What’s in a name? In the Torah, quite a bit. Throughout the Torah, names of our ancestors are not only monikers but also literary insights into the personality, nature, and […]
Weekly Torah Portion
Insight and themes on the weekly Torah portion read aloud in synagogue.
This week’s Torah portion begins with the words “vayeitzei Yaakov,” which means, “Jacob went out.” This is most appropriate because in this week’s parsha, Yaakov will get married- and how […]
In this week’s Torah portion, we are introduced to the father of all crooks, Lavan, the brother of Rivka (Rebecca), the wife of Yitzchak (Isaac). In the upcoming Torah portions, […]
In this week’s parsha, we are introduced to Yishmael, whose descendants are today’s Arabs. A number of years ago, I was approached by a group of Muslim terrorists. They told […]
In this week’s Torah portion, we are told about Avraham Avinu’s prayer for the city of Sodom. Besides for this prayer, Avraham Avinu is known for a different prayer: the […]
In this week’s parsha, Vayeira, we find Avraham Avinu sitting by the entrance of his tent on a hot day. This was no ordinary day, mind you. This was just […]
The story is told about a man in the American West, in the early days of the California Gold Rush. Like thousands of others, he left his old life behind […]
Adapted from an address heard from Rabbi Avigdor Miller, OB”M Parshas Noach begins with G-d telling Noah that He will bring a mabul, flood, because of the evil ways of […]
On Simchas Torah (in the Diaspora, the second day of Shmini Atzeres, the holiday that begins immediately after Sukkos), we celebrate completing a full year’s cycle of reading of the […]
In this week’s Torah portion, Moshe Rabbeinu (Moses) urges the Jewish People to abandon their worship of avodah zara, idols. In that spirit, we present a series of jokes poking […]
