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                                  B"H
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                         L'CHAIM - ISSUE # 1114
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                           Copyright (c) 2010
                 Lubavitch Youth Organization - L.Y.O.
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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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        March 26, 2010            Tzav            11 Nisan, 5770
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                             Wax and a Wick

Arriving in New York in 1977, Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin came
to see the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

Begin explained, "I came here because I am en route to Washington to
meet President Jimmy Carter for the first time. So it is most natural
for me to want to seek the blessings of this great sage of the Jewish
people. Rabbi Schneerson is one of the paramount Jewish personalities of
our time. His status is unique among our people. So yes, certainly, his
blessings will strengthen me as I embark on a mission of acute
importance for our future."

Five days later, Begin sent his personal advisor, Yehuda Avner, to brief
the Rebbe on the White House talks.

Near the end of the three-hour audience, the conversation turned more
personal, and the Rebbe shared the following (as related by Mr. Avner):

"I will tell you what I try to do. Imagine you are looking in a cupboard
and I tell you to open it. You open the cupboard and you see inside a
candle.

"But I tell you, 'That is not a candle. That is a lump of wax with a
wick in it.'

"When do the wax and the wick become a candle? When you bring a flame to
the wick. Then the wax and the wick turn into a candle. That is to say,
they fulfill the purpose for which they were created.

"This is what I try to do. That each man and woman will fulfill the
purpose for which they were created.

"When you bring the flame to the wick, the wick is the soul, then it
brings to life the body which is the wax. And the body and the soul
fulfill the purpose for which they were created."

Mr. Avner asked, "Rebbe, have you lit my candle?"

"No," answered the Rebbe. "I have given you the match. Only you can
light your own candle."

For more on Mr. Avner and the Rebbe visit chabad.org

                                *  *  *


Someone once approached the Rebbe to ask for his help in promoting the
suggestion to remember the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust by
leaving an empty chair at the Passover Seder. (In the 70s a similar
suggestion was made to leave an empty chair to remember Jews in the
Soviet Union.)

The Rebbe disagreed with this suggestion. One of the reasons was that
the suggestion puts the focus on the negative. The Rebbe agreed that
there should be an extra chair at the Seder. But why, he asked, should
it be empty? Let it be filled by a person who, had he not received this
invitation, would not have attended a Seder at all!

The Rebbe was not just offering a different suggestion. He was showing
an entirely different approach to the issue. Instead of having our
thinking about the loss of six million Jews result in an empty chair, he
wanted that the emotion aroused be directed to a positive purpose.

Take a Jew who is alive today who doesn't even seek to take part in a
Pesach Seder - and make him feel part of the Jewish people. This
counteracts Hitler's efforts and demonstrates that nothing - neither
Pharaoh, nor Hitler, nor for that matter the openness of American
society - can break the connection that a Jew shares with his spiritual
heritage.

The person replied disappointedly that what the Rebbe was suggesting
would be very difficult - too difficult. Not everyone could go out and
pull in a Jew from the street.

The Rebbe responded by saying that first, although his suggestion was
harder, it would add to the joy of the holiday. And second, it's not as
difficult as it seems! G-d gives special powers and the bigger the
obstacles the greater are the powers that G-d bestows upon us.

     Adapted from The Chassidic Approach to Joy by Rabbi S. Majeski

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           LIVING WITH THE REBBE  -  THE WEEKLY TORAH PORTION
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Passover is not only the first of the three major Jewish festivals, but
the foundation of all of them. The Exodus from Egypt prepared the Jewish
people for receiving the Torah on Shavuot. Sukkot, too, is connected to
Passover, in that it commemorates the booths (sukkot) that the Children
of Israel inhabited in the wilderness.

The main theme of Passover is that it is "the season of our freedom,"
the time when the Jewish people went out of slavery and became an
independent nation. The Torah describes what happened as follows: "G-d
has ventured to go and take or Himself a nation from the midst of
another nation, by trials, by signs and by wonders... according to all
that the L-rd your G-d did for you in Egypt before your eyes." The keys
words are "a nation from the midst of another nation," which express the
true uniqueness of the event.

