Dear Talmidot, Parents and Friends –

1)         This week at Midreshet Moriah

2)         Faculty Dvar Torah – Rav Zvi Ron

3)         Mazal Tov

4)         Mi SheBerach

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This Week at Midreshet

We have had so much nachas greeting our alumnae and learning with them once again! Our current students have enjoyed meeting these older Midreshet "sisters" and hearing from them about their experiences in Midreshet and how they have kept up their learning and relationships with teachers.

Sunday night Rena Coren led a Kumzits for the current students and visiting alumnae in the Midreshet Beis. The candles set the tone for a beautiful, spiritual and bonding evening. Thank you Rena for such an inspirational evening and for your uplifting messages!  

We were privileged to have Rav Meir Goldwicht this week, one of the Roshei Yeshiva at Yeshiva University. He spoke with our students about the "sweetness" of Torah and how to connect and be inspired by it! We also enjoyed hearing from Lavi Greenspan this week. Lavi, a friend of many faculty members at Midreshet, went blind 14 years ago, after a surgery on his pituitary gland
damaged his optic nerve. Our students were mezmerized by Lavi's heroic acceptance of his blindness and his determination to finish law school, pass the Law Bar, finish Semicha and get his MSW. Lavi spoke about his faith in Hashem, the love and support he receives from friends and the strong relationships he maintains with teachers and Rabbis. Perhaps the most moving moment was when Lavi expressed his longing to learn from a sefer by reading the words himself and not just listening to a chavruta - our students have that joy daily and they were reminded not to take that for granted!

All students are finalizing their second semester schedules and enjoying choosing every class, beis, chabura, and chavruta! They want to make the best schedule and take every advantage of this semester.

Good luck! 

See the latest photos on our website: http://midreshetmoriah.com/galleries/

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Frogs Here, Frogs There…

Rav Zvi Ron

In the third chapter of Sefer Daniel we read the story of Chananya, Mishael and Azarya. These three young Jewish men refused to bow down to the idol that Nevuchadnezzar set up. All the other nobles and officials agreed to bow down, but these three Jews did not. The Gemara (Sanhedrin 93a) states that even all the other Jews at the time bowed down as well, and only Chananya, Mishael and Azarya did not. In Sefer Daniel we read how they were punished by being thrown into a fiery furnace, but were miraculously saved by Hashem.

The Gemara (Pesachim 53b) explains that Chananya, Mishael and Azarya learned that they should be willing to risk their lives in a fiery furnace from the frogs in this week's parsha. They made a "kal vachomer" argument: there is no mitzvah for a frog to be a martyr and die to sanctify the name of Hashem, yet the Torah tells us (Exodus 7:28) that the frogs went everywhere, even into the ovens of the Egyptians, so of course Chananya, Mishael and Azarya, who are commanded in the mitzvah of "kiddush Hashem" should go into a fiery furnace.

The Sha'agat Aryeh questions this "kal vachomer" because in fact Hashem did tell the frogs to go into the ovens of the Egyptians. Hashem told Moshe to inform Pharaoh that frogs would go everywhere and even into the ovens. Based on this, there is no "kal vachomer," the frogs were commanded just as Chananya, Mishael and Azarya were.

The Vilna Ga'on answered this question by explaining that G-d commanded the frogs in general that they should enter the ovens, but did not instruct any individual frog to do so. Thus, each frog could have said to himself, "Why should I go into the oven? Some frog has to go into the oven, but why should it be me?" 

According to our Sages, Daniel was away on government business during the whole idol episode. All of the Jews who were present did bow to the idol. Chananya, Mishael and Azarya could have said, "Why do we have to take a stand? Daniel is not around, maybe we should also leave town and avoid this whole scenario?" From the frogs they learned that each person has to take personal responsibility and take a stand rather than relying on the collective and absolving oneself of any duties.

We often find ourselves in difficult and uncomfortable situations where it might be easier for us to lay low, keep quiet and dodge responsibility. We could just wait for somebody else to do what has to be done and stay in our own comfort zone. The frogs teach us that this is not the way to behave. When somebody must do something, that somebody is you.

