Category: Uncategorized
Tefillah Meanings: The One Who Brings the Go’el (continued)
Many of the adults of our grandparents’ generation were Holocaust survivors. When I was young, it seemed to me like most people above a certain age had a number on their arm or a story to tell. A generation that were taken well beyond the normal call of duty. “Chasdei avos”!
If only Hashem would Choose to bring His redeemer to us, the literal “children’s children”!
Bribery
This past week I learned a piece in Or haTzafun (Shemos #30 “ההשתתפות שבין אדם לחבירו”) which focuses on the insidious nature of bribery, and from there, negi’os in general. … But I was thinking… It could be that tzadiqim are more vulnerable to bribery. Because bribery as a motivator has another element.
Compassionate Moshe
והיה רגיל להוכיח אותי על שראה שאינני משתתף בצערא דאחרינא. וכה היה דברו אלי תמיד שזה כל האדם. לא לעצמו נברא רק להועיל לאחריני ככל אשר ימצא בכחו לעשות. [My father, Rav Chaim Volozhiner,]...
Guest Post: An Introduction to Trop
Micha’s note: The following was a post written to the Mesorah email list by Rabbi Dr. Seth Mandel zt”l, a rebbe-chaver of mine (more: a rebbe who insisted on treating me like a chaver)...
My Opinion on Abortion Legislation
Why should you care about my opinion about how Jews ought to respond to the potential overturning of Roe v. Wade in the United States? You shouldn’t. Here’s why. Halakhah prohibits abortion in most...
Pesel Mikhah
From Sanhedrin 103b: תניא רבי נתן אומר מגרב לשילה ג’ מילין והיה עשן המערכה ועשן פסל מיכה מתערבין זה בזה בקשו מלאכי השרת לדוחפו אמר להן הקב”ה הניחו לו שפתו מצויה לעוברי דרכים. A...
Pieces of Sapphire
In this week’s parasha (Shemos 34:1), when Hashem tells Moshe to carve the second luchos, He says “פסל לך – carve for yourself”. The gemara comments on the apparently superfluous “לך – for yourself”...
Why mitzvos?
The following question appeared in the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook: I answered the following, looking less at the question of anything innately about Jews, and more about why Judaism takes work that...
Rav Yisrael, Epidemics, and Priorities
On the topic of people insisting on maintaining risky behaviors during the corona pandemic… Too many of us are placing minyan, attending weddings or funerals, and other such mitzvos ahead of safety. Despite the...
Rav Shimon Shkop on His 80th Yahrzeit
The following article appeared in this week’s Hamodia, in their Community magazine insert for 8 Marcheshvan 5780. The nicely formatted PDF proof of the article is available here. Torah Sparks Harav Shimon Shkop, Zt”l...
Redeeming a Wasted Youth
Someone lamented on Mi Yodeya: I wasted my youth. I am 35 years old. I had a toxic relationship with my parents, especially my mother. My career never started, and I am still looking...
HaTov Shimkha
We close Birkhas Hoda’ah (“Modim”) “‘HaTov’ shimkha, ulkha na’eh lehodos — your Name is “The Good”, and it is pleasant to praise You.” And yes, it does mean that Hashem’s name, the way we...
Meshech Chokhmah – Introduction to Shemos
In his introduction to seifer Shemos, Rav Meir Simchah haKohein discusses a few themes, some of which we covered in this shiur. Why is Moshe’s nevu’ah special? Interestingly, the Meshekh Chokhmah emphasizes how we...
Mind and Body, Qabbalah and the Sorites Paradox
I The name of the Sorites Paradox comes from the Greek word for heap, “soros”, a key word in the typical formulation. If someone had one million grains of sand, they would have a...
Yerushalayim
I’m about to repeat two points by R’ Meir Simchah haKohein miDvinsk zt”l: 1- Yerushalayim is named for being the convergance of two principles: refined middos and perfected intellectual comprehension. 2- There is an...
Mourning the Three Weeks
The point of mourning during Bein haMetzarim (“between the tragedies”, a/k/a the “Three Weeks”) is not to be miserable in-and-of itself. How many politicians and other famous people recently said “I’m sorry” only to...
