Judaism

To properly fulfill the mitzvah of tochachah, there are two absolute requirements. The first relates to attitude, the second to method.

Question: Are there limitations to the mitzvah of chinuch?

Rabbi Pappenheim also argues that “cheich” [palate] comes from “chakah” because the open fish net resembles a person’s mouth opened wide in anticipation of food.

10th of Tevet marks the onset of the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylonia

Rain can happen at any time. It’s a mere coincidence taking place just to send shivers up my spine.

I did not ask for parnassah or to find a new job. I asked The Rebbe that there should be a shul (synagogue) within 2 or 3 blocks from the place where I will eventually find work.

Fascinating insights into Yom Kippur

How can I curse, says Bil’am, that which G-d did not curse? What rage can I bring against those whom Hashem will not rage against?

Dressing up

For humans, reducing flesh is generally a good thing whereas its expansion is generally a bad thing

The restrictions Yom Kippur places on each Jew are unique among the Torah’s holidays. Likewise, the intricate and detailed Temple service that was performed...

Although Tisha B’Av marks the day in which both Jewish Temples were destroyed, the Jewish People endured many tragic events on this specific day throughout history. Despite this, we endure and are the Eternal People

We can achieve if we only reconnect to that belief that we can succeed only when we reach beyond ourselves rather than hide behind walls of fear-- and hesitation.

All of this ultimately flows from Hashem. Hashem created Adam and Chava in the Garden of Eden, and He placed them there with the serpent so they could resist its charms. Only in that moment and in that place Adam and Chava failed.

In fact, loudness and brightness are not intrinsically Godly at all. On the contrary, the truer place to find God is in the still-small voices all around us.

Dear Gary, As Pesach approaches, I get worried because I want to have a great Yom Tov, and yet, every year, the seder ends in some sort of fighting and arguing. My husband wants the seder to be all about divrei Torah and so do I, but between the younger children (who we want to be awake for the whole seder) and guests, we somehow end up in stern looks and squabbles. I'm happy we have guests or else we'd probably start yelling at each other and even Eliyahu Hanavi would bail. I know everyone jokes about how tough Pesach is, but I can't see the humor anymore – and neither can my children. What can we do to manage a calm (I don't even wish for happy) seder? A Sad Mom

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“I have no words to thank you,” Marcus stammered. “But, would you mind if I ask you a question? Why did you decide to bend over backwards to help me?”

Question: I am a psychology professor at McGill University who is doing an MA in Jewish studies. My thesis topic is the history of interpretation of the story of Rachav Hazona. In the course of my research I was trying to understand how the Midrash derived that Rahab converted.

So along with my gratitude sessions, I decided to be more aware of saying thank you to people who deserve acknowledgment along the way – service providers, bus drivers, and the like – which I’m not always good at doing.

Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz emphasized again and again when he taught this parshah that Yaakov moving the massive stone from the well was not a miracle. Yet, it was not a matter of physical strength either. It was a matter of heart and faith.

What a sublime chumra to take on as Pesach approaches: to keep our simcha thermostat on the highest digit without surrendering to the natural inclination of “losing it” due to tension and fatigue, two all too natural elements that come along with these days.

Question: May a firstborn who is weak join in someone else’s siyum on Erev Pesach to avoid fasting? Name withheld by request

With short, metaphoric, speeches to his sons-wrongly called blessings-Yakov conveys his take on life

Prayer is our language: Hakol kol Yaakov – the voice is the voice of Jacob – the voice of prayer.

What made this trial different? Why did Moshe momentarily lose control? Why then? Why there? He had faced just this challenge before.

Some students may thrive in a secular university because they may be called upon to take on leadership roles in a religious capacity, such as to help make the minyan or to arrange Torah study opportunities, when they might not be able do so in a Jewish college setting when there are already plenty of minyanim and Torah study opportunities.

Till this day, many Jewish homes continue to observe the tradition of maintaining a half-meter square patch of wall scraped clean of plaster as one enters the house. For how can we complete our houses when G-d's house lays in ruins?

“And Hashem turned back the sea by a strong east-wind all the night” (14:21). The wind was entirely unnecessary, for it was naturally unable...

Israel defies the laws of history because it serves the Author of history. Attached to greatness, it becomes great. Through the Jewish people, G-d is telling humankind that you do not need to be numerous to be great. Nations are judged not by their size but by their contribution to human heritage.