Do you peddle in relative truths, or are you a stickler for the absolute truth? This essay examines the two types of truth and posits that G-d’s truth is absolute.
Read the full story »Bamidbar: Count for Something
G-d instructed Moses to take a census of the Jewish people in the desert. In all, G-d told Moses to count the Jews three times in a forty-year period. Rashi, the famed eleventh century biblical commentator, explained that G-d counts the Jews because He loves them.[1]
This statement makes it sound …
B’har B’chukotai: True Freedom
Freedom is one of humanity’s fundamental goas. Ever since Moses trumpeted the call, “let my people go,” people the world over valued and treasured freedom. Yet we sometimes apply freedom too narrowly. When we see a person indentured into servitude we chafe at the unfairness of it. When we see …
Emor: Effective Perspective
Perspective is the key ingredient in life. Some people take the perspective that life owes them. Others take the perspective that no one owes them anything. The former, do nothing to help themselves, the latter do all that they can to help themselves. In our generation, too many are growing …
Acharei Mot Kedoshim: Chai to Life
We are all familiar with chai, the Hebrew word for life. Chai has a numeric value of eighteen, which is why it is common for Jews to donate to charity in multiples of eighteen. The Talmud tells us that charity saves us from premature death.[1] When we donate in multiples …
Tazria Mezora: Judging from Past Behavior
Past behavior is often a harbinger of the future, but to judge fairly we must consider the very latest episode of the past behavior. I was once at a wedding, where the groom’s elderly venerated teacher danced with vigor and joy, and his many students, their eyes sparkling with admiration …
Shemini: What Is Impurity
Why does one who eats non-kosher food become impure? What does impurity even mean?
Hebrew is a delightful language and if we pay attention to the words we can often gain insight into the meaning. The Hebrew word for impure is ta’me. The word is comprised of three letters, a taf, …
Passover: No Salt Rule
Matzah has a no salt rule. It is made of flour and water. Nothing else. No liquids, no spices, not even salt. This is because the Matzah that we eat at the seder represents the poor person’s bread and the poor can’t afford to add flavor to their bread. The …
Tzav: Smoking Hot
Smoke and FireThe temperature in the Temple was smoking hot. One can only imagine that the summer months in Jerusalem were hot enough as it was. Add to that the myriads of people that filled the temple on a given day, and the many fires atop the altar, and you …
Parsha Insights »
Yitro: The Confident Approach
Cold Feet
Many years ago, I found myself in a plane high above the Grand Canyon. I was on my way to accept a job as head counselor of a West Coast summer day camp when I began to doubt myself. Was this job right for me? Was I good enough? …
Yearly Cycle »
Passover: A Mashiach Perspective
On the last day of Passover, we celebrate the coming of Mashiach—the ultimate liberation of our people from exile. This tradition was revealed by the Baal Shem Tov, founder of Chasidism, and has since gained momentum in Jewish communities around the world.
The highlight is the festive meal at the end …
Concepts »
Masei: Back to Basics
Basics of LIfe
Are you still in touch with your grade school teachers; the ones that taught you the basics and laid your foundation for life? If you were like me, you looked down on your first grade teacher by the time you reached second grade. He was still in first, …
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 …
