Shalom Chaverim! This year, we have something of an anomaly on the Jewish calendar. In most years, the Torah portions of Vayakhel and Pekudei are read in tandem with one another; meaning that we have a double selection chanted in our Synagogues...

Parshat Ki Tissa opens with the admonition, “This is what everyone who is entered in the records shall pay …” (30:13) God’s command was for every male from 20 to 60, rich or poor, to be counted by their half-shekel contribution to the upkeep...

In Tetzaveh, this week’s Torah portion, we learn that the High Priest was to wear a headdress to which a gold frontlet inscribed with “Holy to the Eternal” was attached by a blue cord. One might ask: Why was this gold frontlet attached to the...

The Rebbe of Kotzk was once asked: “Where is God to be found?” He famously answered” God is found wherever we let God  in.” At first the question seems to be about a specific geographic location (like a synagogue, a temple, or another sacred...

Our parshah this week, Mishpatim, embraces law after law right on the heels of the Ten Commandments.  Our foremost commentator, Rashi, points out that Mishpatim should be viewed as a continuation of the previous parshah, Yitro.  Why? How? The very...

The United States’ economy is currently oriented toward service. Employment opportunities abound in the service industries such as food service, hospitality service, call center service, repair services and delivery service, to name a few. As consumers...

“And Moses took with him the bones of Joseph, who had previously exacted an oath from the children of Israel, saying, “God will be sure to take notice of you and when this comes to be, you pledge to carry up my bones from here with you to the Holy...

Rabbi Eliyahu Safran of the Orthodox Union refers to the number seven as the perfect number. “Seven is completeness and wholesomeness,” he says. There are numerous examples in Judaism of the significance of that seven, beginning with Shabbat, the...

What inspires you? How are you empowered? The Torah portion Beshalach teaches us about the importance of faith, patience and action. We read about the importance of keeping our word and the importance of singing and dancing. There are moments we find...

1. In Israel, Tu B’Shevat is like Earth Day, raising awareness about the ecology. 2. Part of the environmental awareness is to plant a tree or start an herb garden. 3. Planting trees in Israel is especially important right now; many were lost...

This weekend is a good time to begin preparing for your Passover seder. With three months to go, you can delay boiling eggs and stocking up on horseradish. But it’s an ideal time to plant parsley indoors. The 90-day window should be just about right...

Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach (z”l), my teacher and cousin, once said that it is quite easy to tell which are the most profound Jewish holidays. They are, he suggested, the ones that are observed by the smallest number of individuals.  His statement...