What does it mean that the Jews were "a nation in the midst of another
nation"? On the one hand it implies that the Children of Israel were
already a "people," in the sense that they spoke their own language,
lived in their own land (Goshen), and were careful to wear distinctive
Jewish dress. At the same time, they were subservient and dependent upon
the Egyptians.

Our Sages likened this situation to a fetus in its mother's womb. The
fetus is a separate entity from the mother, with its own head, hands,
legs and other limbs. Yet it is not a truly independent being, as it is
forced to go wherever the mother goes, derives its sustenance from
whatever she eats, etc. In truth, the fetus is completely dependent on
the mother.

This accurately describes the Jews' circumstances in Egypt: While
recognizable as a separate entity, they were completely dependent on the
Egyptians - so much so that it appeared as if they were also tainted by
Egyptian idolatry.

The "umbilical cord" was severed when the Jews were commanded to
slaughter and eat the Pascal lamb, an animal that the Egyptians
worshiped. The courage and self-sacrifice it took to do this was the
first step in the Jewish people's liberation from Egypt and its
mentality.

This contains an eternal lesson: A person may think that he is free and
independent because he has his own thoughts and desires. Upon
reflection, however, he may discover that he is connected by an
invisible "umbilical cord" to his surroundings and that in reality, he
is a slave to whatever non-Jewish mores and conventions happen to be in
vogue. Worse still is that he thinks that this is the true meaning of
"freedom."

The holiday of Passover endows us with the strength to attain true
freedom. The first step is to "slaughter" any "idols" that might be
worshiped even subconsciously, and rid oneself of dependency on "what
the world thinks." For the Jewish people are servants of G-d and no one
else!

                      Adapted from the Rebbe's Hagada, 5751 edition

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                             SLICE OF LIFE
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                        A Passover in Chiang Mei
                             by Levi Stein

It isn't often a person from West Bloomfield shares Passover Seder in
Thailand with someone from Sydney, Australia, but that's exactly what I
did this past year.

Rebecca Saidman Engel of Sydney, Australia, had gotten married a few
days before Passover and looked up the nearest Chabad House during her
travels in the city of Chiang Mei, Thailand.

"It was really quite incredible and weird to be in Thailand and to be in
a location where a Seder was taking place. I have never before had a
Seder with 350 people," Rebecca said.

The relaxed yet festive Seder made a positive impression on the newlywed
couple, who said they wouldn't hesitate to visit the nearest Chabad
House if they ever again found themselves away from home for a Jewish
holiday. "The non-judgmental atmosphere, which made everyone feel so
welcome, is a huge part of what made this holiday so special for us,"
Rebecca said.

Meeting the Saidman-Engels was one of many reasons that made all the
time and effort it took to get to Thailand worth it. Giving up spending
the holiday with my own family was difficult, but hearing positive
feedback about spending Passover with Chabad made it a bit easier.

This year, the Chabad emissaries in Chiang Mei, Rabbi Moshe and Elisheva
Haddad, hosted 350 guests for the first Seder and more than 60 for the
second Seder. I was offered the opportunity to come and help.

Getting there was an adventure in itself, with stopovers in Germany and
Singapore, and then finally arriving in Bangkok and starting the last
leg of our journey, a short flight north to the mountain resort town of
Chiang Mei. I left from New York at 4 p.m. on Sunday, we arrived at our
destination at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Though I arrived only a day before the festival, there was still plenty
of work left to do. One of the major tasks was preparing lettuce for
Seder. Jewish dietary laws forbid eating bugs, and Jewish tradition
dictates using lettuce, which can be infested with little white bugs.
Lettuce is one of the symbolic foods for the Passover Seder, so we had
to individually check more than 2,000 leaves of lettuce to make sure
they were bug-free.

