Today is: Yom Shaynee, Av 1, 5771 • 8 1, 2011
Rosh Chodesh Av
.
Today's Laws & Customs
.
• Rosh Chodesh Observances
.
Today is Rosh Chodesh--"Head of the Month"--for the Hebrew month of "Av" (also called "Menachem Av").
.
Special portions are added to the daily prayers: Hallel (Psalms 113-118) is recited -- in its "partial" form -- following the Shacharit morning prayer, and the Yaaleh V'yavo prayer is added to the Amidah and to Grace After Meals; the additional Musaf prayer is said (when Rosh Chodesh is Shabbat, special additions are made to the Shabbat Musaf). Tachnun (confession of sins) and similar prayers are omitted.
Many have the custom to mark Rosh Chodesh with a festive meal and reduced work activity. The latter custom is prevalent amongst women, who have a special affinity with Rosh Chodesh -- the month being the feminine aspect of the Jewish Calendar.
.
• "Nine Days" Begin
.
"When Av begins, we diminish [our] rejoicing" (Talmud, Taanit 26b).
On the 1st of Av, "The Three Weeks" mourning period over the destruction of the Holy Temple--which began 13 days earlier on Tammuz 17--enters an intensified stage. During "The Nine Days" from Av 1st to the Ninth of Av, a heightened degree of mourning is observed, including abstention from meat and wine, music, bathing for pleasure, and other joyous and enjoyable activities. (The particular mourning customs vary from community to community, so consult a competent Halachic authority for details).
Consumption of meat and wine is permitted on Shabbat, or at a Seudat Mitzvah (obligatory festive meal celebrating the fulfillment of a mitzvah) such as a Bris (circumcision), or a "Siyum" celebrating the completion of a course of Torah study (i.e., a complete Talmudic tractate). The Lubavitcher Rebbe initiated the custom of conducting or participating in a Siyum on each of the Nine Days (even if one does not avail oneself of the dispensation to eat meat).
Citing the verse (Isaiah 1:27) "Zion shall be redeemed with mishpat [Torah] and its returnees with Tzedakah," the Rebbe urged that we increase in Torah study (particularly the study of the laws of the Holy Temple) and charity during this period.
.
Today in Jewish History
.
• Passing of Aaron (1273 BCE)
.
Aaron the first High Priest, brother of Moses and Miriam, passed away at age 123 on the 1st of Av of the year 2487 from creation (1274 BCE). This is the only yahrzeit (date of passing) explicitly mentioned in the Torah (Numbers 33:38).
.
"Aaron" and "On the Essence of Circumstance" -- a spiritual profile based on the Lubavitcher Rebbe's talks
.
• Ezra and Followers Arrive in Israel (348 BCE)
.
Following their long journey from Babylon (see Jewish history for the 12th of Nissan), Ezra and his entourage arrived in the land of Israel to be near the newly built second Holy Temple in Jerusalem. A relatively small group came together with Ezra, the majority of Jews, including great Torah scholars, choosing to remain in Babylon due to the harsh conditions that were then prevailing in Israel.
.
Daily Quote
.
Intellect and excitement are two separate worlds. Intellect--a world cold and settled; excitement--a world seething and impetuous. Man's avoda (service of G-d) is to combine them, unite them. The impetuousness then becomes transformed into a longing, and the intellect into the guide in a life of service and action.
.
- Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak of Lubavitch (quoted in Hayom Yom, Shevat 12)
.
Daily Study
.
Chitas and Rambam for today:
.
Chumash: Devarim, 2nd Portion Deuteronomy 1:12-1:21 with Rashi
.
Tehillim: Chapters 1 - 9
.
Tanya: Igeret HaTeshuva , beginning of Chapter 10
.
Rambam:
• Sefer Hamitzvos:
.
• 1 Chapter: Mechirah Chapter Seventeen
.
• 3 Chapters: Matnot Aniyiim Chapter 8, Matnot Aniyiim Chapter 9, Matnot Aniyiim Chapter 10
.
Hayom Yom: "Today's Day"
.
The unique quality of Mashiach is that he will be humble. Though he will be the ultimate in greatness, for he will teach Torah to the Patriarchs and to Moshe Rabeinu (alav hashalom),1 still he will be the ultimate in humility and self-nullification, for he will also teach simple folk.
.
FOOTNOTES
.
