Torah

Torah coupled with good deeds is the ideal form of life.

Though we occasionally face difficult situations, we should be optimistic about our future.

The guilty were sent to the cities of the Levi’im not to be imprisoned but to be placed in an environment of learning and spirituality, a setting where atonement and self-forgiveness could readily be achieved.

Like the Slonimer Rebbe, Rabbi Yerucham Levovitz (Daat Torah p. 205-206) does understand "levado" as meaning alone. But based on the Midrash, he assumes that being alone is constructive. How can it be constructive?

It was Hashem’s goal in creation and the ultimate goal of our personal development . . . G-d does not seek our fear; He seeks our appreciation.

We cannot bring these holy souls back to life, nor can we fathom the evil that is in the minds of the terrorists who committed these cruel and cowardly acts of terror, but we can take this moment to introspect...

Learning alone is valuable, but not ideal. Words of Torah are enhanced through social interaction and social interactions are enhanced through words of Torah.

Jews witnessed the ten makkos defy every natural law and decimate their oppressors. How could they still be sinking lower in tumah after witnessing this?

It is in the nature of the Nations of the World to be hostile towards the Jewish People.

The gematria of shira, another form of prayer, is also 515, conveying the idea that when singing to Hashem we can repeatedly have the same specific thing in mind.

If we keep Hashem in our minds and hearts – i.e., if we become G-d-fearing – we will succeed at having Torah in our mouths.

In my experience as a principal for many years, and in my capacity as an evaluator of schools that boast of their excellence, I am constantly amazed by the brazenness and arrogance of some students.

There is a fundamental question that the commentators are bothered by. Where do we find Yosef rebuked his brothers? All he said was that he was Yosef.

New York City
CANDLE LIGHTING TIME
Dec. 27, 2002 - 22 Teves 5763
4:15 p.m. E.S.T.
Sabbath Ends: 5:26 p.m. E.S.T.

Besides for the ethical and prosocial benefits of helping, it also provides new scenarios to observe, interact, and learn.

I believe that the plague of the firstborn was meant to occur at the very beginning. It was only Bnei Yisrael’s lack of faith that required nine plagues to precede it.

In a brilliantly creative rereading of the pasuk, Rabbi Shimshon suggests that alluded to in Yaakov’s word choice is this discovery of self-efficacy.

Rav Kook says, “Anyone who thinks in a pure, G-dly way cannot hate or denigrate any creation or potential found in our world.”

Unlike the two and a half tribes, when we walk in front of G-d, we must be perfect in our motivation

Hashem created this world and placed man in it, so that he could take his physical part and elevate it using his spiritual part.

People who occupy prestigious positions in world-famous companies have admitted to me that they have never experienced anything as challenging as raising children.

Hashem’s control over what happens in the world means that our lives and fate (even in this world) are fully in His hands.

To a large extent, Pirkei Avot and its commentaries serve as a type of educational psychology textbook. Many of the maxims encourage learning Torah and provide advice and guidance as to how to best accomplish this scholastic goal.

It’s not entirely clear within the narrative what the spies did wrong. They were asked to scout the land and report back, and that’s what they did.

We must therefore constantly remind ourselves that it’s the Jewish way to stand by the side of a mate through thick and thin.

We should be so engaged in meaningful and valuable pursuits that we don’t have time to sin.

The Gemara (Meseches Megillah) wonders why Esther invited Haman to a private feast. How could she have sat at a private meal with such a monster?

What has become clear from modern studies of the brain is that we can control our emotions and our thoughts.

As an educator, I was always intrigued with the trip on which my high school students would embark in their junior or senior year. The “March of the Living” allows a student to experience in a small way the immense tragedy our people endured during the Holocaust.

The bottom line from these two instances and a host of different statements by our Sages throughout the Talmud is that shalom bayit is essential, and apparently one can lie or even erase the name of G-d to achieve this.