1. Today is: Day 5, Yom Khah´mee´shee, Two days to Shabbat, Nissan 17, 5771 • 4 21, 2011
2. Passover (Chol Hamoed) • Omer: Day Two - Gevurah sheb'Chessed
3. Topics in the news
4. Syria lifts its 48-year-old state of emergency in response to anti-government protests (pictured).
5. Goodluck Jonathan is elected President of Nigeria.
6. Fidel Castro resigns from the Communist Party of Cuba's central committee.
7. A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan wins the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.
8. The National Coalition Party, led by Jyrki Katainen, win a plurality in the Finnish parliamentary election.
9. An Egyptian court orders the dissolution of the former ruling National Democratic Party of Hosni Mubarak as part of overall political reform.
10. Current events of 21 4 2011 (2011-04-21)
11. 4 21, 2011
12. Current events of 20 4 2011 (2011-04-20)
13. Armed conflicts and attacks
14. 2011 Libyan Civil War:
15. Journalist Tim Hetherington is killed and four others injured in Misrata. (CBC)
16. France and Italy are to send military officers to Libya to train rebels. (IBN Live)
17. 2011 Syrian protests:
18. Protests continue in Syria despite the lifting of the state of emergency law. (Al Jazeera)
19. Opposition figure Mahmud Issa is arrested after giving a television interview. (Times of India)
20. 2011 Yemeni protests:
21. The United Nations Security Council fails to come up with an agreed public statement at its first meeting to discuss the crisis in Yemen as violence continues. (BBC)
22. Second Ivorian Civil War
23. Pro-Ouattara forces attempt to remove remaining militia loyal to deposed President Laurent Gbagbo. (AFP via Google News)
24. Law and crime
25. Two prominent Chinese human rights lawyers Jiang Tianyong and Liu Xiaoyuan are released. (BBC) (Angola Press) (Al Jazeera)
26. Politics and elections
27. President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria wins the presidential election held on 16 4. (This Day Live)
28. 4 20, 2011
29. Standard & Poor's lowers the U.S. credit outlook to 'negative'
30. Surfer dies at beach in Pichilemu, Chile
31. Prayer
32. Positive Commandment 5
33. The 5th mitzvah is that we are commanded to serve G‑d (blessed be He). This commandment is repeated many times: And you shall serve G‑d, your L‑rd";1 "And you shall serve Him";2 "And to serve Him."3
34. Although this commandment is of a general nature,4 as explained in the Fourth Principle,5 [and apparently should not be included in the count of the 613 mitzvos,] nevertheless it has a specific quality, since it is the commandment to pray.
35. [We see that "service" is not just a general command from the following statements:] The Sifri6 says, "The verse, 'And to serve Him' means prayer." The Sages also said, "The verse, 'And to serve Him' means Torah study.
36. In the Mishnah of Rabbi Eliezer, the son of Rabbi Yosi HaG'lili,7 the Sages said, "What is the biblical source to include prayer among the mitzvos? From the verse, 'You shall fear G‑d, your L‑rd, and you shall serve Him.' "8
37. They also said,9 "Serve Him through His Torah; serve Him in His Temple." This [statement, 'serve Him in His Temple,'] means that one's goal should be to pray in the Temple or in the direction of the Temple, as King Solomon explained.10
38. Today in Judaism Dedicate an email
39. Today's Laws & Customs
40. Chol Hamoed
41. Of the eight days of Passover, the first two and the last two are "yom tov" (festival days). The middle four days are called chol hamoed--"weekdays of the festival," also called "the intermediate days." (In Israel, where Passover is observed for seven days, the first and last days are yom tov, and the middle five days are chol hamoed).
42. The yom tov days are days of rest, during which all creative work is forbidden, as it is on the Shabbat, with the exception of certain types of work associated with food preparation (e.g., cooking and "carrying"). On chol hamoed the prohibition of work is less stringent--work whose avoidance would result in "significant loss" is permitted (except when chol hamoed is also Shabbat, when all work is forbidden).
43. The "Yaale V'yavo" prayer is included in all prayers and Grace After Meals. Hallel (partial) and Musaf are recited following the Shacharit (morning) prayers. It is the Chabad custom not to put on tefillin during the "intermediate days".
44. Count "Three Days to the Omer" Tonight
45. Tomorrow is the third day of the Omer Count. Since, on the Jewish calendar, the day begins at nightfall of the previous evening, we count the omer for tomorrow's date tonight, after nightfall: "Today is three days to the Omer." (If you miss the count tonight, you can count the omer all day tomorrow, but without the preceding blessing).
