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                                  B"H
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                         L'CHAIM - ISSUE # 771
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                           Copyright (c) 2003
                 Lubavitch Youth Organization - L.Y.O.
                              Brooklyn, NY
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             THE WEEKLY PUBLICATION FOR EVERY JEWISH PERSON
   Dedicated to the memory of Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka Schneerson N.E.
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        May 30, 2003            Bamidbar          28 Iyyar, 5763
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                         The Thrill of Victory
                        by Dovid Y. B. Kaufmann

In our town we have a synagogue softball league. Two years ago our shul
fielded a team for the first time. We had a lot of fun. And last year -
well, let's just say adjustments and growing pains sometimes stretch
over a couple seasons.

But this year, so far, we're doing pretty well. Last week we played one
of the toughest teams in the league. All their players can power the
ball into the outfield - quite an accomplishment in softball. We led 6-2
at one point. They came back and tied the game, and in the last inning
went up two runs. We had a great comeback, got the bases loaded and won
on a three-run RBI double.

And our team erupted. We cheered, we celebrated, we shouted. Why not?
That had been "the team to beat" - and we beat them. We were gracious
winners and they were gracious losers. But oh, the exultation! The
enthusiasm! The joy and the triumph! The discussion, the replays, the
analysis continued afterwards, as well.

Life presents us with many moments of excitement. Some accomplishments
exhilarate us; for instance when we meet or exceed expectations, excel
while performing, or successfully transition through a rite of passage.
The degree of enthusiasm is often - but not always - related to the
transformational level of the event - a bar mitzva or a wedding elevates
to a higher scale of delight than getting an "A" on a test or finishing
a project.

Still, a competitive triumph generates a joy quite unique. The degree of
delight does not correspond to the significance of the victory. The
achievement justifies itself; success, being unqualified, produces
pride. And pride, being personal, cannot be proportional. At the moment
we won that game, we were so "into" the triumph, our elation equaled
that of World Series winners.

But in order to feel the triumph, we had to both want to win and involve
ourselves in the struggle to win; we had to be focused and dedicated. We
had to anticipate victory, envision it in our minds, before we could
realize it, sense it and experience it.

Shouldn't that desire, that eagerness, that hunger, that "will to win"
inform our Jewish living? In Tanya (the basic book of Chabad Chasidic
philosophy - see chapters twelve onward) that we are engaged in a
constant conflict with our animal souls - our urges and selfish desires.
There's a competition between the Divine soul and the animalistic. We
"win" every time we perform a mitzva (commandment), every time our
actions and words bring G-dliness into the world. Shouldn't we feel that
victory, exult in it?

On a deeper level, shouldn't we also anticipate the victory of the
Messianic Era? Shouldn't we imagine the triumphant feeling that will
pervade not just the Jewish people, but the whole world, with the coming
of Moshiach? As a team that has not yet won the "big game" must dedicate
itself completely to the task and must envision the triumph, so too must
we dedicate ourselves to preparing for the age of Moshiach, a time when
there will be no sickness or suffering, no poverty or illiteracy, when
the whole world will be suffused with goodness and G-dliness. And then,
when the "victory" comes - oh, the true triumph, the true exultation,
the true joy in G-dliness revealed.

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           LIVING WITH THE REBBE  -  THE WEEKLY TORAH PORTION
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The fourth book of the Torah, Bamidbar, which literally means "in the
wilderness," is known as the Book of Numbers. This is because the very
first commandment recorded there is that of conducting a census of the
Jewish people in the desert.

The Biblical commentator Rashi explains that G-d surely knew how many
Jews there were without needing to count them. But, He gave the
commandment to show His great love for the Jewish people.

How does counting express love? On the surface it would appear to imply
the opposite. When a census is taken, no distinction is made between a
simple person and a great one. A person's innate qualities and
characteristics are totally ignored, each individual being equal in the
count. The mighty and the humble are both counted as one.

Yet, it is with the very act of counting that the concept of love is
expressed. When a census is conducted, one does not consider the talents
and qualities of the people being counted. Rather, what is considered is
the innate, essential quality that is common to all of them. Each Jew is
worth precisely one because, from the point of view of the essential
quality, every Jew is exactly equal to another.

