Chabad Lubavitch of Montana

06/15/2026

We can rectify our ancestors reputation!

06/15/2026

In New York City in the late 1960s, a young rabbi named Marvin Tokayer, along with his fiancée, mailed a wedding invitation to the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneerson.

Perhaps Tokayer expected a blessing or a letter in return. Instead, he received an invitation of his own. The Rebbe wanted to meet with him.

During that encounter, the Rebbe asked about a project Tokayer had recently undertaken when he helped uncover a forgotten Jewish cemetery in Nagasaki, Japan.

The Rebbe listened to Tokayer and then he posed a question.

Why devote so much attention to the dead when there were living Jews in Japan who needed a rabbi among them? The question caught Tokayer off guard. Move to Japan? That wasn’t the plan.

The Rebbe disagreed. The Jewish community in Japan required leadership, he insisted. Small communities were important. They mattered. No community should be abandoned.

And so, the Rebbe challenged him: Go.

Not long afterwards, Marvin Tokayer decided to accept the calling and moved with his family to Tokyo to serve as Rabbi of the Jewish community. He was one of the few rabbis then working with communities in the Far East.

But Tokayer's story took an unexpected twist when he came across a bundle of little-known documents that ended up changing how we view Jewish history in East Asia during World War II...

To read the rest of this fascinating story, check out the link in the first comment below!

06/14/2026

Lesson 16 now online!
First half of chapter 7!

Kosher indulgence?

Is comedy Kosher for a religious person? Is a Kosher BBQ always Kosher? Can stale bread be a greater indulgence than a five-star dinner?

Listen here:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4ZJkQk2OfmkwWHOUtgqclb?si=cI4m41W2T8WJOQexOG-WK

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tanya-chabura/id1868218159?i=1000772681635

https://youtu.be/hV71CtRSW30?is=JgH7FeD72DHnd56p

Is comedy Kosher for a religious person? Is a Kosher BBQ always Kos...

06/12/2026

Tears of Gratitude!
Rabbi Chaim Bruk

She held it back for a bit, and then she couldn’t anymore. When she hugged her Special Ed teacher Ms. Tracey goodbye, she burst out crying.

After three years of Middle School at Anderson, Zeesy graduated 8th grade, leaving behind this special haven of awesomeness. She was so sad to leave and who could blame her? She was immersed in a world of love, light and so much personal attention. Her crying made me, Chavie and the teachers cry too, but it was tears of joy, tears of appreciation, knowing that our daughter was enveloped with so much care in a place that cherished her for who she is. Chavie and I will be forever grateful to Anderson, as well as Sacajawea and Longfellow for giving our kiddos a place to grow.

In this week’s Torah portion, Shelach, we read about the tears of fear that paralyzed the Jews upon hearing the report from ten of the twelve spies who returned from Israel with a message of doom and gloom. G-d had already promised the Jews that He would take them into the Holy Land, there was no reason to be worried, but they cried and cried and cried some more. G-d said “You wept in vain; I will establish it for you as a time of weeping for all generations” which later became Tisha B’Av, the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. Crying reflects overwhelm and it’s therapeutic, there’s nothing like a good cry, but crying over an imaginary fear is something we expect of children, not mature adults who believe that G-d runs the world.

As a parent, there’s nothing that makes me more delighted than seeing our children treated well and happy. I’ve said this for a long time; we are so blessed in Bozeman to have educators that genuinely care about each child and their unique needs. Renowned author and child therapist Haim Ginott writes that “Children are like wet cement. Whatever falls on them makes an impression.” While society may focus a bit too much on the academics, “no child left behind”, aiming to ensure that our kids will succeed in college, Chavie and I are appreciative that Bozeman’s educators aren’t just focused on academics, but on training the youth to see their innate value, to reveal their talents and abilities, and do so with warmth and an understanding that no two children are alike. If my kids are going to cry, I prefer it to be tears of gratitude.

Congrats Zeesy! Go rock it in High School!

May G-d guard our brethren in Israel and the world over from harm and send us Mashiach speedily. May G-d protect the armed forces of Israel and the United States wherever they may be!

06/11/2026

It is our problem!

06/10/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/16scEFoGb9/

06/09/2026

What’s with the grave prayers?

06/09/2026

Throwback to 17th of Iyar, May 4th, the end of Menny’s Torah reading and Aliyah with the traditional candy throwing to celebrate the sweetness of Torah!

Mazal Tov to Rabbi Chaim and Chavie Bruk on the Simcha!

06/07/2026

Lesson 15 now online!

Don’t engage with the irredeemable!

What empowers evil? How do dogs partake in a banquet? How does Tzimtzum give way to apparent independence?

Listen here:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/0gldtWKlhySFU258rSfE7w?si=Ok6tS7tdTvSfNYgC4X5XKA

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tanya-chabura/id1868218159?i=1000771392380

https://youtu.be/djiVSqO7FvQ?si=uCujpA1XYsSzeGY8

What empowers evil? How do dogs partake in a banquet? How does Tzim...

06/05/2026

Moses didn't vacation!
Rabbi Chaim Bruk

We’ve got a lot on our plate.

On a good day, life is busy around here, but busy has meant a lot more as of late. For ten consecutive weeks, starting with Passover preparation in March, through the week of Bar Mitzvah week festivities, our guest speakers, the holiday of Shavuos, kid related trips to DC and NY, a Bar Mitzvah in Jackson Hole, and just daily life at our home and Shul, it hasn’t stopped. Chavie and I needed a break to rest and re-energize for the busy summer season ahead. So, with the blessed help of Rabbi Mendel and Brocha, who held down the fort with the three kiddos at home, we escaped for three nights to enjoy each other’s company and catch our breath.

It was wonderful.

In this week’s Torah portion, Behaalosecha, we read about the Jewish People Kvetching in the desert, complaining to Moses and demanding meat. G-d’s Manna from heaven didn’t do it for the Jews, they needed barbeque. This is one of many times that the Jews were ungrateful due to this, that and the other. Moses was pretty tolerant of their nastiness, but at times it was too much even for him, and he said to G-d “…I cannot carry the responsibility of this entire people alone, for it is too hard for me…If this is the way You want to treat me, please kill me first, if I have found favor in Your regard, so that I not see my evil.” There was no prophet like Moses, so perhaps he didn’t need a break, we see that with people like the Rebbe who never vacationed, but the rest of us need an occasional retreat, a change of scenery and pace, to recharge.

I try to remind myself that “growth often happens in the pause, not just in the hustle”. When one is a workaholic such as myself, it’s not easy to pause, but when I do, I realize how beneficial it is for me, my family, my community and the vital goals I have set out to achieve. Even during break, I still work at the crack of dawn, I just can’t help myself and there are always things that are due, but the down time, not rushing, the slower pace, not doing all the pickups and drop-offs, not talking to humans, no soccer and track, it helps reset the body and mind. It is my hope that someday I will succeed in finding calm even in the daily work, in the rhythm of life, and until then I will wait for the next Mensch club to have my monthly cigar and chill with the boys.

Deep breathes; deep breaths!

May G-d guard our brethren in Israel and the world over from harm and send us Mashiach speedily. May G-d protect the armed forces of Israel and the United States wherever they may be!