Articles in Concepts
Shoftim: Unity
Reports and Plans
This week we enter the month of Elul, the last month and culmination of the entire year. By Jewish tradition, Elul is a month of reflection and introspection. We review our behavior of the past year and generate an end of year report. Just as you receive an …
Re’e: The Lonely Sock
Just A Half
Have you ever lost socks in the wash? It’s bad enough to lose a pair, but losing a single sock really frustrates me. You search in vain for its match and are left holding a useless sock. My son coined his own term for the single socks in …
Ekev: Doing for G-d
A Curious Word
Ours, is a religion of deed. The deed is more important to us than our mindset while doing it. Yet, the way we perform the deed tells us much about our creed. If we do it for ourselves, we pick and choose the deeds we like. If we …
Vaetchanan: A Jewish Right to A Jewish Land
Let It Be
The Rebbe of Gur was visited by an official of the British Mandate. In the course of conversation the official informed the Rebbe that the British were poised to move out and leave Israel to the Jews. The Rebbe’s reply was a Yidishism – “Mi-Chi-Teise,” an idiom loosely …
Dvarim: The Power Of Words
The other day, my nephew Yisrolik Zalmanov was reading a book, when my son asked,
“Isn’t it boring to sit around all day and read? Books are just words.”
“Yes,” replied my nephew, “but words tell stories and stories are interesting. For example, you enjoy listening to story tapes and those too …
Masei: The Origins of Terror
Terror Springs From Misery
If you repeat a lie often enough people begin to believe it. The claim that terror is caused by misery and poverty is one such example. It is so often repeated that a guilt ridden West has come to accept it. But no matter how oft a …
Matot: Dishonesty
Social or Ritual?
They tell a story of a dying man, who called his son to his bedside. “Son,” he said, “let me tell you the two ironclad rules by which I ran my life. First, your word is gold. If you give it, you must keep it no matter the …
Pinchas: Anti-Semitism
Jewish Surprise
As the Jewish word recoiled from the murder of three Jewish teenagers in Israel, Jews the world over were shocked by news of a Palestinian youth’s murder in Jerusalem. But with the shock came deep disappointment at the response of World leaders, who condemned Jews for this murder even …
