Parshat Bamidbar is, on its surface, little more that names and numbers. The bulk of the parsha lists the counting of the Jewish people, tribe by…
“Aharon the priest ascended Hor Hahar and died there in the fortieth year... in the fifth month on the first of the month” (Bamidbar 33:…
Canada is a wonderful country, and as residents of this country, we are obliged by Torah law to abide by its laws and also pray for its welfare.…
Parshat Pinchas presents us with at least three distinct models of leadership. Our parsha gets its name from the zealotry of Pinchas who, without…
"Take Aaron, and Elazar his son, and bring them up to Mount Hor; and strip Aaron of his vestments, and dress Elazar his son in them; Aaron shall…
It is most difficult to solve a problem if the protagonists will not meet with each other and hear each other out. While there is no guarantee that…
Great people are not afraid to put their name behind their convictions. “And Calev quieted the people for Moshe and said, ‘We will rise…
It is amazing how selective our memory can be. People often yearn for the good old days: days full of poverty, pogroms and peddling. The ability to…
Judaism has long insisted that we give people the benefit of the doubt: one is innocent until proven guilty. It is always difficult to…
The centrality of the land of Israel is a basic tenet of Jewish thought. Our Sages note that mitzvot performed outside the land of Israel are little…
Bilaam, the heathen prophet, recognized that the strength of the Jewish people was in their high level of modesty. “How goodly are your tents,…
Judaism is a religion that celebrates life. "Better one hour of repentance and good deeds in this world than the entire life of the world to…
It is in times of crisis that effective leadership is most important—and the years spent wandering in the desert represented the first major…
How can two people witness the exact same events and yet offer two distinct and different reports? This question is one that jumps out as we examine…
A Jew is commanded to recite one hundred blessings each and every day (Menachot 43b). We need constant reminders to ensure that we recognize the…
Sefer Bamidbar opens with names and numbers, a theme that continues throughout the book; hence its name, Chumash Pekudim, the book of counting.…
“In ten utterances did G-d create the world” (Avot 5:1). It is thus not surprising that many see man’s ability to speak as the…
Parshat Chukat marks the transition from the generation that left Egypt to the one that would enter the Land of Israel. This was a transition marked…
The Torah was "edited" with great precision. Narrative and law are often intertwined; one sheds light on the other. While our tradition…
Of the twelve men sent to bring back a report about the land of Israel, only one of them—Yehoshua—has previously been mentioned in the…
“And G-d spoke to Moshe in the Sinai desert in the second year of the Exodus from Egypt, in the first month” (Bamidbar 9:1). Pesach Sheni…
The Torah uses its words sparingly—and sometimes not at all. The Torah tells us very little about the laws of Shabbat[1]. They are, in the…
“And the Egyptians were burying all their first born, who had been killed by G-d” (Bamidbar 33:4). Occupied with grief and…
"And they called the people to their religious sacrifices, and the people ate and worshipped the Moabite gods" (Bamidbar 25:2). How…