Shabbat Shalom!

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Mazel Tov!               

Birth:

Yvette (Trauring) ('00-'01) and Ari Braunstein on the birth of a baby boy

Yhi ratzon shetizku lgadlo lTorah lChupa ulMa'asim tovim

Leah (Chatzky) ('04-'05) and Josh Graber on the birth of a baby girl

Yhi ratzon shetizku lgadla lTorah lChupa ulMa'asim tovim

Engagements:

Laura Sued ('06-'07) and Shapse Jakob on their engagement

Yhi ratzon shetivnu bayit ne'eman bYisrael

Weddings:

Tanya Kapetansky ('09-'10) and Shimon Ghermezian on their wedding
Yhi ratzon shetivnu bayit ne'eman bYisrael

Please help us stay informed - http://midreshetmoriah.org/send-mazaltov.asp

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Mi SheBerach List

We have started a new list. Please email midmoriah@gmail.com if there is a name you would like to add.  

Miriam Henya bat Rivka (19/1)

Reuven ben Tova Chaya (12/1)

Sorah Leah bat Gittel Chana (5/1) 

Chana bat Sorah (5/1)

Rachel Yehudit bat Minsha Zissel (5/1)

Chaya Shaindel bat Kraindel (5/1)

Leah Golda bat Esther Frimmet (5/1)

Feiga bat Sophie (5/1)

Chane Chaim HaCohen ben Perel (29/12)

Zelda bat Rachel (20/12)

Hayeled Eitan Ze'ev HaCohen ben Leah Binah (29/12)

Batya Emunah bat Bracha Chaya (22/12)

Yosef Dov ben Frieda (22/12)

Chana Fraida bas Faiga Zelda (22/12)

Dorit Chaya Bat Geulah (15/12)

Briget Joan bat Marion Patricia (15/12)

Dorit Chaya bat Geula (15/12)

Dovid Chaim ben Brina (15/12)

Avraham ben Esther (15/12)

Adina bat Rivka (15/12)

Moriel Raizie bat Feige Kaylee (13/12)

Rachel Yehudit bat Mancha Zaisel (8/12)

Aron ben Reizel (1/12)

Yehudah ben Shoshanna (1/12)

Haddasah Leah bat Shoshana (24/11)

Baruch Yehudah ben Leah (17/11)

Charna Leah bat Shaindel (17/11)

Mazal bat Pircha (3/11/11)

Malka bat Tova (10/10/11)

Shimon Dovid Yehoshua bat Rena (6/10/11)

Rifaela Chana Rivka bat Shayna Dena (6/10/11)- diagnosed with Non-Hodgken's Lymphoma

Rachel bat Mindel (6/10/11) - Lymphoma

Tzuriya Kochevet bat Sara - mother of 4 with inoperable stomach cancer (25/9/11)

Chaya bat Zecil (22/9/11)

Perel bat Malka (21/9/11)

Rachaylle bat Turan (21/9/11)

Miriam Leah bat Reizel Dena (21/9/11)

Zechariya Kalman Hakohen ben Yael Margolit (18/9/11)
Refael Matityahu Yaakov ben Gittel Rivka (18/9/11)

Tzipora Sara bat Esther Leah (18/9/11)

David ben Miriam (18/9/11)

David ben Rachel (18/9/11)

Rachel bat Kochava (18/9/11)
Hilda bat Yaffa (18/9/11)

Chana Gitel bat Sarah Chana (18/9/11)
Sarah Sipora bat Shifra (18/9/11)

Moshe Eliezer ben Esther Miriam (18/9/11)
Hilda bat Yaffa (18/9/11)
Moshe Yitzchak ben Shoshana (18/9/11)

Aviva Miriam bat Esther ( 11/9/11)

Osnat bat Clara (11/9/11)

Avraham Yehuda ben Davida Yehudit (11/9/11)

Tziporah Faiga Bat Sima Shaindel (11/9/11)

Chava Deena Etya Bat Chaya Tziporah Sheva (11/9/11)