The survival of the Jewish people in the desert was a direct result and only possible because of Divine intervention: the splitting of the sea; water…
Shelach Lecha: What is Your Name
Names play a crucial role in our tradition. We have names that describe our origins, Adam – "from the soil” (Breisheet 2:7); names that define one’s…
Beha'alotcha: Time to Complain
One of the causes for disappointment with the generation that left Egypt was their constant complaining. Each week, as we study sefer Bamidbar, we…
Naso: I Made a Mistake
Sefer Bamidbar is a book of missed opportunities. Mistake after mistake – by the people and the leaders – demonstrated that the generation that left…
Bamidbar: Between Yom Yerushalayim and Shavuot
We tend to associate the holiday of Shavuot with that of Pesach. One can cogently argue that Shavuot is the culmination and conclusion of Pesach. The…
Behar: Faith is Hard
It was not until the 8th century that the first list was compiled of the 613 mitzvot, opening up a fascinating genre of rabbinic literature that…
Emor: Law and Justice
Sefer Vayikra has but two stories, that of the tragic deaths of Nadav and Avihu and the tragic death of the blasphemer, which we read this week.…
Kedoshim: A Healthy Heart
Judaism is a religion of action. There is so much to do to improve oneself, one’s community and the world around us. Each of us is tasked with…
Shemini: Counting to Eight
"And it was on the eighth day" (Vayikra 9:1). While this verse is the beginning of a new parsha, the Torah clearly links it to the previous…
Vayikra: A Book of Love
“And He called to Moshe and G-d spoke to Moshe”. Noting the redundancy of this opening verse of the central book of the Torah, Rashi explains that…
Pekudei: Timing is Everything
“In the first month of the second year on the first of the month, the Tabernacle was erected” (Shemot 40:2). Sefer Shemot concludes with the…
Vayakhel: A Different Time Zone
“And G-d spoke to Moshe to say to the Jewish people: Ach, however: my Sabbaths you are to keep! For it is a sign between me and you, throughout your…
Tetzaveh: Pursuing Justice
“And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an efod, and a robe, and a quilted undercoat, a mitre, and a girdle: and they…
Terumah: The First of Adar
The first of Adar is a very special day. “Just as when Av begins one decreases rejoicing, so too when the month of Adar begins, one…
Mishpatim: The Ten Commandments
“And all the people saw the thunder, the lightning, and the sound of the shofar, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they were…
Yitro: Jealous and Jealous
Walk into almost any shul wherever one may be, and chances are one will see the “Ten Commandments[1]” on top of the aron kodesh. They are neatly…
Beshalach: Time for a Test
Along with the joy of teaching high school students comes the drudgery of marking tests – reading answers to the same questions over and over. While…
Bo: Time for a Change
One of the central tenets of our faith is the eternal relevance and unchanging nature of our Torah. The Torah is not only Divinely authored, it is an…