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A meilitz yosher is a defender who emphasizes a person’s good and “straight” deeds, while a prosecutor emphasizes a person’s evil and criminal deeds.

What about the big courtroom we are about to enter? Can we really imagine that? And how about the prosecutor, can we imagine that as well?

The shofar blast is intended to wake them up and remember their Creator. The shofar can allow us to understand that Hashem is our melech.

During Elul, everyone is able to go over to the King, to G-D Almighty. Once Tishrei starts, however, it is more difficult. Then you need an appointment.

"The more you draw yourself to G-d, the more you must realize how far you are from Him. When a person believes that he has succeeded in achieving closeness to G-d and understanding of Him, it is a sign that he does not know anything at all." (Likutey Moharan I, 63)

Gardner’s argument is that what makes a leader is the ability to tell a particular kind of story – one that explains ourselves to ourselves and gives power and resonance to a collective vision.

The concept of “roundness” also comes into play in this discussion. The Hebrew word galal in the sense of “dung” appears five times in the Bible (I Kgs. 14:10, Job 20:7, Zeph. 1:17, Ezek. 4:12, 4:15).

Elul is the time of teshuva, of self-awareness and recalibration, of inspiration and will. Ki Savo is the parsha of tochacha (rebuke). The connection between teshuva and rebuke appears self-evident, but exploring these topics in depth reveals an ever richer and perhaps less obvious connection. To better understand the connection between tochacha and teshuva, we must first understand the concept of flattery.

The Gemara in Rosh Hashanah 16a says that Hashem says that we should recite before Him pesukim of malchuyos shofros and zichronos in order that we will accept His malchus.

My sister and brother-in-law were among the would-be travelers, but their motivation was to visit our elderly mother, whose health had declined in virtually every respect over the prolonged period of isolation.

The people with whom he was in contact, the people to whom he taught chassidus, saw in front of them a Jew who lives in this world, but is higher than this world. Whose needs and wants in this world were only spiritual.

The Egyptians enslaved the Israelites, planned a program against them of slow genocide, and then refused to let them go despite the plagues that were devastating the land. Are these reasons not to hate?

As long as you hate you remain a slave.

When it comes to the word yavam, Rabbi Pappenheim explains that this term for a relative-in-law contrasts with other terms for relatives-in-law.

This strange virus that has made so many changes within us…is basically Hashem trying to help us change in many different ways before the time of the redemption will come.

A wedding poses a worrisome challenge: how can all the expenses be covered?

There is no shortage of examples throughout Jewish history showing the terrible consequences of ignoring this important principle.

Maimonides holds that the appointment of a king is an obligation, Ibn Ezra that it is a permission, Abarbanel that it is a concession, and Rabbenu Bachya that it is a punishment.

Men and boys of all religious types gather on the grass in the early morning, before the sun gets the better half of the sky, and pray together.

When we recall our deeds each year, there are many that we don’t remember, most whose ramifications we don’t know about and others that take on a life of their own after we have brought them into the world.

He left the meeting with no doubt that if Hitler only could, he would destroy European Jewry.

The specialty of Reb Yoel is that not only did he remember what the Rebbe said – and he remembered very well – but he also understood what the Rebbe said.

In this week’s parsha we learn of the contemptible situation of an ihr hanedachas, a city where all of the inhabitants worship idols, Rachmana litzlan.

Rebbe Nachman tells us that we must nevertheless persist with our service of Hashem and ignore the inner voice that tells us otherwise.

Do not think that we can survive as a nation among nations, worshiping what they worship and living as they live. If we do, we will be subject to the universal law that has governed the fate of nations from the dawn of civilization to today.

It seems that the spiritual part of our being is stronger that the physical. And yet without our strong bodies, our soul, the spiritual part of our existence, couldn’t come to light either.

We had been living on the outskirts of the city, 30 miles from anything Jewish, and finally my dream of living in the heart of the community was being realized.

Reb Yoel was the master who knew exactly how to make the Rebbe's teachings accessible to everyone.

The tension between the counselors and the rabbis grew almost to the point of crisis, so much so that we had to stop the course for an hour while we sought some way of reconciling what the counselors were doing with Torah.

Ten years ago, when a good friend got married, she and another friend put together a book of lists and tips to help her organize her wedding. Since she enjoyed the project, Roni continued on her own to make these books for couples about to be married.