Chabad at ASU

10/24/2025

Wishing you a Shabbat filled with joy, happiness, health, unity, inspiration, relaxation and reJEWvination!

Candle lighting time in Tempe is 5:25 pm
For candle lighting in other times go to chabad.org/candles

The importance of the ‘Trivial’

The beginning of this week’s Torah reading relates how G‑d tells Noah that since he was righteous, he and his family would be saved. Although all mankind would be punished for their wickedness, Noah and his descendants would not perish. For that purpose, Noah was instructed to build an ark in order to withstand the flood.

Noah spent the entire year in the ark feeding and caring for the many animals.

Herein lies a fundamental lesson. No person exists for himself. We were created for service.The Jewish ideal is not a world where “the righteous sit crowned with their knowledge.” That is a description of the World to Come, the afterlife, where the souls bask in divine light. However, until a person reaches that state, he must work.

We have all been given a mission — to prepare the world to be a dwelling for G‑d. And to be complete, that dwelling must encompass every element of creation. Therefore every element of our environment is important and deserving of our concern and attention.
Have a wonderful and amazing Shabbat!

Look up Shabbat and Holiday candle lighting times for anywhere in the world.

10/17/2025

Wishing you a Shabbat filled with joy, happiness, health, unity and reJEWvination!

Candle lighting time in Tempe is: 5:33 pm

And now a thought for the week:

This week, we read the first Parsha of the Torah, Parshat Breish*t.

Parashat Bereishis is an experience of renewal. In this vein, our Rabbis said: “The stance which a person adopts on Shabbos Bereish*t determines the manner in which he will proceed throughout the coming year.”

Our Sages teach: “G‑d looked into the Torah and created the world. Man looks into the Torah and maintains the world.” The Torah serves as the blueprint for creation; it is the treasure store for the principles and patterns on which our existence is based. Similarly, in the personal sense, the Torah can provide us with guidelines for our individual process of renewal. Each one of us can use the Torah to help us redefine our existence and develop a new means of relating to our environment.

When we study a portion of the Torah’s wisdom, be it a law, a story, or a philosophical or ethical concept, we are not just collecting information. Instead, we are uniting our minds with G‑d’s wisdom. He is the author of those laws, stories, and concepts. Through this study, we are aligning our minds — and through them, our entire personalities — to function in accordance with G‑d’s wisdom and desires.

Moreover, this study grants a person new vitality and energy that extends far beyond the intellect. G‑d has invested Himself in the Torah; therefore, when a person is studying the Torah, he is not merely establishing a connection with G‑d’s wisdom, he is establishing a bond with G‑d Himself. This taps an unlimited fountain of energy that enriches all of his activities and pursuits.

Have an amazing and joyous Shabbat!

10/13/2025

Our dear brothers and sisters, wishing you a gut Yom Tov, Chag Sameiach and lots of joy!

Candle lighting time in Tempe today is 5:38 pm
Candle lighting time tomorrow is after 6:32 pm from a pre-existing flame
Holiday ends Wednesday night 6:31 pm

We are so joyful to see the hostages coming home, thank you HASHEM!! And thank you to all of Hashem’s messengers that helped bring this to a reality.

What a miracle! Nobody can defeat the Jewish people! AM YISROEL CHAI!!!

Tonight starts Shmini Atezres and Simchat Torah. In these 48 hours, there are tremendous opportunities to bring major blessings of joy and happiness for the whole year! And how do we bring those blessings down here? Through DANCING!

The Torah wants to dance with the joy of this special day… but it doesn’t have feet to dance with, so we are the feet of the Torah and dance for it too!

And why do we dance with the Torah closed if Torah is about study? Because every Jew, regardless of how much he or she knows is deeply connected to the Torah and on this holiday, we celebrate our inherent connection to the Torah as Jews, and not about how much Torah we know.

So get your dancing shoes on!!! If you’re in town, join us for this special holiday at Chabad. If you’re away for fall break, go to your local Chabad and dance with the Torah! And when you’re dancing, Thank Hashem for His miracles and for all He does and pray for revealed blessings for all!

