Your Friendly Parshah Thought

This week's Torah portion is Beshalach and includes that fateful moment of the splitting of the Sea of Reeds and Israel's redemption from the Egyptians, as well as the subsequent rave on the other side led by none other than Miriam and the ladies (did you remember you glow sticks?). I could say a lot about the portion, but I'll merely share the following. It's food for thought, delicious, nutritious, sustaining thought.

On Ex. 14:14: "The Lord will battle for you; you hold your peace," the notes in the Etz Chayim Tanakh offer a poignant interpretation of this line saying, "G-d will support and defend you -- but only when you stop quarreling among yourselves. A united people merits G-d's intervention." It's that second line that strikes me, particularly. It takes a people united to gain intervention of G-d, obviously. Is the intervention an allusion to Moshiach? But is this only the peace of the Israelites that grants intervention? G-d intervenes, saving the Israelites, but the rest of the world (assumingly) is not at peace. Is this a selective thing?

Most importantly, does it imply that perhaps when there is peace within the Jewish community that intervention will arrive? Perhaps G-d isn't just sitting idly by, perhaps he's waiting? "A united people merits G-d's intervention."

Indeed. (This was adapted from a blog post, B'Shelach: The Parting of the Sea of Reeds.)

Note: Thank you to everyone for your support on the jDeal.com Battle of the Bloggers competition -- I won! I'm now the jDeal.com Ambassador 2011! Stay tuned for awesomeness

Friendly Reminders

For your (and my) viewing pleasure ...

Haveil Havalim is up on Jack's "Random Thoughts -- Do They Have Meaning?"

Be sure to sign up for a Kosher Advantage card for three free months when you use code "kvetching."

Also, head over to jDeal NY and "like"  my comment for the second week of the Battle of the Bloggers competition. Someone just took the lead from me ... HELP!

Are You On jdeal.com?

Note: This is sort of an ad, sort of not. It's awesome, no matter what. It might seem confusing, but if you have questions, just ask. At the very least, click here and "like" my comment!


Some of you might have noticed that I've been posting on Facebook to "like" a comment I made on the JDeal NY Facebook page regarding the (loud booming voice) "Battle of the Bloggers" competition. If you haven't noticed, you're now abreast of the situation. There is a competition, and all bloggers are invited to take part. Here's the 411:

Jdeal.com is a "premiere online discount site offering daily deals geared toward the Jewish consumer," and the site is looking for a jdeal.com 2011 Ambassador. The competition will run online for three weeks, and the first week already is over! The search is for the blogger who believes he or she is the most influential and best-suited blogger for the title.

There will be nine finalists (three each week), and the winner will be named at the jdeal.com launch party in New York on Thursday, January 13, 2011.

Did I mention there will be cash prizes? (I caught your attention, right?)

To be qualified to enter, you have to follow these simple steps:

1. "Like" the jdeal.com page on Facebook.
2. Go to the Notes page for jdeal.com on Facebook and add a comment under the Competition Note, "Help me win the 'Battle of the Bloggers' competition." Be sure to add your blog's URL to the post!
3. Write about jdeal.com in your Facebook status and tag @jdealny.

The winner who receives the most "Likes" each week will be one of three winners per week, with prizes of $100 and $100 in jdeal.com credit and an entry for the grand prize of $500 and $500 jdeal.com credit, plus $1 for each "like" the jdeal.com Facebook page has received by the end of the competition.  Confused yet? There's been one week already, so that means there's still a chance for six more contestants!

The winner among the nine contestants will be the blogger who provides the most convincing case of becoming the jdeal.com ambassador for the year.

(There are also extra opportunities for the winner to recieve cash prizes, so please read the Terms & Conditions on the jdeal.com Facebook page. You must have a blog and be 18 years old or older at the start of the competition.)

jdeal was started by MetroImma co-founders Allen Ganz, an entrepreneur who has been involved in multiple successful technology start-up companies over his 20-year business career, and Jewish International Connection New York (JICNY) co-founder Jodi Samuels, who is a networking savvy entrepreneur and community activist. Founded in 2010, jdeal.com is a premiere online discount site offering daily deals geared towards the Jewish consumer. With an initial focus in the New York area, jdeal aims to offer exciting daily deals from kosher restaurants, spas, hotels, salons, and more. jdeal is a division of JMedia Connections Inc. For more information, please visit www.jdeal.com. For queries, please contact Elena Magg and Alana Pelosi at Elena.Magg@bhgpr.com and Alana.Pelosi@bhgpr.com.