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...
