To Life!

No Extra Charge Carpet Cleaning
for Yom Kippur

5

T 0 R A H

PORTION

Rooms of
SOQ95
Carpet cleaned 77

ir

Rooms'of
$A 090
Carpet cleaned 17

Love, Not Fear

1 , Sofa or
SA 09$
/
2 Chairs.cleaned 17

No Extra Charge for heavily soiled carpet or high traffic areas.
Many cleaners charge more for "dirty" carpet!

No Extra Charge for stain removal..
We'll send our chemist to your home at No Extra Charge!

No Extra Charge for weekend cleanings.
We'll come out to your home 7 days a week at No Extra Charge!

• Stairs & Haft priced 4•est/17• Rena. aver 254.q.
ft.. eighty *ea Some oder tweed. apply.

Shabbat Shuvah (Vayelech):
Deuteronomy 31:1-30; Hosea 14:2-20;
Micah 7:18-20; Joel 2:15-27.

Nan

• Excludes Para., Oriental & Ana tarp, elbesitation & e.t.a see.
wleia3 days of tape denting ed.. a ellembt

Expect the best...Expect the Purple truck!

The Calved Since 1939

HAGOPIAN

CLEANING SERVICES

Call us 7 days a week!

1-800-HAGOPIAN (424,6742)

Drop Off Rug Care Centers

Oak Park
8 Mile W / Coolidge
Ann Arbor
The Courtyard Shops

1032640

Area Rug Cleaning Special

Birmingham
Old Woodward & Lincoln
Novi
12 Mile & Novi Rd

Bring your oriental or area rugs
to any of our Rug Care Centers
and we'll clean every other one

We also offer Pick Up & Delivery service!

Wishing Our Patients, Friends and Family
A Very Happy and Healthy New Year.

HEALTH QUEST

In your Search for Health, Your Quest Ends Here

• Your health, comfort and
well-being are my priority.

DR. DAVID
SANDLER • Serving the Jewish community
Chiropractor
• Most insurances accepted
26751 Southfield Rd.
Official chiropractors of the Detroit Lions
P: 248.552.0510

F: 248.569.7741

Visit our website at: www.HealthQuest.us

1 02172O'

May the coming year be filled with
health and happiness for all our family and friends.
L'Shanah Tovah!

Karen & Jeffrey Kraft
Aimee, Elissa & Rachel

Are You Collecting Payments?

•Did you provide seller financing on a

house, boat, airplane, mobilehome...etc.?
•Are you holding a note?... Convert it to cash!
•Tired of waiting for your payments?
• Cash for your payment stream &
structured settlement.

Convert Them To Cash Today!
LTD Financial Resources, LLC

(866) 526-8926

Proud members of: BBB, ACFA ABWA

30

412

n this week's por-
being free will. I believe
tion, Moshe
this is exactly what the
charges the Jewish
Torah is telling us.
people and Joshua, his
The verses in the
successor, before his
Torah demanding pun-
death. In addition, in
ishment, including exe-
the last half of the por-
cution, for ritual
tion God reveals to
crimes may have con-
Moshe that after his
RABBI ELIEZER formed to the norm up
death (31:16): "The
until recent times; but
CO HEN
nation will stray after
the Torah also says that
Speci al to the
the foreign gods of the
this system does not
Jewis h News
land ... and forsake Me
work. (And, in fact,
and break My covenant
whether it was ever
that I made with them."
implemented widely is histori-
Moshe speaks to the people
cally questionable.)
and accuses them (31:27): "... I
In last week's portion, the
know your rebelliousness and
Torah prophesizes:
your stubbornness; that as long
(Deuteronomy 30:2-6): "And you
as I've lived with you, you have
will return to the Lord, your God,
rebelled against God and so too
and listen to His voice like all
after my death."
that I command you today, you
Certainly, from the verses of
and your children, with all your
Tanach (the Jewish Bible), we
heart and with all your soul. And
know that these predictions were God will return those who repent
fulfilled; and, in fact, from Jewish and be merciful to you and
history it is questionable
return and gather you from all of
whether any generation fully
the nations that the Lord, your
observed the Torah to create the
God, scattered you there."
kind of just society and holy
Thus, the Torah tells us that
nation prescribed in the Torah.
we, ourselves, voluntarily, with-
What seems perfectly clear is
out coercion or even social pres-
that the system of punitive
sure, will return to God and His
enforcement of the program of
Law through love and apprecia-
law and ritual, behavior modifi-
tion — not through fear.
cation and self-improvement
And then we will create and
commanded by the Torah has
establish the just community
been a 3,500-year failure.
and become the holy people that
I believe that these verses (and true observance of the Torah
others that make it clear that
will produce. ❑
failure is sure) are telling us that
punitive imposition of religion
Eliezer Cohen is rabbi of
doesn't work!
Congregation Or Chadash in Oak
From history, from current
Park.
events and from simple logic, it
is clear that religious coercion is
Conversations
counter-productive. Forced com-
Can
fear and punishment
pliance with ritual or doctrine
nurture
religious behavior?
does not produce piety; if any-
Why
do
so many people
thing, it creates alienation and
conform
out of fear rather
defection.
than
love
— is this really
Certainly, freedom of religion
what
God
wants?
How do
and conscience is not simply a
we
educate
our
children
to
convenience for religious minori-
maintain
their
Jewish
tradi-
ties, but is an absolute good.
tion and identity?
After all, God gives every human

October 6 . 2005

al

