Shul Bulletin

• Shabbos Candle Lighting: 7:19 pm
• Last Time To Read Shema: 9:36 am
• Chassidus for Early Minyan: 8:45 am 
• Shiur Chassidus by Rabbi Raichik: 9:00 am
• Early Minyan Shacharis: 9:30 am
• Shacharis: 10:00 am
• NO Kol Yaakov Yehuda during the summer :(((
• Rabbi Raichik's Shiur in Pirkei Avos: 6:20 pm
• Mincha: 7:20 pm - Followed by Avos - Perek 6
• Shabbos Ends: 8:22 pm

• Rabbi & Dr. Mordechai Leaderman for the yahrtzeit Rabbi Mordechai Leaderman's father Reb Avrohom Volf ben Reb Yona Halevi ob"m. May the neshomo have an aliya. 
• Rabbi & Mrs. Reuven Nathanson in honor of their anniversary. May they have many more happy years together.
• Rabbi & Mrs. Yudi Schmukler in honor of their anniversary. May they have many more happy years together.
• Rabbi & Mrs. Yossi Schneerson in honor of their anniversary. May they have many more happy years together.
• Rabbi & Mrs. Velvel Tsikman in honor of their anniversary. May they have many more happy years together.

• Rabbi & Mrs. Sender Munitz for the yahrtzeit of Rabbi Sender Munitz’s father Reb Yisroel Meir ben Reb Alexsender Sende ob"m. May the neshomo have an aliya.

Yitty Wolf
Invites all women to her Shabbos Kalla
12 pm at Maayon Yisroel

6:30 at the home of Mrs. Ruchama Thaler
126 N Sycamore
Speaker: Mrs. Chana Rochel Schusterman

• Rabbi & Mrs. Notte Gross on the marriage of their son Mendel to Avigayil Deveroli. 
• The Nassy Family on the engagement Ephraim to Ellie Epstein.
• Rabbi & Mrs. Levi Raichik on the marriage of their daughter Sara to Moshe Dov Hershberg. 

Upcoming Birthdays

• Sholom DovBer Polityko - 8 Elul
• Moshe Stark - 8 Elul
• Ezra Kaplan - 12 Elul

Upcoming Anniversaries

• Rabbi & Mrs. Dovid Thaler - 7 Elul
• Rabbi & Mrs. Velvel Tsikman - 8 Elul
• Rabbi & Mrs. Yudi Schmukler - 9 Elul
• Rabbi & Mrs. Reuven Nathanson - 10 Elul
• Mr. & Mrs. David Kaufman - 10 Elul
• Rabbi & Mrs. Simcha Frankel - 11 Elul
• Rabbi & Mrs. Yossi Schneerson - 13 Elul

Upcoming Yahrtzeits

• Reb Avrohom Volf ben Reb Yona Halevi (Rabbi Mordechai Leaderman's father) - 12 Elul

Elul: 
Reviewing and Renewing Our Marriage Contract with Hashem
By Rabbi Shimon Raichik

This week’s parsha of Shoftim begins with the mitzvah of setting up judges and law enforcement in all the gates of our cities. Chassidus explains that also in our service of Hashem these are the 7 gates of the body. Everyone has 2 eyes, 2 ears, 2 nostrils and a mouth. We need the knowledge to best judge what to yes to and on what to say no. These are the judges that we place over our gates. Still, we may know a lot, and realize what is best but when it comes to implementation we lack resolve. We are reminded to have inner law enforcement; to arouse a strong will to follow through on our best decisions according to the Torah. Uniting this divide between what we know and how we act and getting the judges and law enforcement to work together as one is an essential lesson of the first pasuk of this week’s parsha.

This message is most timely because this week’s parsha falls in the month of Elul, a month of review and reconsideration of our knowledge and opinions that have (or have not) influenced our decisions and behavior in the past year. As we review, we make new resolutions to expand our knowledge base and add in all areas of Torah, avodah and gemilus chasadim. We also resolve to oversee the entire process and make sure that both the knowledge and the action come together and work well as one. This is how this first pasuk ends; “And they shall judge the people (with) Mishpat Tzedek, (righteous judgment)”. So too every one of us knows that our lives are respectable and honorable when we implement and integrate the Torah that we learn into our behavior throughout the year.

When it comes to each individual thought speech and action the Torah teaches us that every detail counts. So when the opportunity arises to hear a juicy piece of gossip, at that moment we are presented with an opportunity to realize that how we react right now makes all the difference. Hashem is waiting for a Jew to use his mouth for words of the Torah, davening and supporting each other with ahavas Yisroel. It’s a 24-hour a day, 7-day a week test. The yetzer hara tries it’s best to intervene. Its way of putting us down and getting us to be insensitive is familiar. It says; “You think everything you hear, see and speak makes a big difference? C’mon!”

