Va'etchanan

Embark on a journey of Jewish learning and discovery, exploring the depth of our Va'etchanan resources, where tagged items including audio, programs, and podcast episodes await your exploration.

Va'etchanan: from Egypt to Israel

Rabbi Jay Kelman

“Moses summoned all the Israelites and said to them: Hear, O Israel, the laws and rules that I proclaim to you this day! Study them and observe them faithfully!” (Devarim 5:1) These words introduce the main section of sefer Devarim, Moshe’s long…
Article
Jul 28, 2023

Vaetchanan: Seeking Comfort

Rabbi Jay Kelman

Our Sages ordained that we should read parshat VaEtchanan on the Shabbat after Tisha B’Av. As they phrased it, “tzumu v’tzlu, fast and pray”. On Tisha B’Av we fast, but we cannot pray. We can say words, but not words of prayer. “Though I cry to Him…
Article
Aug 12, 2022

VaEtchanan: An Extra And

Rabbi Jay Kelman

"Shamor v’Zachor b’dibur echad". This phrase, sung every Friday night, notes the most famous difference between the recording of the aseret hadibrot in parshat Yitro, where we are commanded to “remember, zachor, the Shabbat” and Moshe's recounting…
Article
Jul 23, 2021

VaEtchanan: Beyond the Law

Rabbi Jay Kelman

The most obvious connection between Tisha b’Av and parshat Vaetchanan—which is always read on the Shabbat following this saddest of days—lies in the opening lines of the parsha, where Moshe pleads to enter the…
Article
Jul 30, 2020

VaEtchanan: Learning to Read

Rabbi Jay Kelman

Our Torah encompasses all aspects of life: it regulates our existence from the day we are born until the day we die, and from the moment we awake until we retire at night. It is only after one has accepted the binding nature of the Law that one may…
Article
Aug 16, 2019

VaEtchanan: The People and Moshe

Rabbi Jay Kelman

“At that time I pleaded with G-d, saying, ‘O G-d, Lord…please let me cross the Jordan. Let me see the good land across the Jordan, the good mountain’”(Devarim 3:23-25). Moshe Rabbeinu had not yet given up his hope to…
Article
Aug 4, 2017

VaEtchanan: World Leaders

Rabbi Jay Kelman

Attempts to understand the rationale behind the mitzvoth of the Torah have generated much debate and discussion through the millennia. Many have feared that the search for answers is irrelevant at best, and possibly even outright dangerous. What…
Article
Aug 19, 2016

VaEtchanan: Loving G-d

Rabbi Jay Kelman

Jews of faith, when faced with imminent death, have departed this world with the words of the shma on their lips. Perhaps the most famous example of this is the tragic death of Rabbi Akiva, one of the ten martyrs we read about on Tisha b'Av. As he…
Article
Aug 10, 2014

VaEtchanan: Time for Comfort

Rabbi Jay Kelman

Life is so unfair. While we believe that ultimately (and ultimately can take an eternity!) justice must and will prevail—to believe otherwise would be to deny the essence of Judaism—it is clear that life is full of injustices. Moshe…
Article
Jul 19, 2013

VaEtchanan: Easy Money

Rabbi Jay Kelman

One of the fundamental beliefs of Judaism is that of reward and punishment. Keep the mitzvoth and get rewarded. Violate the laws of the Torah and be punished. This basic theme runs throughout much of the Torah – especially in sefer Devarim.…
Article
Aug 3, 2012