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October 11, 2025 – 11:45 pm | Comments Off on The Thrill of Intimacy56 views

The radical transition from the Yom Kippur solemnity to the Simchat Torah revelry can be dizzying, but it makes sense. There is a method to the madness.

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Vatchanan: Am I Wasting My Time?

July 23, 2006 – 5:13 am | Comments Off on Vatchanan: Am I Wasting My Time?2,953 views
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The Purpose
In this week’s Parsha Moshe recounts the history of our ancestors in the desert and reminds them of their life’s purpose.

I once received an email with the following question: Dear G-d, why did you create me, as a material being? Was it so I would live my life …

Devarim: Torah in Chinese

July 23, 2006 – 4:58 am | Comments Off on Devarim: Torah in Chinese7,789 views
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Translating Torah
Thirty – seven days before his passing Moses set out to teach the Torah. You might think that Moses would use his remaining weeks to teach hitherto unrevealed mysteries, but he did no such thing. Instead he translated the Torah into seventy languages. (1)

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Matot Masei: Unity in Good Times and Bad

July 16, 2006 – 4:04 am | Comments Off on Matot Masei: Unity in Good Times and Bad3,300 views
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Anxiety Brought us Together
Disaster is the parent of opportunity. When the normal and routine are shattered, when calm and confidence are shaken, the patterns of life are altered and new opportunities are born.

It remains to us to convert these opportunities into reality. It remains to us to grasp that, if we …

D’varim: Human Initiative and Divine Inspiration

July 16, 2006 – 3:35 am | Comments Off on D’varim: Human Initiative and Divine Inspiration22,058 views
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The Fifth Book
The first four books of the Torah are presented, as a narrative by G-d, the fifth book, Devarim, is a narrative by Moses.
According to one opinion that Moses first conveyed his message to the Jewish people orally and was later commanded by G-d to transcribe the words and …

D’varim: Eternal Commitment

July 16, 2006 – 3:26 am | Comments Off on D’varim: Eternal Commitment7,111 views
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A Shabbat of Vision
The Shabbat before the ninth of Av goes by the name Shabbat of vision, so called in honor of Isaiah’s vision that is recorded in the Haftorah chanted on this Shabbat. Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Bardichev (1740-1810) taught that on this Shabbat of vision the Jewish soul …

D’varim: The Lover’s Rebuke

July 16, 2006 – 3:19 am | Comments Off on D’varim: The Lover’s Rebuke10,599 views
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This week we begin to read the book of Deuteronomy. In reading this book we develop a profound respect for leaders such as Moses. Standing on the verge of death Moses prepared to bid his people farewell. He leaves them his final will and testament.

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Masei: Learning from Temptation

July 12, 2006 – 4:56 pm | Comments Off on Masei: Learning from Temptation3,255 views
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Every Segment Counts
This week’s Torah portion reviews the forty-two journeys that our ancestors made through the desert. The Baal Shem Tov taught that every one of these segments represents a stage in our individual journey through life and our quest for spiritual fulfillment.

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Pinchas: Marriage Counseling

July 9, 2006 – 4:37 am | Comments Off on Pinchas: Marriage Counseling3,350 views
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A Tale of Two Dilemmas
A husband and wife once came to a rabbi to consult on a family matter.
The husband explained that he loves his wife, but takes her for granted. Her little gestures of love don’t move him. Her, “I love you” notes, her, “thinking of you” gifts and …