Yitro, Moses’ father-in-law, abdicates his position as the leading practitioner of the dark arts of idolatry and converts to Judaism. But can he be really sure of his motivations? Are…
Ironically Pharaoh had to drive us out of Egypt as we were too comfortably ensconced to leave on our own initiative. Likewise, today we are so comfortable in our host…
Consider a compulsive gambler in a casino. He is a high roller with plenty of money. He spends all night at the tables and loses the $100,000 he came with.…
Not long ago I was lecturing in Europe and happened to visit the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. I entered the Rembrandt Room and was confronted by the giant canvass named ‘The…
In this week’s Parsha, Ki Tissa, occurs the Jewish nation’s great sin in the desert, the worship of the Golden Calf. Much has been written and taught about this moment…
Why was the lighting of the Candelabra in the Mishkan so carefully worded, even seeking surety that the flame stays lit? Our soul is like G-d’s candle and each one…
Jews are a portable people with a portable culture and a portable belief system. That is the reason why Jews continue to survive and thrive no matter wherein world and…
he definition of something as simple as the word, ‘law’, defies writers of jurisprudence, philosophy, and religion combined. And yet, our Parsha is named Mishpatim – ‘laws’.Interestingly in Hebrew the…
One of the most dramatic moments of our 40 year journey through the desert takes place this week in our Parsha – Yitro. The news of the Exodus spreads very…
The splitting of the Reed Sea, allowing the Jewish people to cross and finally leave Egypt, was a most unlikely phenomenon of nature. As it seems to offend our sensibilities,…
In this week’s Parsha, the final plagues finally convince Pharaoh to let our people go. The people have now been trapped in Egypt 400 years ever since Jacob and his…
I would never want to be a prophet. It’s a thankless task. You receive instructions from G-d that foretell future scenarios. Invariably you are asked to change the mind of…
This week’s Parsha, Pekudei, details the inventory Moses took of all the gifts and donations for the construction of the Mishkan. The teaching here is that we must always take…
The name of this week’s Parsha, Vayakhel, means to gather together disparate elements of a potential whole. It’s like an artisan, artist, or researcher tackling their tasks, but first needing…
