Meaningful Life Skills with Rabbi Simon Jacobson

Last year medical researchers discovered a new body part, called the interstitium -- a network of fluid-filled spaces in connective tissue across the body that hadn't been seen before. Previously, it was thought that these tissue layers were a dense "wall" of collagen — a strong structural protein found in connective tissue. But the new finding reveals that, rather than a "wall," this tissue is more like an "open, fluid-filled highway," said co-senior study author Dr. Neil Theise, a professor of pathology at New York University Langone School of Medicine. With all that's known about human anatomy, you wouldn't expect the discovery of a new organ in this day and age. But now, doctors say they've done just that. What is the significance of this discovery, what lessons does it teach us and what insights does it offer us in understanding ourselves and the cosmos? Please join Rabbi Simon Jacobson as he travels "under the skin" and explores the fascinating parallels between the interstitium and the Kabbalistic map of the human body and soul. Discover the role of this "fluid filled network" in your psycho-spiritual life and how it can help you improve your well-being and your relationships.

17 Kesä 201950min

It may seem like a silly question, but does your life truly matter? With 7.7 billion people on this planet, what possible significance can one person have? This is not a small issue: If you feel that you don't really matter, then your life choices and decisions also don't really matter. What type of life can you live when all that you do has no true value? No wonder that many of us feel unmotivated and uninspired. Please join Rabbi Simon Jacobson as he presents a fresh new approach to finding meaning and passion in life. Discover the real reason that you and your actions truly matter. Not just you, but the entire world -- and the cosmos themselves -- are dependent on your choices. You indeed have the power to change the world.

17 Kesä 201943min

Have you ever behaved like a coward? Do you regret any situations when you neglected from acting out of fear? Would you be brave enough to acknowledge such behavior? Cowardice and fear impact much more of our lives than we imagine. How many of our decisions are driven — and how many opportunities are lost — due to cowardice? But what do we know about this force that effects us so deeply? What makes some people more cowardly than others? Is courage inborn or acquired? Can we do anything to become less cowardly and more courageous? Please join Rabbi Simon Jacobson as he dissects the anatomy of courage and cowardice and its impact on our lives. Through this lens, discover new insights into yourself, and come away with methods and skills to build up your courage live up to your greatest potential and beliefs.

17 Kesä 201945min

The ancient mystical teachings of Kabbalah — once obscure and unknown — has recently become popular and even fashionable. Or has it? Do we really know what Kabbalah is? What does the word even mean? What do these teachings offer us? Tonight is Lag B’Omer, the anniversary of Rabbi Shimeon Bar Yochai’s passing. Rabbi Shimeon, or Rashbi, is the “father” of Kabbalah. He authored the Zohar — the classical esoteric work, which is the foundation of mysticism, laying out a blueprint of the divine and the spiritual framework of the universe and beyond. Please join Rabbi Simon Jacobson in this special Lag B’Omer presentation, as he explains the surprising meaning of the word Kabbalah. Once we know its true definition, we can then take a journey into the mystical and mysterious chambers of our psyches and of the cosmos — and come away with a new way of looking at life and new methods to achieve transcendence and live the most fulfilling life possible. The inner workings of Kabbalah — as first taught by Rashbi, and further developed in subsequent generations — opens for us up enthralling vistas and unparalleled opportunities to build glorious lives and relationships, always brimming with unexpected possibilities.

17 Kesä 201949min

There are no parenting schools. So where and how do we learn to parent? We learn it 1) from our own mothers and fathers — we emulate how they parented us, and 2) above all we learn it on the job: When a couple is blessed with a child/children, trial and error and hard earned challenges, and their natural instincts — shaped by the attitudes we picked up from our parents — teaches them how to parent and educate, for better or for worse. But how do we know whether our parenting methods are sound? And that we are not making serious errors in raising our children? Without schooling and with flawed parenting models, for all we know we may be perpetuating dysfunctional parenting skills? Without an objective parenting model, how can we know whether we are doing our best to bring up healthy children? Would you be surprised to know that there is indeed a healthy time-tested paradigm of parenting — one that goes back thousands of years, and has been documented and implemented, and has produced generations of healthy children and adults. Let us call it The Spiritual Parenting Model — timeless parenting principles from the Bible and Kabbalah. Please join Rabbi Jacobson as he presents, in his inimitable manner, this proven formula for raising wholesome, confident and actualized children, who can focus their lives not on fighting fear and insecurity, but on using their faculties and resources to grow and transform the world around them.

17 Kesä 201952min

We have always been mystified by the moon -- it's haunting presence shimmering in our night sky. We have studied the moon and its effects on life on earth, we have spent trillions to travel to, land on and explore our lonely lunar sphere. From romance to music and science fiction, the moon with its pale glow captures our imagination. What lies behind this fascination? Please join Rabbi Jacobson as he "launches" a lunar probe --exploring the "soul" of the moon -- the cosmic and spiritual forces that energize the moon. The moon has been with us since the beginning of time. It is a living witness to every event in history. What secrets does the moon harbor? What messages does it have for us? What can we learn from the lunar cycles? How can it empower us as we face our own personal and psychological challenges? How can it help us build healthier lives and relationships? You won't want to miss this lunar exploration as you discover and appreciate new and fascinating insights into our relationship with the moon.

4 Kesä 201941min

Good people are always mystified by what drives a "regular" person to plan and execute the deliberate and premeditated cold-blooded murder of innocent people, let alone in a house of worship. What is going on in this person's twisted mind and dark heart as he attacks men, women and children of faith during their prayers and celebrations?! How can a human being stoop to such obscene hate and cruelty? Our hearts are shattered as they go out to the husband, daughter, family and community of Lori Gilbert-Kaye, who was cruelly murdered by a terrorist in a heinous attack on Jews gathered in prayer at Chabad-Lubavitch of Poway last Shabbat, the final day of Passover. But within the tragedy and grief -- and the demonstration of the ugliest within humans -- another story has emerged, one that is more powerful than the senseless crime perpetrated: The story of the best within humans. Lori Kaye gave her life to save her Rabbi and others in her shul. Rabbi Goldstein through his actions and words, exhibited the noble majesty and dignity of a soul’s capability: not focusing on himself, but on his calling and mission. Millions, if not billions of people are being gripped by the heart-wrenching, yet formidable words of Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein, the Rabbi of the Poway community who survived the attack. In articles and interviews, from his hospital bed and at the funeral service, Rabbi Goldstein is relentlessly focusing neither on his pain and loss, nor on fear and anger, but on his determination to transform this tragedy into a force of goodness and kindness. Please join Rabbi Jacobson as he discusses this tragedy and the lessons it provides us about both the worst and best in human beings, and above all -- what we can do in face of such darkness, both short-term and long-term, in preventing such travesties from happening ever again.

6 Touko 201946min

Evil is a word thrown around a lot. But what does it mean? What exactly is evil? Does evil exist? Are there any things that are inherently evil, or is evil man-made -- the injustices and crimes one perpetrates against another? Is evil a subjective or objective reality? Is it just in the eyes of the beholder, or is there more to it? And if there is such a thing as evil how do we protect ourselves from it? Without defining evil we certainly cannot take measures to secure ourselves against its impact on us. Please join Rabbi Jacobson in this pre-Passover workshop dissecting the anatomy of evil and darkness, and discover its fascinating (and painful) parallels with black holes. By traveling into the belly of the beast, we find surprising insights that help defang the enemy and transform its liabilities into assets. Passover teaches us how to enter the abyss and come out stronger than ever.

30 Huhti 201948min