Finally, after a long day of feverish preparations and a Seder that
lasted until 11:30 p.m., we thought we were ready to go to sleep. Then
another 20 people showed up who had needed a Seder, so we did it all
over again. Sleep didn't come until the early hours of the morning.

There were other adventures and unusual circumstances - some unique to
Jewish tradition, some unique to Thailand, and many due to the
intersection of cultures.

This past year, Passover and the Thai New Year overlapped, which meant
that Jews coming to and from the Chabad House had to navigate their way
through Mardi Gras-style festivities in the streets. Many of us were
doused as revelers happily sprayed each other with water guns during the
celebration.

One afternoon, while we were in Chiang Mei, the King of Thailand's son
decided to take a stroll in the area around the Chabad House. All cars,
trucks and tuk tuks - a type of bicycle - were towed away to clear the
streets. This happened during afternoon prayer service. When Chabad
guests went outside, they had to search for their bikes. No one
understood what had happened. Then it became clear that officials had
simply moved everything to the side to clear the area for the prince and
his entourage.

Unfortunately, not everything happening in Thailand during those days
was so festive or orderly. As I left during the intermediate days of
Passover, rioting in the capital city, Bangkok, intensified. Many
governments issued warnings to their citizens traveling in southeast
Asia. The Chabad Houses, meanwhile, were urging visitors to call home
and let their families know that they were safe and sound. It is one of
the many services Chabad in Thailand has grown accustomed to providing
for Jewish travelers.

    Approximately 2,200 people attended Passover celebrations
    coordinated by Chabad-Lubavitch of Thailand last year at the central
    Chabad House in Bangkok or centers serving the resort destinations
    of Chiang Mai, Koh Samui and Phuket. A total of 500 Rabbinical
    students are sent each year to conduct Passover seders in remote
    locations worldwide that are not (yet) served by full-time
    emissaries. Last year, Chabad-Lubavitch organized 4,340 Seders for
    Passover, with 500 of them in the former Soviet Union and nearly 500
    in Israel.

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                               WHAT'S NEW
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                            Hagadas to Have

The Kol Menachem Hagada adds layer upon layer of fresh insight to the
age-old celebration of our journey from slavery to freedom. It includes
a richly textured commentary which creatively blends traditional,
mystical and life-enhancing insights. Each step of the Seder explained
in simple language. www.kolmenachem.com

Known simply as the Rebbe's Hagada, this Hagada is unique for both its
comprehensiveness and extraordinarily concise and succinct style.
Featuring a commentary culled from the full array of our classical
sources as well as Kabala and Chasidic works, it complements these with
original insights and analytic comments by the Rebbe himself. The
Rebbe's Hagada is a critically acclaimed classic, and continues to
enlighten and inspire countless students with greater understanding and
appreciation of Pesach. kehotonline.com

The Hagada for Passover illustrated by renown Chasidic artist Zalman
Kleinman contains 50 illustrations inspired by Judaism`s rich oral
tradition and Midrashic stories associated with the Exodus from Egypt as
well as the text of the Hagada itself. Full size and mini edition
perfect for little hands. kehotonline.com

At Our Rebbe's Seder Table is culled from a variety of texts. The
commentary provides a new anthology of teachings and stories intended to
add depth and vitality to the Seder experience. The book contains enough
substance and selection to interest an experienced reader, and yet
communicates these truths in a manner that will attract a novice.
www.sichosinenglish.com

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                            THE REBBE WRITES
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              Free Translation of a Letter from the Rebbe

                         11 Nissan, 5731 [1971]

...The relation of Passover to the month of Spring has a deep
significance:

Passover, the Season of Our Liberation, brought about a complete change
from abject slavery to complete freedom, from utter darkness to
brilliant light. This is also the kind of change which takes place in
nature in the spring, when the earth awakens from its winter slumber and
is released from the chains and restraints of the cold winter, to sprout
and bloom until the stalks of grain begin to fill up.

Or, taking a detail: When from a seed after it had rotted away, there
sprouts a new, living and growing crop. In both cases - Passover and
spring - the change is not a gradual transition from one level to the
next, but an extraordinary change, bearing no relation to the previous
stage - a change that creates a new being.

