A Moment of Thanks
With the presidential race now so prominent in the collective American consciousness, the following story is especially apropos. In the Ohr Somayach Yeshiva in Jerusalem, there was an elderly native of the city who prayed with the Yeshiva each morning. On the morning...
Fruits and Furniture
Yesterday, while on vacation with the family, I took a fascinating tour of George's Furniture woodwork shop in Marietta, Pennsylvania. One of the many things that impressed and inspired me was how the craftsmen manage to use absolutely every part of the wood. The...
That Pivotal Moment
This week's reading begins with G-d's promise to bless those who follow the Commandments, and a curse upon those who go away from them to follow false gods. It is obvious, then, that there's a big gap between the two. One could hope not to stumble into idolatry even...
Your Best Contact
The Talmud says that a Jew is obligated to pray, based upon Deuteronomy 11:13: "serve Him with all your thoughts -- Livavchem -- and with all your soul." Livavchem is a form of the Hebrew word Leiv, which is most often translated as the heart. In the Torah, however,...
For the Love of G-d
This week's reading contains "Shema Yisrael" -- "Hear, oh Israel, the L-rd our G-d, the L-rd is One." [Deut. 6:4] And what is the next verse? "And you will love HaShem your G-d with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might." The commentaries explain...
Shabbos Mourning
This year the ninth day of the month of Av (Tisha B'av), the day the Holy Temple in Jerusalem began to burn, falls on the Sabbath. This is a rare occurrence on the Jewish calendar and comes with a unique set of laws and observances, as the fast and traditional...
Sign of a True Leader
In this week's reading, G-d explains to Moshe how his successors will be chosen. Hashem Himself will choose the leader, "who will go out in front of them, and who will come in before them, and they will go out and come in, and the congregation of G-d will not be like...
Those People Are In Tents!
A guest who had traveled from afar once visited the saintly Chofetz Chaim, Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan zt"l, and was taken aback by the Rabbi's simple living conditions. The home was lacking the most basic furnishings! When he relayed his surprise, the Chofetz Chaim...
Removing the Self
In the Torah portion this week, we read "This is the Torah: when a person dies in a tent..." [Numbers 19:14] The language is somewhat unusual, because although "Torah" simply means law or instruction, you would expect it to say "this is the law regarding a person" or...
The Sign of the Fire-Pans
In the story of Korach's rebellion (Numbers 16-17), 250 men join the campaign against Moses. While Korach and his partners Dathan and Abiram are punished with the earth miraculously swallowing them alive, the 250 men meet a different, more honorable fate. While...
Bucking the Trend
This week, we read about the spies sent to look at the Land of Cana'an, who came back with a bad report -- the land is filled with giants, they said, and even if we were to somehow beat them, the land consumes its inhabitants! Only two of the spies came back ready to...
Meaning for Meat
Linus, of Peanuts comic strip fame, sits down for a bowl of cereal. After pouring the milk he runs off to find a book to enjoy with his cereal. First he looks for the sports section of the paper or the comics, but he can't find either. He nervously scans the...
