Ultimate Unity They journeyed from Rephidim and arrived at the Wilderness of Sinai and encamped in the Wilderness; and Israel encamped there, opposite the mountain. (Exodus 19:2) The old adage, two Jews- three opinions, is more than a clever observation regarding our tendency to disagree with one another, it’s also a subtle description of the difficulty […]
Interested in Reaching Your Potential? Take Responsibility Although the splitting of the Sea is one of the most significant events in Jewish history, few talk about the events immediately preceding it. The tribes were arguing about who should leap first into the Sea, each attempting to avoid taking the first step. Finally, Nachshon from te of […]
On the tenth of this month, they shall take for themselves, each person, a lamb for each household, a lamb for the household. (Exodus 12:3)The tenth of this month refers to the day the Jews would designate of a lamb as the Passover offering, but the actual offering happened four days later. Why couldn’t they simply have […]
We all know the story; plagues came to Egypt because Pharaoh did not listen. Before the destruction brought about by the plague of Hail, the Egyptians were given the opportunity to save their animals.Whoever among the servants of Pharaoh FEARED the word of G-d chased his servants and livestock in the houses. And whoever DID NOT PAY […]
Trust or Narcissism? After being told by G-d to return to Egypt and command Pharaoh to release the Jews, Moses says: ‘Please G-d, I am not a man of words, also not since the day before yesterday, nor since You first spoke to Your servant; for I am heavy of mouth and heavy of speech.’ (4:10) […]
The Talmud (Sotah 13a) relates a unpleasant circumstance that occurred when Jacob’s sons went to bury him. The entrance of the burial cave was blocked by their uncle (Esau), their father’s nemesis, who claimed the land belonged to him and wouldn’t allow Jacob to be buried there. Jacob’s sons got into a heated debate about the […]
And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph; is my father still alive? And his brothers could not answer him because they were terrified at his presence. (45:3)Instead of simply stating, “I am Joseph,” he added “Is my father still alive?” Anyone following the story knows that he had been talking to the brothers until […]
[While Joseph is still in prison, Pharaoh dreams of cows and sheaves and demands that someone interprets his dreams. The wine steward remembered Joseph’s ability to interpret dreams, mentioned it to Pharaoh, and Joseph was freed and brought before Pharaoh, who acknowledges the truth of Joseph’s interpretation (about the impending famine) and raises Joseph to be […]
…Joseph at the age of seventeen years was a shepherd with his brothers…and Joseph brought back evil reports about them to their father (Jacob). (37:2)This week’s Parsha tells the story of one of the early events that led to the Jewish people’s bondage in Egypt. Joseph spoke lashon hara (slander; evil reports) to his father about his brothers. This led to a […]
Five percent of the people think; ten percent of the people think they think; and the other eighty-five percent would rather die than think. Thomas A. EdisonThinking must be a very hard thing if so, few people do it. Marx called religion the opiate of the masses, implying that people who believe in G-d don’t think. […]
Peanut Butter and Jelly When Leah gave birth to her fourth son, she named him Yehuda (Judah), meaning “thanks.” And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time, I will thank G-d. Therefore, she named him Yehuda… (Gen. 29:35). The Talmud (Brachot 7b) makes a remarkable comment on Leah’s thanks: From the creation of […]
Cold as Ice Isaac was Abraham’s successor but who would take over after Isaac? Two possibilities: Jacob or Esau? Their mother (Rebecca) knew that Jacob was the rightful heir and she masterminded a scheme. Esau didn’t take his loss well and jealously pursued his brother. But aside from that, Jacob’s life was wrought with misfortune, […]
Living in a Fishbowl Imagine yourself out of town on business. You want to work out in the local gym but don’t have a membership and they don’t sell one day passes. You might say, “I’d like to ask for a special favor. I’m not a member but could you be kind enough to let […]
And he (Abraham) lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold three men stood over him; and when he saw them, he ran toward them from the entrance of the tent, and bowed down to the earth, and said: ‘My lord, if now I have found favor in your eyes, pass not away, please don’t […]
Whatever Happened to the Students of Abraham and Sara? In this week’s Parsha we are introduced to the first patriarch of the Jewish people, Abraham. G-d tells him to leave his father’s house, his relatives and his homeland. So Abram went as G-d had spoken to him and Lot went with him; Abram was 75 […]
