Listserve Archives

Hey Hagesher,

As you may have guessed, it is time for Israel Trivia again! This
weeks questions are:

1. What are the four quarters of the Old City of Jerusalem?
2. Who is the current President of Israel?
3. True or False? Israel has more museums per capita than anywhere
else in the world.

Remember to answer all questions, send them to
Hageshershekelchallenge@gmail.com as well as Israelchallenge@usy.org,
and Include your NAME, CHAPTER, and REGION. The competition will begin
at 8PM tonight and end before shabbat.

Also, some news updates in Israel:

Jewish-Arab soccer team scores a victory with Israel's Darfur refugees:
http://israel21c.com/bin/en.jsp?enDispWho=Articles%5El1841&enPage=BlankPage&enDisplay=view&enDispWhat=object&enVersion=0&enZone=Democracy&

Israeli technology guards your mobile phone identity:
http://israel21c.com/bin/en.jsp?enDispWho=Articles%5El1836&enPage=BlankPage&enDisplay=view&enDispWhat=object&enVersion=0&enZone=Technology&

B'hatzlacha,
Daniel Berdugo
Hagesher Israel Affairs Vice President
2007-2008

SHABBAT SHALOM HAGESHER

Candle lighting: 4:32pm
Havdalah: 5:32pm

This week we read parashat Toldot.  This week's d'var was written by the
amazing, handsome, and talented Tyler Dratch!

In this week’s parasha, we read the famous story of Jacob and Esau, the
twins of the Torah. In the parasha, Esau sells his birthright, which
includes property, other possessions, and his father’s blessing, for a hot
meal that his brother Jacob had made. You may ask yourself, why would Esau
trade away his birthright, which was obviously very important, for a small
meal. The answer is that Esau wanted the immediate reward. At the time Esau
was very hungry and wanted the meal. He stubbornly traded away something
that was much more valuable to him to Jacob to satisfy his hunger.

At time, I feel very much like Esau. Besides the fact that I am the older
twin in my family, I also have sometimes made decisions to receive an
instant reward instead of waiting for the later reward that would have been
much more valuable. One time, I decided to go to my friend’s house on a
school night, instead of studying for a very important math test. Obviously,
going to my friend’s house was the more enjoyable option at the time, but
the more rewarding choice would have been to stay home and study.

Has there ever been a time in your life when you have chosen the quick
reward? Did you ever think, later, that maybe if you would had waited a
little longer you would have come out with a greater reward? Unfortunately,
these situations come up all the time in everyday life. I hope that when you
must make a decision like this you will wait for the greater reward. Look at
what happened to Isaac’s son who did receive the birthright, Jacob. He later
moved to Canaan and had thirteen children, continuing the Jewish people. 

QUESTIONS:
1. What foods exactly did Esau trade his birthright for?  (3 points)
2. If you could pick anyone in the world to be your twin, who would it be? 
(5 points)


**Please send all answers to sarahjaye1@aol.com.  I am already thinking of a
prize and it's pretty awesome, and face it, we need to give Jacob Beck some
competition!! (goooo Erica!! :-) )

Remember, that the best choice is not always the first choice or the easiest
choice. Choose Wisely. Have a restful Shabbat. See you soon at Fall Convention!!

B'vracha,

Sarah Richman
Religion/Education VP

Greg Abdallah
United Synagogue Youth
International Executive Board
Communications Vice President
communications@usy.org

Dear Hagesher!!!
Israel Trivia Again!!!!
This Weeks Questions are:
1. How many seats are in the Knesset?
2. Name an operation that brought many Ethiopian Jews to Israel.
3. What song almost became the Israeli national anthem in 1967?

Please send answers to Hageshershekelchallenge@gmail.com AS WELL AS
Israelchallenge@usy.org!!!
As of now, Hagesher is in SECOND PLACE in the INTERNATIONAL SHEKEL
CHALLENGE. Although, this is decent, WE MUST WIN THIS!! So please,
Answer Israel Trivia, Join Hechalutzim (I will have forms at fall
convention), Do israel challenges (ask your Chapter IA if you do not
know about these) and keep up the good work!
THIS CONTEST ENDS BEFORE SHABBAT SO DONT HESITIATE TO ANSWER IMMEDIATELY!!!
See you all at fall,
Daniel Berdugo
Hagesher Israel Affairs Vice President
2007-2008

ATTENTION USY!
 
