Articles in Mishpatim
Mishpatim: Food for Thought for your Dinner Table
Sunday: A Sacred Trial
When a Torah portion begins with the word and we assume that it is a continuation of the previous portion. This portion begins with “And these are the laws.” The previous portion speaks of the Ten Commandments. The message is that the laws discussed in this portion …
Mishpatim: A Debt to G-d
A Prosaic Portion
The memory of the Ten Commandments at Sinai is stamped into the collective psyche of the Jewish people. It was the piece de resistance of spiritual achievement. A transcendental moment; our souls luxuriated in the presence of the divine, freed from the shackles of vanity and materialism.
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Mishpatim: Modern Relevance of Ancient Texts
Striking the Slave
This week’s Torah portion reads like a book of law on subjects such as property damage, personal injury and halachic jurisprudence.
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Mishpatim: A Tale of Two Perspectives
Murder and Peace
“If a man should act against his fellow to kill him with guile, from my altar shall you take him to die”. Why does the Torah speak of taking the murderer from the altar? The altar is known as an instrument of peace but if a murderer seeks …
Mishpatim: Spiritual Fertility
A Reward for Mitzvah
“Lo Tehiye Meshakeilah V’akara B’artzecha, Es Mispar Yomecha Amale.” There shall be no miscarriage or infertility in your land, I shall fill the number of your days. The simple meaning of this verse is a blessing from G-d for long life and fertility in reward for keeping …
Mishpatim : The Six Year Bondsman
Automatic Liberty?
Our Parsha teaches that a Jew may be sold into servitude for six years but on the first day of the seventh year the slave is automatically granted full liberty. (1) This law evokes images of a spontaneous transformation from princess to pumpkin at the stroke of midnight. …