46. The 49-day "Counting of the Omer" retraces our ancestors' seven-week spiritual journey from the Exodus to Sinai. Each evening we recite a special blessing and count the days and weeks that have passed since the Omer; the 50th day is Shavuot, the festival celebrating the Giving of the Torah at Sinai.
47. Tonight's Sefirah: Tifferet sheb'Chessed -- "Harmony in Kindness"
48. The teachings of Kabbalah explain that there are seven "Divine Attributes" -- Sefirot -- that G-d assumes through which to relate to our existence: Chessed, Gevurah, Tifferet, Netzach, Hod, Yesod and Malchut ("Love", "Strength", "Beauty", "Victory", "Splendor", "Foundation" and "Sovereignty"). In the human being, created in the "image of G-d," the seven sefirot are mirrored in the seven "emotional attributes" of the human soul: Kindness, Restraint, Harmony, Ambition, Humility, Connection and Receptiveness. Each of the seven attributes contain elements of all seven--i.e., "Kindness in Kindness", "Restraint in Kindness", "Harmony in Kindness", etc.--making for a total of forty-nine traits. The 49-day Omer Count is thus a 49-step process of self-refinement, with each day devoted to the "rectification" and perfection of one the forty-nine "sefirot."
49. Today in Jewish History
50. Passing of the Maharin (1883)
51. Rabbi Yisrael Noach, son of the third Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch, headed the yeshivah in Lubavitch during his father's lifetime. He was known for his great humility and the many hours he would spend praying with intense emotions and concentration. Known as the "Maharin from Niezhen," he was one of Rabbi Menachem Mendel's consultants in matters of Jewish thought, and Rabbi Menachem Mendel would delegate to him many of the questions he would receive.
52. Following his father's passing in 1866, he relocated to Niezhen where he served as a chassidic master.
53. He was interred in Niezhen next to his illustrious grandfather, the second Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi DovBer of Lubavitch.
54. Daily Quote
55. Transgressions of man towards G-d -- Yom Kippur atones for them. Transgressions of man towards man, Yom Kippur does not atone for them until one seeks forgiveness from one's fellow
56. Talmud, Yoma 85b
57. Daily Study
58. Chitas and Rambam for today:
59. Chumash: Kedoshim, 5th Portion Leviticus 20:1-20:7 with Rashi
60. Tehillim: Chapters 83 - 87
61. Tanya: Likutei Amarim, middle of Chapter 41
62. Rambam:
63. Sefer Hamitzvos:
64. 1 Chapter: Kelim Chap. 16
65. 3 Chapters: Tefilah and Birkat Kohanim Chapter Five, Tefilah and Birkat Kohanim Chapter Six, Tefilah and Birkat Kohanim Chapter Seven
66. Hayom Yom:
67. THE SACREDNESS OF EACH DAY IN TORAH
68. Genesis Chapter 1
69. בְּרֵאשִׁית
70. כ וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים--יִשְׁרְצוּ הַמַּיִם, שֶׁרֶץ נֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה; וְעוֹף יְעוֹפֵף עַל-הָאָרֶץ, עַל-פְּנֵי רְקִיעַ הַשָּׁמָיִם. 20
71. And God said: 'Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let fowl fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.'
72. כא וַיִּבְרָא אֱלֹהִים, אֶת-הַתַּנִּינִם הַגְּדֹלִים; וְאֵת כָּל-נֶפֶשׁ הַחַיָּה הָרֹמֶשֶׂת אֲשֶׁר שָׁרְצוּ הַמַּיִם לְמִינֵהֶם, וְאֵת כָּל-עוֹף כָּנָף לְמִינֵהוּ, וַיַּרְא אֱלֹהִים, כִּי-טוֹב. 21
73. And God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature that creepeth, wherewith the waters swarmed, after its kind, and every winged fowl after its kind; and God saw that it was good.
74. כב וַיְבָרֶךְ אֹתָם אֱלֹהִים, לֵאמֹר: פְּרוּ וּרְבוּ, וּמִלְאוּ אֶת-הַמַּיִם בַּיַּמִּים, וְהָעוֹף, יִרֶב בָּאָרֶץ. 22 And God blessed them, saying: 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.'