Get ready to gobble your way to this year’s
Turkey Trot
Join us on:
November 21st, 2007
Time: 7:30PM-11:30PM
At: Beth El 2901 Chapel Ave, Cherry Hill, NJ  08002
Cost:  $10
Please bring donations of canned   
food for the South Jersey Food Bank.
Please bring additional money for raffles such as EAGLES tickets!, regalia
and much much more!

HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL THERE!!! 

If you have any questions or concerns please contact Beth El USY President,
 Kellie Leigh Michel at cutiepiekel809@aol.com

You may also contact Beth El Youth Director
Joshua Michael Fineblum at 856-675-1166 ext. 151
or via e-mail at jfineblum@comcast.net or
your local synagogue youth director or advisor.

Hagesher!!!

This is the E-Mail you have all been waiting for!!! It contains THREE
major announcements.
First, ISRAEL TRIVIA. This weeks questions are:
1. Which former prime minister was born as David Grun?
2. Name two primary languages spoken in Israel.
3. What are the team colors of Israeli soccer team, Beitar Yerushalayim?

Remember, when answering these questions, include your name, chapter,
region, and of course answers, and email them to both
Israelchallenge@usy.org and Hageshershekelchallenge@gmail.com. Remember, the
competition ends before Shabbat on Friday night.

The second announcement, the one you have all been waiting for, are
the current Hagesher Regional Shekel Challenge Standings!! The top 5
chapters are currently..(drum roll please):
1. Beth Am Israel
2. Adath Jeshurun
3. Har Zion Temple
4. Beth El Cherry Hill
5. TIBE
REMEMBER, whether or not your chapter is on this list, there is still
a lot of time left until the shekel challenge comes to a close. Ways
to improve your chapters chances of winning the shekel challenge are
things like signing up for HECHALUTZIM, answering ISRAEL TRIVIA, doing
ISRAEL CHALLENGES and much more.

The third thing on this email's agenda: Whats going on in Israel?

Israel offers US doctors training in emergency response:

http://israel21c.com/bin/en.jsp?enDispWho=Articles%5El1854&enPage=BlankPage&enDisplay=view&enDispWhat=object&enVersion=0&enZone=Democracy&

U.S. announces Mideast conference for Nov. 27:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/20/AR2007112000486.html

That's all for now. Keep up the good work and Happy Thanksgiving
B'hatzlacha,
Daniel Berdugo
Hagesher Israel Affairs Vice President
2007-2008

SHABBAT SHALOM HAGESHER!!!
 
Candle lighting: 4:22pm
Havdalah: 5:21pm
 
This week we read parashat VaYishlach.  This week's d'var was written by the
beautiful and talented Rel/Ed RGB member, Becka Lefkoe!
 
This week's parasha, Vayishlach, tells us the story of Jacob and his brother
Esau's long awaited reunion. Jacob ran away from his home because Rebecca's
trick to steal the birthright for Jacob instead of Esau. After 20 years,
Jacob plans to return to his home with his new family. But unlucky for him,
Esau gets word of Jacob's group coming back and sets out with 400 men,
prepared to fight Jacob. Esau was obviously still very angry about Jacob's
little trick!
Jacob sends his family away and gets ready to face Esau. That night, he
meets the spirit of his brother and battles with it all night. Though he
suffers some major injuries, he survived the fight. The angel rewards him
with the name Israel, meaning "He who prevails over the divine". Jacob then
meets Esau the next morning without anger in either of their minds, but all
they do is hug, exchange a few words, and part on their own ways.
We can learn from Jacob and Esau that hurt is not easily forgotten, or
forgiven. Though Jacob left for 20 years, enough time for Esau to cool down
from his anger over the stolen birthright, he came back to the full brunt of
Esau's hostility. Time did not cool over his wounds, and even though he
forgave Jacob of the trick, he never forgot. The two brothers, once best
friends, lost their relationship over something that was really their
mother's fault! Remember to think before what you say, because if you hurt
someone and think "I'll just wait until Yom Kippur and ask their
forgiveness", their anger will only increase. They might forgive you, but
they'll never forget what you did to them. So think before you act!
 