It has often been emphasized that every detail in Torah (meaning
"instruction") conveys instruction and teaching; certainly a matter
connected with a festival, and a comprehensive festival such as
Passover, in particular.

One general instruction that may be derived from Passover, specifically
from the connection of Yetzias Mitzrayim [the Exodus from Egypt] with
the month of Spring, which is applicable to each and every Jew in his
daily life, is the following: Human life, in general, is divided into
two spheres: the personal life of the individual and his accomplishments
and contribution to the world. In both of these there is the spiritual
life and the physical life.

The task of the Jew is to "liberate" everything in the said spheres
"from bondage to freedom," that is to say, to take all things out of
their limitations and "elevate" them to spirituality, until every detail
of daily life is made into an instrument of service to G-d.

Even such things which apparently he cannot change - as, for example,
the fact that G-d had created man in a way that he must depend on food
and drink, etc. for survival -- he nevertheless has the power to
transform the physical necessity into a new and incomparably higher
thing: he eats for the purpose of being able to do good, to learn Torah
and fulfill mitzvoth [commandments], thus transforming the food into
energy to serve G-d. Moreover, in the very act of eating he serves G-d,
for it gives him an opportunity to make a blessing before eating, and
after, and so forth.

We find something akin to the above in regard to the month of Spring: At
first glance, there is nothing man can do about it. After all, the laws
of nature were established by G-d ever since He created heaven and earth
and subsequently ordained that "so long as the earth exists... the
seasons of cold and heat, and summer and winter, shall not cease."
Nevertheless, a Jew observes and watches for the month of Spring in
order to "make a Passover to G-d your G-d."

In other words, in the phenomenon of spring he perceives and discerns
G-d's immutable laws when nature releases its greatest powers -- that
"G-d your G-d, brought you out of Egypt," in a most supernatural way.

In all spheres of one's daily life a person encounters conditions or
situations that are "mitzrayim" - in the sense of restraints and
hindrances - which tend to inhibit and restrain the Jew from developing
in the fullest measure his true Jewish nature as a Torah-Jew.

The hindrances and limitations are both internal - inborn traits and
acquired habits; as well as external - the influences of the
environment. A Jew must free himself of these chains and direct his
efforts towards serving G-d.

If, on reflection, a person finds that spiritually he is still on a very
low level, so that he can hardly be expected to make a complete change
from slavery to freedom and from darkness to a great light - there is
also in such a case a clear message from the festival of Passover.

For, as has been noted, Yetzias Mitzrayim was a change from one extreme
to the other: beginning with abject bondage to the most depraved idol
worshippers, the Jews were not only liberated from both physical slavery
(hard labor) and spiritual slavery (idolatry), but soon afterward - on
the seventh day of Passover - they were able to declare, "This is my
G-d," as if pointing a finger; subsequently, they reached Mount Sinai,
heard G-d Himself proclaim "I am G-d your G-d," and received the whole
Torah, the Written as well as the Oral Torah -- an extraordinary
transformation from one extreme to the other.

May G-d help every Jew, man and woman, in the midst of all our people
Israel, to make full use of the powers which the Creator has given each
of them to overcome all difficulties and hindrances -- to achieve a
personal exodus from everything that is "mitzrayim," in order to attain
true freedom, by attaching oneself to G-d through His Torah and His
mitzvoth...

Including the mitzvah of remembering Yetzias Mitzrayim by day and by
night, and from individual redemption to the collective redemption of
the Jewish people as a whole, to merit the fulfillment of the prophecy,
"As in the days of your liberation from Egypt, I will show you wonders,"
at the coming of our righteous Moshiach, speedily indeed.

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                            WHAT'S IN A NAME
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MIRIAM was the greatest prophetess of the Jewish people. In her merit, a
well miraculously followed the Jewish people in the desert.  She was the
sister of Aaron and Moses.  Miriam's name hints at the condition of the
Jews' lives, made bitter-mar-by the slavery.