75. כג וַיְהִי-עֶרֶב וַיְהִי-בֹקֶר, יוֹם חֲמִישִׁי. {פ} 23 And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day. {P}
2. Passover (Chol Hamoed) • Omer: Day Two - Gevurah sheb'Chessed
3. Topics in the news
4. Syria lifts its 48-year-old state of emergency in response to anti-government protests (pictured).
5. Goodluck Jonathan is elected President of Nigeria.
6. Fidel Castro resigns from the Communist Party of Cuba's central committee.
7. A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan wins the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.
8. The National Coalition Party, led by Jyrki Katainen, win a plurality in the Finnish parliamentary election.
9. An Egyptian court orders the dissolution of the former ruling National Democratic Party of Hosni Mubarak as part of overall political reform.
10. Current events of 21 4 2011 (2011-04-21)
11. 4 21, 2011
12. Current events of 20 4 2011 (2011-04-20)
13. Armed conflicts and attacks
14. 2011 Libyan Civil War:
15. Journalist Tim Hetherington is killed and four others injured in Misrata. (CBC)
16. France and Italy are to send military officers to Libya to train rebels. (IBN Live)
17. 2011 Syrian protests:
18. Protests continue in Syria despite the lifting of the state of emergency law. (Al Jazeera)
19. Opposition figure Mahmud Issa is arrested after giving a television interview. (Times of India)
20. 2011 Yemeni protests:
21. The United Nations Security Council fails to come up with an agreed public statement at its first meeting to discuss the crisis in Yemen as violence continues. (BBC)
22. Second Ivorian Civil War
23. Pro-Ouattara forces attempt to remove remaining militia loyal to deposed President Laurent Gbagbo. (AFP via Google News)
24. Law and crime
25. Two prominent Chinese human rights lawyers Jiang Tianyong and Liu Xiaoyuan are released. (BBC) (Angola Press) (Al Jazeera)
26. Politics and elections
27. President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria wins the presidential election held on 16 4. (This Day Live)
28. 4 20, 2011
29. Standard & Poor's lowers the U.S. credit outlook to 'negative'
30. Surfer dies at beach in Pichilemu, Chile
31. Prayer
32. Positive Commandment 5
33. The 5th mitzvah is that we are commanded to serve G‑d (blessed be He). This commandment is repeated many times: And you shall serve G‑d, your L‑rd";1 "And you shall serve Him";2 "And to serve Him."3
34. Although this commandment is of a general nature,4 as explained in the Fourth Principle,5 [and apparently should not be included in the count of the 613 mitzvos,] nevertheless it has a specific quality, since it is the commandment to pray.
35. [We see that "service" is not just a general command from the following statements:] The Sifri6 says, "The verse, 'And to serve Him' means prayer." The Sages also said, "The verse, 'And to serve Him' means Torah study.
36. In the Mishnah of Rabbi Eliezer, the son of Rabbi Yosi HaG'lili,7 the Sages said, "What is the biblical source to include prayer among the mitzvos? From the verse, 'You shall fear G‑d, your L‑rd, and you shall serve Him.' "8
37. They also said,9 "Serve Him through His Torah; serve Him in His Temple." This [statement, 'serve Him in His Temple,'] means that one's goal should be to pray in the Temple or in the direction of the Temple, as King Solomon explained.10
38. Today in Judaism Dedicate an email
39. Today's Laws & Customs
40. Chol Hamoed
41. Of the eight days of Passover, the first two and the last two are "yom tov" (festival days). The middle four days are called chol hamoed--"weekdays of the festival," also called "the intermediate days." (In Israel, where Passover is observed for seven days, the first and last days are yom tov, and the middle five days are chol hamoed).
42. The yom tov days are days of rest, during which all creative work is forbidden, as it is on the Shabbat, with the exception of certain types of work associated with food preparation (e.g., cooking and "carrying"). On chol hamoed the prohibition of work is less stringent--work whose avoidance would result in "significant loss" is permitted (except when chol hamoed is also Shabbat, when all work is forbidden).
43. The "Yaale V'yavo" prayer is included in all prayers and Grace After Meals. Hallel (partial) and Musaf are recited following the Shacharit (morning) prayers. It is the Chabad custom not to put on tefillin during the "intermediate days".
44. Count "Three Days to the Omer" Tonight
45. Tomorrow is the third day of the Omer Count. Since, on the Jewish calendar, the day begins at nightfall of the previous evening, we count the omer for tomorrow's date tonight, after nightfall: "Today is three days to the Omer." (If you miss the count tonight, you can count the omer all day tomorrow, but without the preceding blessing).
