1310 essays
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Essays on the weekly Torah portion, the holidays and Jewish thought.
Parsha Vayeira – Don’t Forget the Low When You Go High Abraham had just undergone circumcision at the age of 99 and was sitting at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. Our… Parsha Vayeitzei – Numerical Superiority In this week’s parsha, Jacob flees from his brother Esau’s wrath. On his way, he falls asleep and has an unusual dream in which he… Parsha Vayishlach – Learning from Evil Jacob fled the wrath of his brother Esau and stayed with his uncle Laban for 20 years. Our parsha this week relates that Jacob is… Shofar Therapy The central Mitzvah of Rosh Hashanah is to hear the sounding of the Shofar; a commandment mandated by the Torah. Although it is… The Three Pilgrimage Festivals The Festival of Sukkos is the third of the so-called pilgrimage holidays. The first is Passover, the anniversary of the Exodus… Parsha Haazinu – Receptivity to Torah The Torah portion Ha’azinu is a song in which Moses first rebukes the people and then showers them with words of consolation. One… Parsha Nitzavim Vayeilech – Moses’ Paradigm Shift The second of the two sections of the Torah that we will read this Shabbos begins with the words: “Vayeilech Moseh-Moses went, and… Parsha Ki Savo – The Missing Letter vov Parshas Ki Savo is known for the blessings and curses that were promised to the Jewish people for compliance or non-compliance… Parsha Ki Seitzei – Corrupting the Power of Speech Ki Seitzei is the richest parsha in terms of its number of commandments. One of those commandments relates to the two nations of… Parsha Ekev – The Cure for Infertility As a reward for our commitment to the commandments G-d promises us many things, among them we read the following in this week’s… Parsha R’ei – Infinite Blessings and Finite Curses This week’s parsha opens with the words: “See, I present before you today a blessing and a curse.” The Hebrew word for “I” used in… Parsha Vo'eschanan – Double Consolation The haftarah for this week is taken from Isaiah, who declares: “Nachamu, nachamu Ami-Comfort, comfort My people, says your G-d.”… Parsha Devarim – Snow White In his final soliloquy, Moses recounts the events since the exodus from Egypt. He describes the defeat of the two Emorite kings… Parsha Matos-Masei – Fighting the Wars of Midian and Amalek Anashim-Righteous Men After the Midianite leadership corrupted many of the Jewish men, causing a major plague that killed 24,000… Parsha Pinchas – The Road to Redemption The end of last week’s parsha describes how Pinchas zealous killing of the consorting Jewish prince, Zimri with the Midianite… Parsha Chukas Balak – Mezuzah Power The Jewish nation stood on the cusp of their conquest of Canaan, situated in close proximity to the Moabite Kingdom. Balak, the… Parsha Korach – Talis Versus Tzitzis Korach, Moses’ cousin, started a rebellion, directed against Moses and Aaron. Korach argued that Moses had arrogated to himself… Holidays BEIRACH – 15 Steps of the Seder (Part 14) When we are ready to recite the Birkat Hamazon, as we do whenever we eat bread, the meal has come to an end. In the context of the… Holidays HALLEL – 15 Steps of the Seder (Part 15) Although we have already recited half of the Hallel (the special Psalms of praise to extol G-d for His miracles) before the meal,… Holidays Introduction – 15 Steps of the Seder (Part 1) The Seder, as its name suggests, is an orderly ritual; so orderly, in fact, that even before we start the Seder, an outline of its…