1. Lit. "Peace upon him"; a term applied to the departed. When referring to Moshe, King David, etc., it is usually written as an Hebrew acronym combined with the initials of the name, e.g. M.R.A.H. Moshe Rabeinu Alav Hashalom.
.
Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
.
Positive Commandment 130
.
Tithes for the Poor
.
"At the end of three years, you shall bring forth all the tithes of your produce"—Deuteronomy 14:28.
.
We are commanded to separate a tenth of our harvest [in addition to the First Tithe given to the Levites] on the third and sixth year of the seven-year Shemitah cycle, and give it to the poor.
.
[During these two years, this tithe substitutes the Second Tithe.]
This biblical precept only applies in the Land of Israel.
.
Positive Commandment 195
.
Charity
.
"You shall surely open your hand "—Deuteronomy 15:8.
.
We are commanded to give charity to the indigent, to relieve them of their distress. We are commanded to feed the needy and provide them with whatever they lack.
.
Even a pauper who is sustained by charity is obligated to fulfill this mitzvah—by giving charity (even if only a pittance) to someone needier than himself, or someone in a similar predicament.
.
Negative Commandment 232
.
Ignoring a Needy Person
.
"Do not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your destitute brother"—Deuteronomy 15:7.
It is forbidden to be stingy and withhold charity and relief from our needy brethren—if we are aware of their desperate situation and have the means to assist them.
.
Topics in the news
.
U2's 360° Tour (stage pictured), the highest-attended and highest-grossing concert tour of all time, concludes in Moncton, Canada, after 110 shows.
.
Tropical Storm Nock-ten causes 41 deaths in the Philippines and the evacuation of more than 27,000 people in China.
.
Ollanta Humala is inaugurated as President of Peru.
.
Asteroid 2010 TK7 is confirmed as the first Earth Trojan asteroid discovered.
.
Truong Tan Sang becomes the new President of Vietnam and nominates Nguyen Tan Dung to another term as Prime Minister.
.
Current events
.
Armed conflict and attacks
.
At least 11 people, including 5 suspects, are killed and 15 others are injured on Sunday's violence in China's Xinjiang region, raising the death toll to 20 over the weekend attacks in Kashgar. (CRI) (The Guardian)
.
The Israeli Defense Forces and Lebanese Armed Forces exchange gunfire across the border with one Lebanese soldier being injured. (Jerusalem Post)
.
Business and economy
.
The HSBC bank announces plans to cut 5,000 jobs now and 25000 by 2013. (Reuters)
.
Disasters
.
Anna Bligh, the Premier of Queensland, releases the results of an inquiry into the 2010–2011 Queensland floods which killed 35 people. (Courier Mail)
.
The Italian news agency Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associata reports that 25 refugees have been found dead in a boat off the coast of Lampedusa. (CNN)
.
International relations
.
North Korea agrees to further talks with the United States as part of efforts to restore Six Party talks on its nuclear weapons program. (Yonhap)
.
South Korea bans three Japanese lawmakers all from the Liberal Democratic Party due to an assertion of Japanese sovereignty over the Liancourt Rocks. (Mainichi Shimbun), (Yonhap)
.
Politics
.
Kevin Rudd, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and former Prime Minister of Australia, goes into hospital to have the aortic valve in his heart replaced. (Courier Mail)
Both houses of the United States Congress will vote on a deal to resolve the 2011 U.S. debt ceiling crisis. (Bloomberg), (The Telegraph)
.
Natural disasters
.
6.8 earthquake rocks northeastern coast of Papua New Guinea
.
THE SACREDNESS OF EACH DAY IN TORAH
.
Genesis Chapter 1
.
בְּרֵאשִׁית
.
Yom Shaynee ............Second day
.
CREATION DAY THE HEAVENS EARTH, AND WATERS
ו וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים, יְהִי רָקִיעַ בְּתוֹךְ הַמָּיִם, וִיהִי מַבְדִּיל, בֵּין מַיִם לָמָיִם.
6And God said: 'Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.'
ז וַיַּעַשׂ אֱלֹהִים, אֶת-הָרָקִיעַ, וַיַּבְדֵּל בֵּין הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר מִתַּחַת לָרָקִיעַ, וּבֵין הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר מֵעַל לָרָקִיעַ; וַיְהִי-כֵן. 7
And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so.
ח וַיִּקְרָא אֱלֹהִים לָרָקִיעַ, שָׁמָיִם; וַיְהִי-עֶרֶב וַיְהִי-בֹקֶר, יוֹם שֵׁנִי. {פ} 8
And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day. {P}
Rosh Chodesh Av
.
