Rabbi's Message

11 Tishrei October 3, 2025 When you think of the Sukkah, you think of walls and sechach—a foliage roof. Yet, the name...

G-d created the world through speech, and the words with which He created us are very much like flames. “Behold, my words are like flames” (Jeremiah 23:29). Flames don’t burn unless they have fuel to consume. The same is true of G-d’s words. “For G-d your G-d is a consuming flame” (Deuteronomy 4:24). His flame requires a wick and fuel to burn. Without fuel, it expires. Can you imagine what happens when G-d’s flame runs out of fuel? His continual act of creation grows weaker u

Minutes of formal meetings always end with a list of actionable items. Committees love to talk and to hear themselves talk, but if the discussions don’t produce actionable items, they are not useful. The same is true about love. Loving someone in theory or loving the idea of someone is not the same as loving in real life. If our love is romantic, we love being in love. If our love is actionable, we love a real person and our love is real. If our love doesn’t find expression i

This week, we make a dramatic declaration in our Torah reading: “You have singled out G-d . . . and G-d has singled you out” (Deuteronomy 26:17–18). On the surface, this means we singled out G-d to be our master, and He singled us out to be His people. Our sages (Berachot 6a) took it a step further. “You made me a single block in the world, and I will make you a single block in the world.” We understand the idea that G-d is a single block in the world. He is the only G-d and

When You Are on Your Own We humans are social creatures; we are not designed to live alone. We prefer companionship, connection, and emotional engagement. However, sometimes we shy away from community because we feel a need for alone time. These withdrawals are understandable, but they are also dangerous. There is strength in numbers, and we are vulnerable when we are alone. I am not referring to physical vulnerability, although that is often the case as well. When we walk in

A good friend recently lost his father. I meant to call him as soon as I heard, but he was sitting Shivah in Mexico. So, I told myself I would call him after Shivah. A week passed, and I was going to call him that day, but I developed a fever and wasn’t feeling well. So, I told myself I would call him next week. A week passed, and so did the fever, and I was going to call him. But so much work piled up that I forgot all about it, and besides, I wouldn’t have had time to make

Every year, on the last Shabbat before Elul—the final month of the year, we read a Torah portion that begins with the word reeh—see. The passage reads, “See, I set before you a blessing and a curse. The blessing is that you fulfill the commandments of G-d your G-d that I command you today. The curse is if you don’t fulfill the commandments . . .” (Deuteronomy 11:26–28). The word “see” stands out as superfluous. The message can be easily transmitted without the preface, “see.”

Rain doesn’t fall often in Israel. There is a rainy season that feeds the river, tributaries, and the lake, but rain isn’t always in plentiful supply. Some years, the rains are minimal, and the country suffers. The Torah (Deuteronomy 11:11) characterizes Israel as a place where rain is the sole source of our drinking water. Israel has an intimate relationship with rain. People are constantly checking the forecast and calculating the water levels because rain is the only real

10 Av August 4, 2025 The Torah portion we read this week discusses Moses pleading for his life five hundred and fifteen times before G-d told him to stop because his plea would not be granted (Deuteronomy 3:23–26). The Midrash (Tanchuma, Vaetchanan Chapter 6) relates that Moses begged the angels in charge of the heaven and earth, the stars and planets, the mountains and hills to plead his case, but they all turned him down. H

Suffering is sadly familiar to Jews. We have a long and painful history of suffering. Our sages taught that the Torah was given on Mount Sinai because Sinai is etymologically similar to sinah, which means hatred. From the day that we were chosen to become a light unto the nations, the nations responded to us with hatred.[1] The first to hate a Jew was Esau. When Jacob received his brother’s blessings, Esau responded with hatred and wanted to kill him. What did Jacob do? He fl

This week we will read a combined Torah portion. The first is called Matot, the second is called Masei. Matot, at least in the context of this passage, means tribes. But mateh also means a stick. Matot means sticks, plural. Masei means journeys. The Torah delineates the forty-two journeys our ancestors took during their forty years in the desert. Sticks and journeys. On the surface, they are unrelated, and perhaps even opposites. A stick is firm and unyielding. Journeys are a

I was walking with a friend, one Shabbat, and as we reached the crosswalk, he bent to push the button to stop the traffic. I reminded him it was Shabbat, when we don’t use electronics. Instead, I suggested we relax patiently and chat until the light changes. It was Shabbat after all. We were not in a rush. He pulled back instantly, but then asked how I could remember every detail related to Shabbat. There are literally hundreds of dos and don’ts and keeping them all straight

When speaking of lighting the candles in the Temple, the Torah uses an unusual euphemism. Rather than saying lighting the candles, it speaks of raising the candles. Rashi offers two interpretations. (A) Hold the torch to the wick until the flame rises on its own, and only then do you remove the torch.(B) Rise by stepping up on a stool to light the candles. At first glance, these translations are not related. Both are true. There was a stool in front of the candelabra on which

In this week’s Torah portion, we read about the priestly blessing. G-d designates the kohanim (priests) to be blessers of the Jewish people. They wash their hands in the ritual manner, remove their shoes, stand before the congregation, spread their arms forward, and interlock their fingers. They wrap their heads in a prayer shawl and act as G-d’s channel of blessings to the Jewish people. They begin by reciting a blessing thanking G-d for the privilege of conveying His blessi

Every year, we read a Torah portion called Bamidbar—in the desert—on the Shabbat before Shavuot. This portion describes the census of the Jews in the desert. Just as we count forty-nine days and then celebrate Shavuot, so should we read about the counting of the Jews and then celebrate Shavuot. This explanation seems random: We match one count to another and merge them into a pre-Shavuot cholent? There must be a deeper message here that underscores the festival of Shavuot. Th

On Friday, May 16, Jews around the world will celebrate Lag Ba’omer. Lag Ba’omer is a joyous day. In Israel, thousands flock to Miron, the burial site of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, the second-century Talmudic sage who passed away on this day. Rabbi Shimon was the first to publicize and record the teachings of Jewish mysticism. He enlightened the Jewish soul during a tumultuous time of distress, darkness, and suffering. To commemorate his light, we light bonfires on this night,

In this week’s Torah portion, we learn about the high priest entering the Holy of Holies on the holiest day of the year, Yom Kippur, to secure forgiveness for the nation. How could one person’s entry into a sacred chamber atone for everyone’s sins? To answer this question, we must explore the secret of the Holy of Holies. What was it like inside? How did it feel to enter? What impact did entering have on the high priest, and how did it affect others? In the Womb There was a r

The weeks leading up to Passover were incredibly hectic for me, and I didn’t have time to follow the news. Several weeks in, I realized that I was much more relaxed as a result. The news cycle is so filled with negativity that it seeps into our bones and mindset. Living in a bubble was an exquisite relief. I am not just talking about the terrible news surrounding Israel over the last year and a half. I am also talking about the toxic atmosphere of the political culture. The o

Insects churn their legs with astonishing speed. Their unique respiratory system delivers oxygen to their limbs efficiently, allowing them to move quickly. They are also very well coordinated, allowing them to alternate between swinging their legs and standing still. Yet, they barely make headway. Aunts must take hundreds of steps to traverse the distance a human can cover in a single step.[1] The Exodus and The Insect Judaism’s dietary laws generally forbid insects. Beetles,

The Shabbat before Passover is called Shabbat Hagadol, the great Shabbat. There are several reasons for this moniker, primarily that a...