AM YISROEL CHAI! MOSHIACH NOW!
CHAG SAMEACH! GUT YOM TOV!
LECHAIM!!!

10/10/2025

On this Shabbat of Sukkot, we wish you a joyous, happy, health and truly wonderful Sukkot Shabbat!

Candle lighting time in Tempe is 5:42 pm

And here’s a thought for the week:

There are many flavors of joy.

What makes the joy of Sukkot so immense?

It’s not joy that tastes rich like wine.

It’s not joy that tastes sweet as honey.

It’s not a joy with any particular cause.

Not a celebration of any event.

Just the joy of being a Jew and having one G‑d, Creator of heaven and earth, with you at all times.

It’s simple like water. There is no flavor to water. It’s just clear, plain water.

Have a joyous SHABBAT SHALOM! And an amazingly HAPPY SUKKOT!

10/07/2025

Wishing you a very joyous and happy Sukkot!

Candle lighting time in Tempe today, Monday, October 6th is 5:47 pm

Candle lighting, Tuesday, October 7th is after 6:40 pm from a pre-existing flame

Sukkot is a season for total tranquility, total bliss, total reliance on the One Above.

That's what we're saying when we leave our comfortable homes to sit in a makeshift hut that could be blown away with a single puff of a strong wind.

How does trust work?

When things don’t work out, relax. Even if it’s all your fault and you deserve everything you’re getting, trust in G‑d that it is all for the good, and stay calm.

When He sees how much you trust in Him,
He will make it be all for the good.

Is that fair?

Yes. Because trust in G‑d transforms you into an entirely different person, no longer the person who deserved the past.

Trust in G‑d enables you to receive all good things.

It's a time to rejoice!
Happy Sukkot!
Chag Sameach!
Gut Yom Tov!

10/03/2025

Wishing you all a joyous, happy and amazing Shabbat!

Candle lighting time is 5:51 pm

Everything in life is a step forward; everything has meaning. It’s just that there are two ways to move forward: walking and leaping.

When you walk, you leave one foot in its place as the other moves ahead. You’re secure, you’re stable—and you never leave your comfort zone.

So sometimes you need to leap. But to do that, you need to first crouch down. And sometimes, to help you do that, life sends you an opportunity for failure.

That’s the true meaning of failure: It is the crouch before springing up and beyond, a breakaway from the past so that you can create an entirely new future, an opportunity to do something totally unexpected.

We don’t ask for failure, but if you ever feel like you failed, remember, what seems like failure lets you leap to heights your footsteps could never take you.

Have a joyful SHABBAT SHALOM!!!

10/01/2025

Our dear friends,
Wishing you a Gemar Chatima Tova and AJ easy and meaningful fast.

Candle lighting time in Tempe and fast begins at 5:54 pm. The fast ends tomorrow night, Thursday, October 2nd after sundown (not sunset-it’s sundown time, once it’s the time of night, 3 stars out!).

We bless you, that may Hashem sign and seal you in the book of life, complete health, true happiness, prosperity, light, unity, growth in your Judaism and in your relationship to Hashem, good grades, peace of mind and heart, endless revealed blessings and true joy!

May our beloved soldiers and hostages come home safely to their families speedily.

And may we meir speedily the coming of Moshiach now happily and joyfully!

And now a pre Yom Kippur thought…

Yom Kippur is described in many ways. One very poignant description is that it is “once in a year.”

You see, the human soul is also described in many ways, with five different names, each describing a deeper level of her being. The fifth, deepest level is called yechidah, which means “one and unique.” Yechidah is the soul as she is fused and one with her Creator, so that the two are an inseparable whole.

Yom Kippur is the day that the essential bond of yechidah shines within the time and space in our world.

Meaning that once in a year, the One Above unites with the essential oneness of the soul here below within each one of us.

All else falls away.

Gmar Chatima Tova!

May you be signed and sealed in the book of life and goodness!
May you have a good and sweet year!
May you have an easy and meaningful fast!
G-d loves you❤️

10/01/2025

An honor and joy to see our dear friend, Mayor of Tempe, Mayor Corey Woods and wish him sweet blessings in honor of our new year.

