Mazal Tov to Rabbi Dovid Gutnick and family on the birth of a son.

Times: Shabbat starts tonight with candle lighting at 5:12pm, and ends Saturday night at 6:10pm. The weekly Torah portion is Emor.

Sushi Mondays: With thanks to our generous sponsor, we will now have sushi every Monday before (and after) mincha at 1.00pm.

Mincha in the CBD: Whisky and Kugel Fridays is on today at 1pm using the SMS system to confirm numbers. Mincha (Mon-Thu) continues next week at 1.00pm with the SMS reminder.

Study: The Wednesday shiur & lunch continues this week at Billing Bureau, following 1.00pm mincha.

Thought of the Week with thanks to Avi Gordon. In this week’s Torah reading, God tells the Jewish people that they need to a leave a corner of their fields unharvested to allow the poor to come and take from it. God doesn’t tell them to give some of their crops to the poor, but rather they should leave them some of their crops.

In an effort to allow the receiver of the crops not to feel ashamed, God tells the owner of the field to leave the crops.

Further, to give anonymously to someone powerfully demonstrates that your motives are totally altruistic and you seek nothing in return expect for knowing that you helped someone in need.

The more you can give without the receiver ever knowing whom you are, the more you’ll be giving for the right reasons. It will be all about them and not about you. You’ll be giving because you know you’re merely God’s “go-between” to leave for others some of what God so graciously gave to you.

Giving in this way not only ensures that the recipient won’t be embarrassed, but it also gets you completely in touch with the true and only source of all your possessions. And when you do this, you prepare yourself to receive God’s blessing always to be an agent to give.

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