Allthough the story of Noah and the Ark is one of the most famous in the Bible, for many their first exposure to it was as a child. Most people don’t think it’s important enough to go back and view it as an adult. But this story is anything but simple; it contains profound, timeless […]
(Introduction: Cain and Abel were sons of Adam and Eve. Each son brought an offering. Cain’s offering, which was from inferior produce, wasn’t accepted by G-d; Abel’s offering was.) Cain was upset at being rejected; G-d asked, …why are you so angry and why has your face fallen? If you improve yourself, you will be forgiven. But if […]
Moses died alone on a mountain with G-d, just as he had been alone with G-d years earlier when he caught sight of a bush in flames and heard the call that changed his life and the moral horizons of the world.There’s no drama related to Moses’ death. There are neither crowds nor weeping. It […]
Look at a list of NBA champions and you’ll see that basketball’s history has been dominated by elite, very tall, Centers. Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain dominated the ’60s. They were followed by Kareem in the ’70s and ’80s, Hakeem Olajuwon in the ’90s, and Shaquille O’Neal in the 2000s. But that’s no longer the case. […]
Shortly before Moses died, he wrote a text of the Torah and gave the scroll to his (Levi) tribe (Deut. 31:9). Although Torah scrolls have been preserved over the generations, they have also been disgraced by our enemies. Here is one example. For many years during the Roman occupation of Israel, it was forbidden to publicly […]
Behold, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil…(Deut. 30:15) Doing good is a choice, but it is not limited to acts of beneficence, it also means that you see the good in your life, health, family, friendships, sustenance and so many other blessings that many people overlook. We choose whether […]
In the past, Jewish farmers would bring their harvest’s first fruits to Jerusalem. They would travel together with other farmers led by oxen whose horns had been coated in gold adorned with olive branches placed on their heads, and flutes musically accompanied the procession; they would travel for only two-thirds of the day, which allowed […]
Name a mitzvah that most people never do. Clue: It has to do with birds. When you find the nest of a kosher bird, you take the eggs but send the mother away first. Although the Torah almost never mentions the reward for any given mitzvah, here is one notable exception, and the reward is […]
When the Jewish people would come into the Land is Israel, they are told not to engage in one of the most common activities of the gentile nations of the time—witchcraft.Whoever does these things is an abomination to G-d…Walk with a pure heart with HaShem, your G-d. (Deut. 18: 12-13)Although we don’t find too many Jews today […]
The tragic recent death of a community member dear to us all has been a source of pain for our community. We mourn with Marty’s family and due to a number of people asking for the notes of the Rabbi’s eulogy, we have included it after the weekly dvar Torah. Rabbi O’s Weekly Parsha: Re’eh (Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17) […]
When playing basketball, you better be aware of the coach’s existence because it affects the way you conduct yourself at practice and at the game—even off season. If you get involved in an activity the coach frowns upon, it might jeopardize your chance of being successful on the team. The same is true of being […]
For which is a great nation that has a G-d Who is close to it, as is our G-d in all our calling to Him (Deut. 4:7).Is prayer only for big things? No, it’s for everything. The Talmud (Brachot 5b) relates the following incident. Rav Huna had 400 barrels of wine that spoiled. His colleagues told him to […]
The Parsha contains Moses’ parting words said during the last five weeks of his life and begins with giving rebuke to the nation.The Jews of that generation made a number of poor choices, decisions that affected their future as well as the future of all Jews succeeding them. Moses’ approach was not to reprimand explicitly, […]
You shall designate cities for yourselves, cities of refuge shall they be for you, and a murderer shall flee there—one who takes a life unintentionally. (Numbers 35:11) Involuntary manslaughter is something we take seriously. If an axe head becomes dislodged and kills an innocent bystander, the chopper/killer must quickly escape to one of the three cities of refuge […]
These days, we all find ourselves living in a new and different world. It was just this past Purim that we sat together in shul, next to one another, listening to the reading of the Megilla and sat in close physical proximity to our friends, and the phrase “social distancing” was not part of our vocabulary. We felt secure […]