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About Me

Rabbi Chaim Coffman
Rabbi Coffman has helped people from all across the spectrum to prepare themselves properly for Orthodox Conversion to Judaism. His students admire his vast knowledge and appreciate his warm, personal attention and endearing sense of humor.
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Followers

Welcome to Rabbi Chaim Coffman's Blog!

I would like to thank you for visiting my blog, Beyond Orthodox Conversion to Judaism.

The conversion process can be a lengthy and daunting one to say the least and I want you to know that I am here to help you through it.

I have been teaching newcomers to Judaism for over a decade and over the last few years I have seen that conversion candidates really lack the support and knowledge they need to navigate the conversion process and successfully integrate into the Orthodox Jewish community.

I created my mentorship program in order to help make this whole experience as smooth and as painless as possible! (Can't do much about the growing pains, though ;)

Feel free to get to know me a little through the posts on my blog and visit the mentorship and syllabus page if you are interested in possible joining us.

I sincerely wish you all the best in your search for truth and spiritual growth.

Looking forward to meeting you,
Chaim Coffman

My Rebbe, Rav Moshe Sternbuch

In case you were wondering why I have all of these articles written by Rav Moshe Sternbuch, he is my Rebbe, and one of the gedolei hador (greatest Rabbis of our generation).

Rav Sternbuch fully endorses me and supports my mentorship program.

He is the address for all of my halachic or hashkafic (practical and philosophical) questions that I or my students may have.

The articles are based on his weekly talks on the Torah portion that the Rav gives in Jerusalem in his kollel. As a member of the kollel I get first dibbs on the photocopies and I type them up for my blog so you can all benefit from the Rav's erudition and insight.
Thursday, April 25, 2013

Parshas Emor: Spiritually Being Cut off in this world

"For any soul who will not be afflicted on this very day will be cut off from its people" (Vayikra 23:29) Unfortunately we see many times that people who transgress the Torah and are obligated to be spiritually cut off (Kares) and have their lives shortened, live long prosperous lives. How can we reconcile this possible contradiction?

Rav Moshe Sternbuch Shlita brings in his commentary on Chumah (Ta'am V'Da'as) that Kares is not necessarily describing physical body and death but rather spiritually and being cut off from the source (G-d himself). In reality, they desecrate all aspects of the Torah and live their lives without any  spiritual connection whatsoever.

In reality, they are really considered dead (spiritually dead), that is even if they are alive in this world. There are so many people today that don't have any connection to Judaism or their spiritual heritage. Not only that, they send their children to secular schools and intermarry at an alarming rate.

The only way to cure this ailment is through learning Torah and keeping mitzvos. Without that, it is like the soul is starving and decaying.

There was a story a number of years ago of a Palestinian prisoner in an Israeli jail.  The prisoner saw one of his jailers that day and asked him, "It says in your Torah that on the festival of Passover, you are not allowed to eat unleavened bread (chametz) and here you are eating a sandwich. How do you explain that?

The jailer said, "Those are antiquated laws, for things that happened thousands of years ago. That doesn't apply today. We are the new Israel! We don't need those old laws!"

The Palestinian terrorist understood that it will be only a matter of time before Israel hands over the land to the Arabs. He understood that this person has no connection to his heritage or to his history. A person who has no connection to that, will eventually give that up.

This is a lesson for us to know that one of the worst things that can happen to us is to lose that connection to the source of all life and to the One that sustains us. Losing that connection and going in the ways of the non-Jews and the secular world is akin to cutting yourself off spiritually!

May we merit to keep the fire of Torah burning and get tremendous enjoyment of the mitzvos that we do.

Good Shabbos

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