MOSHE (Moses), the greatest of all prophets, led the Jewish people from
Egyptian bondage to freedom. He was named Moshe, meaning "drawn out (of
the water)" by Pharaoh's daughter Batya, who saved him from the Nile.

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                        A WORD FROM THE DIRECTOR
                         Rabbi Shmuel M. Butman
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It is a Jewish custom to say daily the chapter of Psalms associated with
the number of one's years. Chasidim and followers of the Rebbe also
recite daily the Rebbe's chapter.

The 11th of Nissan (this year Friday, March 26) marks the Rebbe's 108th
birthday, and so, we begin reciting chapter 109.

Psalm 109 was composed by David when he was running from his enemies.
David curses with a bitter heart particularly those who acted as if they
were his supporters while secretly slandering him.

David wrote this Psalm not only to describe his own personal suffering
but also as a description of the Jewish people's suffering during the
time of exile.

The first verse begins: "For the choirmaster, by David a Psalm. G-d of
my praise, keep not silent." Some chapters of Psalms begin "Mizmor
L'David - a Psalm of David," while others begin "L'David Mizmor - by
David a Psalm." The Talmud explains that when David's name is mentioned
before the word "mizmor," this signifies that David was divinely
inspired first and then composed the Psalm. That this Psalm was composed
by David as he was running from his enemies, yet even at that time he
was divinely inspired, teaches us much about David's lofty spiritual
heights.

This Psalm ends with David professing his unswerving faith in G-d, even
in the darkest of times, "I will thank the L-rd exceedingly with my
mouth, and among the multitude, I will praise Him." David promises that
when G-d will save him, he will make sure to publicize that it is G-d
who saved him. He will not take credit or allow others to believe that
his salvation came through his own might or cunning.

And David is utterly certain that G-d will save him, for "He stands at
the right of the needy, to deliver him from the judges of his soul." May
we all, in these last moments of exile, have the same complete
confidence in G-d's salvation that David had!

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                          THOUGHTS THAT COUNT
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Command Aaron and his sons, saying, "This is the law of the burnt
offering..." (Lev. 6:2)

The great commentator Rashi noted that the word "command" also implies
"encourage." The Torah gives encouragement when there is a monetary loss
involved. People in general need strengthening and encouragement during
lean times. When it is hard to make a living people are apt to fall into
a depression, and their faith in G-d can be weakened.

                                                (Kiflayim L'toshia)

                                *  *  *


Another connection between "command" and "encourage": Whenever one is
commanded to do something, one needs more urging and spurring on to
actually do it. For as soon as G-d gives us a command, the adversary -
the evil inclination - tries its best to prevent us from fulfilling it.
That is why the rabbis said, "One who is commanded to do something, and
does it, is greater than one who is not commanded and does the same
thing." It is more difficult to follow a command because the evil
inclination tries to get in the way.

                                          (Rebbe Hershel of Cracow)

                                *  *  *


A perpetual fire shall be burning on the altar, it shall not go out
(Lev. 6:6)

A Jew must be careful to preserve the spark of his attachment to G-d
throughout the day, thus ensuring that the love he feels for the Creator
can be easily rekindled at any time. If, however, the spark is allowed
to cool off, the "fire" must be re-lit whenever he wishes to pray or
study Torah.

                                                (The Baal Shem Tov)

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                            IT ONCE HAPPENED
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                         by Rabbi Tuvia Bolton

Gershon Ber Jacobson was a well-known journalist, according to some he
was the journalist's journalist.  He wrote for several major newspapers
around the world, was fluent in many languages including French,
English, Yiddish, Russian, Georgian and Hebrew, had a fluent, often
stirring style, an eye for often uncomfortable detail, and an
unquenchable drive for often life-threatening scoops.

But in addition to all this, or perhaps we should say foremost, he was a
totally observant Jew and a devoted Chasid (follower) of the Lubavitcher
Rebbe.

