At a pivotal moment in the Purim Story, Mordechai sends a message to Queen Esther: go in to King Achashveirosh, and beg that he overturn Haman's decree to annihilate the Jewish people. Esther responds that to enter the King's chamber uninvited is punishable by death...

In this week's reading, the Jewish nation is commanded to give the materials necessary to construct the Mishkan, the Tabernacle, and all the items within it. Unlike the annual contribution of a half-Shekel to the continuing operations of the Tabernacle and Temple, the...

The Talmud gives us a fascinating insight into the distribution and sharing of money. Given a case in which a father's will gives all of his possessions to only one of sons, the Talmud writes (Bava Basra 131b) that this son is understood to be the executor of the...

Throughout Jewish literature, we find a recurring theme: G-d communicates with us, but in hidden (though sometimes not so hidden) ways. Only once in history did G-d reveal himself bluntly and openly, and declare "I am the L-rd Your G-d" -- it is our mission in life to...

One of my children’s favorite songs for Passover is Pharoah in Pajamas in the Middle of the Night, a simple repetitive tune highlighting Pharoah’s frantic search for Moses on the night of Egypt’s plague of the firstborn. I’ve heard renditions of the song in...

When the Chofetz Chaim himself, the saintly Rabbi Yisrael Meyer Kagan, was bemoaning how people were losing their faith and attachment to Judaism, it was the Rosh Mesivta (high school principal) who helped him feel better. The principal pointed out that even back in...