Lazer Beams

Holocaust? No, it can't happen here...

Famous last words of German Jews prior to Kristallnacht: "No, it can't happen here..."

American Jews, ever so comfy, say the same thing today. With oil up to $120/barrel and the value of the dollar down by over 30%, with a waning economy and increasing unemployment, it's only a matter of time until the ground really starts burning under the feet of American Jews. Why? Whenever a nation's economy gets squeezed, it's blame-the-Jews time. Besides, Hashem wants his American kinderlach here in Israel, exchanging their golf and country club membership for a true Torah lifestyle. Since the destruction of the Holy Temple, whenever Jews have it too cushy in the Diaspora, the mad dogs of antisemitism start barking and ultimately bite. Two prime examples are pre-Inquisition Spain and pre-Holocaust Germany. America really fits history's template like a glove. Now, with the Pollard #2 (suspected spy Ben Ami Kadish) affair hitting the fan, you can really expect some serious anti-Jewish animosity in the USA.

Thanks to our Emuna Outreach staffer in Alabama, Cookie Dalton, you can here a segment of my comments on the gathering clouds of American antisemitism from my latest broadcast on Israel National Radio:

The Miserable 1701

Without emuna, people are blind as bats. Adding arrogance to blindness renders a person completely daft.

Olmert's own party comrade and government minister, former IDF Commander-in-Chief Mofaz, is now crying to Condi that UN Resolution 1701 is meaningless and that Hizbolla controls South Lebanon while the impotent UN Force drinks expresso and plays backgammon. Duh...

When the ink on 1701 was still wet back in August of 2006, we here at Emuna News said that 1701 is not only a meaningless piece of paper, but detrimental to Israel. We also gave a rundown of the Bluster Boys that run this country. Hashem is exposing the corruption, ineptitude, and inability of immoral, self-serving leaders that try to uproot Judaism from the Jewish nation with their inane policies.

Moshiach is fast on the way. The self-destructing regime that fails to appreciate the gift of our Torah, our faith, and every grain of our Holy Land from Mount Hermon in the North to Eilat in the South, will soon give way to Hashem's anointed. I pray to The Almighty that the transition should be peaceful and merciful. Our prayers and spiritual strengthening will make the difference. Please don't waste a single erg on activism. Hashem wants us to rely on Him only, not on flesh-and-blood. Let's do just that, for our own good.

Birkat Ha'Ilanot: Blessing of the Trees

Once a year, during the Hebrew month of Nissan, we have the special mitzva of making a blessing over (at least two) blossoming fruit trees. According to Kabbala, this blessing is deeply significant, and helps correct the soul that is reincarnated within the tree. That soul is forever beholding to the person that makes the blessing, for he or she has done a great favor in helping that soul attain its tikkun, or correction.

You have only six more days (until Monday, May 5, 2008) to fulfill this wonderful mitzva. All you need are two blossoming fruit trees within reasonable distance of one another (i.e. that you can see both at the time of making the blessing).

For your convenience, here is the blessing,

In English: Blessed are You, Hashem our God, King of the Universe, who let nothing lack in His universe and created within it good creatures and good trees in order to give pleasure to human beings.

In Transliteration: Baruch ata Adonoi, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, she-lo chisar be-olamo klum v-vara vo beriyyot tovot ve-ilanot tovim lehanot bahem bnai Adam.

In Hebrew:  ברוך אתה ה' אלהינו מלך העולם שלא חסר בעולמו כלום וברא בו בריות טובות ואילנות טובים להנות בהם בני אדם

Thanks to my brothers-in-emuna-arms Reb Nati and Reb Akiva of Mystical Paths, here we are performing the mitzva here in the Land of Israel, in a citrus grove near Moshav Beit Chilkia, between Ashdod and Jerusalem.

This week at Breslov World

This coming Wednesday night and Thursday,  26 Nissan (1 May, 08) is Holocaust Remembrance Day. This week's Breslov World has 17 articles and stories about the Holocaust. No, we'll never forget.

For your personal spiritual enrichment, don't miss Rabbi Shalom Arush's article about Facial Illumination. This week's Kabbalah lesson also speaks about the aspect of faces in Sefirah & Partzuf, about the Divine Countenance.

For English-speaking lover's of Chassidic thought and folklore, we're happy to introduce you to Rabbi Tal Moshe Zwecker's new translation of the Noam Elimelech, a compilation of stories and teachings from the famed Chassidic master Rebbe Elimelech of Lizensk.

The Melitzer Rebbetzen is back with part one of Star of the Show.

My keyboard has been humming lately too. I answer the letter of a person that's stressed out of his skull from a tyrannical boss in "Boss Blues". Count Oliver's Dog is an eye-opening tale from French history with a timely message for all of us.

Noahide correspondent Alice Jonsson dukes it out with the Hillel House in "Challenge to Hillel", and Rebecca Shapiro delights the kiddies with another episode of Little Nachman.

This week's Torah portion is Kedoshim.  We wish you all a wonderful week.

We'd Better Wake Up - Now

Today's headlines are one big conglomerate wake-up call from Hashem - it takes a deaf, dumb, and blind person to ignore them.

We can no longer take our water for granted, as the Kinneret is nearing crisis-level.

We can no longer take basic foodstuffs for granted.

Winds of war are blowing from the north.

Our silly government is taking apart the country ( Golan, Jerusalem, with more on the table)  with its own soiled hands, secretly and unilaterally bending to the demands of those committed to our destruction, G-d forbid.

Katyushas continue to fall in Ashkelon, and no one says a word.

One of this generation's best loved tzaddikim, Rav Mordechai Eliahu shlit'a, is in serious condition after suffering a heart attack. May Hashem  grant him a full and complete recovery, amen.

