Mendel Bluming | Blogger

You’ve shared with your secretaries that you will double their pay because of their good work... Two possible responses:  #1 "Well it's about time you paid me what I deserve!"  #2 "Wow, how generous & kind of you... This makes me feel so much more dedicated to the work." How would you feel after your secretary gave you the first response, how about after the second? After the second you might ask yourself why you didn’t give the raise sooner!! Think about that: What is our response to G-d's generous goodness to us?? Rabbi Menachem Mendel Bluming is a Potomac Maryland rabbi who leads the Chabad Shul of Potomac. Mendel Bluming and his family have lived in Potomac since 2000.

Would you rather marry a perfect spouse who will feel no connection to you or an imperfect spouse who will love you? In human relationship how long can marriage last if there is no feeling... When it comes to G-d our action is key. Feeling enhances our mitzvoth/deeds greatly but deed counts most. Hamaaseh hu haikar/ ist is the deed that counts most (Mishna Avot) Rabbi Mendel Bluming leads the Chabad Shul of Potomac. Chabad of Potomac and Menachem Mendel Bluming’s vision is to serve as a conduit for your Jewish relationship’s growth

“I’m dating and everything adds up; she seems to be exactly what I am looking for on paper. Just one thing... the love is absent. What do I do!??” Love can only blossom in an open heart. When our heart is closed we cannot feel affection, even when that affection really is there. And what closes a heart is fear. You're scared. You're scared of your dream coming true. You have finally met a girl who could really end up being your wife. This is what you have prayed for, waited for, and hoped for, for so long. And now that it is in front of you, you're gripped with fear. It's scary to say goodbye to single life. It's scary to accept that you will marry a real person with flaws and issues, not an imaginary perfect dream person. It's scary to realize that now you're growing up, and about to start the next stage in your life, with all the joys and challenges that will bring. This is why your heart is blocked. Fear and love cannot both be felt at a

The experience of loss arouses several emotions. On the one hand, death is a tragedy. A loved one is lost to their family and friends, who are left feeling a profound sense of separation and distance that seems beyond repair. For this reason, we observe a seven day intense mourning period, during which the family sits at home and feels the pain and loss, followed by a year of mourning. This helps them slowly accept the new reality; that their loved on has passed on. But often, the mourners feel that it isn't really true, it didn't really happen, they haven't really gone. This is not just denial. In a way they are right. Death is not the end. Our souls existed before we were born, and they continue to exist after we die. The souls that have passed on are still with us. We can't see them, but we sense they are there. We can't hear them, but we know that they hear us. On the surface, we are apart. On a deeper level, nothing can separate us. So we tear our gar

We have all been deeply affected by the shooting in Pittsburgh. There is a great danger ahead. The danger is that Jews become intimidated into hiding away. In the wake of such a tragedy, avoiding shul is far riskier than attending. You risk giving your kids the wrong message. I will never forget something that happened when in Jerusalem during the 2001 intifada. One Thursday afternoon, the busy Sbarro pizza shop, became the target of a Palestinian suicide bomber. He stood amongst the crowds innocently eating their lunch, and exploded himself, killing 15 people, including 7 children and a pregnant woman, and injuring 130. It was an unspeakable tragedy that shook the Jewish world. It hit me hard too. But what stuck with me was what happened in the aftermath of the attack. Within a few weeks, the pizza store was open for business again. Construction crews worked around the clock to clean up the wreckage and rebuild it like new, as if nothing had happened. A bustling eatery h