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The Baal Shem Tov, the founder of the chassidic movement, was the first one to celebrate this meal, with an open door, allowing anyone who wished to partake.

On the night of the exodus, Hashem performed makkas bechoros (the plague of the firstborn), devastating Egypt and causing even Pharaoh to panic. Makkas bechoros was unique in that Hashem Himself performed this Makkah (Rashi, Shemos 12:12).

Maybe the family had decided to obtain some other tefillin. He didn’t know. But he was sure that Hashem had guided his steps to just this spot to save his father’s tefillin which had obviously been discarded in error.

Avadim hayenu – we were slaves in Egypt. I looked around the table, wondering what our new Russian friends were thinking, if they were recalling their time as Jews in the modern slavery of the oppressive, antisemitic USSR.

In every generation, a person is obligated to regard himself as if he personally left Egypt.

The Seder is comprised of 15 steps, which is the same number of steps leading up to the Beis HaMikdash and the same number of "Shir Hama'alos" psalms – the songs of ascension.

In Judaism, to be without questions is a sign not of faith, but of lack of depth.

The first Shabbat after we moved into our house, we decided to go to shul. This was not out of any religious fervor, more an acknowledgement of our new start, a new phase in our lives – and curiosity to see what the people were like.

The Rebbe cared for each and every person of the generation, regardless of their background or upbringing. The Rebbe didn’t label any Jew. To the Rebbe, a Jew is a Jew; there is nothing more and nothing less.

To love is to thank. To love is to want to bring an offering to the Beloved. To love is to give. Sacrifice is the choreography of love.

As we previously explained, the purpose of techeiles and tzitzis is to straighten the bent path and help connect us back to Hashem, our Source.

Mommie assumed that within three days’ time, I would forget what I had experienced, but through a series of different occurrences, I did, in fact move to Crown Heights, as a young married woman, with my dear husband, as well as my long-awaited kinderlach who are indeed brachas from the Rebbe!

I knew the exact address was one of three buildings. I would just look for this unique family name on those three buildings’ entrances and I would find where to go. But just at that moment my mind froze, and I couldn’t think what that unique name was.

G-d took us out of Egypt in Nissan. After 210 years of suffering in exile, G-d took His nation out of Egypt.

For each of us G-d has a task: work to perform, a kindness to show, a gift to give, love to share, loneliness to ease, pain to heal, or broken lives to help mend.

The story of Korach is often considered one of rebellion, but it can also be seen as a case of mistaken idealism, a philosophical challenge, or misplaced spiritual yearning.

Eventually one of her daughters persuaded her to go to her doctor and after some tests he diagnosed early onset dementia. It was a tremendous shock to everyone, but the children realized that they would have to learn to help her and their father come to terms with this new reality.

Later at night I got a phone call from my younger sister that lives up north in Israel. She wanted to talk to me about an incident that happened between us, which she felt she had never really asked forgiveness for. I couldn't remember anything and it took me some time till I understood what she was talking about.

One who fears that a task is beyond their ability, or too challenging for their comfort level, has racked up the odds against their excelling beyond their current state of inertia.

In the case of Purim, Jewish womanhood showed that where Divine Providence places her in a position of prominence and influence, she uses it wholly for the benefit of her people.

Regular attendance at a house of worship is the most accurate predictor of altruism, more so than any other factor, including gender, education, income, race, region, marital status, ideology, and age.

The letter peh literally means “mouth.” The reason ayin comes before peh in the aleph-beis is to portray the ideal process of spiritual speech.

Rabbi Pappenheim relates the word zavit to the word ziv (“splendor,” “radiance”), and he offers two different ways of explaining the connection between the passages.

Sadly, I could not even properly enjoy that sumptuous finale to an incredible, opulent meal, because by then my watch registered less than an hour to go before licht bentching!

What Haman did not know was that Moshe Rabbeinu was also born in the month of Adar, and that day, the Talmud relates, helped avert the evil decree.

The mishna implies that it is important to do things, not just in this world and while we are young, but also achshav – now, right away, as soon as possible.

As human beings, we have the remarkable ability to jump to conclusions, assuming that we know the truth of a situation when we, in fact, have completely misjudged it.

We cannot see G-d’s face; we cannot understand G-d’s ways; but we can encounter G-d’s glory whenever we build a home for His presence here on earth.

From the very beginning, I felt that our kitten was a gilgul, a Jewish soul sent back to earth to rectify his past.

One of the chief ways to frustrate the Hamans of our time, bring about their downfall and bring light and joy to our people is to gather Jewish children and teach them Torah and Yiddishkeit!