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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.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013

The 48 Ways to Acquire Torah: Bearing the Yoke with one's Colleague

The next of the 48 ways to acquire Torah is bearing the yoke with one's colleague. This means that when our friend suffers, we should suffer with him; ie share his suffering with him. We can do this by trying our best to help our friend through his difficult time.

Good friends are hard to come by. What makes someone a good friend is that they are there for you when things are good and especially when they are sad. Even if one is having difficulty, that friend can try and "pick you up" by a friendly word, gesture or even being silent, just listening.

This can also mean that if our friend is in trouble, even financially, we should try and help or get others to help as much as possible. Regardless of what the situation is, when we try and help our friend that is in trouble, we share the burden of what he is going through.

Even if we ourselves cannot help our friend in his present situation or get others to help, just telling your friend that you are here for them and you feel for their situation is a tremendous thing. When someone is going through a difficulty sometimes the best thing a person can do to aid them is to make them aware that you are there for them. This does help alleviate some of the stress as the person having the difficulty sees that they are not alone in what they are going through.

This is especially true when one goes to visit someone that is sitting shiva for a relative that has died. The person is going through a painful experience and part of the healing process is that others come to be with the mourner to give comfort. Giving comfort may mean just listening to the mourner speak about the deceased without saying anything at all.

There are many ways we can help others by bearing the yoke of what they are going through. Either through physical help, money or even just being there so your friend can have a shoulder to cry on. At the very least, whatever we are able to do does alleviate the pain and help our friend in distress.




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