ChabadNewOrleans Blog - Chabad-Lubavitch of Louisiana

Life Summed Up In One Sentence

Friday, August 28, 2026 - 11:46 AM

A few days before Rosh Hashanah 1950, a person wrote to the Rebbe and with a request for guidance on how to live as a Jew. The Rebbe replied by quoting a verse from Isaiah. He then cited a Rabbinic interpretation on that passage. The Rebbe added some commentary of his own and, in conclusion, stated that this one verse sums up the guidance for the entire lifetime of a Jew.

The verse is Isaiah 58:7: “Share your bread with the hungry, and the wretched poor you shall bring home; when you see a naked one, you shall clothe him, and from your flesh you shall not hide.”

Simply put it means to feed the hungry, give shelter to the homeless, and clothe the naked. And, by the way, don’t forget about your own family while you are busy helping others.

While this is spot on guidance for life, and we should all be devoted to these causes, what is uniquely Jewish about this? Shouldn’t people who are not Jewish also be moved to “feed the hungry, give shelter to the homeless, and clothe the naked?”

To this dish of wholesome living the Rabbis added some spices. Poverty can be understood on many levels. You might think that hunger is for food alone. Teach the Rabbis, that one can be hungry and for the word of G-d. Find a Jew who has not had the benefit of extensive Torah learning and feed them Torah.

You might think that nakedness is merely the absence of physical clothing. Teach the Rabbis, that one can be naked of the soul’s garments, stripped of Mitzvot. Find a Jew that does not lay Tefillin and wrap them on him. Find a Jew that does not wear a Tallit and cover him. Find a Jew that does not have a Mezuzah and put one up with them. Find a Jew that does not light Shabbat candles and help her light them.

You might think that homelessness is solely the lack of shelter. Teach the Rabbis, that one can be homeless of a Synagogue, a community to call home. Find a Jew that does not regularly participate in a community and bring them into your home, your Synagogue to pray and be part of the community.

To this delectable dish of wholesome living the Rebbe added one more flavor. Is poverty limited to one who is aware of one’s lack? Using the above applications of hungry, naked, and homeless, what if one is not aware that they are hungry for the word of G-d? What if one does not know that they are naked of Mitzvot? What if one does not feel the homelessness of being without a Synagogue and a community? Then, the Rebbe emphasized, the poverty is even greater. The compassion one must have for that person is even more expanded. Therefore, the effort to feed, clothe, and shelter such a person must be done with even greater intensity so that they can connect with their true identity.

This is what life is all about.

Shabbat Shalom and Shana Tova
Rabbi Mendel Rivkin

A Tribute to My Mother-in-Law

Friday, August 21, 2026 - 12:46 PM

This week our family experienced the loss of Malkie’s mother, Shifra bas R’ Eliyahu, known to all as Rebbetzin Shifra Stone.

She was a person who “wore many hats.” For us she was a mother and a Bubby. She always referred to me as her favorite son-in-law (I had no competition…). She was a devoted daughter to her parents. She loved spending time with her family, especially at Simchas. Three weeks ago, we celebrated the wedding of our daughter Chana, and my mother-in-law reveled in every moment of the Simcha.

She served alongside her husband, R’ Avraham Stone, may he live and be well, for decades in his capacity as a Rabbi in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn. She was a gifted teacher; she taught a weekly class for women in her neighborhood that was well attended. She was involved in many communal organizations and causes. Her primary public role was as principal of Yeshiva Ohel Moshe that she ran along with her brother, R’ Dov Machlis, may he live and be well, following the passing of their parents who served at the helm of the school and community in their lifetime.

In the spirit of the verse in Ecclesiastes 7:2, “And the living shall take to heart,” I would like to highlight four areas of her life from which we can draw inspiration for our own lives.

1. Honoring parents: Her devotion to her parents during their lifetime was legendary. She continued to honor them long after their passing as well.

2. Jewish Education: She was dedicated to the education of Jewish children. Yeshiva Ohel Moshe was a school that was known to accommodate any child seeking a Jewish education. She spent weeks every summer calling parents of Jewish public-school children to convince them to enroll their children in school so that can get a Jewish education. Thousands of children passed through that school and are living Jewish lives today. When noticing some issues in the home lives of these children, she would make sure the kids were fed and clothed and taken care of to the best of her ability.

3. Family Purity: She was a pioneer in the effort to get Jewish women to observe the Mikvah tradition. She personally taught and developed a curriculum for brides about the traditions of family purity. The Rebbe acknowledged her role in this effort on several occasions.

4. Open Home: Their home was always open. There were always guests at the table, especially people that didn’t always feel welcome elsewhere. Even this past Pesach, when she was not in good health, she got a call on the afternoon before the Seder asking to host a fellow who needed a place to go that would be accepting.

May we, the living, take to heart and be inspired by those examples. May Hashem comfort Malkie and her family among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem. May we speedily merit the fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 25:8, “Death will be concealed forever, and the L-rd G-d shall wipe the tears off every face.”

Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Mendel Rivkin

We Are Purveyors Of Light

Thursday, August 13, 2026 - 6:43 PM

The Talmud offers the following analogy to explain the better of two choices in dealing with that which is abhorrent. The world needs tanners (people that work hide into leather) and perfume makers. Fortunate is the one who is a perfume maker.

When dealing with darkness or things that are foul and evil, we can either try to tackle the darkness and beat the foul hides into something useful, or we can spread light and perfume our environment. We are purveyors of light. We don’t beat the darkness with a stick; we light a candle.

Our NOLA Jewish community is currently confronting a situation where an individual who has been responsible for fomenting antisemitic sentiment is coming to perform in the Superdome on Friday, August 28. Though he claims remorse for his past statements and actions, the movement he spawned is one that is malodorous, and even dangerous.

I am proud that our Jewish community is taking the approach of purveying light. Rather than protest and fight the darkness, we are spreading the light. I credit the Jewish Federation and ADL for meeting with the organizers of the event to explain the issues, choosing to educate and see what good can come from this connection. Furthermore, the decision has been made to present the “joy of Judaism” rather than the darkness of antisemitism.

In the effort to purvey light and be perfume makers, the Jewish community will be highlighting three light-filled opportunities that weekend.

The first is to encourage folks to attend Shabbat services that Friday night. Several congregations, including Chabad of Louisiana, will be offering Shabbat dinner following services that week. (See www.chabadneworleans.com/tgis for more details.)

The second is that entry to the MSJE (Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience) will be free that entire weekend. This gives people an opportunity to explore their own community’s story if they are Jewish, or to learn more about the Jewish experience for those who are not.

The third is to come and hear Holocaust Survivor Tova Friedman, known as the “Daughter of Auschwitz,” tell her story on Sunday evening, August 30 at the Jefferson Performing Arts Center. Tova has been a purveyor of light, telling her story of faith and courage and inspiring audiences around the world. For registration and more info, www.jewishlouisiana.com/tova.

Be a purveyor of light! Participate in one or more of these opportunities so that the pleasant fragrance of decency and goodness will permeate our city.

Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Mendel Rivkin

The Jewish Story in Four Acts

Friday, August 7, 2026 - 12:01 PM

Malkie and I are very grateful for the outpouring of good wishes we received on the occasion of Chana and Lippy’s wedding last week. We look forward to reciprocating on your special occasions.

Generally speaking, the weekly Haftara is meant to directly reflect the themes of the weekly Parsha. The last ten weeks of the year are an exception to this rule. Those Haftaras are more connected to the calendar than to the Parsha. There are three that are read leading up to Tisha B’av, regarding the destruction and exile. Then there are seven that are read after Tisha B’av until Rosh Hashanah that are prophecies of comfort.

The medieval sage Rabbi David Avudraham wrote a commentary on our liturgical language and customs. He offers a fascinating insight into the sequence of the seven Haftaras of comfort, suggesting that the opening phrase of each one serves as a continuing dialogue between G-d and the Jewish people. Understanding the sequence, gives us a peak into the broader Jewish story that continues until this day.

It begins in the first Haftara with G-d dispatching the prophet to “comfort, you shall comfort My people.” The Jewish people, seeing that G-d is sending them comfort via a messenger rather than in person, reply with the second Haftara, “Zion said, ‘G‑d has forsaken me, my L‑rd has forgotten me.” The prophet then goes to report to back to G-d in the third Haftara that, “the afflicted, storm-tossed one, refuses to be consoled.” G-d’s rejoinder in the fourth Haftara is, “I, indeed I, am He who comforts you.” The next three Haftaras go on to expand on the loving messages that G-d has for His people, concluding with the seventh Haftara, “I will rejoice intensely with G‑d.”

This is our story. We experience challenges. Often, following those challenges we are offered a consolation prize. Do we accept that and move on, or do we insist that we want the real deal? At the risk of being “slightly” provocative, I want to apply this to our times. 85 years ago, our people experienced one of the most difficult challenges in our history, the Holocaust. Six million murdered. Countless others were scarred physically and emotionally. Generational trauma ensued. Following the Holocaust, G-d offered us two consolation prizes, a Jewish state in our ancestral homeland, and unprecedented tranquility and success in places like the USA.

Why do I call them consolation prizes? The State of Israel does not fulfill the prophecies of old. Israel is not fully sovereign and independent. She must constantly worry about what others think and say. She is under ongoing threat of attack. Israel is not a country that is conducted according to the way of the Torah. Most importantly, we do not have a Temple in Jerusalem, the full ingathering of the exiles, or peace from the attack of the nations of the world.

Regarding the tranquil and successful presence in the diaspora, we see developing before our own eyes how fragile and temporal that tranquility can be.

We need to insist, just as the storm-tossed afflicted one in the Haftara, that we will settle for nothing less than the complete and final redemption, the comfort that comes from Hashem Himself.

Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Mendel Rivkin