Egypt's Tourism and Antiquities Ministry reopened the Eliyahu Hanovi synagogue in Alexandria on January 10 after fully restoring the 14-century shul. In cooperation with the military, Egypt's antiquities ministry oversaw the 64 million Egyptian pound ($4 million) renovation which took over three years after the roof and staircase collapsed in 2016.

"The restoration of the synagogue is a message to the world, a message of tolerance and acceptance of the others. It is a message that Egypt is restoring its heritage form different eras for mankind," Tourism and Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anany told Xinhua, the Chinese news agency.

In the following lines, we present several halachic questions regarding the awarding of prizes, presented by the rabbonim of the organization Chadesh Bekirbi to HaRav Chaim Kanievsky:

Q. Selected essays presented to the Vaad HaRabbonim are graded according to their quality and subsequently, the monetary awards are established accordingly. How must one act when two avreichim are deserving of the prize: should one prefer the avreich who is the greater scholar, the needier one, the senior one - or otherwise?

In this past period, the activities of the Professional Advisory Headquarters under the leadership of the Rabbinical Committee to Fortify Religion have provided professional consultation for international hi-tech companies with operate branches in Israel and are interested in enabling groups with chareidi employees to install halachically proper computer screening.

These companies encounter complexities in installing such screening due the severe demands for security for their vital and secret data. After many talks and meetings with the companies and the top professionals of Moked Hayi'utz in which several technological solutions were presented, and after thorough examinations on the part of the companies, a proper screening system had now been installed on the workers' computers.

Rejoice in the celebration of the Torah: close to fifteen thousand people participated this past Thursday (12 Teves) at the Dirshu Siyum HaShas event, with tremendous emotion and genuine joy for Torah. The occasion reached a climax with the entrance of Sar HaTorah HaRav Chaim Kanievsky and the Rosh Yeshiva HaRav Gershon Eidelstein, as well as with the presence of revered Gedolei HaTorah and Chassidus, and various roshei yeshiva. The audience of thousands welcomed them for a long time through mighty, moving singing.

Chareidi Jewry in Eretz Yisroel across the entire spectrum is eagerly anticipating the momentous united and central thirteenth Siyum HaShas Bavli which will take place next week, on Monday, 23rd of Teves (January 20) as the joint "Together, all the Tribes of Jewry", headed by Torah leaders, primarily Sar HaTorah HaRav Chaim Kanievsky and the Rosh Yeshiva HaRav Gershon Eidelstein. They will be joined by other members of Moetzes Gedolei and Chachmei HaTorah, roshei yeshivos, Admorim, rabbonim and thousands of maggidei shiur throughout the country.

In Face of the Danger — A Perspective on Emunah

by HaRav Abba Grossbard zt"l, Menahel Ruchani, Yeshivas Lomzha — Ponovezh

The following talk was delivered in Yeshivas Lomzha, Petach Tikva, during the Second World War, in the midst of the battle at El Alamein, in Egypt. Everyone in Israel was well-aware that if the Germans won the battle, the safety of the Jewish yishuv in Eretz Yisroel was seriously threatened. Its relevance to these times makes it a fitting subject, particularly now.

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Rain and Kinneret Watch

by Dei'ah Vedibur Staff

Our weekly report of the rain and the level of the Kineret - Winter, 5780.

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From Our Archives

Tears Of Light: The Sixtieth Yahrtzeit Of HaRav Dovid Leibowitz Zt'l by Moshe Musman Introduction HaRav Dovid Leibowitz zt'l, was one of the finest products to issue from the Alter of Slobodka's beis hamedrash, which was itself an outstanding producer from which came a majority of the postwar Torah leaders. HaRav Dovid was a great nephew of the Chofetz Chaim, with whom he had a close relationship, and he learned in Radin for several years before coming to Slobodka. It was the latter of these two famous botei medrash however, that left the most distinctive imprint upon him. His greatness as a Torah educator was matched by his prominence as an expounder of the Alter's thought and method. In order to appreciate Reb Dovid's impact and potential, a few words about the Alter of Slobodka and his influence are in order. Although the Alter kept a low profile even within his own yeshiva, his influence upon his talmidim could hardly have been more far reaching. The phrase gadlus ho'odom, that is usually used to sum up the Alter's message, is really an oversimplification, and it can be completely misunderstood.

The Kollel's Aim A Talk Delivered By HaRav Dovid Leibowitz To The Members Of Kollel Beis Yisroel, Slobodka, Kovno It is hard to speak about something that is clear and obvious to everyone. The truth however is, that it is precisely about the obvious things that one must speak, because people [tend to] rely upon old, accepted attitudes, forgetting the main point and drifting far away from the purpose. Everything one does needs to have a purpose . . . If one doesn't have any other, specific purpose in mind, one will only do what is easy and what one wishes to do. One must have this ultimate purpose in mind at the outset. If even Hakodosh Boruch Hu had a "plan" before creating the world, a person certainly needs to deliberate before everything he does, about his aim and purpose -- only then proceeding with action, which is the finishing touch to his plan and the point of no return, making the formation of a clear purpose as to what he wishes to achieve necessary right at the beginning . . . We ourselves have suffered greatly from our lack of specific aims....

Chessed Bread a story by H. Regev Part II Synopsis: Immediately after the shiva for his wife, Reb Chanoch found himself the object of pity on the part of his next-door neighbors, the Groners, who took it upon themselves, despite his futile protests, to supply him with his main hot meal each day. Mrs. Groner's husband also had a lot of nachas from this chessed. "Among the religious population," he was saying to the salesman sitting in his office, "acts of chessed are part and parcel of daily life. Take, for instance, the case of the elderly widower who lives opposite us. If we didn't send him warm meals, he would never taste anything hot. He's not the type to prepare food on his own, so how can I sit down to dinner in my house while my neighbor has nothing to eat? That's why my wife cooks for him, also, and brings him a nourishing, appetizing meal every day. She tries to cook food which is suitable for older people -- easy on the digestion, low on salt and not too spicy." "Really?" the salesman opened his eyes in amazement. "That's absolutely wonderful."

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