by Rabbi Yaakov Menken | Jul 8, 2016 | Lifeline
This week’s reading begins with the rebellion led by Korach against Moshe’s leadership. The first half of the reading discusses the rebellion and what transpired afterwards, so clearly there is much to learn from this story. Korach sought honor and...
by Rabbi Yaakov Menken | Jul 1, 2016 | Lifeline
In this week’s reading, we find the well-known account of the spies who went into the Land of Israel. The Jews knew that they were supposed to inherit the land; the job of the spies was to find the best way to enter. Are the people strong or weak? Are their...
by Rabbi Yaakov Menken | Jun 24, 2016 | Lifeline
The Torah describes Moshe in a startling way. It says that he was “more humble than any man” [Numbers 12:3]. First of all, we know that Moshe had a unique relationship with G-d. That should make a person proud of his accomplishments, proud to be selected...
by Rabbi Yaakov Menken | Jun 10, 2016 | Lifeline
The Torah teaches that at Sinai, G-d did not reveal Himself to a single individual. Rather, He spoke to the entire Jewish nation. Rabbi Moshe Maimonides, the famed Jewish scholar of over 800 years ago, calls this event the foundation, the “pillar upon which our...
by Rabbi Yaakov Menken | Jun 3, 2016 | Lifeline
This week we read a very uncomfortable section of the Torah. G-d warns us that bad things will happen if we don’t keep His rules in His land. Keep the rules, He says, and things will be wonderful. But if you don’t, punishment will come to the Jewish...
