“[Then journeyed] the flag of the camp of Dan m'aseif, the gatherer, of all the camps” (Bamidbar 10…
Naso: Welcoming the Outsider
The first chapters of the book of Bamidbar focus on readying the people to enter the Land. The…
Bamidbar: A Heavy Price
In order to be effective, leaders must be sensitive to the feelings and concerns of the general…
Shavuot: A Long Weekend
This year, Shavuot falls on a Sunday. This rather unremarkable observation is of little import…
Voting for Heaven
For those living in the Province of Ontario—that includes yours truly—today is Election Day!
Bechukotai: Truth and Consequences
Judaism demands that we do what’s right because it’s right, without thought of recognition or…
Behar: Interest Rates are Falling
“I am the Lord your G-d, Who took you out of the land of Egypt”. While we associate these words…
Lag BaOmer: Coming Together
Lag BaOmer is a mysterious holiday. There is no mention of it in the Gemara, a fact that led the…
Emor: We Are All Kohanim
Sefer Vayikra deals with the role of the Temple and that of the Kohanim in Jewish life. So it seems…
Kedoshim: No Mercy Allowed
Commenting on the Torah's charge "to be holy, since I the Lord your G-d am holy" (Vayikra, 19:2)…
Yom Ha'atzmaut: A 74 Piece Orchestra
Four, seven, ten, eighteen, forty, seventy, for Jews around the world have an immediate and…
Acharei Mot: Good Friends
“Do not follow the ways of Egypt, where you once lived” (Vayikra 18:2). The Jewish people's…
Pesach: Time is Relative
“Could it be from Rosh Chodesh?” the authors of the Hagadah ask, raising the possibility that one…
Metzora: Home Sweet Home
The home plays a critical—if not the critical—role in the development of Jewish life. The efforts…
Tazria: The Cycles of Life
During Jewish leap years, Parshat HaChodesh, the special maftir portion we read on the Shabbat…
Purim: To Sing or not to Sing
Rav Soloveitchik argued that there is no independent field of Jewish philosophy. Rather, this…
Shmini: A Tale of Two Stories
"Moshe said to Aharon: This is what G-d meant when He said I will be sanctified amongst those who…
Tzav: Sacrifices and the Spoken Word
If one were to survey 100 Jews and ask them their least favourite book of Torah it is likely that…