The noted Kabbalist Rabbi Eliyahu ben Moshe Loanz, known as "Rabbi Eliyahu Baal Shem" of Worms, Germany, passed away on the 21st of Tammuz of the year 5396 from creation (1636 CE). He was a grandson of the famed shtadlan (Jewish activist) R. Joselman of Rosheim, and the author of Michlal Yofi commentary on Ecclesiastes.
During the Three Weeks, from 17th of Tamuz to the 9th of Av, we commemorate the conquest of Jerusalem, the destruction of the Holy Temple and the dispersion of the Jewish people.
Weddings and other joyful events are not held during this period; like mourners, we do not cut our hair, and various pleasurable activities are limited or proscribed. (The particular mourning customs vary from community to community, so consult a competent halachic authority for details.)
Citing the verse (Isaiah 1:27) "Zion shall be redeemed with mishpat [Torah] and its returnees with tzedakah," the Rebbe urged that we increase in Torah study (particularly the study of the laws of the Holy Temple) and charity during this period.
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The Three Weeks
Esau said, “I have a lot.”
Jacob said, “I have all.” As in “all I need.”
Esau had a family of six. They were called “six souls.” Plural.
Jacob had a family of seventy. They were called “seventy soul.” Singular.
Esau lived in a granular, tossed-together, fragmented world in which he collected a lot of things and many people. A noisy world.
Jacob lived in a universe, a singular whole, in which all he encountered was only another manifestation of an essential oneness. Wherever he was, he had everything.
And you? Do you have many things? Or do you have much light?