Imitating Haman

Posted on March 24, 2016 by Emuna Daily

A Purim play was put on in the yeshiva, with the main characters being Moredechai and Esther.  “Playing the role of Haman is easy, R’ Yoself Yozel Hurwitz commented, “for everyone has a touch of arrogance and cruelty.  But to live up to Mordechai’s midos is very difficult, so it takes special effort to imitate them.” ~ Sparks of Mussar

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Havdalah

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Emuna Daily

Almost 100 years ago, after visiting America, R’ Meir Shapiro zt”l, the founder of “daf yomi,” commented that “American Jewry has learned to make Kiddush; it has not yet learned how to make havdalah!”

Havdalah – the ability to identify what is harmful to Jewish life and holiness and to separate one’s self from it – is infinitely harder to deal with than is the convivial Kiddush. ~ Based on a shiur I heard from R’ Shay Shachter and an article from R’ Berel Wein

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Honor him

Posted on March 22, 2016 by Emuna Daily

One should regard everyone else as greater than himself. If another is more of a talmid chochom, one is obligated to honor him. If another is wealthier, he is also deserving of honor as Talmud Eruvin 86a relates: “Rabbi Yehuda haNasi would honor the rich”–one should think that since Hashem granted this other person wealth, he is surely worthy of it. – R’ Shlomo Gantzfried zt”l

The answer to yesterday’s “Identify that Prayer” is “Yehei rava kadamuch…” at the end of “Brich Shemei.”

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Identify that Prayer#10

Posted on March 21, 2016 by Emuna Daily

“May it be Your will that You open my heart to the Torah and that You fulfill the wishes of my heart and the heart of Your entire people Israel for good, for life, and for peace.”

This one is a bit more difficult.  The answer will be in tomorrow’s post.

Additionally, if anyone is interested, I heard this incredible Purim shiur last year from R’ Ephraim Lever called “Don’t Miss Opportunities.”  I then listened it to again, then transcribed it and then thought about it all year. It is that good!  Here is the link: https://www.torahanytime.com/video/purim-dont-miss-opportunities/

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It Ruins Your Reputation

Posted on March 20, 2016 by Emuna Daily

One who speaks ill of others become contemptible even to those who listened to his evil talk and accepted it as truth….And [they] will forever suspect that he might one day speak ill of them. ~ The Chofetz Chaim

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The Forgotten Umbrella

Posted on March 19, 2016 by Emuna Daily

A guest once forgot his umbrella in Rabbi Simcha Zissel Ziv’s Yeshiva of Kelm. Thirteen years later, he returned to the yeshiva and found his umbrella in the exact spot where he had left it. ~ Tnuas Hamussar as quoted by R’ Zelig Pliskin

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Our Survival

Posted on March 18, 2016 by Emuna Daily

When I ponder the miracle of the survival of the Jewish people, it is in my mind greater than all the miracles and wonders that God performed for our ancestors in Egypt, in the wilderness and in the land of Israel.  The longer the exile persists, the more apparent the miracle becomes. ~ R’ Yaakov Emden (1697-1776)

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Redefining the Past

Posted on March 17, 2016 by Emuna Daily

Nothing can hold you back – not your childhood, not the history of a lifetime, not even the very last moment before now. In a moment you can abandon your past. And once abandoned, you can redefine it.

If the past was a ring of futility, let it become a wheel of yearning that drives you forward. If the past was a brick wall, let it become a dam to unleash your power.
The very first step of change is so powerful , the boundaries of time fall aside. In one bittersweet moment, the sting of the past is dissolved and its honey salvaged. ~ R’ Tzvi Freeman

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Luxuries

Posted on March 16, 2016 by Emuna Daily

The luxuries we indulge in eventually come to seem to be necessities, as if we could not live without them. ~ R’ Yisroel Salanter zt”l

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Keeping our Heads Above Water

Posted on March 15, 2016 by Emuna Daily

The Gemara tells us that a father is required to teach his son how to swim.  The secret to swimming is to move along in the water without allowing one’s head to go under. We live in a world that pulls us along, but we must always be careful to keep our heads above the water – not allowing ourselves to be totally dragged under by the constant struggles of daily life. ~ Kotzker Rebbe

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