When will people start taking Hashem's messages seriously?

Meanwhile, there's plenty we can do and no need for despair.

First, we should say our basic blessings, especially those over food and water, with much more intent.

Second, we should spend at least ten minutes a day asking Hashem to bring Moshiach and the Geula mercifully, and not with sever judgments.

Third, we should invoke Divine mercy by spreading emuna as far and as wide as fast as we can.

Fourth, we should correct our own faults without looking for faults in others.

Fifth, we should all devote at least 60 minutes  a day to personal prayer.

Sixth, we should all take upon ourselves something additional in Torah study.

One we wake up on our own accord, Hashem won't need to use the scary wake-up calls.

Threat to American Jewry? Hear Lazer today on Israel National Radio

What do Dan Gillerman, Ben Ami Kadish, and a steadily weakening US economy have to do with one another? They're all pieces of a puzzle that illustrates what's in store for American Jewry. Hear about it this afternoon at 4:30 PM local time (9:30 AM EDT) on Tamar Yonah's Weekend edition with Lazer on Israel National Radio.

Search for Truth

Dear Rabbi,

I am in an unusual situation. Since studying various aspects of Judaism, I find myself drawn more and more into Judaism as the true way to interpret and practice my faith, especially with regards to cleaving to G-d. What makes this unusual is that I am a minister and non-Jewish. Now I incorporate many of these ideas in what I teach because most in my faith seem to pursue the idea of G-d and a general morality more than a desire to know G-d intimately. I believe in prayer and meditation and letting G-d search my heart to deal with things that are not His will, but I also believe that yeshua is Messiah. My understanding is that Yeshua was a Rabbi and did not seek to cancel out the Torah, but lately, I've been having doubts. I honestly do not know what to do, and was wondering if you had any advice. Sincerely, Rev. RT, USA

Dear Reverend RT,

I sincerely appreciate your letter, and highly respect your search for the truth. I want you to know that I religiously refrain from debating religion, not only with my honored Chrisitian and Muslim friends, but with my fellow Jews of all backgrounds as well. Nevertheless, when a fellow human seeks my help, opinion, or advice, I try my best to do what I can.

For the Jewish view on non-Jewish interpretations of the Bible, please check out "The Messiah Truth Project". They have a number of eye-opening articles, which explain quite clearly why Jews don't believe that Yeshua was the Messiah. I also recommend you read "Sing, You Righteous", by Rabbi Avigdor Miller of blessed memory.

Reverend, I suggest you facilitate your search for truth by spending at least a half hour a day in personal prayer to The Almighty, and begging Him to show you the way, putting all your preconceptions aside. The Almighty doesn't need our permission to search our hearts. We need to ask His help so that we can search our own hearts; that's what real soul-searching is all about. Yours with best wishes, Lazer Brody

"M'kimi" - the personal freedom song

"He raises me from meager dust, from the trash heap He has lifted the destitute; to seat me with nobles, with the nobles of His people." Psalm 113:7-8

The above passages are the story of my life. Pesach not only is the national freedom holiday, put my personal freedom holiday, when I thank Hashem especially for liberating my soul via Torah, tshuva, and emuna.

"He raises me" in Hebrew is "M'kimi," from Psalm 113 that we'll all be saying during the Hallel prayer on Pesach."M'kimi" is the song that my cherished friend Rav Yosef Karduner and I are singing together in the following clip (click on the embedded video below), our way of wishing you and yours a joyous Shabbat and 7th day of Passover (plus 8th day for our friends overseas) with true freedom of the body, mind, and soul, amen.

I want to send an extra heartfelt thank-you and blessing to all of you who have given so much of your time, talents, and resources to help Emuna Outreach spread the message of hope and faith to the far corners of the world. May Hashem bless you always, and grant you all your heart's wishes for the very best, amen.

You can be a miracle worker

The Red Sea splitting before Moses and the children of Israel

The Hebrew month of Nissan in general, and the week of Passover in particular, mark the season of miracles. For a person with faith, miracles are as natural as the laws of nature, since faith transcends any natural laws, putting one in a realm where miracles are reality.

The Yerushalmi Talmud (tractate Taanis, 17 a-b) tells about Rabbi Ada bar Ahava (Achva), a righteous scholar. If there wasn't enough rain, all he would have to do is remove a shoe, and dark clouds would suddenly appear on the horizon. The Talmud continues to tell us exactly how Rabbi Ada acquired the power to perform miracles, listing 8 main criteria. The first 4 criteria apply to those who learn Torah, but the second 4 apply to each and every one of us; here they are:

1. Rabbi Ada never insulted another person or addressed him or her by an insulting or degrading nickname, even if the whole world did or even if that person said that it didn't bother him or her.

2. Rabbi Ada never took joy in a another person's failure or misfortune, even an arch rival.

3. If a person owed Rabbi Ada money, then Rabbi Ada would avoid walking by that person's house or place of employment, so that the person wouldn't feel pressured or stressed.

4. Rabbi Ada never went to sleep without forgiving anyone that harmed or insulted him.

One must rise above one's "natural" animalistic tendencies to behave like Rabbi Ada. If a person does make the effort, and emulates the behavior of Rabbi Ada while attaining a higher than natural plane of personal deportment, then The Almighty activates the ATFAT Principle ("a turn for a turn", you'll be able to read all about it in Chapter 6 of The Trail to Tranquility): Since you make "above-natural" demands on yourself, The Almighty will grant you "above-natural" wishes. In other words, he'll help you make miracles. Try it and see for yourself.

Only Prayer

Reb Nati from Mystical Paths interviews Rav Lazer, who gaves an amazing spiritual explanation about the threat against Israel and how to deal with it.