In Parasha / the weekly Torah reading of Yitro – we learn points of effective communication.

Yitro – Moshe’s Father-in-Law & Former Priest of Idolotry turned convert to Torah Judaism – Comes to Moshe in the Desert after the splitting of the Sea of Reeds – with his daughter, Tzipporah & Grandchildren Gershom & Eliezer – Moshe’s Wife & Children. Moshe welcomes him and has a meal in his honor. The Next day He sees Moshe Judging the people. He is sitting everyone is standing. He asks him – what is he doing. Moshe responds – he is judging the people. Yitro Asks – Why are you doing it this way? If you continue you will wear yourself out. Why Not appoint trustworthy people as judges. You will become less worn out. Please ask Hash-m / G-d if this is a good solution.

The idea of communications is to help the other person make the best decision. Your goal is for the other’s best interest. You are a helper to help him or her find it.

If they make the decision – it is more likely that they will abide by it.

He are the 8 Steps:

1. Empathy – Establish a time that all are calm and on good terms. Speak with a kind, helping voice.
2. Question – the act that you want to change in the other individual.
3. Problem – State a Problem in Acting the way they currently act.
4. Solution – Propose a simple solution that they can abide by.
5. Benefit – Tell them a benefit of doing it your way.
6. Acceptance – Try to achieve their acceptance of the problem.
7. Action – Give them a practical way to take action.
8. Support – express your willingness to give them support for their action and Follow up.

You can use these principles with your workers, spouse, children, parents, clients, employees. You’ll get more results and help others instead of preaching what to do.

G-d gives laws for the good of man & mankind. Serving G-d is a challenge – but in the long term one realizes that overcoming those challenges leads to a better life.

G-d gave the Torah that contains laws for Jews – the 613 commandments. It also contains laws for Gentiles – the 7 Noahide laws.

It seems from the press – that the Corornavirus – started from an animal market in Wuhan, China.

An observant Jew follows many laws that will prevent him or her from contracting the virus. Here are some laws for Jews that help them to live a healthy life.

1. Eating Kosher – a Jew eats kosher. This entails eating only healthy & clean animals. Animals that Chew their cud and have split hooves. We do not eat creepy, crawling creatures – that carry diseases.
   We eat animals that are healthy. No carcasses. No diseased animals. Animals that have no wounds that will cause them to not live out the year.
   The fish we consume have fins and scales. These fish are not scavengers and are more healthy to eat than those that hang out on the bottom of the ocean. The ritual slaughter of the animals is done in a humane way as to not cause the animal pain or stress. This prevents the animal from releasing negative hormones into it’s body when being slaughtered and does not contaminate others.
2. Washing Hands – When Jews wake up in the morning – we wash our hands 3 times alternating. Before a bread meal – we also wash our hands using a hand-washing vessel. After the bathroom – one washes their hands and recites a special blessing to G-d that the body is functioning properly (Asher Yatzar).
3. We do not eat limbs taken from a live animal. This law applies to Jews and Non-Jews. Many people who do eat limbs from a live animal – also end up not cooking them either. This leads to eating unhealthy food due to the microbes that remain in the body.
4. Bread of the Morning – Eating bread in the Morning (Pat Shah’rit) reinforces the whole body and kills bacteria in the stomach..
5. Be Fruitful and Multiply. It is a Torah law for people to have children. We have sufficient technology to feed the world. If the Chinese – understood that G-d is in control – they would not have laws limiting population growth.
6. Do Not Murder – The lack of belief in G-d allows a person to justify any act. To take the extreme example – the Nazi’s rationalized genocide. The Chinese rationalized abortion and infanticide – because of their lack in belief of G-d. They wrongly assumed – that the world cannot support more people. G-d wants the world to be populated and people not to kill. (See Seven Noahide Commandments). It is possible that one of the people they killed had the potential to find a cure for the Wuhan Coronavirus.
7. Salting Meat – before eating meat a Jew salts the meat to remove the blood. We do not want to be influenced by the blood of the animal. It also kills bacteria. If we want to eat liver – we must roast it.
8. Stay Healthy – Jews are commanded to stay healthy.
9. Celibacy Before Marriage – Before one gets married – Observant Jews refrain from physical interaction with the other gender. Apart from helping to assure relations with common goals, communication & appreciation – it helps a person to remain safe from transmitted ailments.
10. The Sacred Touch – The Jewish Observant public refrains from physical contact with the opposite gender. Thus this also helps people to keep clear of ailments transmitted by contact.

