lekh-lekha

[lekh-lekha]

“We do not know if Yahweh wanted or chose Israel on purpose, only that Israel had wanted with all of his heart to be chosen by Yahweh, as a holy and unique people and to be ruled and protected by him throughout history.”

Adrian and Dana Levi - Fundamentals of Judaism

#judaism #quotes #G-d and Israel

[lekh-lekha]

Jewish woman’s wrap (izar) and face veil (khiliyye)

Late 19th Century to Early 20th Century

Baghdad, Iraq

The Israel Museum

#iraq #jewish history #iraqi jews

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#jumblr #synagogues #Jewish art #jewish architecture

[lekh-lekha]

#jumblr #synagogues #jewish art #Jewish architecture

[lekh-lekha]

Contribution is the very thread that weaves together the fabric of any society.

It is more than a simple act of giving; it's a commitment to shared growth and the betterment of all.

Within each community, individuals bring their unique resources, efforts, and ideas to the table.

These are the vital sparks that ignite change, foster development, and nurture a collective spirit.

When we talk about contribution, we often think of grand gestures and significant acts of philanthropy. But it’s the everyday contributions, small yet consistent, that build the foundation of a thriving society.

Whether it’s volunteering at a local shelter, mentoring a student, or simply sharing knowledge with a neighbor, every act of contribution counts.

In essence, contribution is about empowerment. It’s about each person playing a part in shaping the community's destiny.

It creates a sense of ownership and belonging, where every individual knows that they have a role in the collective narrative.

This engagement not only enhances the social fabric but also enriches the individual, offering a sense of purpose and satisfaction that comes from knowing one has made a difference.

As members of a community, our contributions can take many forms—economic, cultural, educational, or emotional support.

Each form serves as a cornerstone of society’s edifice, ensuring that its structure is strong, resilient, and inclusive.

By contributing, we not only uphold the values of our society but also set a precedent for future generations, instilling in them the importance of community involvement and the enduring impact of collective efforts.

Ultimately, the beauty of contribution lies in its reciprocity. As we give, so do we receive. We create a circle of support that uplifts, educates, and empowers, and through this cycle, a society not only survives but thrives. In contributing, we are all shareholders of a future we are actively shaping—a future built on the pillars of mutual respect, cooperation, and shared prosperity.

#עברית #values

[lekh-lekha]

“God weeps because of the abyss between God and creation, that the abyss must be a condition of creation.”

— Maggie Ross, The Fountain and the Furnace

[lekh-lekha]

Had a mini breakdown during prayer over the realisation I am so tired of having my relationship with G-d being one of guilt, shame and fear, instead of one of peace, happiness and safety. And I was wondering if Adam and Chava ever felt like this.

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[lekh-lekha]

“ugh why do you try to make everything about God” I don’t, everything already is about God. hope this helps

[lekh-lekha]

Old photographs of Jewish women II

1. Kurdistan; 2. Volhynia region, Ukraine; 3. Yemen; 4. Bukhara, Uzbekistan; 5. Algeria; 6. Crimea; 7. Cracow, Poland; 8. Thessaloniki, Greece; 9. Bulgaria

[lekh-lekha]

[lekh-lekha]

https://go.thechesedfund.com/federationofjewishcommunitiesofthecis/emergency?aff=Thaks

“Brothers and sisters,

I am Rabbi Avraham Wolf, Chief Rabbi of the Jewish Community of Odessa and Southern Ukraine, and I’m writing to you with a broken heart.

For over 20 days, we have been under siege under fire, non-stop shelling, and victims of indiscriminate firing upon hospitals and innocent children.

There are tens of thousands of dead and wounded victims. The situation here is painful and indescribable.

I was left here in Odessa with a few heroes who aren’t ready to give up on any Jew that didn’t manage to escape. We will not abandon them!

We will stay here and not leave until the last Jew is rescued with G-d’s help!

Nearly 2 million people in Ukraine have already lost their homes. The lives of millions more have changed beyond recognition following the Russian invasion. We, the Jewish community of Odessa and the surrounding areas, have never imagined in our wildest dreams that such a war would occur and that we would fall into it, unable to live and unable to leave.

We feel and see death before our eyes every day. We live frozen in fear, with sirens and explosions erupting night and day, surrounded by destruction and devastation.

