We all have two dimensions: the inner wholesome, beautiful self that is a fount of integrity, honesty, determination, and love. Then we have the outer fractured self that is filled with cravings, greed, lust, flightiness, envy, unhealthy competitiveness, bias, anger, resentment, insecurity, etc. The goal is not only to transition …
Read the full story »Bereshit: Is Your Wife Against You or Behind You?
The Mentoring Wife
The other day, I visited with a couple I had never met. I noticed that while the wife sat quietly through the conversation letting her husband do most of the talking, she was not at all shy about correcting his behavior. Every time he said or did something …
Bereshit: Name Calling
What’s In A Name?
Here is a trivia question for you: Can you name the first scientist in all of history? Here is another question: Is science the work of G-d or does it merely satisfy human curiosity?
If you guessed Adam, you guessed right. If you answered that science is G-d’s …
Sukkot: The Prevailing Custom
A Custom Product
My earliest memories of the last day of Sukkot is of the market place set up in front of the large Synagogue of the Lubavitcher Rebbe in Brooklyn, New York. All night long, the sidewalk at 770 Eastern Parkway was a teeming marketplace of willow sales.
“Five dollars a …
Sukkot: The Strength to Emerge
Emerge
Four days after Yom Kippur we take our show on the road. We emerge from our synagogue and home and go out to the Sukkah (outdoor hut covered in foliage). To come out means to emerge from the doors that enclose us in and the locks that hold us back. …
High Holilday Greetings 5777
New Year Greeting 5777
As I prepare for my sixteenth Rosh Hashanah in London, Ontario, my mind turns to an event that occurred shortly after we arrived.
Congregation Beth Tefilah organized an installation ceremony in my honor and Joel Wittstein of blessed memory was in attendance. I feel fortunate and honored to …
Rosh Hashana: Are You on The Pill
Can I have A Pill?
Have you ever heard of the man who went to the doctor and asked for a prescription? When the doctor asked, what’s ailing you, the man replied, nothing. I just want to be sure I don’t get sick. The doctor explained, “you don’t need medicine sir, …
Nitzavim: Sunnyside Up
The Sunnyside
The other day, my three-year-old son accompanied me to the supermarket. I put a few dozen eggs in the cart and asked him if he likes eggs. What kind are they, he replied, hard boiled or sunny side up?
It made me realize that this is a question for life. …
Nitzavim: Get Out Of Jail
Two Poles
The Torah section that we read each year on the Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah, begins with the words “You all stand this day before the Lord, your God, the leaders of your tribes, your elders and your officers, every man of Israel, your young ones, your women, and your …
Parsha Insights »
The Morning After
It’s not about what happens during the fight; it’s about what happens the morning after. When we get hot under the collar, we sometimes say regrettable things that lead to arguments. It is regrettable, but it is not pre-calculated. It is what happens the morning after that really counts. Do …
Yearly Cycle »
Vayeshev: Restoring The Neighborhood
The Celebrity
Imagine yourself living in a nice neighborhood where a well known celebrity chooses to make his home. Property values rise and for the first while you enjoy the distinction; you go out of your way to make the celebrity feel welcome. But time passes and the aura wears off. …
Concepts »
Passover and Mashiach
Passover commemorates the first redemption of the Jewish people from exile. I am sure it was fun to celebrate Passover while we enjoyed the fruits of that redemption, while we were living in Israel, free and independent in our land. But sadly, our people have been exiled again several times …
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 …
