We have all been taught that it is the holiday of Shavuot that commemorates the giving of the Torah at Sinai. Interestingly, nowhere is this…
It is rare indeed to look to professional athletes for moral guidance. We learned long ago that the extraordinary talents they possess are manifest…
Knowing the right people is, more often than not, the key to success in the modern world. We in North America refer to “connections”, but in Israel…
Our long sojourn in Egypt was meant to develop those character traits necessary to transform the Jewish people into G-d's special nation. We were…
“And Pharaoh awoke, he and all his officials and all the rest of Egypt. There was a great cry, as there was no house where there was no death…
“He kissed all his brothers and wept on their shoulders, and afterwards his brothers spoke with him” (45:14). What a change from twenty-two years…
We tend to assume that, with the recital of the shir shel yom, the daily psalm—or Aleinu if you daven nusach sefarad, Shacharit is over.…
We tend to assume that, with the recital of the shir shel yom, the daily psalm—or Aleinu if you daven nusach sefarad, Shacharit is over.…
One of the key aspects of the world of business is the crucial importance of the bottom line. And that is the way it should be. The primary—and some…
It is for good reason that co-wives are described as tzarot, literally, problems. Competing as they inevitably must for the same man, their…
In electing Rob Ford as mayor, voters in the city of Toronto have voted for change. Our mayor-elect has been most forthright in his plan of action,…
Our Sages assert that the Torah pre-dates the creation of the world, in essence serving as the architectural blueprint of creation. This is a…
This week’s d’var Torah is sponsored by Gershon and Leah Vandenbrink with best wishes for a joyous Sukkot. In rabbinic literature, Sukkot is known…
This week’s d’var Torah is sponsored by Gershon and Leah Vandenbrink with best wishes for a joyous Sukkot. In rabbinic literature, Sukkot is known…
The death of the righteous atones, our Sages teach, and it is for this reason that during Mussaf of Yom Kippur, just after recounting the special…
The death of the righteous atones, our Sages teach, and it is for this reason that during Mussaf of Yom Kippur, just after recounting the special…
“On Rosh Hashanah, it is written; and on Yom Kippur, it is sealed, who shall live and who shall die…” (Machzor). It is doubtful…
“On Rosh Hashanah, it is written; and on Yom Kippur, it is sealed, who shall live and who shall die…” (Machzor). It is doubtful…
The High Holiday period is one (we hope!) filled with introspection, reflection and a commitment to try to become a better person. Our religious…
The High Holiday period is one (we hope!) filled with introspection, reflection and a commitment to try to become a better person. Our religious…
Bill Gates and Warren Buffet recently announced the launch of the “Giving Pledge” campaign, asking that all billionaires in America donate at least…
I wrote the thought below on that last day of saying kaddish for my father, Harav Chaim Yosef ben Harav Zvi Yehudah, z"l, four years ago. It…
“And G-d spoke to Moshe after the death of the two children of Aharon when they came close before G-d and they died” (16:1). The Torah then…
“And G-d spoke to Moshe after the death of the two children of Aharon when they came close before G-d and they died” (16:1). The Torah then…
Sometimes the reason why one does something can be even more important than what was actually done. While our Sages note that one should strive to…
“And Terach’s years were 205 years, and Terach died in Charan. G-d said to Abram, Go away from your land, your birthplace and from…
“Noach was a righteous man, perfect in his generation” (6:9). It is hard to imagine a greater endorsement than that which the Torah gives to Noach.…
"In the beginning G-d created the heaven and the earth" (1:1). Light, sky, land, vegetation, animals and humans. The Torah's description of creation…
After forty years of wandering in the desert, the Jewish people were finally ready to enter the land of Israel. Their experience in the desert and…
Issues of church and state—especially in the United States, with its constitutional separation of these two realms—are always controversial, often…
After 40 long and, with important exceptions, mostly uneventful years, the Jewish people stood poised to enter the Promised Land. Undoubtedly, they…
Rav Yisroel Salanter, the 19th century ethicist, noted that it takes much more moral strength to be a businessman with integrity than to be a rabbi.…
Our Sages equated farming with faith. Only a man of faith could put in months of backbreaking labour, knowing full well that all his efforts could go…
One of the cardinal principles of Judaism is the belief in the Divine origin of our Bible. While Moshe Rabbeinu was the greatest of human beings, his…
This week's d’var Torah is sponsored by Dr. Charles and Nathalie Piwko in observance of the yahrzeit of Charlie's mother, ob”m, and in celebration of…
"And they did not listen to Moshe, from short spirit and hard work" (7:9). Moshe had a daunting dual task before him. Not only did he need to…
"If you really want to do me a kindness... act towards me with truth and kindness and do not bury me in Egypt" (47:29). So begins Yaakov's…
Judaism and modern western thought both teach the supremacy of man's freedom of choice. For modern man, freedom is rooted in the notion of…
What's in a name? Clearly, names played an important role to our Biblical ancestors. The names of Chava, Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov…
Sefer Shemot, literally, “book of names”, seems to be a misnomer for our Parsha. (Rabbinic writings often refer to it as “book of redemption…
After twenty-two difficult years, Yaakov was informed that his beloved son Yosef was the Viceroy of Egypt. Overcome with joy and disbelief, Yaakov…
Yaakov Avinu was on the run. Forced to leave home after "stealing" the birthright from his brother, he was attempting to stay one step ahead of Eisav…
There is no greater challenge than that of raising refined children. It is a task with so many variables and fraught with such difficulty that many a…
Our patriarchs and matriarchs did not have easy lives. Each faced problems of famine, of wandering from place to place, of foreign rulers, and of…
The greatness of a person is revealed by the little things that one does. The greater the person, the more he or she is concerned with little things…
"And G-d was angry at me for your sakes (lemanchem) and would not hear me. And G-d said to me, Enough! Do not speak to me any more about this” (3:26…
“But the Second Temple, that they were involved in Torah and Mitzvoth and Gemilot Chasadim (loving kindness), why was it destroyed? Because it…
“But the Second Temple, that they were involved in Torah and Mitzvoth and Gemilot Chasadim (loving kindness), why was it destroyed? Because it…
One of the most beautiful and impactful aspects of the Torah is its description of the humanity of its protagonists. Their strengths and struggles,…
Numbers play a significant, if usually symbolic, role in Jewish thought. Perhaps the most symbolic number is seven, representing completeness; the…