All the Laws that G-d gives in the Torah serve many purposes. Some Laws are for the benefit of man. Some laws are between Man & G-d.

In the 13 principles of Judaism  the Rambam – one belief is that there is reward and punishment. At times the reward or punishment comes as a result of the positive or negative act that one performed. Sometimes it does not. One may be rewarded or punished in this world or the next world as a result of their acts.

Is the Wuhan Coronavirus a punishment for China’s deeds? The virus probably came about because the Chinese eat ever min hachai – limbs taken from a live animal. Meaning they cut up the animal before it died. Are they being punished for the millions of infanticides and abortions done to their own people for population control? I don’t know. But one thing is sure – if the Chinese are smart they will learn from the errors of the ancient egyptians – who acted similarly. They did not recognize G-d / Hash-m and then they eventually perished.

The times we are living now is called the Messianic Times. Soon the Messiah will come. In the meantime it says – that G-d will send plagues upon the world for the people of the world to recognize Him – Hashem -a as the True G-d of the world. Is the Wuhan Virus one of these plagues? I don’t know.

One thing I do know is that if the Chinese Government wants to save its people – they should adopt the 7 Noahide laws and some of the beliefs of Judaism into their country. Instead of a policy of atheism for those who want to join the communist party – they should institute a policy to believe in Hash-m. They could hire 1000 Orthodox Rabbis to teach people the 7 Noahide Laws and of G-d. They can teach them laws of Kashrut and the Belief in Hash-m, the G-d of the Jews. They should distribute the 7 Noahide laws cards to the population. This will save their country.

The Ancient Egyptians didn’t learn from the 10 Plagues – will the Chinese? I hope so.

Moses tells Pharaoh the word of G-d. “Let My People Go.” He refuses for 9 plagues. After the 10th plague – Pharaoh comes running to Moses telling him & the people of Israel to leave Egypt.

“Moses was great in the eyes of the Egyptian Slaves and the [Jewish] People” (Shemot / Exodus 11:3) says the verse in parashat / weekly Torah reading of Bo. The question is why do the Egyptian Slaves recognize Moses greatness first and after the Jewish people. We would expect the opposite order.

The Answer – to impress others is easy.The Egyptians are easily impressed by the plagues. I buy a nice car. I get a beautiful house. I initiate wonders – like the 10 plagues. But deep down – we all realize that the greatness of a person is in their human qualities – in their kindness. In their doing of good deeds. In their nobility.

When Babe Ruth passed away, a Rabbi asked one of his students to listen to what was said in remembrance of him. Many of the people stated his acts of kindness – in supporting orphanages and helping the poor. His baseball record was secondary to his baseball accomplishments.

When we do good we feel good. Playing sports will keep your body in shape – but doing good will keep your soul in shape. When our soul is happy – we are happy.

The question now is what is kindness? Read Pirkei Avot.

Moshe / Moses is born in this week’s Parasha / Weekly Torah reading – Shemot. His mother and sister – Yocheved & Miriam – were midwives, named Shifra and Puah. They disobeyed Pharoah’s command to throw Jewish baby boys in the Nile river. The reason: they feared Hash-m – G-d.

G-d Compensates them by making for them houses. The interpretation is the house of Kingship and the house of the Kehuna / priesthood.

Hebrew has male and female, singular and plural pronouns. (He,She, it, They (m,f), them (m,f) and word endings. It says in the Pasuk (Shemot / Exodus 21:12) G-d made Houses for them (m). We would think that it should say He made houses for “Them (f)” – since Shifra & Puah were females. So it means that the good not only went to them but to other people as well – including males. [In Hebrew, we call a group of males and females – Them (m).”

It teaches us – if you do good for others – you not only do good for that person – but the good & the reward is returned to you and others.