The reason why we light the Menorah on Chanukah is to commemorate the great miracle that happened during the war against the Hellenists regarding the Temple oil. After the Greeks had defiled the Holy Temple during the battle with the Jews, only one flask of pure oil...

Our parsha begins with Jacob's return to the Land of Israel. Though he had left penniless, after his years with Laban he now had wives, a large family, and extensive property. And now that he was returning to his home, all that he had was at risk. Thirty-four years...

This week's reading provides what seems, in an initial, superficial view, to be a romantic account. When Yaakov (Jacob) sees Rachel, he gains superhuman strength, single-handedly rolling away the cover of a well, a stone that ordinarily took a team of shepherds to...

Esau was tired, returning from a day in the field, and he saw his brother Jacob cooking lentils. "Feed me some of this, the red, this red, for I'm exhausted," he said. "This is why his name is Edom - Red." (Genesis 25:30) Esau was drained, his guard was down, and in...

We are keenly aware of many levels of communication and connection with others. Broadly speaking, the closest level of connection, of course, is when we converse face-to-face. But we can also communicate via video, on the phone, and through the written word. I'm not...

What does G-d have in store for me next? This question must plague the mind of most of us from time to time, and it was likely the question on the mind of our Patriarch, Abraham. After moving with his family and his father to the land of Charan, Abraham is told to...