Messages from June 2022

This week’s Torah Portion was written by Rabbi O. in advance of his entering the week of mourning. Rabbi O’s Weekly Parsha: Shelach (Numbers 13-15) A Student, a Prostitute, and a Sage

We are introduced to the mitzvah of tzitzis (strings attached to a four cornered garment) at the end of this week’s Parsha. The following remarkable incident occurred in the 3rd century and is recorded in the Talmud (Menachot 44a).Once a man, who was very scrupulous about the mitzva of tzitzis, heard about a prostitute who charged four hundred gold dinars for her […]

Rabbi O’s Weekly Parsha: Bamidbar/Shavuos 5781-2021You Count!

When the cycle for the weekly Torah readings was established centuries ago, this week’s Parsha was designated specifically to be read this Shabbos. I.e. the reading is from the first few chapters of the Torah’s fourth book, Numbers, and always precedes the holiday of Shavuot. What connection is there between this week’s Parsha and Shavuot, the festival commemorating the […]