Follow the Leader: The Legacy of Nachshon Ben-Aminadav
Leading by example must be calculatedly visible, not only from a point of view of where it is done, but even when and how it is done. Doing something privately is not an act of leadership.
Redeeming Relevance: Just Get it Done!
To what extent is a prophet of God allowed to improvise?
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Shemini: The Price of Holiness
The Meshech Chochmah states that had Israel not sinned with the golden calf, God would not have punished Aharon’s sons so severely.
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Pinchas: The Yehoshua Moshe Did Not Know
Moshe was not able to see that Yehoshua was fit for the job. On some level, this seems strange considering their long-standing relationship.
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Haazinu: Why Did Yehoshua Repeat Haazinu?
“If God only commanded Moshe to present Haazinu, what was the need for Yehoshua to join in?”
Redeeming Relevance in the Weekly Parsha: Chukat
Israel's complaining frustrated Moshe, making it increasingly hard for him to lead effectively
Redeeming Relevance: Moshe’s Last Chance
Moshe was ideally suited to the role of an intermediary between God’s immanent presence and Israel but not so well suited to leadership in front of a hidden God
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Netzavim
The Netziv’s point: Self-assessment should be based on who we are, not based on who our neighbor is.
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Va’Eira: A Quantitative Approach to Free Will
This story is actually a brilliant depiction of the interplay between divine providence and free will. Without taking away our ability to “surprise Him,” God – when needed – doesn’t hesitate to steer us in the direction He wants.
Redeeming Relevance: Parsht Shelach: When Silence is not Golden
Yehoshua and Calev's mistake was what they could have done earlier: They must have known their colleagues’ negative inclination. The Torah’s silence on whether they tried to change the mind of the other spies speaks to their own silence as well.
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Ve’etchanan: Why You Don’t Need to Worship Idols (and Might Have...
The delicate balance of the Jews place in the world: The impact of interacting with other cultures
Redeeming Relevance: Moshe’s Command to Die
When we cannot fully understand God’s decision that accepting it shows our true allegiance to Him
Guns Kill People AND People Kill People; American and Gilead
One of the more fruitless political debates in the United States is whether strict restriction of gun permits would add to public safety. One of the reasons it is fruitless is that both sides muster flawed analogies to other societies.
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Miketz: Yosef’s Descent
We generally assume that Yosef, as a victim of cruelty and not its perpetrator, had nothing to regret. Yet a careful reading shows he had a significant role in creating the tension with his brothers
Bar Kappara’s ‘Off-Color’ Jokes
By using humor, he could bring home what simple study in a beit midrash could not.
Redeeming Relevance: Did Moshe Decide to Break the Tablets?
Paradoxically, with Moshe’s desperate act, something positive happened. When the people realized what Moshe was responding to, it shook them to their foundations.
The Minyan Market
The sum of the whole is greater than the sum of the parts
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Lech Lecha
If everything depends on the final test, the Sacrifice of Yitzchok, why give Avraham other trials?
Parshat Eikev: Can the Torah Exaggerate?
NEVER lose sight of the gol
Redeeming Relevance: A Bad Sin and a Good Drash
For an interpretation to qualify as a good drash, it must present an insightful idea that is somehow enhanced by the original text.
Redeeming Relevance on the Weekly Parsha: Terumah
The notion of duality is paradoxically a very important part of God’s unity.
Anger, Procrastination, and Elul
Some people get angry at the Jewish calendar. It takes away their ability to decide when they want to rejoice, when they want to...
Redeeming Relevance: The Righteous Men of Sodom
The greatest impact of an individual is generally felt when he acts as part of the larger community.
Redeeming Relevance: What’s with the Blood on the Doorposts?
It seems very likely that when the Jews put the blood on the doorposts, it was meant as a strong statement of protest against Egypt and about the holiness of life. In other words, whereas the Egyptians made even human life a commodity, the Jews were bidden to sanctify the essence of life even in animals.
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Ekev: Making Gratitude Count
Is the source for saying Birkat HaMazon as obvious as we normally assume?
When Torah Knowledge and Wisdom are Separated
The most outstanding Torah scholar may not be the greatest mentor and visa-versa. It is wonderful (and convenient) when we can find someone, who is “one-stop shopping.” Yet the story of Rav Kahana shows us that life is not always so tidy.
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Noach II
The remarkable gift of unity should be a powerful tool to further mankind and to further God’s will.
Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Vayishlach: The Torah’s Mother
In one of the most mysterious verses in the Torah (Bereshit 35:8), we read about the death of Devorah the nursemaid, a character so minor that we have never really heard of her before
Redeeming Relevance on the Weekly Parsha: Kedoshim
Putting parents before oneself is a step toward putting the more abstract concept of God before self
The Cliffhangers at the End of Bereishit… and in Our Lives
Neither Yosef nor Yehudah panicked. They did not know how the next parsha would begin, but they did know that the larger story had to have a happy ending.
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