How do we measure our fellow man? We can judge him according to his
talents and abilities, his likes and dislikes, his social standing, or
his economic situation. According to these standards people are
genuinely different from one another, and each person is characterized
by the circumstances in which he finds himself. But these
characteristics are only temporary. The rich man will lose his standing
if he loses his wealth, and the wise man will be forgotten if there is
no further need for his knowledge.

But if we judge our fellow man not according to these external criteria,
but rather by that essential common quality which classifies him as a
"person" - then there is no difference between one and the other. Each
of us has the very same traits to the same degree.

Now we can begin to understand how the mitzva (command) to count the
Jews showed the love G-d has for them. We might err, and think that G-d
only loves the Jews because of their personality traits, or because they
accepted His Torah, or because of their good deeds. If that were so,
G-d's love for the Jews would be limited and dependent upon these
traits. What would happen if the Jews ceased to carry out the will of
G-d? Would G-d stop loving them?

When G-d gave the commandment to count the Jews, He was emphasizing that
His relationship with them is not based on external qualities. It is
based on the fact that each person has this essential Jewish quality
which is present and equal in all of us. It is as if G-d were saying:
"From My standpoint, I love all of you equally, and there is absolutely
no difference between you, even between the righteous and the sinner. I
love each of you to the same degree, as I love that inner Jewish quality
which each of you possesses to the same degree."

This concept further serves to prepare us, through unity and love of our
fellow Jew, for the giving of the Torah on Shavuot. This week's Torah
portion of Bamidbar reminds us of the true worth of each Jew and the
equality of each member of the Jewish Nation.

                   Adapted from the works of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

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                             SLICE OF LIFE
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                         Yearning and Learning

         From a speech by Sophie Tabak at this year's annual awards
     dinner of the National Committee for the Furtherance of Jewish
                                                         Education.

My journey to find the essence of traditional Judaism is a long one, but
can be summed up very easily!

I was raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, without any exposure to
traditional Judaism. However, I always knew that there was so much more
to Judaism than what had been taught to me; I just didn't know how to
find it.

It wasn't until a friend of mine asked me to move with her to Austin,
Texas that I was able to become involved in a vibrant Jewish experience;
I was exposed to more Judaism than ever before. Once I moved to Texas, I
began attending the University of Texas at Austin. I started going to
functions at Hillel and slowly moved to the Chabad House. I was so
thirsty for Jewish knowledge that it was hard to balance my college
studies with my Jewish yearning and learning. But it was not until my
last three months in Austin that I really started getting involved. My
appetite had been whetted with all the new things I had learned, though
I had not started observing any mitzvot (commandments).

Rabbi Yosef Levertov of the Chabad House strongly encouraged me to
attend a summer Torah study program called the Ivy League Torah Study
Program. He told me a little about it, but for the most part, I was
going on his recommendation that it would give me just what I needed.

The moment I arrived at the quaint campus in the Catskill Mountains, New
York, I knew that the six weeks I would be spending there would be a
positive experience. I was greeted by Mrs. Baila Hecht who directs the
women's division of the ILTSP and she made me feel comfortable
immediately.

Our studies began the very next day. The schedule was intense and the
classes were incredible. At Ivy League, I was able to immerse myself in
Torah study without any outside distractions. We had a very diverse
group of wonderful mentors and teachers.

Rabbi Dr. Alter BenTzion Metzger taxed our brains in his lectures on
science and Torah. Rabbi Dr. Immanual Schochet shocked us and put us on
the edge of our seats when he informed us that he did not believe in
G-d. Over the course of the next few lectures, though, he went on to
explain very rationally and methodically how he knows that, in fact,
there is a G-d. Mrs. Cipi Junik took us to places in the textual study
of Chumash that we never knew existed. Mrs. Hecht was always there to
answer our burning questions that arose after we had digested what we
had learned in class. There were other wonderful teachers, as well. But
it wasn't just what we learned from them during classes or lectures,
they were always willing to spend time after hours to continue
discussions and to encouraged deeper thinking and more questions.

