Justice, Justice You Shall Pursue- Parshat Shoftim
Parshat Shoftim “Justice, justice shall you pursue, so that you may live and possess the land God, your God, is giving you” (Deuteronomy16:20). Although the simple, literal sense of this injunction is directed to the judges and society in general, Rashi clarifies that it is actually directed to the litigants. The doubled language of “justice, […]
Justice, Justice You Shall Pursue
Parshat Shoftim “Justice, justice shall you pursue, so that you may live and possess the land God, your God, is giving you” (Deuteronomy16:20). Although the simple, literal sense of this injunction is directed to the judges and society in general, Rashi clarifies that it is actually directed to the litigants. The doubled language of “justice, […]
Open Your Hand- Parshat Re’eh
Parshat Re’eh A major theme that is discussed in various ways in the portion of Re’eh is that of charity, tzedakah. The root of the word also means to be righteous. In Jewish tradition a righteous person gains that description through acts of kindness and charity. We are taught in Pirkei Avot (1:2) that the […]
Open Your Hand
Parshat Re’eh A major theme that is discussed in various ways in the portion of Re’eh is that of charity, tzedakah. The root of the word also means to be righteous. In Jewish tradition a righteous person gains that description through acts of kindness and charity. We are taught in Pirkei Avot (1:2) that the […]
Forgetting and Remembering
Parshat Eikev One of the special fruits of the land of Israel are olives. The Talmud teaches a very unique quality of olives: eating olives leads to forgetfulness, while eating olive oil leads to a good memory. Based on this idea the advice given when eating olives is to always pour a bit of olive […]
Forgetting and Remembering- Parshat Eikev
Parshat Eikev One of the special fruits of the land of Israel are olives. The Talmud teaches a very unique quality of olives: eating olives leads to forgetfulness, while eating olive oil leads to a good memory. Based on this idea the advice given when eating olives is to always pour a bit of olive […]
A Cord of Three Strands
Parshat Va’etchanan In the portion of Va’etchanan, Moses reviews with the people the awesome events that occurred at the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. He emphasizes the importance of the commandment to “make them known to your children and to your children’s children (Deuteronomy 4:9). The Ba’al HaTurim brings a tradition from Sefer […]
A Cord of Three Strands- Parshat Va’etchanan
Parshat Va’etchanan In the portion of Va’etchanan, Moses reviews with the people the awesome events that occurred at the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. He emphasizes the importance of the commandment to “make them known to your children and to your children’s children (Deuteronomy 4:9). The Ba’al HaTurim brings a tradition from Sefer […]
The Primordial Torah-Parshat Devarim
Parshat Devarim “So I [Moses] sent messengers from the desert of Kedemot to Sichon, king of Heshbon, with words of peace, saying, Allow me to pass through your land: I will go along by the highway, I will turn neither to the right nor to the left” (Deuteronomy 2:26). The Talmud tells us that the […]
How Could It Have Come to Pass
Since the Jewish calendar is based on both the lunar and solar cycles, seven leap years containing an extra month must fall within every nineteen year period. This means that the weekly Torah portions do not always occur on exactly the same calendar date each year. Sometimes a particular portion may be close to a […]