Month: November 2025

Toldot (תּוֹלְדֹת – Generations)
^{Genesis 25:19–28:9 – Malachi 1:1–2:7}

The Toldot Torah portion recounts the birth of Jacob and Esau, the sale of the birthright, and Isaac’s blessing. Isaac reopens the wells of his father Abraham, encounters resistance from the people of Gerar, and finally digs a well he names Rehovot (רְחֹבוֹת) — a gesture that ends strife and opens a space of peace and prosperity. The haftarah from the prophet Malachi echoes the tension between Israel and Edom, while emphasizing the moral responsibility tied to divine election.

Genesis 26:22
וַיִּקְרָא שְׁמָהּ רְחֹבוֹת וַיֹּאמֶר כִּי עַתָּה הִרְחִיב ה’ לָנוּ וּפָרִינוּ בָאָרֶץ
He named it Rehovot, saying, “Now the Lord has given us room, and we shall prosper in the land.”

The modern city of Rehovot was founded in 1890 by pioneers of the First Aliyah[1], organized under the Menuḥah ve‑Nahala society[2]. The name was proposed by Israel Belkind[3], drawn from Genesis 26:22, to express the hope for an open and fertile land.

The first land parcels were acquired through negotiations led by key figures of the Yishuv, including Yehoshua Hankin[4], Yehudah Goor[5], and Aharon Eliyahu Eisenberg[6], from a Christian Arab landowner. From the outset, the project emphasized financial autonomy and rejected external patronage, notably from Baron Rothschild. The local economy initially relied on vineyards, almond trees, and citrus cultivation.

Founded in 1904, the Great Synagogue Ohel Sarah stands at the heart of the moshava. Its façade bears the inscription: זה השער לה’ — צדיקים יבואו בו
This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it (Psalm 118:20). It also displays the Hebrew year שנת תרס״ד (5654) and the civil year 1904. Built through community donations and the commitment of the founding society, the synagogue served not only for religious services but also as a communal gathering space. Its architecture is modest and functional, reflecting the needs of an agricultural pioneer settlement and embodying values of simplicity, spirituality, and cohesion.

[1] First Aliyah: Wave of Jewish immigration to Ottoman Palestine (circa 1881–1903), mainly from Eastern Europe and Yemen, responsible for founding many agricultural settlements.
[2] Menuḥah ve‑Nahala: Founding society of Rehovot, established in Warsaw, composed of pioneers seeking local autonomy and self-management.
[3] Israel Belkind (1861–1929): Educator, writer, and founder of the Bilou movement (ביל״ו), a group of young Russian Jews pioneering Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel. The name Bilou is an acronym from Isaiah 2:5 — Beit Yaakov Lekhu Venelkha (“House of Jacob, let us go and walk”).
[4] Yehoshua Hankin (1864–1945): Zionist activist responsible for most major land purchases for the Zionist Organization in Ottoman and Mandate Palestine, known as the “father of modern agriculture in Israel.”
[5] Yehudah Goor (Grasovski) (1862–1950): Educator, lexicographer, and land negotiator. Born in Belarus, he immigrated to Eretz Israel in 1887. He helped acquire the lands of Rehovot and was active in Hebrew education and lexicography. He received the Bialik Prize in 1946 for contributions to Hebrew literature.
[6] Aharon Eliyahu Eisenberg (1863–1931): Central figure in the Hibbat Zion movement (חיבת ציון – Love of Zion), a pre-Zionist current that emerged in the 1880s in Eastern Europe. It promoted practical Jewish settlement in Eretz Israel through land acquisition and agricultural colonization.

Haye Sarah (חַיֵּי שָׂרָה – the life of Sarah)
^{Genesis 23:1 – 25:18 – I Kings 1:1 – 1:31}

Sarah dies, and Abraham purchases the field of Machpelah^[1] to bury her. He sends his servant Eliezer to find a wife for his son Yitzhak. Rivkah, Abraham’s grandniece, agrees to the marriage. Abraham passes his inheritance to Yitzhak, marries Qetura, has several children, and then dies. Yitzhak and Yishma’el bury him beside Sarah.
In the haftara, King David, now old, appoints Shelomoh as his successor and orders that he be anointed king.

Genesis 23:4
גֵּר-וְתוֹשָׁב אָנֹכִי, עִמָּכֶם; תְּנוּ לִי אֲחֻזַּת-קֶבֶר עִמָּכֶם, וְאֶקְבְּרָה מֵתִי מִלְּפָנָי
I am a stranger and a resident among you; grant me the possession of a burial site among you, that I may bury my dead before me.

