program in Chumash (Torah) led by Rabbi Yoni Levin: Wednesdays at 8:30PM beginning June 16.

Rabbi Yoni Levin is currently a rebbe at Yeshivat Lev Hatorah, in Woodmere, NY, an affiliate of the Hebrew Academy of Long Beach. Rabbi Levin graduated from Yeshiva College with a B.S. in Mathematics and a minor in Business from the Sy Syms School of Business.  He received semicha from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) at Yeshiva University, and was a fellow at the prestigious Beren Kollel Elyon at RIETS. Rabbi Levin also studied in Israel for a year and a half at Yeshivat Hakotel. In addition, he has written scholarly Torah articles in Yeshiva University’s annual publications, Beis Yitzchak and Kol Tzvi. Rabbi Levin has participated in numerous Yeshiva University Community Kollelim, including the Davis Renov Stahler High School Kollel in Long Island and others in the New York area. Rabbi Levin and his wife Randi currently live in Woodmere with their four children.

 We greatly appreciate the anonymous sponsor who supports this exciting and rewarding program.   

Please contact us with any questions!

To hear some of the sessions you missed, use the links below:

• Parshas Pinchas: Bris Shalom, Bris Kehunah, and Bris Milah
• Parshas Korah: New Generation, New Leadership
• Parshas Matos/Masei: The War of Midyan
• Parshas Devarim: Who wrote Sefer Deavrim?
• Parshas Va’eshcanan: Words of Comfort after Tisha Baav
• Parshas Eikev: The Function of the Ark

When compared to the other Biblical books, several features of Megillat Esther appear strange. Supreme among these discrepancies is the shocking silence surrounding God’s actions: Hashem’s name is never mentioned in the megillah; no miracles or saving are explicitly attributed to His Hand. God’s presence remains firmly in the background, pulling invisible strings, but unacknowledged in Esther.
While we celebrate Purim as a holiday where Hashem (once again) saved His people, the book makes no mention of this element.

Ibn Ezra suggests a rather interesting solution: this was an intentional decision, as Esther was submitted to the Persian annals, which glossed over all deities with the names of their own gods. Therefore, Ibn Ezra argues, it would be inappropriate to submit God’s name to such a treatment. More fundamentally, it is possible to suggest that Hashem’s
absence plays a more thematic role. Esther’s events occur outside the Land of Israel and post-prophecy. The inhabitants of Shushan were not fortunate enough to perceive Hashem’s Hand miraculously controlling events. They saw Hashem only through faith and/or hindsight; they didn’t know His intentions or His plans until they had reached fruition. It is not only Hashem’s name that is hidden from Esther, but His very presence remains behind the scenes.

In this way, Esther is one of the most appropriate books for our current situation. While we express faith in Hashem, we are not privy to His plans. We know He is out there, watching over us, but we can not see His miraculous interference until all the pieces fall into place.

An article of jewelry was found in the Synagogue. If you lost a piece of jewelry, please complete the form below describing the article and we will reply if the description matches.

Thank you.

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The Roslyn Synagogue

2009 Journal Dinner

Honoring

The eruv is bounded roughly by the westbound service road of the Long Island Expressway, Searingtown Road, Northern Boulevard, and Glen Cove Road. For visitors to St. Francis Hospital: the hospital is NOT included the area covered by the eruv. For more information, please contact us.

The Torah imparts its messages through stories and personalities. By studying these various characters, we can glean important lessons. One of the first things we learn about Noah is that he is a righteous and pure individual. He defies the norms of an entire generation, standing firm in his beliefs against the surrounding decadence and evil. But the end of his life reflects a different Noah – our last image of Noah is a drunk and naked man, cursing some of his children. He lives out the last three hundred years of his life in silence, doing nothing of notable mention. How are we to understand this transformation?

Noah exemplifies a type of religious service that the Rambam termed “lo l’shma” — “not for its own sake.” Noah’s righteousness didn’t stem from a desire to do what was right or good simply because it was right or good, or because it was what Hashem intended. He was motivated by a false destiny, one imparted to him at his birth. One of the first generation born after the death of Adam, Noah’s parents tasked him with undoing the primordial curse of the soil. It is for this reason that Noah followed God’s commandments — because he felt he had a simple job to accomplish. Noah exits the ark and achieves a new covenant with Hashem, one where God will no longer curse the land because of man – a seeming fulfillment of Noah’s purported destiny. Now, Noah becomes drunk not because he made one innocent mistake, but because he was no longer interested in the world or in God’s commandments. Having accomplished what he set out to do, Noah now wipes his hands and retreats into his tent, into a hedonistic carpe diem.

This model displays the blueprint of how a true oved hashem — a true servant of God — acts.  We are not righteous for some ulterior motive; our religion is not a mere list where we can check: “accomplished.” We constantly strive to be good people because that is a value in and of itself; it is what God wants, and it is a lifelong mission, one that continues both after missteps, and after great accomplishments.

The Koren Sacks Siddur has been designed to provide a new prayer  experience that engages both the mind and the heart. The Siddur includes weekday, Shabbat, holiday and life cycle event prayers and Torah and Haftara readings. Its unique features include:

• Precise, contemporary English translation with modern Hebrew transliterations
• Inspiring commentary that stimulates the intellect and stirs the spirit.
• Sophisticated design that illuminates the text’s inner meanings.
• Meaningful tefillot (prayers) that reinforce the Siddur’s contemporary relevance.
• Halakhic guides that deepen understanding of Jewish practice.