46. The 49-day "Counting of the Omer" retraces our ancestors' seven-week spiritual journey from the Exodus to Sinai. Each evening we recite a special blessing and count the days and weeks that have passed since the Omer; the 50th day is Shavuot, the festival celebrating the Giving of the Torah at Sinai.
47. Tonight's Sefirah: Tifferet sheb'Chessed -- "Harmony in Kindness"
48. The teachings of Kabbalah explain that there are seven "Divine Attributes" -- Sefirot -- that G-d assumes through which to relate to our existence: Chessed, Gevurah, Tifferet, Netzach, Hod, Yesod and Malchut ("Love", "Strength", "Beauty", "Victory", "Splendor", "Foundation" and "Sovereignty"). In the human being, created in the "image of G-d," the seven sefirot are mirrored in the seven "emotional attributes" of the human soul: Kindness, Restraint, Harmony, Ambition, Humility, Connection and Receptiveness. Each of the seven attributes contain elements of all seven--i.e., "Kindness in Kindness", "Restraint in Kindness", "Harmony in Kindness", etc.--making for a total of forty-nine traits. The 49-day Omer Count is thus a 49-step process of self-refinement, with each day devoted to the "rectification" and perfection of one the forty-nine "sefirot."
49. Today in Jewish History
50. Passing of the Maharin (1883)
51. Rabbi Yisrael Noach, son of the third Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch, headed the yeshivah in Lubavitch during his father's lifetime. He was known for his great humility and the many hours he would spend praying with intense emotions and concentration. Known as the "Maharin from Niezhen," he was one of Rabbi Menachem Mendel's consultants in matters of Jewish thought, and Rabbi Menachem Mendel would delegate to him many of the questions he would receive.
52. Following his father's passing in 1866, he relocated to Niezhen where he served as a chassidic master.
53. He was interred in Niezhen next to his illustrious grandfather, the second Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi DovBer of Lubavitch.
54. Daily Quote
55. Transgressions of man towards G-d -- Yom Kippur atones for them. Transgressions of man towards man, Yom Kippur does not atone for them until one seeks forgiveness from one's fellow
56. Talmud, Yoma 85b
57. Daily Study
58. Chitas and Rambam for today:
59. Chumash: Kedoshim, 5th Portion Leviticus 20:1-20:7 with Rashi
60. Tehillim: Chapters 83 - 87
61. Tanya: Likutei Amarim, middle of Chapter 41
62. Rambam:
63. Sefer Hamitzvos:
64. 1 Chapter: Kelim Chap. 16
65. 3 Chapters: Tefilah and Birkat Kohanim Chapter Five, Tefilah and Birkat Kohanim Chapter Six, Tefilah and Birkat Kohanim Chapter Seven
66. Hayom Yom:
67. THE SACREDNESS OF EACH DAY IN TORAH
68. Genesis Chapter 1
69. בְּרֵאשִׁית
70. כ וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים--יִשְׁרְצוּ הַמַּיִם, שֶׁרֶץ נֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה; וְעוֹף יְעוֹפֵף עַל-הָאָרֶץ, עַל-פְּנֵי רְקִיעַ הַשָּׁמָיִם. 20
71. And God said: 'Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let fowl fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.'
72. כא וַיִּבְרָא אֱלֹהִים, אֶת-הַתַּנִּינִם הַגְּדֹלִים; וְאֵת כָּל-נֶפֶשׁ הַחַיָּה הָרֹמֶשֶׂת אֲשֶׁר שָׁרְצוּ הַמַּיִם לְמִינֵהֶם, וְאֵת כָּל-עוֹף כָּנָף לְמִינֵהוּ, וַיַּרְא אֱלֹהִים, כִּי-טוֹב. 21
73. And God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature that creepeth, wherewith the waters swarmed, after its kind, and every winged fowl after its kind; and God saw that it was good.
74. כב וַיְבָרֶךְ אֹתָם אֱלֹהִים, לֵאמֹר: פְּרוּ וּרְבוּ, וּמִלְאוּ אֶת-הַמַּיִם בַּיַּמִּים, וְהָעוֹף, יִרֶב בָּאָרֶץ. 22 And God blessed them, saying: 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.'
75. כג וַיְהִי-עֶרֶב וַיְהִי-בֹקֶר, יוֹם חֲמִישִׁי. {פ} 23 And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day. {P}
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