Today's Laws & Customs
.
• Rosh Chodesh Observances
.
Today is Rosh Chodesh--"Head of the Month"--for the Hebrew month of "Av" (also called "Menachem Av").
.
Special portions are added to the daily prayers: Hallel (Psalms 113-118) is recited -- in its "partial" form -- following the Shacharit morning prayer, and the Yaaleh V'yavo prayer is added to the Amidah and to Grace After Meals; the additional Musaf prayer is said (when Rosh Chodesh is Shabbat, special additions are made to the Shabbat Musaf). Tachnun (confession of sins) and similar prayers are omitted.
Many have the custom to mark Rosh Chodesh with a festive meal and reduced work activity. The latter custom is prevalent amongst women, who have a special affinity with Rosh Chodesh -- the month being the feminine aspect of the Jewish Calendar.
.
• "Nine Days" Begin
.
"When Av begins, we diminish [our] rejoicing" (Talmud, Taanit 26b).
On the 1st of Av, "The Three Weeks" mourning period over the destruction of the Holy Temple--which began 13 days earlier on Tammuz 17--enters an intensified stage. During "The Nine Days" from Av 1st to the Ninth of Av, a heightened degree of mourning is observed, including abstention from meat and wine, music, bathing for pleasure, and other joyous and enjoyable activities. (The particular mourning customs vary from community to community, so consult a competent Halachic authority for details).
Consumption of meat and wine is permitted on Shabbat, or at a Seudat Mitzvah (obligatory festive meal celebrating the fulfillment of a mitzvah) such as a Bris (circumcision), or a "Siyum" celebrating the completion of a course of Torah study (i.e., a complete Talmudic tractate). The Lubavitcher Rebbe initiated the custom of conducting or participating in a Siyum on each of the Nine Days (even if one does not avail oneself of the dispensation to eat meat).
Citing the verse (Isaiah 1:27) "Zion shall be redeemed with mishpat [Torah] and its returnees with Tzedakah," the Rebbe urged that we increase in Torah study (particularly the study of the laws of the Holy Temple) and charity during this period.
.
Today in Jewish History
.
• Passing of Aaron (1273 BCE)
.
Aaron the first High Priest, brother of Moses and Miriam, passed away at age 123 on the 1st of Av of the year 2487 from creation (1274 BCE). This is the only yahrzeit (date of passing) explicitly mentioned in the Torah (Numbers 33:38).
.
"Aaron" and "On the Essence of Circumstance" -- a spiritual profile based on the Lubavitcher Rebbe's talks
.
• Ezra and Followers Arrive in Israel (348 BCE)
.
Following their long journey from Babylon (see Jewish history for the 12th of Nissan), Ezra and his entourage arrived in the land of Israel to be near the newly built second Holy Temple in Jerusalem. A relatively small group came together with Ezra, the majority of Jews, including great Torah scholars, choosing to remain in Babylon due to the harsh conditions that were then prevailing in Israel.
.
Daily Quote
.
Intellect and excitement are two separate worlds. Intellect--a world cold and settled; excitement--a world seething and impetuous. Man's avoda (service of G-d) is to combine them, unite them. The impetuousness then becomes transformed into a longing, and the intellect into the guide in a life of service and action.
.
- Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak of Lubavitch (quoted in Hayom Yom, Shevat 12)
.
Daily Study
.
Chitas and Rambam for today:
.
Chumash: Devarim, 2nd Portion Deuteronomy 1:12-1:21 with Rashi
.
Tehillim: Chapters 1 - 9
.
Tanya: Igeret HaTeshuva , beginning of Chapter 10
.
Rambam:
• Sefer Hamitzvos:
.
• 1 Chapter: Mechirah Chapter Seventeen
.
• 3 Chapters: Matnot Aniyiim Chapter 8, Matnot Aniyiim Chapter 9, Matnot Aniyiim Chapter 10
.
Hayom Yom: "Today's Day"
.
The unique quality of Mashiach is that he will be humble. Though he will be the ultimate in greatness, for he will teach Torah to the Patriarchs and to Moshe Rabeinu (alav hashalom),1 still he will be the ultimate in humility and self-nullification, for he will also teach simple folk.
.
FOOTNOTES
.
1. Lit. "Peace upon him"; a term applied to the departed. When referring to Moshe, King David, etc., it is usually written as an Hebrew acronym combined with the initials of the name, e.g. M.R.A.H. Moshe Rabeinu Alav Hashalom.