At Ivy League, I formed what I think will be life-long friendships with
other women in the program. Through one of the women I even met my
husband Jonathan. To my knowledge, everyone who attended the program
turned their studies into action by adopting at least one mitzva into
their lives, such as prayer, Shabbat, or keeping kosher.

Ivy League was an extremely pivotal experience in my life. Not only did
it facilitate my becoming more observant, it enabled me to understand
why I am doing what I doing. Through the friends and connections I made
at the program, I have been able to continue learning and growing in
Judaism. I still keep in touch with several other students and teachers
from the program.

When I look back at how much I've grown as a person and Jewishly over
the past two years, I am astonished. It feels like so much more than two
years has gone by. The amount that learned at Ivy League is
unbelievable.

    For more information about this summer's Ivy League Torah Study
    Program call the Ivy League office at (718) 735-0200.

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                               WHAT'S NEW
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                        The Life of Rabbi Akiva

The Ohr Avner Resource Center in Moscow, in conjunction with the Ohr
Menachem School in Nikolayev, recently published a children's book about
the famous Sage Rabbi Akiva. Through beautiful illustrations and a
simple text "The Life of Rabbi Akiva" tells the story of this famous
Jewish scholar.



                            Thirty-One Cakes

Thirty-One Cakes teaches children about the important mitzva
(commandment) of "hashavat aveida"- returning lost items. Join Estee,
the little heroine, as she discovers that, "Someone with Hashavat Aveida
to do, is someone I'm certain will really come through." Bright colors,
exciting images and rhythmic text make reading the book aloud a joy for
reader and child alike! Written by Loren Hodes, illustrated by Harvey
Klineman, published by HaChai Publishing.

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                            THE REBBE WRITES
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                       14th of Elul, 5720 [1960]

Greeting and Blessing:

I received your letter of the 23rd of Menachem Av, which reached me with
some delay. You write about the problem of Parnosso [livelihood] , and
about the idea of starting a mail order business, about which you ask my
advice.

Generally speaking, economic and commercial conditions vary in different
countries, and, although here in the U.S.A. such a business is generally
considered a good approach, I do not know what the conditions are in
England for this kind of business. For the English as people are known
as conservatives, and may require more effective means of persuasion and
salesmanship than through the mail alone. On the other hand, it is very
possible that the post-war years, which have brought about many changes,
have also changed this attitude. Therefore, you ought to discuss the
matter with some friends who are familiar with the situation, and then
decide accordingly. And may G-d, Whose benevolent Providence extends to
everyone individually and Who is the Essence of Goodness, guide you in
the way that is best for you, your family, both materially and
spiritually.

You write about your having to participate in disputes in order to
defend Chassidus [Chassidic philosophy], etc. If this is so, then you
are in good company and on the right side, inasmuch as Chassidus is part
of the Torah, and defending Chassidus means defending the Torah. Those
who take a negative attitude towards Chassidus, seem to live in a bygone
era of some two centuries ago, when Chassidus first made its appearance,
was unknown and suspected. However, nowadays there can be no doubt as to
where Chassidus stands, and that all suspicion was unfounded, and that
Chassidus is one of the strongest foundations of the Jewish people.
Everyone acknowledges that it is one of the four aspects of the Torah,
which includes the four sections of "pardes" [i.e., the "orchard" of
Torah] (Pshat, Remez, Drush and Sod). The saintly Ari and his disciple
and successor, Rabbi Chaim Vital, were recognized and venerated not only
by the Old Rebbe [Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, known in Yiddish as the
Alter Rebbe], the founder of Chassidus, but also by the Wilna Gaon, who
emphasized in their holy writings that especially in the latter
generations of the Golus [exile] it is a Mitzvah [commandment] and
necessity to disseminate the teachings of the inner aspects of the
Torah. This is also emphasized in Tikkune Zohar, which is recognized by
Chassidim and non-chassidim alike, that the closer we approach the end
of the Golus, the greater is the necessity to disseminate these
fountains. Knowing that you are defending the truth, you can be sure
that eventually the truth will succeed.

