Midway Jewish Center
56 Years Bold: 1953-2009 !
THE CYBERSHUL

330 South Oyster Bay Road
Syosset, NY 11791
www.mjc.org
cyber shul archives

This CyberShul has been dedicated by:

Shabbat Mevarekhim:	The Shabbat When We Bless The New Month— kisLEV—during which the holiday of Hanukkah is celebrated. We ask God for a month of health, peace, sustenance and vitality. May the Hanukkah lights light up the entire month with happiness and a reminder of our people’s love for religious freedom and strong expressions of Jewish identity. Kislev falls on November 17 and 18 of this upcoming week.
Parashah	Hayyei Sarah
Secular Date	November 14, 2009
Jewish Date	27 Heshvan 5770
Shabbat Begins	4;14pm
Shabbat Ends	5:22pm
MJCyber Shul Minyan	1407
Last Week’s Minyan	1406

TORAH READING

Hayyei Sarah

HaYEI SaRAH—meaning "The Life of Sarah." Oddly enough, the parashah begins with Sarah's death. Abraham secures a burial place for his wife through the purchase of the Cave of Machpelah, which can be visited today in the West Bank city, Hebron. Abraham must then find a wife for his son, Isaac. Abraham’s servant succeeds in finding the perfect mate, Rebeccah. Isaac and Rebecca marry. Rebeccah is blessed by her brother, Laban, and father with words of a blessing we use even today for brides: O sister—may you grow into thousands and even myriads! Sadly, Abraham dies at the end of this parashah.

A SHABBAT THOUGHT

The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn . 

~~ Alvin Toffler ~~

WEB OF THE WEEK

Now this is how to do Adon Olam!!

AURAL TORAH

It's Easy To Be a Jew

Just click on the picture on the left hear this week’s Aural Torah!

A Great Vacation

This April celebrate a special journey in the footsteps of Herzl to help celebrate his 150th birthday. The journey begins in Paris and continues to Vienna, Basle, Budapest and ends up in Jerusalem for Israel’s 62nd birthday. Meet and hear from top leadership! Travel by plane, bus and train. Visit sights that bring us back in history and back to the future.

This trip is open to a limited number of participants. Don’t be left out. Apply today. You can reach us by going to www.doingzionism.org.il where you can get more information and an application form.

Honor or Memorialize Loved Ones for a New Lower Price

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Midway Jewish Center
330 South Oyster Bay Road
Syosset, NY 11791

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GOTTA QUESTION?
THE CYBER RAV HAS AN ANSWER AND GOOD NEWS--
THE CYBER RAV IS ALWAYS IN
SEND YOUR QUESTIONS TO rafirank@mjc.org
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The Brightest Minds in America Read:  the MJCyberShul

DEAR CYBERAV… I’VE GOTTA QUESTION

SHOULD I STOP SAYING A MI SHEBEIRAKH?

Dear Cyber Rav,

Whenever my son is not present, I rise to say a prayer for the sick in his behalf. Am I to stop at some point given that his condition is lifelong? He was recently diagnosed with a disease, which sounds worse than it really is, but what means that he needs to take medication for the rest of his life and have periodic blood tests. His skin will remain blotchy, clear up, and then return to an abnormal state. There is no cure, just hope that one day this condition will go away. He is handling it all so amazingly well! I am convinced that God has definitely given him a wonderful gift--a fabulous, upbeat, positive attitude!! He is so bright and optimistic, good-hearted, etc. I so wish he did not have to endure this!

Wanting to Pray and Wanting to Stop

CYBER RAV ANSWERS

Dear Wanting to Pray,

Should we stop saying mi shebeirakhs for your son? That's a good question. Of course, we would love for him to achieve a refu'ah sheleimah, a complete recovery. I guess my question is this: Is he sick? We know that he has a permanent condition for which medication therapy exists, and we know that he does have this blotchy skin syndrome which is equally upsetting--but is he sick?

By your own admission, you think of him as one of the healthiest children you know--bright, polite, optimistic, fair, etc. I think of other children who do not suffer from his ailments, but who are not quite as healthy as he when it comes to one's total persona or humanity. As the Mommy, you do a lot of worrying, which I see as not only a tribute to your concern for and connection with your son, but also as an indication that among mothers, you're eminently normal. And, of course, we all wish that he would not have to deal with the medical challenges he faces. And yet--I think a legitimate question to ask, is the one above: is he sick or does he have a condition that he is going to have to deal with for the rest of his life, and given a loving family and supportive friends, he will in fact deal with this situation and do so with great success. There are a lot of people in this world with so called "disabilities" which they do not regard as disabling in anyway. It's just the way we look at it.

And so--I don't think your saying a mi shebeirakh for him is in anyway wrong. You want him to be perfectly healthy. My question for you to ponder is whether this wonderful little boy isn't already the picture of health, if not perfection. Then again, perfection is highly overrated. 

Rabbi Rafi Rank
CyberRav

Shabbat Shalom Everyone!!

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