We’re blessed to live in a city led by Mayor Woods, a Mayor that is truly dedicated, caring and brings blessings and visionary leadership to our wonderful city of Tempe.

09/26/2025

On this first Shabbat of the year, we wish you a Shabbat filled with happiness, health and joyous connection!

Candle lighting time in Tempe is 6:00 pm

In this week’s Torah portion of Vayeilech, it says “And I will hide, I will hide My face on that day”. (Deut. 31:18)

Why the repetition —the double hiding?

The Baal Shem Tov explained:

Sometimes G‑d is hiding.

Sometimes G‑d hides that He is hiding.

It is then that people believe the darkness is light and the light is darkness, that bad is good and good is bad.

This Shabbat is called Shabbat Shuva, which means to return. To return to our pure essential beautiful soul, which is a piece of G-d. It's a good time to realign and refocus ourselves to ensure that our daily lives are meaningful, purposeful, and aligned with our mission in this world, which is to illuminate this world with G-dly light.

We do that by adding in goodness and kindness, doing mitzvahs, learning Torah, and refining our character. One mitzvah will bring Moshiach Now! Let's make it happen!
Lechaim!

Have an amazing, joyous and connected SHABBAT SHALOM!!!

09/22/2025

✨ Rosh Hashanah is here!!! You can hear the sounds of the shofar all throughout campus (including downtown campus).

Don’t miss it!

09/22/2025

On this day of Erev Rosh Hashana and as we welcome in the new year of 5786 with Hashem’s help, we wish you a very, happy, healthy, prosperous, sweet and amazing new year filled with Hashem’s revealed blessings.

Candle lighting time in Tempe for the next few days:
Today (9/22): 6:06 pm
9/23: after 6:59 pm (from a pre-existing flame)

And now a pre Rosh Hashana thought…

There are things that are important to us, so we speak about them.

There are things so important to us that the words flow out in a burst of emotion, rich words, expressive and vibrant.

And then there are things that shake us to the core. Things that do not care for the mind’s permission or for the right words—for the mind cannot fathom them, the most poignant words could not contain them.

Things that can only break out in a cry, in a scream, and then in silence. This is the sound of the shofar: The sound of the Shofar is the sound of our inner child wanting to connect to Hashem, crying out with longing to come home and be our true selves, to live proud and active Jewish lives each and every day, happily, healthfully and connected to Hashem!

It’s really important to hear the Shofar this week Tuesday and Wednesday - please make an effort to go and listen to the sounds of the Shofar!

Leshana Tova Umetukah - a very happy and sweet new year!

09/19/2025

On this last Shabbat of the year wishing you a Shabbat filled with joy, harmony, health, inspiration, relaxation and reJEWvination!

Candle lighting in Tempe is 6:10 pm

And now a thought for this week…

You are all standing this day . . .(Deuteronomy 29:9)

This week is Parshat Nitzavim.
Parshat Nitzavim is always read on the Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah. The Torah addresses every Jew in these words, “You are standing today, all of you, before the L-rd your G‑d: Your heads, your tribes, your elders, your officers, even all the men of Israel… from the hewer of your wood to the drawer of your water.”

This is something of a contradiction. The verse begins “You are all standing”—without making any distinctions. But immediately afterwards, it proceeds to detail the different classes of Jew separately. Why, did it need to do so, when the phrase “all of you” already encompasses them all?

It did so in order to make a fundamental point: that on the one hand, there must be unity amongst Jews; and, at the same time, each has his unique contribution to make, his own individual mission.

But, if there have to be distinctions amongst Jews, how can there be true unity amongst them?

The verse supplies its own answer: “You are standing today, all of you before the L-rd your G‑d.” It is as Jews stand before G‑d in the full recognition that He is the author of their powers and the ground of their being, that they are one.

With the assurance implicit in these words, each Jew, comes to the coronation of G‑d on Rosh Hashanah, the acceptance of His sovereignty and the proclamation of His kingship over Israel, and over the entire world.