May you carry on your good work in good health and a happy frame of
mind, and with complete trust in Divine Providence, as taught by the
Baal Shem Tov, whose 200th anniversary has been celebrated this year,
and who also emphasized joy and gladness of heart as the basic
ingredient of Divine service....

Cordially,

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                            RAMBAM THIS WEEK
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June 1, 2003 - Sivan 1, 5763

Prohibition 106

We are forbidden to exchange one animal that has been designated for a
sacrifice with another animal

This mitzva is based on the verse (Lev. 27:10) "He shall not exchange it
or transfer it." If a person has set aside an animal to be offered as a
sacrifice, that animal is considered special. Once it has been
designated as a sacrifice, it can only be used for that purpose. We are
not allowed to exchange or substitute another animal for one that has
been set aside to be sacrificed.

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                        A WORD FROM THE DIRECTOR
                         Rabbi Shmuel M. Butman
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Many are familiar with the Midrash describing how the Jewish people
designated their children as the guarantors of the Torah.

It is perhaps in this vein that the Rebbe stresses each year that all
Jewish children must be present in the synagoguel on Shavuot to hear the
reading of the Ten Commandments.

We bring the children so that they can become familiar with the "terms"
of the guarantee. The children's presence in shul actually confirms our
guarantee.

In Hebrew, the word guarantor is "Orev." Orev can also mean pleasant or
sweet. What sweeter guarantors can we have than our children, who can
help influence our own deeds to be pleasing.

One of many beautiful concepts in Judaism is that the Jewish soul can
comprehend long before the mind does. With this in mind, we see how
imperative it is to bring even babies to shul; though their minds might
not yet comprehend where they are, their souls certainly do.

Shavuot is next week, beginning Thursday evening June 5 and ending
Saturday night, June 7. Let us all bring our guarantors to hear the Ten
Commandments during the reading of the Torah on Friday, June 6.

To the guarantees and guarantors,

A very happy Shavuot

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                          THOUGHTS THAT COUNT
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And G-d spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai... (Num. 1:1)

G-d purposely chose a desert in which to give the Torah. He spoke to the
Jews in a place where everyone enjoyed free access, to show us that
every Jew has an equal obligation and share in the Torah.

                            (Bamidbar Rabba and Michilta B'Shalach)

                                *  *  *


Count the heads of the congregation of the children of Israel, by their
families, by their fathers' houses... (Num. 1:2)

In order to know the number of people in each tribe, first they were
counted according to their families and then each member of the family
was counted. This shows us the importance of the family. The existence
of the Jewish people is based on and dependant on the actions of each
family.

                                            (The Lubavitcher Rebbe)

                                *  *  *


Count (literally, "Raise") the heads of the congregation... (Num. 1:2).

When Moses was commanded to arrange a census of the Jewish people, the
word used was "se-oo" more literally meaning "raise." This indicates
that the counting was actually an elevation for the Jews. The census
brought about the resting of the Divine presence on the Jewish nation
because it indicated that each individual could affect the destiny of
the entire people. Similarly, Maimonides writes: "Each person should
consider the entire world as balanced between good and evil deeds. His
one action could sway the world to the side of good, bringing salvation
to the whole world."

                                                           (Shaloh)

                                *  *  *


Those who pitch [their tents] on the east are the standard of the camp
of Judah...the tribe of Issachar...and the tribe of Zevulun...(Num.
2:3-7)

The tribes of Judah, Issachar and Zevulun camped near Moses and Aaron.
For this reason, they all became great scholars. This shows us the
importance of choosing righteous neighbors.

                                                 (Rabbeinu Bechaye)

                                *  *  *


"Each person to his flag with signs for the house of their ancestors"
(2:2).

Every individual must ask himself, "When will my deeds reach the level
of those of my ancestors?" Our goal should be that our ancestors'
achievements will act as a "signpost" for our own actions.

