Parsha

The Civil War was a conventional war with large massed armies arrayed against each other in set battles. These battles were more or less governed by accepted rules of war.

This story is compelling because Ford didn’t care about anyone but himself. He didn’t choose to be kind.

How seriously should we take frogs as halakhic authorities? On one level the answer is clear: not at all. Frogs do not have free will, or moral responsibility, and anyone one who thinks this midrash believes otherwise defames Chazal.  Froggish martyrdom cannot teach us proper Jewish behavior, any more than froggish diet can teach us that insects are kosher.

A therapist will show the child a picture of a person’s face and then help her identify the emotion that person was most likely feeling.

Did Pharaoh's Daughter Speak Hebrew?

A devar torah you can 'count on.' Shabbat Shalom from the Foundation Stone

In our day of media over-reporting, we often think that we should know everything about our leaders. Perhaps it is better to know too little than too much. For when it comes to ethics, the Torah spares no one in reporting what falls short of the mark.

Each one of us has his own role and path - so there is no reason to be jealous of another person.

For the next twenty years Yaakov was an unwelcome intruder in a culture alien to his nature, eating at the very table of a father-in-law who attempted in any way possible to swindle and cheat him.

There is a ubiquitous custom amongst the Jewish People to dress up in our finest outfits on Shabbos. This mitzvah is so special to the Jewish People that most Torah-observant Jews divide their wardrobe into two parts – Shabbos clothing and weekday clothing

His predecessor had heard from many dignitaries urging Shalom Morchechai’s release but did not act.

The second gathering will be that of the ten tribes during the final redemption, bringing together all the tribes of Israel after millennia of separation, something that we see unfolding before our very eyes.

The depths of Torah SheBiksav are grasped through Torah SheBaal Peh. Hashem commands Yechezkel to unite these two making them into one.

This Midrash is very difficult to understand. Every word Yaakov said was true. He did live a very difficult life. He was beset with troubles and distress. He suffered for decades.

There is no better way to inflame a situation than by answering anger with anger; and there is no better way to forestall a fight than to answer anger with calm.

If Ya’akov’s words to Pharaoh were just an exercise in self-mortification about what was too late to change, there would be little to learn from them. But if, as is more likely, they represented part of a strategy of how to continue improving, there is actually a great deal we can learn from them.

You cannot decide whether we should fight or not. We will... That decision is taken...

The Bach seems to be saying that all that was to befall the Jewish people was because we no longer approached the Avodah with the appropriate sense of purpose, and therefore it was taken from us.

Like Yosef, the Chashmonaim were dreamers. Chanukah is the story of dreamers: defeating a mighty army, recapturing and rededicating the Temple, finding a single jar of ritually pure oil in the rubble

This new perspective helps us understand Joseph.

Imagine that the book of your life has already been written – and that you’ve read the chapter headings. How would your life be different? This issue is addressed by J.K. Rowling in the Harry Potter series. Not surprisingly, Rowling was preceded by the Torah

If Yosef was so brilliant, how is it possible he overlooked something as elementary as thinking about what his conduct would lead to?

There are many who celebrate the wise, the heroes, and the mystics, and they forget that we must also celebrate the typically non-celebrated, the people who keep the spirit alive, the very spirit that nurtures the more celebrated.

Yosef’s struggle with his brothers was ideological, whether we are to influence the world by example from the private and safe existence of our tent (the brothers), or whether take more risks by going outside and being heavily involved with the rest of civilization (Yosef)

Yaakov was the epitome of a shomer.

While his only motivation may have been to earn a living for himself, he is providing a substantial gain to those he does business with. In this scenario, $850,000 of his efforts are going to vendors, suppliers, and employees. An

In the very beginning of his introduction, the author writes that it is crucial for a person to trust in Hashem because if he doesn’t, then Hashem will remove His direct and special providential care.

The Torah tells stories of people who heard the voice of God and risked it all, However, for those of us who have not heard the voice of God, our sages suggest a more nuanced approach to risk.

Esau handled the meeting with Jacob far more grace than most people manage an argument with a spouse. Not bad behavior for a person we are taught is one of the most evil biblical characters!

Human interpretation of G-d’s work is always reaching beyond ourselves, and we should be suspicious of any theory that successfully explains everything in Torah – more likely we are imposing our own vision on the text.