.
Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
.
Positive Commandment 130
.
Tithes for the Poor
.
"At the end of three years, you shall bring forth all the tithes of your produce"—Deuteronomy 14:28.
.
We are commanded to separate a tenth of our harvest [in addition to the First Tithe given to the Levites] on the third and sixth year of the seven-year Shemitah cycle, and give it to the poor.
.
[During these two years, this tithe substitutes the Second Tithe.]
This biblical precept only applies in the Land of Israel.
.
Positive Commandment 195
.
Charity
.
"You shall surely open your hand "—Deuteronomy 15:8.
.
We are commanded to give charity to the indigent, to relieve them of their distress. We are commanded to feed the needy and provide them with whatever they lack.
.
Even a pauper who is sustained by charity is obligated to fulfill this mitzvah—by giving charity (even if only a pittance) to someone needier than himself, or someone in a similar predicament.
.
Negative Commandment 232
.
Ignoring a Needy Person
.
"Do not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your destitute brother"—Deuteronomy 15:7.
It is forbidden to be stingy and withhold charity and relief from our needy brethren—if we are aware of their desperate situation and have the means to assist them.
.
Topics in the news
.
U2's 360° Tour (stage pictured), the highest-attended and highest-grossing concert tour of all time, concludes in Moncton, Canada, after 110 shows.
.
Tropical Storm Nock-ten causes 41 deaths in the Philippines and the evacuation of more than 27,000 people in China.
.
Ollanta Humala is inaugurated as President of Peru.
.
Asteroid 2010 TK7 is confirmed as the first Earth Trojan asteroid discovered.
.
Truong Tan Sang becomes the new President of Vietnam and nominates Nguyen Tan Dung to another term as Prime Minister.
.
Current events
.
Armed conflict and attacks
.
At least 11 people, including 5 suspects, are killed and 15 others are injured on Sunday's violence in China's Xinjiang region, raising the death toll to 20 over the weekend attacks in Kashgar. (CRI) (The Guardian)
.
The Israeli Defense Forces and Lebanese Armed Forces exchange gunfire across the border with one Lebanese soldier being injured. (Jerusalem Post)
.
Business and economy
.
The HSBC bank announces plans to cut 5,000 jobs now and 25000 by 2013. (Reuters)
.
Disasters
.
Anna Bligh, the Premier of Queensland, releases the results of an inquiry into the 2010–2011 Queensland floods which killed 35 people. (Courier Mail)
.
The Italian news agency Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associata reports that 25 refugees have been found dead in a boat off the coast of Lampedusa. (CNN)
.
International relations
.
North Korea agrees to further talks with the United States as part of efforts to restore Six Party talks on its nuclear weapons program. (Yonhap)
.
South Korea bans three Japanese lawmakers all from the Liberal Democratic Party due to an assertion of Japanese sovereignty over the Liancourt Rocks. (Mainichi Shimbun), (Yonhap)
.
Politics
.
Kevin Rudd, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and former Prime Minister of Australia, goes into hospital to have the aortic valve in his heart replaced. (Courier Mail)
Both houses of the United States Congress will vote on a deal to resolve the 2011 U.S. debt ceiling crisis. (Bloomberg), (The Telegraph)
.
Natural disasters
.
6.8 earthquake rocks northeastern coast of Papua New Guinea
.
THE SACREDNESS OF EACH DAY IN TORAH
.
Genesis Chapter 1
.
בְּרֵאשִׁית
.
Yom Shaynee ............Second day
.
CREATION DAY THE HEAVENS EARTH, AND WATERS
ו וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים, יְהִי רָקִיעַ בְּתוֹךְ הַמָּיִם, וִיהִי מַבְדִּיל, בֵּין מַיִם לָמָיִם.
6And God said: 'Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.'
ז וַיַּעַשׂ אֱלֹהִים, אֶת-הָרָקִיעַ, וַיַּבְדֵּל בֵּין הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר מִתַּחַת לָרָקִיעַ, וּבֵין הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר מֵעַל לָרָקִיעַ; וַיְהִי-כֵן. 7
And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so.
ח וַיִּקְרָא אֱלֹהִים לָרָקִיעַ, שָׁמָיִם; וַיְהִי-עֶרֶב וַיְהִי-בֹקֶר, יוֹם שֵׁנִי. {פ} 8
And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day. {P}
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