And it saved his life at least once.

The scene was immediately after the Six-Day War. Israel had decimated
the combined armies of Egypt, Syria and the other Arab nations
surrounding them. An idea popped into the mind of Gershon Ber, who at
the time was the chief correspondent in New York for the Israeli
newspaper "Yediot Achronot" the biggest daily in Israel, to get a really
hot story.

He decided that the scoop of scoops would be to get into Egypt and get
an interview with none other than the Prime Minister himself, Gamal
Abdel Nasser!

Gershon Ber began getting the necessary papers, when he got a phone call
from another important personage from the "other side" of the coin -
Isser Harel, the head of the Mosad (the Israeli "secret service.")

"Jacobson are you insane?" he screamed, "Listen, we have information
that if you go through with this you'll never come back. They'll arrest
you as a spy and you'll never get out! And we won't be in a position to
help you! Do you understand? Don't go! And if you do we will take no
responsibility!"

Gershon Ber thanked Harel, hung up the phone and called the headquarters
of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. He described the entire scenario and asked the
Rebbe what to do. It wasn't long before he got a reply.

The Rebbe said he definitely should go but he should do the following
things: 1) Take several pairs of new Tefilin; 2) Take a new sh'chita
knife for the kosher slaughtering of birds; 3) Check into the best room
in the most expensive hotel; 4) Before leaving the United States write
short letters to all his friends and important acquaintances telling
them he is in Egypt and mail them as soon as he arrives in Egypt; 5) As
soon as he enters the hotel call all the foreign ambassadors living in
Egypt; 6) At the first opportunity visit the Jewish community there.

Gershon Ber did exactly what the Rebbe told him and a week or two later,
landed in Cairo. He told the driver to take him to the finest hotel and
on the way he stopped at the post office and mailed the letters he had
written.

Then he checked into his room and immediately set about calling all the
foreign representatives in Egypt as the Rebbe had instructed.

And the response was fantastic! In fact, one of the ambassadors was so
impressed (he claimed that in the 15 years he was in Egypt no one had
ever called him) he insisted on coming to see him and when he arrived
insisted on being Jacobson's personal driver!

"Very well!" he answered. "Then let's go visit the Jewish community
here." With the ambassador as his driver, they pulled up at the home of
the head of the Jewish community. Jacobson brought greetings from the
Rebbe and began asking journalistic questions; how was life in Egypt?
Was there anti-Semitism? Was anything affected by the Six Day War? etc.

The community leader answered that although there was not overt
anti-Semitism it was nevertheless very difficult for them to get around
and impossible for them to contact the outside world. For instance, what
they really needed were a few pairs of Tefilin because several had
become unfit for use, and a sh'chita knife for slaughtering chickens
because the one they had somehow broke and was irreparable. But they
couldn't get out of Egypt to get these things replaced.

You can imagine the the Jewish community leader's joy and amazement when
Gershon Ber produced exactly these items and told him that the
Lubavitcher Rebbe had told him to bring them.

Gershon Ber Jacobson got the interview with Prime Minister Nasser. When
he arrived safely back in New York, he got another call from Isser
Harel. "Listen Jacobson. We know for SURE that they were planning to
arrest you for spying. But when you got there and made such a storm with
those letters and phone calls, they didn't want to arouse adverse public
opinion. Tell me, where did you get the idea to do those letters and
phone calls?"

                                                 From ohrtmimim.org

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                            MOSHIACH MATTERS
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The Baal Shem Tov said that every Jew contains within him a spark of the
soul of Moshiach. Furthermore, this spark is more than just a latent
aspect; every Jew is able to bring that spark out into the open,
bringing about the actual manifestation of Moshiach by means of Torah
and mitzvot (commandments), which effect a purification and refinement
of the physical world. This will be achieved in macrocosm with the
coming of Moshiach, who will reveal the world's goodness and holiness.

                                                  (Peninei HaGeula)

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                 END OF TEXT - L'CHAIM 1114 - Tzav 5770
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