What unique qualities did Moses have that convinced a nation of oppressed slaves that he was their redeemer?
Read the full story »New Year Greeting 5770: Words Make A Difference
When I visit my parents in Boston I am often struck by the adjustment in dimension from my childhood memories. Everything that I remembered as large, houses, streets, pools and yards, seem small by comparison. The only exceptions are the trees that enclose my parents’ backyard. They seemed huge back …
Vayelech: Students or Contributors?
End Of An Era
The Torah is G-d’s book, given in complete form to Moses, subject to neither addition nor subtraction. Yet many questions were left unaddressed in the written Torah and later sages resolved them through independent analysis. This leaves us with a question, are we recipients of the Torah …
Ki Tavo: Doing It G-d’s Way
Declaring Faith
As they entered the Holy Land our ancestors were instructed to inscribe the entire Torah on huge stones and display it for all to see. This was a declaration of faith in G-d. Entering the Holy Land was a new beginning that would require additional Divine protection and when …
Ki Teze: Victimizing The Rape Victim?
Question
Is it true that the Torah requires rape victims to marry their rapists and the only punishment to the rapist is a fifty Shekel fine paid to the victim’s father?
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Shoftim: Torah or Democracy?
Disenchantment
In the summer in 2009, US citizens unhappy with health care reform, angrily voiced their displeasure with the government in town hall meetings across the United States. President Obama’s approval ratings plummeted to unprecedented lows, yet he continued to push his health care legislation. The opposition charged him with ignoring …
Rosh Hashanah: The Shofar – Humility and Strength
Three Blasts
On the holiday of Rosh Hashanah we sound three variations of Shofar blasts. tekiah, a long blast, shevarim and teruah, variations of short blasts. Each set of blasts begins with a tekiah, followed by a shevarim or teruah, and concludes with a tekiah. The shevarim and teruah are thus …
Re’e: A Cup Of Coffee
My Coffee SummitI have a vice, especially on long trips,called coffee. I got back to the car and shared this exchange with my wife. There is a sermon in this somewhere, she observed, and she was right. Here it is.
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Tu B’av: When Smaller Is Bigger
Self Doubt
Have you ever made a snap decision that radically altered your lifestyle? I’m talking about deciding to move to a place you were visiting, changed careers midcourse, or perhaps seeing something attractive in a particular teacher and making a snap decision to transfer your child to her class.
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Parsha Insights »
Vayishlach: Wrestling Angels
Disagreements
We all have them, even with the people we love. That no two people can agree on every issue is a fact of life. “Our mindset,” say our sages, “is as unique as our facial features.” (1)
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Yearly Cycle »
Purim: The Boring Moments
The boring moments are, well, boring. Why do we need them, can’t G-d just give us a short life filled with thrills rather than a long life with long stretches of boring moments? Who wants to be stuck in traffic or wait on line at the supermarket? Who wants to …
Concepts »
Chanukah: Spice Up Your Routine
Routine can be boring. You do it every day and you grow tired of it. We are always looking for something new and exciting. Something to pique our interest and engage our curiosity. Routine doesn’t do the trick. We need something novel, something unusual, something unexpected. The problem with new …
Rabbi’s Desk »
What Can We Do?
These past two days have been the most difficult for our people in the last fifty years. It was Simchat Torah, a time for rejoicing, yet it was a time of horror. Nearly a thousand members of our family were brutally murdered, more than a hundred were taken hostage, and …
