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Symbols play an important part in helping to define who we are. Our clothing, for example, is often symbolic of the social milieu with which we identify. Corporate logos help to create a business image and flags of a nation symbolize its essence.…
In his introduction to Pirkei Avot, the Rambam distinguishes between those mitzvot which we are to observe because we want to and those we should observe because we have to. When it comes to what we might call the ethical mitzvot of the Torah we…
The Torah is a description of the relationship between G-d and man, and between G-d and the Jewish people.
The Torah begins with G-d’s creation of the world, a world that was purposeless without man. “Fill the earth and conquer it” (Breisheet 1:28)…
Judaism sees the sparks of the Divine within the most mundane of activities. Revelation at Sinai is followed by a series of laws dealing with such topics as slavery, property damage, assault and battery, lost objects, and court procedures. While all…
Symbols play a crucial role in self and group identification and affect almost everything we do. Be they roses or a diamond ring, symbols can speak louder than actions (not to mention words). Failure to understand the symbolic meaning behind…
The prayer for the welfare of the State of Israel recited in many of our congregations assumes that the modern-day state is the "beginning of the flowering of our redemption". For many, the notion that a secular state could herald the…
The story is told that when the students of Rav Yisrael Salanter were preparing to bake matzah, they asked Rav Yisrael what they should be most careful about. Rav Yisrael, the founder of the Mussar movement, responded that they should ensure that…
Immediately after the Divine revelation at Sinai, the Torah in Parshat Mishpatim presents a long list of mitzvoth, highlighting the link between Torah and mitzvoth. G-d's covenant with the Jewish people is based on commandments that we must…
One of the fiercest debates amongst medieval biblical commentaries was the extent to which parts of the Torah might be allegorical. The Ramban (Breisheet 18:1) does not take too kindly to the position of the Rambam (Guide 2:42) that the visit of the…