Who will go up to the mountain of G-d, and who will stand in His holy place? (T’hilim 24:3)
The Maggid of Koznitz explains that the two parts to this verse refers to two distinct stages in spiritual development. Firstly, one has to get up the mountain to be with G-d. This in itself is hard enough; but to remain with Hashem and maintain one’s level of development on a long-term basis is even harder. Man is a creature of change! Physically, we grow older, and our bodies replenish their cells. We also change emotionally and spiritually – our moods differ from day to day, our level of concentration changes, etc. We are, by nature, changing on a daily basis. This means that it is difficult to remain spiritually constant over a long period of time.
In Parshas VaYeishev, we learn that Yosef not only reached the mountain of G-d but was also able to remain in His holy place. In Yosef’s first dream, he and his brothers were in a field. They were binding grain into sheaves. Yosef’s sheaf arose and stood. The brothers’ sheaves surrounded Yosef’s sheaf and bowed to it. Rabbi Zvi Belovski explains that in this dream Yosef saw himself in comparison with his brothers. “His sheaf stood upright and also remained erect.” He was to be the quintessential tzadik, the expert at reaching and remaining with Hashem.
David HaMelech teaches us that in order to maintain our relationship with Hashem, we first have to develop a basic awareness of the presence of G-d in our lives. As it says in T’hilim: “I have set G-d before me always” (T’hilim 16:8). By doing so, we “invite” Him into our lives and are able to begin developing a relationship with Him.
List of People Who Need a r’fuah sh’leimah (a complete recovery)
Please recite Psalms 20, 30, 88, 121, and 130.
Yossi Azriel ben Chayah Michal
Aviel ben Ktziyah Batyah
Eliyahu ben Sophia
Mordechai ben Rachel Anba
Nissim ben Devorah
Ezra ben Farida
Yossi ben Vardit
Yaakov ben Mazal
Nissan ben Yael
Yehoshua ben Miriam
Eliyahu ben Miriam
Aharon Mordechai ben Sharon
Moshe ben Rachel
Gavriel ben Imo-Shalom
Marik ben Tamara
Yitzchak ben Chanom Chanah
Yosef ben Leah
Shlomo ben Miriam
Shalom Baruch ben Malkah Freida
Ilay Eliezer ben Rivah Rivkah
Misha Moshe ben Tamara
Tovah Yocheved bas Esther Bukas
Ruchamah Perel Malkah Leah bas Chanah Serel
Esther Hadasah bas Devorah
Alizah bas Miriam
Shoshanah Shurah bas Zina
Luna bas Rachel
Malkah bas Miriam
Malkah bas Reicha Shifrah
Adele bas Adi
Evon bas Sally
Karen bas Rachel
Chavah bas Sarah
Brachah Chanah bas Sarah
Tovah Chanah bas Sarah Devorah
Rachel bas Edith
Chanah Elianah bas Naomi
To add names of individuals who need a r’fuah sh’leimah to next week’s T’hilim column, please email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and complete the Google form.
