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 Kozhnitz explains that the two parts to this verse refer 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 tzaddik, 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 the Psalms: “I have set G-d before me always” (Psalms 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.
Yitzchak Shlomo ben Gittel
Yosef Chaim ben Ilana
Arkady Avraham ben Mazal
Chaim Shaul ben Esther
Yaakov Yisrael ben Chanah
Yosef Chaim ben Larrisa
Shmuel Nechemiah ben Hinda
Menachem ben Miriam
Yosef Yechiel Ben-Tzion ben Rivkah Beila
Binyamin Yehudah ben Leah
Chaim Mordechai ben Sarah Ita
Shlomo Aharon Nachman ben Malkah
Pesach Yosef ben Hinda
Esther Hadassah bas Devorah
Mitali Naomi bas Gilah Farcha
Chayah Sarah Leah bas Brachah
Heleni Orna bas Chein Chanah
Esther Brachah bas Chayah
Sima Frieda bas Chayah Rachel
Miriam bas Basya
Gila Raizel bas Gittel
Sally bas Rozy
Rachel bas Leah
Anna bas Roza
Chayah bas Regina
Angela bas Sarah
Rivkah Hila Hodayah bas Rachel
Ariellah bas Hila
Leah bas Esther
Amar Tamar bas Sarah
Chanah bas Miriam Perel
Sarka bas Sarah
Israeli Soldiers (Please recite Psalms 25, 26, 46, 83, 142.)
Yehoshua ben Aliza Esther
Menachem ben Aliza Esther
Gavriel Efraim ben Chanah Yafah
Netanel Akiva ben Chanah Yafah
Yonatan Ezra ben Chanah Yafah
Chaim Aba Menachem ben Naomi Beila
Daniel Moshe ben Devorah
Chaim Mordechai ben Sarah Ita
Gavriel Yehudah ben Yaakov
Shmuel ben Aharon
Moshe ben Shoshanah Esther
Yehoshua ben Tzvi
Dvir Moshe ben Dinah
Oriel ben Dinah
Dor ben Zehavah
Daniel ben Rachel
Shalev David ben Revital Renanah
Daniel ben Orli
Tal ben Ilana Ilanit
Mordechai Daniel ben Leah Rachel
Yotam ben Efrat Michal
Michael ben Naomi Sarah
Moshe Eliyahu ben Dinah Yehudis
Yosef ben Shlomis
Yosef ben Sarit
Yosef Daniel ben Anat
Yosef Chaim ben Hadassah
Ron ben Ahuvah
Yosef Yechiel Ben-Tzion ben Rivkah Beila
Binyamin Yehudah ben Leah
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.
