by Mordechai Dixler | Jul 23, 2010 | Lifeline, What's happening
This week is Shabbos Nachamu, the “Sabbath of Consolation.” Following three weeks in which the weekly Haftarah spoke about the loss of Jerusalem and the Holy Temple, leading up to Tisha B’Av, the Ninth of Av, we now have seven weeks during which we...
by Mordechai Dixler | Jul 9, 2010 | Lifeline
“The teachings of the A-lmighty are pure,” “Toras Hashem Temima” (Tehillim/Psalms 19:8). The holy Baal Shem Tov, the founder of the Hassidic movement and many schools of Kabbalah, takes the following novel approach to this popular verse: even...
by Mordechai Dixler | Jul 2, 2010 | Lifeline
In this week’s reading, Moshe (Moses) is told to appoint Yehoshua (Joshua), “a man who has the spirit within him,” to lead the Nation of Israel after Moshe’s passing. Rabbi Asher Zelig Rubenstein shlit”a, whose classes are available on...
by Mordechai Dixler | Jun 10, 2010 | Lifeline
This week’s reading puts to rest the misguided notion that “there are two sides to every argument.” This statement is, at its essence, a truism — so in actual use, it is intended to convey that each side must be exaggerating, that the truth...
by Mordechai Dixler | Jun 4, 2010 | Lifeline
In this week’s reading, we learn of the spies sent to look at the Land of Israel, who returned with an evil report — and the disaster that followed. The entire generation that said they could not go up into the Land created a self-fulfilling prophecy: G-d...
by Mordechai Dixler | May 28, 2010 | Lifeline
Our reading this week begins with a command to Aaron regarding the lighting of the Menorah. The Torah does not say that Aaron should “ignite” the candles, similar to the blessing when lighting candles on Shabbos or Chanukah, but that he should “make...