Questions:
1. What body part did Jacob break/dislocate while fighting with the angel?
(3 points)
 
2. What important woman died in this parasha, and where is she buried? (3
points)
 
3. Name all of Jacob's sons (and one daughter). Who is your favorite and
why? (5 points)
 
**Please send all answers to sarahjaye1@aol.com**
 
Hope you all had a wonderful Turkey Day, and have a restful, relaxing Shabbat!!
 
B'vracha,
 
Sarah Richman
Religion/Education VP

Hagesher!!!

Israel trivia again!!! Get pumped!!!
This week's questions are:

1. How many times has Maccabi Tel Aviv won the European Basketball Championship?
2. Who revived the Hebrew language and made it a modern language?
3. True/False: Albert Einstein recieved an offer to be the President of Israel.

Remember, when answering these questions, include your name, chapter,
region, and of course answers, and email them to both
Israelchallenge@usy.org and Hageshershekelchallenge@gmail.com  
The competition ends before shabbat friday night.

And now...an Israeli NEWS UPDATE!!!

Israel, Palestinians launch bid for 2008 peace deal:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071128/wl_mideast_afp/mideastdiplomacy_14

Ben Gurion University-Exxon collaboration fuels hopes for a greener future:

http://israel21c.com/bin/en.jsp?enDispWho=Articles%5El1866&enPage=BlankPage&enDisplay=view&enDispWhat=object&enVersion=0&enZone=Technology&

Thats all. B'hatzlacha!,
Daniel Berdugo
Hagesher Israel Affairs Vice President
2007-2008

SHABBAT SHALOM HAGESHER

Candle lighting: 4:19pm
Havdalah: 5:18pm

This week we read Parashat Vayyeshev.  The d'var was written by the
incredibly beautiful and amazing Rebecca Kossman:

            In this weeks Torah portion we read the famous story of Joseph
and his coat of many colors.  Joseph was his father’s favorite and so Israel
gives him a coat of many colors, which makes his brothers jealous. Soon
after, Joseph has two dreams. The first is that he and his brothers are in
the field and their sheaves bow down to his, and another where the sun,
moon, and eleven stars bow down to him. Both times he tells these dreams to
his brothers, which makes them jealous of the power that he will obviously
have over them.

            One day Israel sends Joseph to go find his brothers who have
gone to feed the flocks in Shechem. When they see him approaching they
decide to kill him, but wind up throwing him into a pit instead! Then they
come up with an even cleverer plan; to sell him to an Ishmaelite who is
passing by. They do so, and in order to hide what they did from their father
they cover the coat of many colors in blood so as to make Israel think
Joseph was attacked by a beast. Israel is very upset and mourns the loss of
his favorite son.

Meanwhile, Joseph has been sold to the Pharaoh, who makes him overseer of
his house. Being that Joseph is a very handsome man, the Pharaoh’s wife
develops an attraction to Joseph and tries to seduce him!! When she realizes
that she’s not going to get what she wants, she pretends that he raped her
and Joseph is consequently sent to jail. Thankfully though, G-d is with
Joseph and the keeper of the prison likes Joseph and even makes him an
overseer of sorts in the prison.

This parasha teaches us all a very important lesson about jealousy. Although
I don't think anyone of us is going do something as drastic as selling
someone into slaver out of jealousy, it’s important to realize that
everything we do has consequences. I'm sure Joseph’s brothers loved him very
much, but they let their jealousy overcome their love for their brother. We
should all think about what happened to Joseph due to his brother’ jealousy
the next time we envy someone else, and maybe we'll prevent a long line of
consequences from happening.

Shabbat shalom!!

Questions:

1) Why do Joseph’s brothers decide to throw him into a pit, instead of
killing him? (3 points)

2) In this parasha, we also read about Tamar and Judah. If Tamar had already
married Judah’s two sons, why does he sleep with her after they died? (3 points)

3) Throughout this parasha we hear a lot about Joseph and dreams. First he
has two very important dreams, and later, while in jail, he interprets two
dreams of his fellow prisoners. What is a dream that you have recently had,
and how would you interpret it? (5 points)

**Please e-mail all answers to sarahjaye1@aol.com**

Have a great Shabbos!!!

B'vracha,

Sarah Richman

Religion/Education VP