Last week’s cufflinks were the Gryffindor emblems, from “Harry Potter,” because A) the word “house” appears thrice in the parsha, plus tent, which equals four. That was my l’chatchila (preferred), which not everyone liked so much. However, I won out with B) the griffin has wings of eagles, which Hashem said He carried us on to the Holy Land. Everybody in shul, at a kiddush we went to, and our hosts for our Shabbat meal, totally nailed that.
Amada Jesky got that answer as well, but also added some deeper “Harry Potter” knowledge. She said the Gryffindor motto is “Forti Animo Estote, Be of Good Courage” or “Stay Strong of Heart,” and is nearly precisely the same translation as “Chazak V’amatz.”
Why is that relevant to the parsha? Well, Klal Yisroel started another round of Nach Yomi last week, and Yehoshua is encouraged with “Chazak V’amatz” seven times out of the 14 times it’s referenced in Tanach. So Amanda went wider, and incorporated even more Torah into her response. Beautiful!
And now, let’s play another round of Linkémon, eh? It’s our first re-use of the year, but this one’s so obvious, I just had to go for it. Yes, the positioning is a clue. Shabbat shalom, everyone!
For years now, Martin Bodek has been wearing cuff links themed to the week’s parsha, to stimulate conversation around the Shabbat table. Naturally, it begged for a wider audience, and The Jewish Link seems like a perfect home—especially in name. Every week, we’ll present the cuff links, and you tell us how it ties in to the parsha of the week. E-mail your guesses, educated and otherwise, to [email protected] and we’ll publish the best and most creative answers a week later. Have fun!