I was amazed as a child when my father stood in shul davening late one Friday night after minyan with his fingers in his ears as the shul erupted in discussing a big fresh piece of lashon hara. Two people had an argument and one had hurt the other. My father didn’t go home but instead stayed in his place to complete the davening. That’s when I learned this lesson that every thought word and deed counts. Father went over to the accused person and implored him for his own well being to go back home. By doing this he most likely prevented a difficult confrontation. This lesson is fitting for Elul.

There is a story told about the Rebbe Rashab, that on one Simchas Torah night he was very late in joining hakafos. At one point he called over a certain businessman and asked him how he conducts his business. The man explained that he takes a loan and goes to the markets and buys product. He does business with the product throughout the year. Toward the end of the year he needs to buy new product but doesn’t have the capital. In order to build credit he begins to pay off his loan. When the bank sees that he’s paying his loan they extend his credit and he becomes eligible for a new loan. That’s what he does every year. After hearing the businessman’s description the Rebbe commented. This is the same way that we all prepare for Rosh Hashana. We are looking for a loan of brachos for the coming year of children, life and parnasah. When Elul arrives we realize that the end of the year is coming and we begin to “build up credit” by saying extra Tehillim, blowing shofar, increasing good deeds, giving tzedaka and reciting slichos. We continue this way, building credit, throughout Rosh Hashana, Eseres Yemei Teshuva and Yom Kippur right through Sukkos and Hoshana Rabba. On Simchas Torah we reach the sealing of the loan (the translation of the word loan in Hebrew is hakafa) at hakafos.   

Some say that it sounds difficult to do, that’s because we don’t start with everything, we begin with one small turn, one small change or improvement. From there we begin to make a cheshbon, an accounting of all the 7 gates; our eyes, our ears, our nose and our mouth. We take practical and concrete steps in the right direction. By reviewing and renewing on our end, symbolized in the words in the Elul acronym; Ani L’Dodi, we merit the renewal of the marriage contract with Hashem, and merit to have Hashem be with us “V’Dodi Li” throughout the year.

May we merit the consummation of everlasting marriage contract we have with Hashem with the geula ha’amitis v’hashleima.

A Good Shabbos

• Click here for this week's Lmaan Yishmeu publication.
• Click here for this week’s JEM “Here’s My Story”. 
• Click here for a list of our ongoing shiurim. 
• Click here to pay up all your building fund, kibud or yiskor pledges and outstanding membership. Thank you to all of our supporters!!
• SUNDAY: Hachnasas Sefer Torah to YOEC by the Raigorodsky Family. Click Here for more info. 

• Shabbos Candle Lighting: 7:27 pm
• Last Time To Read Shema: 9:34 am
• Chassidus for Early Minyan: 8:45 am 
• Shiur Chassidus by Rabbi Raichik: 9:00 am
• Early Minyan Shacharis: 9:30 am
• Shacharis: 10:00 am
• NO Kol Yaakov Yehuda during the summer :(((
• Rabbi Raichik's Shiur in Pirkei Avos: 6:25 pm
• Mincha: 7:25 pm - Followed by Avos - Perek 5
• Shabbos Ends: 8:30 pm

• Mr. & Mrs. Avrohom Aron Grunfeld for the yahrtzeit of Mr. Avrohom Aron Grunfeld’s father Reb Moshe Yaakov ben Reb Aron ob"m. May the neshomo have an aliya.
• Mr. & Mrs. Asher Bastomski in honor of their anniversary. May they have many more happy years together.
• Mr. & Mrs. Moshe Davidoff in honor of their anniversary. May they have many more happy years together.
• Mr. & Mrs. Ariel Haratz for the yahrtzeit of Mr. Ariel Haratz’s father Reb Eliezer ben Reb Yosef ob"m. May the neshomo have an aliya.
• Mr. & Mrs. David Kaufman in honor of their anniversary. May they have many more happy years together.
  Also, in honor of Mrs. Marci Kaufman’s birthday. May she have a shnas hatzlocho begashmiyus ubruchniyus.
  Also, in honor of the birth of their granddaughter Rosa Bracha. May they have much nachas from her and may she grow up to Torah, to Chupa and to Maasim Tovim.

• Rabbi & Mrs. Shmuel Raigorodsky in honor of their anniversary. May they have many more happy years together.
• Mr. & Mrs. Ari Kaufman in honor of the birth of their daughter Rosa Bracha. May they have much nachas from her and may she grow up to Torah, to Chupa and to Maasim Tovim.

6:30 at the home of Mrs. Chani Pinson
453 N Martel
Speaker: Mrs. Devora Kreiman