                                                       (Sefat Emet)

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                            IT ONCE HAPPENED
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In the winter of the year 1592, the Maharal of Prague, Rabbi Yehuda
Lowe, was called to see Emperor Rudolph II. The famed Rabbi spent a long
time with the Emperor, but no one knew what it was all about. Many years
later, this story was told about the visit and a strange dream that the
Emperor had.

At the Emperor's court there were some ministers who were envious of the
great respect and honor that the famed Maharal was enjoying. Both Jews
and non-Jews knew that the Maharal was a holy man and they respected him
greatly. The courtiers of the Emperor planned to drive the Rabbi out of
Prague and send him and all his flock into exile. Knowing that the
Emperor would not hear of such a thing, they turned to the Empress, who
promised to induce the Emperor to carry out the plan.

In the evening, the Empress handed the papers containing the harsh
decree to her husband and asked him to sign them at once. At first, the
Emperor hesitated to sign the decree, but when his wife persisted in her
request, he said that he would "sleep on it," and sign the papers in the
morning.

That night, the Emperor had a strange dream...He was waging war, but was
captured and placed in prison, where he was told he would spend the rest
of his life.

For many years the Emperor remained in prison, living on bread and
water, with no one taking any interest in him.

One day an old Jew passed the prison. He was a venerable-looking man,
with kindly eyes. The Emperor called out to him. The old man stopped and
looked at the prisoner behind the bars.

"I am the Emperor," the prisoner exclaimed. "Don't you recognize me?"

"You have changed, Sire," the old man replied.

"I swear to you that I am the Emperor Rudolph. Please get me out of
here," the prisoner begged desperately.

The old man knocked at the prison wall with his cane, and immediately
there appeared a passage in the wall. The Emperor walked out and went
with the old man to his home.

"You cannot return to the palace in this state," the old man told him,
"for no one will recognize you. I will send for a barber and a tailor to
groom you and to prepare royal robes for you. In the meantime, lie down
and rest."

Then the old man placed two plates near the bed.

"What are these for?" the puzzled Emperor asked.

"One is for your nails and the other for your hair," the old man
replied.

"How can I ever thank you?" the Emperor asked, with tears of gratitude
rolling down his cheeks.

The Emperor awoke and wiped the tears from his cheeks. He sat up in bed
and saw two plates on a little table near his bed. His thoughts turned
to his strange dream. "Only the saintly Rabbi, Rabbi Lowe, could explain
to me the meaning of the dream," the Emperor thought. At that moment
there was a knock at the door. "You ordered the Royal Barber to report
this morning," the Chief Chamberlain said on entering.

"Request Chief Rabbi Lowe for an audience immediately!" the Emperor
called, and the puzzled Chamberlain withdrew.

As soon as the Maharal entered, the Emperor, who had never seen the
Rabbi before, recognized him as the old Jew he had seen in his dream.

"In my dream last night you did not recognize me," the Emperor said
reproachfully.

"You had changed, Sire," the Maharal answered.

"Tell me more about my dream."

"You went to bed with unkind thoughts last night. What did you have
under your pillow?"

The Emperor now remembered that the empress had placed the decree under
his pillow, to be ready for his signature first thing in the morning.

"I promise you that no harm will befall the Jews of Prague," Emperor
Rudolph said, and immediately tore up the papers containing the cruel
decree.

"You spared my brethren much suffering," the Maharal said, "but you have
spared yourself even greater pain."

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                            MOSHIACH MATTERS
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Once Moshiach comes, and serves as the leader of the entire Jewish
people, what will be the role of all the resurrected spiritual leaders
of the preceding ages who had successively headed their respective
generations as leader? It goes without saying that the coming of
Moshiach will not cause them to slip from their respective spiritual
rungs; on the contrary, his coming will upgrade the spiritual status of
all things and all people, including these leaders too. In evidence of
this: The Sages teach that in future time Moses will come to the Land of
Israel "at the head of the people, " i.e., at the head of the generation
of the wilderness.

                                 (The Rebbe, Parshat Pinchas, 5745)

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               END OF TEXT - L'CHAIM 771 - Bamidbar 5763
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