A legal system by its very nature is detail oriented. While laws represent the values of any given…
Pesach: A Trial Run
“Go out and learn what Lavan the Aramean sought to do to Yaakov, our father. Pharaoh only decreed…
Tzav: City of Peace
“Do not eat any blood…any person who eats blood shall have his soul cut off from his people” (…
Vayikra: I Made A Mistake
One of the tragedies of the human condition is the inability to admit our mistakes. Even when faced…
Vayakhel-Pekudei: What's In a Name?
"Moshe said to the Jewish people: See that G-d called in the name of Bezalel, the son of Uri, the…
Ki Tisa: No Dancing Allowed
Why did Moshe break the luchot habreet, the tablets of testimony, that were written by G-d himself…
Purim - We are One
One of the (many) strange features of Purim is the fact that we do not recite Hallel. “The Prophets…
Tezaveh: Consistency and Excitement
For many, when the Torah reading reaches the parshiot of Terumah and Tezaveh interest in the parsha…
Terumah: A Giving Heart
In his introduction to Pirkei Avot, the Rambam distinguishes between those mitzvot which we are to…
Running for Mayor: A Sad State of Affairs
Like many Torontonians, I was shocked and saddened to hear that our mayor, John Tory was resigning…
Yitro: Justice and Judges
Famine, exile, dissent, descent, slavery, persecution, death and at last redemption. The Jewish…
Beshalach: A Proper Education
The story of the attack by Amalek upon the newly freed slaves from Egypt appears twice in the Torah…
Bo: Torah Contradictions
The Torah is full contradictions[1].
Vaera: Fighting Fate
One of the amazing features of man is his ability to adapt to practically any and all situations.…
Shemot: Unintended Consequenses
“And a new king arose who did not know Yosef” (Shemot 1:6). What a difference a few years can make…
Vayechi: The Inconsistent Truth
"And they said, should they make our sister like a harlot?" (Breisheet 34:31). So ends round one of…
Vayigash: Seeing the Good
One of the tests of the character of a person is seeing how they react to adversity. Do they try to…
Mikeitz: Food and Famine
One of the central motifs of the biblical narrative is food. Matzah, manna, mei merivah highlight…