Gratitude – Natural and Learned
“If he shall offer it as a todah, a thanksgiving offering…” (Vayikra 7:1). The gemara reads, “Rabbi Yehudah said that Rav said: There are four who have to thank [Hashem] — those who go...
Freedom
We learn in Bereishis 46:34 וַאֲמַרְתֶּ֗ם אַנְשֵׁ֨י מִקְנֶ֜ה הָי֤וּ עֲבָדֶ֙יךָ֙ מִנְּעוּרֵ֣ינוּ וְעַד־עַ֔תָּה גַּם־אֲנַ֖חְנוּ גַּם־אֲבֹתֵ֑ינוּ בַּעֲב֗וּר תֵּשְׁבוּ֙ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ גֹּ֔שֶׁן כִּֽי־תוֹעֲבַ֥ת מִצְרַ֖יִם כָּל־רֹ֥עֵה צֹֽאן׃ Then you shall say: Your servants have been cattle keepers from our...
Recent Webinar: Three Worlds of Relationships
The class announcement from The Mussar Institute: Six Free Webinars for 2017 Pirkei Avot: Explorations in Root Principles Ask someone to translate the title “Pirkei Avot” and you are likely to be told “Chapters...
Shalom Rav
Two variants of Shalom Rav were found in the Cairo Geniza. Given the similarities between Cairo and Israeli nusachos, it is assumed to have been the Nusach Eretz Yisrael in the days of the...
Boycott Facebook
Shurat haDin — Israel Law Center finally demonstrated what Jewish Facebook users have felt anecdotally, that Facebooks’s dread of catering to Islamophobia has them underenforcing their own rules of appopriate content when posted by an Arab or Muslim...
Mazal Tov!
The Jewish People have been invited to the wedding of Ariel Bigel to Sarah Tichyeh Litman! Binyanei haUmah, Jerusalem at 10:30 pm tomorrow (Thursday, November 26th, 2015) Yaakov Litman Hy”d, the kalah’s father, and...
בן חמישים לעצה
Among the list of landmarks Rabbi Yehuda ben Taima lists in psychological development (Avos 5:21) is “בן חמישים לעצה — a 50 year old is [ready] for planning / advice”. (This is 10 years...
Qoheles in a Nutshell
While tradition skips over the who said to whom before identifying the significant word or two to take as the text’s name, there are exceptions, notably Vayiqra (both the parashah and the book) and Qoheles....
The Great Seal of the United State of America
Resolved, That Dr. Franklin, Mr. J. Adams and Mr. Jefferson, be a committee, to bring in a device for a seal for the United States of America. – Journals of Continental Congress, July 4th,...
Why Chumash Has Subtly Different Duplications
The Arukh HaShulchan (OC 431:21) writes: …והנה לדינא: חמץ ושאור – הכל אחד, שהרי מצינו שני פסוקים המתחילים ב”שאור” ומסיימים ב”חמץ”, דכתיב: “[שִׁבְעַת יָמִים מַצּוֹת תֹּאכֵלוּ] אַךְ בַּיּוֹם הָרִאשׁוֹן תַּשְׁבִּיתוּ שְּׂאֹר מִבָּתֵּיכֶם [כִּי כָּל...
Desire and Will
A gett must be given willingly, and for the past 1,100 years (among Ashkenazim, eventually reaching Sepharadim as well) received willingly as well. However, when a husband is obligated to dissolve the marriage, beis...
My Dream Synagogue
Here are things my dream Growth Oriented Shul would provide that normal shuls today do not: Qiddush after leining, before mussaf, combined with a devar Torah or text learning. Our attention spans have shrunk....
Kallah XII: Finding Joy in Everyday Transitions
An intensive exploration into living life more skillfully What if you could … find joy in everyday transitions? get beyond judging the good and bad of transitions? bring order to the chaos of change?...
Torah Lishmah and Nefesh haChaim
Nefesh haChaim is a collection of Rav Chaim Volozhiner’s writings organized posthumously by his son and successor, R’ Yitzchak. We can see this in the self-description in the title page of the early editions...
Recent Comments