The Jewish cemetery of Almaty was founded at the beginning of the 20th century, when the city was still called Verny^[2]. Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson^[3] rests in this cemetery, where the local community paid him their final respects. Exiled by Stalin to Kazakhstan, he continued to teach and transmit the Torah despite persecution. His son, The Rebbe^[4], carried this mission forward on a global scale.

Just a few streets away from the cemetery stands the Chabad synagogue, inaugurated in 1997. It is named Beit Menachem. The building houses a synagogue, a mikveh, a Jewish school, a kosher store, community offices, and guest rooms. On the façade one can read: “Jewish Center. House of Menachem. Chabad Lubavitch.”

In November 2025, Kazakhstan signed the Abraham Accords^[5]. This country, once a land of exile for Jews, became a participant in regional dialogue. Where a rabbi once taught in exile, a synagogue now rises, and a diplomatic agreement opens a new chapter.

^[1] The field of Machpelah, in Hebron in the Judean hills, purchased by Abraham to bury Sarah, represents the first Jewish acquisition in the land of Israel.
^[2] Verny, founded in 1854 by the Russian Empire, became Alma-Ata in 1921, then Almaty in 1993 after Kazakhstan’s independence. The current name comes from the Kazakh word for “apple” (alma), in reference to the orchards of the region.
^[3] Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson (1878–1944), a kabbalistic scholar, author of profound Torah commentaries, and rabbi of Yekatrinoslav (today Dnipro, Ukraine). In 1939, Soviet authorities arrested him for defending Jewish practice. After more than a year of torture in Stalin’s prisons, he was exiled to Chiali, then transferred to Almaty, where he died in 1944.
^[4] The title “the Rebbe” refers primarily to Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson (1902–1994), the seventh leader of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement (present in over 100 countries), son of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson. He was not present at his father’s burial, as he was living in New York and communication with the Soviet Union was extremely difficult. The synagogue inaugurated three years after his death bears his name.
^[5] The Abraham Accords are diplomatic normalization agreements between Israel and several Arab and Muslim countries, initiated in 2020 under U.S. auspices. Signed first by the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, later joined by Morocco and Sudan, they aim to establish bilateral relations in economic, cultural, scientific, and security fields. In November 2025, Kazakhstan joined this framework, marking a new stage in rapprochement between Israel and the Muslim world.

Vayeira (וַיֵּרָא – He appeared)
^{Genesis 18:1–22:24 • II Kings 4:1–37}

Abraham, sitting at the entrance of his tent, sees three visitors. He runs to greet them and offers them hospitality. In the continuation of the narrative, Abraham pleads to save Sodom, Sarah laughs at the announcement of Isaac’s birth, Hagar and Ishmael are protected in the desert, and finally the Akedah—the binding of Isaac—marks Abraham’s ultimate test. The haftarah recounts the miracles of the prophet Elisha, who saves a widow from destitution and restores life to the son of the Shunammite woman^[1].

Genesis 18:5
וְאֶקְחָה פַת-לֶחֶם וְסַעֲדוּ לִבְּכֶם, אַחַר תַּעֲבֹרוּ–כִּי-עַל-כֵּן עֲבַרְתֶּם, עַל-עַבְדְּכֶם; וַיֹּאמְרוּ, כֵּן תַּעֲשֶׂה כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתָּ.
I will fetch a morsel of bread, and you shall comfort your hearts; afterward you shall pass on—for that is why you have come to your servant. And they said, Do as you have said.

The Chabad House^[2] of Kathmandu, founded in the 1990s, has become an iconic Jewish center. Located in the Thamel district^[3], it welcomes thousands of travelers each year, especially young Israelis after their military service. Known for its massive Passover seder—often described as the largest in the world with over 1,500 participants—it has become a global symbol of Jewish hospitality. All year round, it remains an open home: Shabbat meals, Torah classes, assistance to travelers in distress, and support during crises (the 2015 earthquake, trekking accidents, etc.).

^[1] The term “Shunammite” refers to a woman from Shunem, a village in the territory of Issachar in Israel. Two Shunammite women are mentioned in the Bible: Abishag, servant of King David (I Kings 1–2), and a generous woman who hosted the prophet Elisha (II Kings 4 and 8).
^[2] The Chabad-Lubavitch movement, founded in the 18th century in Belarus by Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, combines intellectual study with community action. Now present in over 100 countries with thousands of centers, it sends emissaries (shluchim) to offer hospitality, meals, education, and support to any Jew, wherever they may be.
^[3] Thamel, the tourist heart of Kathmandu, is a crossroads where the Chabad House plays a unique role: serving as a spiritual and communal anchor in a cosmopolitan environment.