Our Jewish community in Odessa boasts about 35,000 people. Anyone who could have escaped has already done so. More than half of our community are now refugees. Only those who are unable to leave remain. This includes the sick, the elderly, people who cannot travel, and devoted relatives unwilling to abandon their loved ones. Even people who want and can leave can not always escape. Roads are blocked. Men who reach the border are not allowed to cross with their families.

The city of Odessa is under total siege. Yet, we continue to transport hundreds of families from our community across the Moldovan border close to us. This includes refugee families who managed to escape from Kyiv and other cities, thanks to the heroic efforts of our volunteers and dedicated staff.

Because of the ban on 18-60-year-old men from leaving Ukraine, we are forced to use all sorts of covert means to evacuate them as well and not cut them off from their families and small children! It costs us a lot of money!!

We have so far managed to evacuate 120 children from our orphanage. But there are still 80 orphans left who we have not yet been able to rescue and are in danger of death at any moment.

The lucky ones who managed to escape war-torn Ukraine are now refugees. Homeless children and parents whose only home and security have been taken from them. Thousands of people have lost their property and possessions and suddenly became homeless!

They were left only with the clothes on their backs which barely withstand the freezing temperatures on the streets of Ukraine. They sleep in refugee camps inside tents with no heating and no money to their name!

How much longer must they suffer? We have to make arrangements for them and make sure they have the minimum required to recover and survive.

And what about those who are still left behind? Among them are about 100 elderly Holocaust survivors in nursing homes in our community who live again through bombings and destruction, food shortages, and hunger. They lack basic supplies. How can we just let them relive those days of horror?

We can not leave those who rely on us. Either way, we need to stay alive. Our supplies are running low. Soon we will no longer have the most basic food items - flour and water.

We need a miracle. We are praying to G-d!

We need your help to survive.

We are committed to helping the Jews left behind!

We will not leave Ukraine until the last Jew leaves this place!

Please help us!!

Please do not abandon us to our fate! PLEASE HELP!

We urgently need financial support! Please help us!!!

Thank you very much and Tizku Lemitzvos!

Rabbi Avraham Wolf,

Chief Rabbi of Odessa & Southern Ukraine”

#jumblr #donate #help #Ukraine #mutual help #tzedakah #ukrainian jews

[lekh-lekha]

hey y'all! I'm moving again!!

I'm a disable, gay jew who's currently unemployed living off of my husband's job and I'm looking to make a little money off of tarot and art commissions to help support my three man family's move out of state so I'm gonna do a big sale for My Wares

$1 per card for tarot readings

$10 for a drawing of whatever you'd like, (+$3 for each person past the first) examples of my art can be found in the #my art tag (I'll tag this post for ease of finding)

if you'd like to just donate:

p*ypal: @ sbahj

v*nmo: @ hellhole13

please reblog and please don't tag mutual aid or boost so tungle doesn't eat this post!!

#jumblr #art commisions #mutual aid

[lekh-lekha]

Do you ever look through your old posts and wonder “What the heck was I even on about when I wrote this.”

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#I f-ing hate this #antisemitism

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Templul Unirea Sfântă Synagogue (Torah Ark)

Bucharest, Romania 23 October 2018 [ref: RO18-1181]

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Jews of tumblr, here are some tehillim (psalms) to say for Ukraine, sent by the OU

[full Hebrew and English text under cut]

פרק קכ״א שִׁיר לַמַּעֲלוֹת אֶשָּׂא עֵינַי אֶל־הֶהָרִים מֵאַיִן יָבֹא עֶזְרִי׃ עֶזְרִי מֵעִם יְהוָה עֹשֵׂה שָׁמַיִם וָאָרֶץ׃ אַל־יִתֵּן לַמּוֹט רַגְלֶךָ אַל־יָנוּם שֹׁמְרֶךָ׃ הִנֵּה לֹא־יָנוּם וְלֹא יִישָׁן שׁוֹמֵר יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ יְהוָה שֹׁמְרֶךָ יְהוָה צִלְּךָ עַל־יַד יְמִינֶךָ׃ יוֹמָם הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ לֹא־יַכֶּכָּה וְיָרֵחַ בַּלָּיְלָה׃ יְהוָה יִשְׁמָרְךָ מִכָּל־רָע יִשְׁמֹר אֶת־נַפְשֶׁךָ׃ יְהוָה יִשְׁמָר־צֵאתְךָ וּבוֹאֶךָ מֵעַתָּה וְעַד־עוֹלָם׃

Chapter 121 A song of ascents. I shall lift my eyes to the mountains. Whence shall my help come? My help is from the L rd, maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip. Your Keeper will not sleep. Behold, He will not slumber and He will not sleep, the Keeper of Israel. The L rd is your Keeper. The L rd is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not smite you by day, nor the moon at night. The L rd will keep you from all evil. He will keep your soul. The L rd will guard your going out and your coming in from now and forevermore.

