Articles in Parsha Insights
B’har: The Nature of Shabbos
Shabbos – The Crown of the Week
“When you come into your land… the earth shall rest a Shabbos for Hashem. For six years you shall sow your land but the seventh year shall be…a Shabbos for Hashem.” (Our Parsha, Leviticus 25, 2-4) This verse begins with a discussion of Shabbos, …
B’har:Take Him at His Word
A Promise
We are commanded in this week’s Parsha to take a Sabbatical, every seven years, from farming and gardening. The Torah explains that there are weekly Sabbaticals and annual Sabbaticals and that in observing this Sabbatical we honor G-d as creator of the world.
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Emor: Room for Growth
The Grizzled Lamb
“A bull, sheep or goat, that is born to you, shall remain under its mother for seven days. From the eighth day onward it is acceptable as an offering to G-d.” Why does the Torah refer to the newborn animals by their mature names instead of the usual …
Emor: The Joys of Restriction
Soft Tones
In this week’s Parsha we are told of the many restrictions that were placed upon the Kohanim. (Priestly family) They may not attend funerals unless the deceased was a direct relation. Their choice of spouse is also restricted. But in instructing Moshe Rabeinu to convey the news of these …
Emor: Beyond the Highest Point
On the Morrow of Shabbat
In this week’s Parsha we learn of the Mitzvah to count the Omer. The Torah tells us that the count begins on the morrow of Shabbat and continues for seven weeks. Tradition teaches that the word Shabbat here is to be understood as the holiday of …
K’doshim: Gossip can be Deadly
Innocent Chatter
On a bus in Tel Aviv, an elderly woman could not help but overhear as two young ladies gossiped about a friend, who was engaged to be married. Giggling, they predicted that if her fiancé would only discover her faults, he would surely call off their engagement. The woman …
Acharei Mot K’doshim: Journey of Sanctification
A Mixed Message
This week we read a double Parsha Acharei Mot and K’doshim. The first Parsha is a description of the Kohen Gadol, holiest Jew in the nation, in the Kodesh Hakadashim (Holy of Holies), holiest place in the world, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year.
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Acharei Mot K’doshim: A Lifetime of Forward Steps
Be Holy
Our Parsha exhorts us to be holy and the reason given is “For I (Hashem) am holy”. The Midrash adds that though we are encouraged to reach for Hashem’s holiness, it will always remain beyond us. What did the Midrash seek to accomplish by this statement? Try to reach …
