Where: DATA of Plano – 3198 West Parker Rd., Suite 3124
When: Tuesdays at 10:45 AM

If you have any questions, feel free to call Shifra Robkin at 214-422-6143

Regards,
Shifra Robkin

The subject of the class is “Shabbos – understanding it’s beauty, meaning and laws.”

Topic: Shabbos – understanding it’s beauty, meaning and laws
When: Tuesday mornings at 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM starting January 27
Where: at the home of Adam and Stacy Kimmel
3801 Grifbrick Drive
Plano, TX 75075

Sincerely,
Rabbi Yogi Robkin

This Thursday evening, January 15th at 8:00 P.M. there will be a Town Hall meeting at DATA of Plano. The discussion will be to decide the permanent location for DATA of Plano.

We are experiencing exciting times as DATA of Plano continues to grow and flourish. With this growth big decisions lie ahead of us. We all feel ready to begin the community building process in Plano (Rabbi Yogi has just signed a contract to sell his home in the Ohr HaTorah neighborhood, and will be moving to Plano in around 6 weeks!), and decisions pertaining to the location of our community must be made in the coming weeks.

We want to hear your voice and opinions on the matter and invite you to a monumentous DATA of Plano Town Hall Meeting this Thursday night (Jan.15) at DATA of Plano at 8 pm. Because of the importance of this meeting to the future of your community we request that everyone make it a priority to attend. Married couples please arrange a babysitter if needed to allow both husband and wife to attend! This is your opportunity to express your thoughts…please don’t miss it!

A note about the meeting: This meeting is not intended to be a forum for any idea that you may have about the future location of DATA of Plano. Rabbi Yogi and Rabbi Zakon have spent tens and tens of hours researching a number of options for the location of the community, and have had the opportunity to speak to many of you at length about your own thoughts on the matter. An open ended meeting will not yield the opportunity to discuss the options which seem at this point the most feasable. We hope you understand this point, and encourage any of you who feel that an important location option for DATA of Plano that is not of yet on the discussion table for the meeting to please contact Rabbis Zakon and Robkin prior to the meeting.

We would like to present to you ahead of time the three options which seem most feasable at this point in time so that you can consider them and come prepared with your thoughts Thursday night. In this email I will not mention the potential pros and cons of each option.

1. Although the current Center is of course temporary, we committ to developing the community in the area around the center (the Parker and Independence area). When the right opportunity presents itself to purchase a permanent facility in the area we will do so.
2. We hold off on choosing a permanent location for the community and hope that a good opportunity to buy/rent something in a “better” location comes up in the near future. Those who choose to live near the current center will be encouraged to rent, not buy their homes.
3. We locate an exact location which is deemed better for the community to be developed and buy/rent a center there immediately. All people considering moving into the communty will be encouraged to buy homes in that other area.

Thank you for your involvement with DATA of Plano and we look forward to greeting and discussing with you at this weeks Town Hall Meeting!

See you there – 8:00 P.M. on Thursday, January 15th.

Sincerely,

Rabbi Nasanya Zakon & Rabbi Yogi Robkin
Directors, DATA of Plano
(214)987-3282
nzakon@dataofplano.org
yrobkin@dataofplano.org
DATA-The Dallas Kollel
Building Unity Through Learning
http://dataofplano.org

1. 
   
   Lies, Sex, Money: 4 Part series on the 10 Commandments
   
   When: Tuesday evenings starting Jan 13th
   
   Time: 8:00 P.M.
   
   Cost: $36
   
   Where: DATA of Plano
2. 
   
   The Path of the Just: a 6 parts series on the Kabbalistic guide
   
   When: Wednesday evening starting Jan. 7
   
   Time: 8:00 P.M.
   
   Cost: $45 plus cost of the book
   
   Where: DATA of Plano
3. 
   
   Love to Hate, Hate to Love: 6 part series for Women only
   
   When: Thursday at noon starting Jan. 29th
   
   Time: 12 noon
   
   Cost: $36 for the series or $10 per class (lunch included)
   
   Where: DATA of Plano

3 New Classes at DATA

Jessica G.

Dear Jessica,

I think you are smart for not talking with your friend in the immediate days after your embarrassing episode, as you were probably at the peak of your angry feelings, and would not have been able to express yourself to your friend in a way that would do anything but exacerbate your already difficult situation. However, if you are planning on never speaking with her again, this is certainly counter the Torah teachings. Let me share with you a profound verse in the Torah!

“You shall not hate your brother in your heart; you shall rebuke your fellow and you shall not bear a sin because of him” (Vayikra 19:17). The Ramban, Nachmanidies, in his second explanation of this verse comments that although the verse seems to be expressing a few disjointed teachings, in reality they are all connected. The central theme of this verse is the mitzvah to not hate your fellow. Well, that sounds all nice and spiritual, but the realities of life seem to make this mitzva an impossible feat. When someone hurts you, whether physically or emotionally, it is completely natural to feel anger or even hatred towards them! Addressing this issue, the verse continues with the antidote: “you shall rebuke your fellow”. The Torah is teaching us that you cannot fully get rid of the anger towards your friend until you openly discuss your feelings about the hurtful episode with her. Ramban notes that when you rebuke your friend for their misdeed two things will most likely happen. Either your friend will apologize for her mistake, or she will explain her actions to you from her perspective and understanding of the events. Whichever way your friend responds (apology or explanation) those deep feelings of hatred tend to quickly dissipate, and seeds of understanding and renewed love seep in. Open you heart and share your words with your friend so that “you shall not bear a sin because of him”. Which sin? The sin of hating your fellow!

It is amazing to hear of stories where one family member refuses to speak to another family member because of a hurtful experience that occurred ten years prior. Many times a simple heart to heart chat could have saved years and years of pent up frustrations and severed relationships. In the end of it all, the one who suffers the most by not talking openly with the person who hurt them is the victim herself. We carry the baggage of damaged relationships and hurt feelings for a lifetime – and it weighs down on us! Go and speak to your friend now. But remember to not point fingers at them in a mean way. Tell them how you experienced the events in your mind and how you felt as a result. Chances are that times haven’t changed too much from the days of Nachmanidies, and you will have created the necessary space to let go of hatred and recreate your relationship with your friend.

Let me know how it goes! Sincerely,

Rabbi Yogi