Question:

Our dream to move to Israel is finally becoming reality. We are making aliyah next month. I know it will be challenging. Any advice?

Answer:

Israel is unlike any other country in the world. Every other place you could live, as long as you like it there all is fine. But with Israel it isn’t enough that you like it there. Israel has to like you too.

Israel is a land with a soul of its own. It is the Holy Land, the place of divine blessing. If Israel finds you worthy, she shares her blessing with you, and no matter how hard life gets there, you will feel at home. But if you are undeserving of her holiness, you won’t feel settled there for long.

The move to Israel is called making aliyah, which means “going up.” This is not merely because Israel has a higher altitude to its surrounding countries. You need to go up to Israel because Israel is one step closer to heaven than the rest of the world. To reach Israel you need to be going upwards in your spiritual life.  It is a land of higher spiritual frequency that has little tolerance for stagnant souls. Only those who are willing to grow can feel at home there.

So along with all the paperwork and preparations for moving, prepare your soul for the journey ahead. Take a step up in your own spirituality by choosing a new mitzvah to observe, and taking on a new project of Torah study. The aliyah ascent begins now, long before you set foot in the Holy Land.

Life in Israel is not always easy. But for a soul on the way up, it really is a land flowing with milk and honey.

All the best,

Rabbi Moss.

Question:

My son’s bar mitzvah is this weekend and I can’t wait. But one thing upsets me – we can’t take photos or video at the service on Shabbos. It just seems so wrong that such a milestone cannot be recorded. I understand that the Shabbos laws do not allow it, but surely videoing a bar mitzvah should be considered within the spirit of the law?

Answer:

We are very fortunate to live in times like these, when technology allows us to view any event happening anywhere in the world any time we want. Judaism embraces these advances and encourages us to use them wisely. But there is also a down side to all modern inventions.

In the case of photography, there is a risk that capturing an event can sometimes substitute experiencing the event itself. A camera can be a great thing to hide behind. Rather than actually attending an occasion, absorbing the experience and being present, we find ourselves looking for good angles, the right lighting and photogenic moments. The whole mood is different, as people behave a certain way when they are being filmed. There can sometimes be a feeling that unless photos of an event have been posted online, the event never happened.

This is not to say that photography has no place. But not on Shabbos. Shabbos is the day of real life experiences, when we feel the immediacy of what’s happening around us. Our attention is more focused, our minds more alert, our eyes more observant and our memories more acute, when we know that this scene is once in a lifetime and can never be seen again.

Rather than capturing these moments on film, capture them in your heart. Don’t wait for the video, experience things as they happen. Etch the scene in your memory, engrave it on your soul and let the real life version be yours forever.

All the best,

Rabbi Moss

Question :

My kids keep asking me theological questions I can’t answer. Yesterday my five year old insisted he wanted to know “What does G-d look like?” I had no idea what to say….

Answer:

Sometimes the best thing you can tell your child is “I don’t know.” You teach your much child more by being  open about your inability to answer a question, than if you would give a half-baked answer just to get off the hook.

If you don’t know something, but fudge an answer, you teach a child that it is more important to look like you know something than to be honest and look ignorant. That’s a bad message. Saying I don’t know teaches that it is alright not to know everything, and it’s ok to be honest about it.

Also, by saying you don’t know, it shows your child that when you do have an answer, that answer is a real one. Your answers have more credibility when you only say what you really know.

But even more importantly, by saying, “Great question, I don’t know the answer, let me try and find out,” you teach your child that learning never stops, and everyone can learn more, even a parent. This is the greatest lesson you can teach your child. You may not have given him an answer, but you will have inspired him to ask more questions.

All the Best,

Rabbi Moss

PS. My answer to your child’s question, “What does G-d look like?”: Great question, I don’t know.

Question:

Why do we light bonfires on Lag Baomer? As far as I know, it is the anniversary of the passing of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. So why would the death of a great second century rabbi be the cause for celebration around a fire?

Answer:

There is a Jewish custom to light a candle on the anniversary of a death. This is to symbolize that their light still shines, their impact on us continues beyond the grave.
But for a soul like Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, a candle is not enough. To fully express the impact he is still having on the world, we don’t light a candle in his honour but rather we light a huge bonfire. For his fiery soul created a spiritual light that illuminates the world still today, almost two thousand years after his death.
Rabbi Shimon wrote the Zohar, which was the first comprehensive work of Kabbalah ever committed to writing. Until then, the mystical teachings of Judaism were passed down by word of mouth from teacher to student in secret societies. Rabbi Shimon saw that these teachings needed to be preserved for future generations, and so he had them recorded. “One day,” Rabbi Shimon predicted, “even young children will be studying these secrets.”
That day has come. Even young children, whether children in years or in spiritual maturity, are seeking inner truth, a deeper view of reality and a true soul connection. If they don’t find it at home, they will look somewhere else. So many of our brothers and sisters end up searching in foreign spiritualities for something they can find in their own tradition. It just has to be made available. That’s what Rabbi Shimon taught.
The only way Judaism can survive today is when its inner light is revealed. The modern Jew does not go for dogmatic teachings, empty ritual or dry intellectualism. Today’s seekers want the essence. They want a Judaism that is soulful and joyous, relevant and inspiring, warm and dynamic. This is the light of Kabbalah.
So the fire of Rabbi Shimon is drawing those floating sparks back to their source. The teachings of Kabbalah, especially as they have been brought down to earth through Chasidism, are lighting up lost souls today more than ever. All because of one holy soul, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai.
All the best
Rabbi Moss

A lively Shabbos service filled with song and inspiration. Easy to follow and welcoming atmosphere. Followed by Kiddush.  6:30pm to 7:15pm every week. at Nefesh, 54 Roscoe St Bondi Beach

(Mincha – summertime 6:10pm, wintertime ten mins after candlelighting)

A lively and easy to follow Shabbos morning service with Rabbi Moss, followed by a Kiddush. Kids program during the service. 10am – 12:20pm at Nefesh, 54 Roscoe St Bondi Beach