he( ef4e AUTHENTIC LEBANESE FOOD RESTAURANT Open everyday for Lunch & Dinner Total Food off Bill 1 I With this coupon. I Valid for dining-in and carry-out. I i i expires 8/31/11 ■ 32621 Northwestern Hwy. Farmington Hills I I One coupon per visit; 248-932-1300 ■ Just in front of Sam's Club & Home Depot vvww.lechefmi.com Banquets Weddings Bar/Bat Mitzvahs Showers T Reunions Anniversaries Birthdays WE CATER AT MOST SYNAGOGUES, TEMPLES, HOTELS AND THE HALLS OF YOUR C ICE 'ff ‘wct-- 7 0.4, ge4e—r viri JEWEL CLASSIC CUISINE Approved by Council of Orthodox Rabbis KOSHER CATERERS A8-661-4050 PHILIP Tga, food & Beverage Director Farmington Nis Restaurant Cuisinc 248.476.0044 Buy o lunch or dinner entree I and get the second 1/2 off I Of equal or lesser value Not good with any other coupons Not good on holidays. One coupon per couple. , 9/15/11 I 15% off total food bill Not good with any other coupon One coupon per table. ap 9/15/11 Farmington Hills • Corner of Grand River & Haggerty Road Auburn Hills • 1 1/2 miles south of the Palace of Auburn Hills Announcing $4.99 lunch specials Monday-Friday 11a.m.- 4 p.m. Including Pulled pork sandwich Pulled chicken sandwich Boneyard yard burger for 2 Turkey Burger Mini Greek salad All come with coleslaw and potatoes, except the salads ORCHARD LAKE RD. SOUTH OF 14 MILE Farmington Hills • 851-7000 44 July 28 • 2011 JN 10% OFF TOTAL BILL Excluding tax, tip and beverages • With this ad Dine in only • Expires 9/15/11 JN Catering for a Carry-Out Our Speciality "Low Carb Ribs & Chicken & Lamb Ribs" his Sunday, the 29th of Tammuz, marks the passing of the famous commentator Rashi, who wrote a commentary on all of Tanach and most of the Talmud — and he only lived for 65 years! If we consider that he did not have the tech- nology of today, it is difficult to under- stand how he managed to accomplish so much in his lifetime. Equally interesting is that many greats before and after Rashi's time wrote commentaries on the Torah — but Jews throughout all the genera- tions unanimously accepted Rosin's. What was so special about his work that it was accept- ed then, and even now, 900 years later? In the last verse of Parshat Masei, it speaks about Moshe teaching the Children of Israel all the commandments and laws so that when they entered the land of Israel, they would know what God had commanded them to do. Similarly, the impor- tance of teaching Torah to children can be seen from a story that the Talmud relates from the era of the Second Temple. It says, "Remembered will be this person for good, and Yehoshua ben Gamla is his name; for if not for him, Torah would have been forgotten from the Jewish people, for at first, one who had a father learned Torah, and one who had no father did not." At that time, children learned Torah at home with their fathers, but for any child who had no father, there was a yeshivah in Jerusalem where they were sent to learn. This was only a good solution for older children who could take care of themselves but not for younger chil- dren who could not be sent away. By the time they were old enough to be sent to Jerusalem, many had no inter- est in learning Torah and would resent it and leave "until Yehoshua ben Gamla came and instituted yeshivot in every country and every city." Yehoshua ben Gamla, the high priest, understood that it was impos- sible to rely on every father to teach Torah to his children, whether he was too busy, too restless, didn't teach well or simply didn't know enough himself. That is why he instituted these schools for young children and, therefore, about him it is said "remembered will be this man for good." We can also say that the reason Rashi is "remembered for good" is because he wrote his commentaries for "a 5-year-old in school." He took all of Tanach and Talmud and Midrash and made it accessible for even a child to understand like the greats understood it. Rashi condensed the huge ocean of Talmud into short, comprehendible sen- tences. He worried about the education of children, just like Yehoshua ben Gamla. That's why hun- dreds of years later, every child and adult who learns Torah knows him and feels as though Rashi is his per- sonal teacher. As we approach the new school year, I recall how the Lubavitcher Rebbe, of righteous mem- ory, with his love for every Jew, would speak about our obligation to do all we can to make sure that our children receive a Jewish education. In addition to one's own children, we need to worry about the children of our friends and do all that we can to make sure they are attending Jewish day school or at least a Hebrew school and help with tuition, if necessary. Anyone who does this — and because of him another child is enrolled in a Jewish school — he too will be "remembered for good." I Rabbi Schneur Greenberg of Chabad Jewish Center of Commerce runs the Commerce Hebrew School with his wife, Estie. Email: rabbi@jewishcommerce.org. Conversations What is my obligation with regard to Jewish education?