In this week’s parsha, Parshas Re’eh, the Torah commands us regarding the shalosh regalim: Pesach, Shavuos and Succos (Devarim 16:1-17). It is these three festivals that shape our calendar year and together, they form the foundations of our nation. Pesach commemorates the miraculous Exodus from Egypt,...
In Parshas Eikev, the beautiful and stirring words of Moshe Rabbeinu, during the last days of his life, continue to inspire, elevate and teach us. One of the main themes of the final teachings of Moshe is the topic of our beloved Land, Eretz Yisrael. ...
Shabbos Nachamu, which always follows Tisha B’Av, is so named for the words of the Haftorah: נַחֲמוּ נַחֲמוּ, עַמִּי--יֹאמַר, אֱלֹקֹיכֶם, Comfort, comfort, My nation, says your G-d; Speak to the heart of Jerusalem and call to her, for she has become full [from] her host,...
As we mourn for Tzion and Yerushalayim - the churban of old, the ongoing bitterness of exile, and recent calamities and our year of mourning, Hashem yerachem - below is a selection of recent/all-new shiurim for Tisha b’Av. Additionally, for those who are in the area,...
Av 5784. The month of our mourning for churban Batei Mikdash (the destruction of both Temples, Bayis I by the Babylonians, and Bayis II by the Romans), the exile of Tzion and Yerushalayim, and all our travails that have befallen us in exile since that...
In the second of this week’s double parshios, Parshas Masei, the Torah records the event of the death of Aharon ha’Kohen. The pasukim tell us: וַיִּסְעוּ, מִקָּדֵשׁ; וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּהֹר הָהָר, בִּקְצֵה אֶרֶץ אֱדוֹם, and they journeyed from Kadesh, and they camped at Hor Ha’Hor, on...
The beginning of this week’s parsha, Parshas Pinchas, resumes the narrative that began at the end of last week’s sedra, Balak. At the end of Balak we read of the sins of the nation of Israel, who were persuaded to sin with the Midyanite women,...
In this week’s parsha, Parshas Balak, the Torah tells us of Balak, the king of Moav, who feared the approaching nation of Israel. Afraid for his nation and his land, he hired the famous seer, Bilaam, to come and curse the Jews. King Balak was...
After the opening chapter of Parshas Chukas, which delineates the laws regarding death and the ashes, and ritual, of the Parah Adumah (Red Heifer, Chapter 19), the Torah turns its attention to Chapter 20 and year 40 of desert wanderings. We learn of the death...
In this week’s parsha, Parshas Korach, Moshe and Aharon face the first insurgency of its kind: a direct rebellion against their leadership and an attempt to overthrow them. Until now, the complaints of the nation have been directed against G-d, keviyachol (as if such a...