Rav Binny Freedman – Jewish Festivals

This class was given the morning of Erev Tisha B’Av. From chapter twenty-eight in the book of Devarim (Deuteronomy), the Jewish people are warned what will befall them if they choose to go against the covenant of their G-d. Rav Binny shows how the curses written in this chapter are carried out during the Holocaust, as he reads them with examples of true stories that occurred at that time

As the sun sets, and the darkness of Tisha B’Av night settles in, Rav Binny reminds us of what caused the destruction of our Second Temple. On this day, the Jewish People bear their souls and share their pain, sharing a common dream. It took years to build the 2nd Temple, but it only took one day to reduce it to rubble.

Rav Binny, sitting on the floor of the Isralight Beit Midrash, vividly recounts the life of the Jews living in Jerusalem and all over the Land of Israel during the Roman occupation. Although Jewish scholarship at that time was exceptional, the abundance of baseless hatred and the discord between Jews was enough to tip the scales against us…

The morning after. Even after 2000 years of a bitter exile, the Jewish people are still alive, functional, and can still find solace in the face of great tragedy. Through stories of Rabbi Akiva and The Piaseczner Rebbe, we learn how to we can look unimaginable tragedies in the eye, walk past them, and ultimately gain wisdom from the experiences.

What do a massive fish, a renegade prophet, and idol-worshipping sailors have to do with the 10 Jewish steps to spiritual growth? Through an in-depth exploration of the Book of Yona, with a special focus on the many interconnected symbols and themes, Rav Binny tackles the existential issues that we all face in our daily lives. Also included is a brief history of the Fast of Gedalia and its connection to the deepest lesson we learn from Yona.

Nineveh, the city that the prophet Yona was sent to, did a unique kind of teshuvah in turning away from their evil ways. Comparing their teshuvah to even higher level of teshuvah, we can learn a whole lot about how we can be in the proper frame of mind and soul for growth opportunities in preparing for Yom Kippur.

Finally, an opportunity to clean out all of our misconceptions of Yom Kippur! Rav Binny will explain what it really means to ‘afflict’ your soul, and the steps we take toward living in the reality of love and joy on this very special day. This class will give you the insights to refresh your experience of Yom Kippur this year and forever.

Tying together the history of Chanukah, the philosophical conflict between the Greek worldview and the Jewish, and the spiritual essence of the Chanukah miracles, Rav Binny gives us a complete picture of who we are, and why Chanukah is so essential to the Jewish people’s message for the world.

Thank G-d for the Counting of the Omer – the seven essential weeks that plug us back into the value of making our time productive and meaningful. Rav Binny will open up the process of moving from Passover through the Omer to Shavuot, touching on the themes of freedom, appreciation, vacation, and even the deeper dynamics of the matza-bread relationship.

How do you prepare for judgement? How can I rejoice in judgement? In addition to redefining the common understanding of ‘judgement’, Rav Binny also gives us practical advice on how to prepare for these two days of awe.

Rav Binny first explores the meaning the Yom Kippur goats, the confession, and the power of forgiveness. He then goes in-depth into the difference between the forgiveness granted to an individual versus the entire Jewish people. What are we trying to accomplish on Yom Kippur?

This class is essentially Rav Binny questioning why Yom Kippur doesn’t seem to affect change in this world. After a fantastic Yom Kippur experience, with all the right fasting and praying, bad things still do happen to people. Why is that?

This is an out-of-the-box class which weaves together issues from the Sin of the Golden Calf, the festival of Purim, and a very deep discussion on the paradox of free choice vs. predestination.

In a short but powerful session (with a guitar!) Rav Binny prepares us for Shabbat through a few meditations on transition periods, being on a journey, and being in the moment.