught the tail end of the Chabad Hebrew School Purim party; then distributed the kids Mishloach Manos to their friends around town to make it just in time for the Megillah reading and Purim party at The Hampton at Post Oak with over 45 seniors and some of their family members; then on to the Galleria to bring some purim cheer to the Uptown fans scattered throughout the mall! (was that just one long-winded sentence?! well, so felt the day's journey as well). This was all while Chanie's brother also read the megillah for home bound seniors and then went up to College Station with the kids to read the megillah there and return for a family Purim feast and farbrengen until 2-3 am again! :). What. A. Purim.
See SOME some pictures here! (If you have more, please send them over - we were too busy to take proper pics! :))
So, now that we have recovered from Purim we are ready to keep going!
It was great to then meet the new couple Adam & Clara Chaya Epstein, son of Drs. Henry & Maxine Epstein. There will be a special kiddush this Shabbos in honor of the new couple. See below. Please join us!
Today had quite a spread in a great front page article in the Jewish Herald Voice "Joyfully bringing Jews to Judaism: Chabad movement in Houston area continues to expand" profiling Rabbi Shimon & Chiena Lazaroff, Chabad of Uptown (yes, that's us), Rabbi Mendel & Leah Blecher for Chabad of The Woodlands (it was great to get to host them while they found housing and waited for their truck) and Rabbi Yossi & Esty Zaklikofsky for Chabad of Pearland and The Shul of Bellaire... It is a great read! Check it out!
WARNING: Torah Thought Ahead.
In midst of the celebration of the Mishkan's final dedication, Aron son's Nadav and Avihu made some spiritual misconduct by inappropiately entering the Holy of Holies. Hashem sends a fire to consume them and they die. One can feel the pain and anguish of joy turned to tragedy with two (in English four) simple words of this week's parsha: "And Aaron was silent" (10:3). He accepted Hashem's word. The Midrash teaches that because Aaron was silent, he was rewarded that Hashem spoke exclusively to him (ordinarily Hashem spoke to Aaron only in conjunction with--or through--Moses).
Practical lesson: In youth, one learns to talk; in maturity, one learns to be silent. This is man's problem: that he learns to talk before he learns to be silent. (Rabbi Nachman of Breslav).
More at www.chabaduptown.org/parsha
This week is known as "Parshas Parah". Some maintain that the obligation to read / hear Parshas Parah is mandated by the Torah. What is it?
The Torah reading of Parah (Numbers 19) is added to the weekly reading. Parah details the laws of the "Red Heifer" and the process by which a person rendered ritually impure by contact with a dead body was purified. When the Holy Temple stood in Jerusalem, every Jew had to be in a state of ritual purity in time for the bringing of the Passover offering in the Temple. Today, though we're unable to fulfill the Temple-related rituals in practice, we fulfill them spiritually by studying their laws in the Torah. Thus, we study and read the section of Parah in preparation for the upcoming festival of Passover. Links: The Parah reading w commentary The Calf's Mother.
Ok, back to the regular stuff. So join us for another fantastic Shabbos and reading of Parshas Parah!!
Friday, March 25
Services at 7:30 pm
Candle Lighting at 7:18 pm | RSVP for dinner! www.chabaduptown.org/shabbatdinner
Shabbos, March 26
PrePrayer Kabbala Study at 9:00 am
Shacharis at 10:00 am
Followed by kiddush sponsored by Drs. Henery & Maxine Epstein in honor of their son recent marriage, Adam & Clara Chaya Epstein! Please join us! (Hopefully cholent pot will not fail this week, and we will hold on to our claim of being the best this side of the Mississippi... :))
Mincha at 7:20 pm
Maariv, Havdalla & Shabbos Ends at 8:12 pm
Living Torah
See y'all on Shabbos!!!
Rabbi Chaim & Chanie
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