Parashat Bo specifies the last three plagues concluding with the death of the Egyptian first born that forced Pharaoh to relent, permitting the Israelites to leave Egypt and worship God in the wilderness. Illness is often the result of a kind of bondage to thoughts and emotions that are retained in the body. Pharaoh's stubbornness is symbolic of the way we become resistant to change. Look what it took for Pharaoh to change his mind about releasing the Israelites; consider what it would take for you to look deeply into your own illness to discover its meaning in order to change your unhealthy ways of living. What's more is the bargaining upon which Pharaoh offered to let the Israelites go. For example, Pharaoh said, "Go, Worship the Lord! Only your flocks and your herds shall be left behind" (Ex. 10:24) Does this sound vaguely familiar? Have you ever thought or said something like, "I'll start an exercise program once the weather gets warmer". Mental excuses only serve to put off what is necessary for healing and health. Bo continues with the Passover story. God explains how He will go forth among the Egyptians and every first born of the Egyptians will die, but the Israelites shall paint the door posts of their homes with the blood of the sacrificial lamb so that God will pass over and spare the lives of the Israelites. The Parashah concludes with all the laws related to the remembrance of this momentous experience of the Exodus from Egypt. This event is considered so important for our spiritual development that we are required to recall this story in our daily prayers and to remember this occasion each and every Shabbat.

Rabbinic teachings

For I have hardened his heart (Exodus X, I). R. Jochanan said, "This verse provides heretics with a pretext for alleging that God had resolved to refuse Pharaoh the opportunity to repent." Resh Lakish replied, "Let the mouths of the heretics be silenced. The Holy One gives a warning once, twice and a third time, and if a man still remains impenitent, God cleses his heart to repentance and exacts punishment from him for his sins." So in the case of the wicked Pharaoh, God sent him a warning five times and he took no heed. Thereupon God said, You have stiffened your neck and hardened your heart, therefore I shall increase your uncleanness.

EXODUS RABBAH XIII,19

Everything is foreseen (by God) yet freedom of choice is given.

AVOTH III, 10b

In the way in which a man desires to walk, so is he guided.

MARKOTH 10b

• Snow tubing day, Sunday, Feb. 8, and Wildwood Highlands, 1-3 PM. Contact Ann Cloutier, 412-992-5255.
• Special program, "A Taste of Judiasm," Adat Shalom library, Monday, Feb. 9, 7-9 PM.
• Lecture by Rabbi Kripper, "Ethical behavior and how we determine it," Adat Shalom library, Wed., Feb. 11, 7:00-8:15 PM
• J&R Daycamp presentation, Sunday, Feb. 22, 11:00 AM.
• Noam Tsion lecture, Wednesday, Feb. 25. Details coming.
• Sisterhood Shabbat, Saturday, Feb. 28.

Adat Shalom Pre-school serves Fox Chapel and the adjacent north suburban communities. Our classrooms are bright and spacious with connecting outdoor playground areas. We are proud of our program and the warm, nurturing environment in which our students grow and develop. Our well-rounded curriculum is designed to help our students develop self esteem and age-appropriate skills. The schools's director is Gail Schmitt.

Our pre-school serves approximately sixty-five children, aged 18 months through five. We offer a one-day First Experience Program (18-24 months), two-day two's program, a three-day or four-day three's program, and a five-day Pre-K program. Additionally, we have a one hour Lunch Bunch program for our three and four year olds, and an available enrichment program for our Pre-K students. Both programs are added on to the regular day, which runs from 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM for all classes.

Visit the Adat Shalom Library!  Enjoy a quiet break.  Browse the collection of 7,000 items.  Check out books, periodicals, and audio-visual materials.  Look up subjects of interest.  Find what you want on the user-friendly OPAC computer terminal.

The library is open when the building is open. Library Volunteers are present to help you on Sundays (when religious school is open only) from 9:00 am to noon, and always on Mondays from 9:00 am until 12:30 pm.

Enjoy our new feature, Encyclopedia Judaica Online. Just click for it on the menu bar immediately above. When asked for a password, typegoadatshalom  (without the .org) -- all lower case. You will then be shown an on-screen input form. Type in any search word. Note also the options to search only the title, or by keyword, or by whole document. The default is "keyword." Whichever option you choose will make a big difference in the outcome. For example, in a search on "pesach," a title search returns 2 hits, a keyword search returns 6 hits, and a full document search returns 13 hits.

Adat Shalom has received a wonderful gift in the form of an online license to the Encyclopedia Judaica. This is free to all members. Just click the link on the Library... menu bar below.

Want more detail? Check Jill Rook's weekly e-mail for more about these and other upcoming events at Adat Shalom.
Not receiving Jill's weekly e-mail? Then send an e-mail to Jill to get on her mailing list.

Established in 1995, Adat Shalom is dedicated to making our congregation a focal point of Jewish family and communal life through excellence in clergy and lay leadership, education, programming and spirituality.

For more about us, click on on the the links in the menu bar above