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פרק ק״ל שִׁיר הַמַּעֲלוֹת מִמַּעֲמַקִּים קְרָאתִיךָ יְהוָה׃ אֲדֹנָי שִׁמְעָה בְקוֹלִי תִּהְיֶינָה אָזְנֶיךָ קַשֻּׁבוֹת לְקוֹל תַּחֲנוּנָי׃ אִם־עֲוֺנוֹת תִּשְׁמָר־יָהּ אֲדֹנָי מִי יַעֲמֹד׃ כִּי־עִמְּךָ הַסְּלִיחָה לְמַעַן תִּוָּרֵא׃ קִוִּיתִי יְהוָה קִוְּתָה נַפְשִׁי וְלִדְבָרוֹ הוֹחָלְתִּי׃ נַפְשִׁי לַאדֹנָי מִשֹּׁמְרִים לַבֹּקֶר שֹׁמְרִים לַבֹּקֶר׃ יַחֵל יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶל־יְהוָה כִּי־עִם־יְהוָה הַחֶסֶד וְהַרְבֵּה עִמּוֹ פְדוּת׃ וְהוּא יִפְדֶּה אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵל מִכֹּל עֲוֺנֹתָיו׃

Chapter 121 A song of ascents. I shall lift my eyes to the mountains. Whence shall my help come? My help is from the L rd, maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip. Your Keeper will not sleep. Behold, He will not slumber and He will not sleep, the Keeper of Israel. The L rd is your Keeper. The L rd is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not smite you by day, nor the moon at night. The L rd will keep you from all evil. He will keep your soul. The L rd will guard your going out and your coming in from now and forevermore.

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פרק קמ״ב מַשְׂכִּיל לְדָוִד בִּהְיוֹתוֹ בַמְּעָרָה תְפִלָּה׃ קוֹלִי אֶל־יְהוָה אֶזְעָק קוֹלִי אֶל־יְהוָה אֶתְחַנָּן׃ אֶשְׁפֹּךְ לְפָנָיו שִׂיחִי צָרָתִי לְפָנָיו אַגִּיד׃ בְּהִתְעַטֵּף עָלַי רוּחִי וְאַתָּה יָדַעְתָּ נְתִיבָתִי בְּאֹרַח־זוּ אֲהַלֵּךְ טָמְנוּ פַח לִי׃ הַבֵּיט יָמִין וּרְאֵה וְאֵין־לִי מַכִּיר אָבַד מָנוֹס מִמֶּנִּי אֵין דּוֹרֵשׁ לְנַפְשִׁי׃ זָעַקְתִּי אֵלֶיךָ יְהוָה אָמַרְתִּי אַתָּה מַחְסִי חֶלְקִי בְּאֶרֶץ הַחַיִּים׃ הַקְשִׁיבָה אֶל־רִנָּתִי כִּי־דַלּוֹתִי מְאֹד הַצִּילֵנִי מֵרֹדְפַי כִּי אָמְצוּ מִמֶּנִּי׃ הוֹצִיאָה מִמַּסְגֵּר נַפְשִׁי לְהוֹדוֹת אֶת־שְׁמֶךָ בִּי יַכְתִּרוּ צַדִּיקִים כִּי תִגְמֹל עָלָי׃

Chapter 130 A song of ascents. From the depths [(of the exile)] have I called You, O L rd. O L rd, hear my voice. Let Your ears hearken to the voice of my supplications. If transgressions You heed, O L rd, O L rd, who shall stand? For with You [(and with no other)] is forgiveness, so that You be feared. I have hoped in the L rd; my soul has hoped. And to His word have I aspired. My soul [has yearned] for the L rd. [I am one] of the watchers for the morning [of redemption], of the [continual] watchers for the morning. Hope, O Israel, in the L rd. For with the L rd is lovingkindness and there is much redemption with Him. And He will redeem Israel from all of its transgressions.