Preparing For The New Year
The month of Elul is described as a month when the Divine energy is more accessible than ever. The Talmud says that during this period, God is ‘like a king…
We Belong!!! Reflections from Israel
We belong!!! That was the profound sense we got from our trip to Israel. Emphatic and impassioned. The people of Israel are our people, our extended family. The Land of…
The meaning in B’mitzvahs
Bar Mitzvah: Bar Mitzvah literally means ‘a person who is now responsible to keep the commandments of the Torah’. Where I came from (an ultra-orthodox Chasidic family), this made sense.…
Bereshit
Dear friends This Jewish New Year, I made a commitment to write a snippet of the weekly Torah portion beginning with Bereshit. Who could have imagined that our world, our…
Vayishlach
Dear friends The assault on truth which is all around us, was twice made especially poignant to me this week. The first involved an interview from a few weeks ago…
Toldot
Dear friends There are many reasons I love our traditions and this week’s Parshat Toldot is one. Right at the onset we are told three distinct stories about Yaakov (Jacob),…
Vayera
Dear friends In normal times, this week’s Parsha is an absolute gold mine. The challenge would have been where to focus our attention. On Avraham’s extreme generosity to three dirty…
Lech Lecha
Dear friends We are living through some very dark times. I’m still finding it entirely overwhelming to process the events of October 7th. As a human being, I am stunned and nauseous. I simply can’t relate to such depravity happening in…