In the beginning of Parshas Naso, the Torah continues the census of the nation. Hashem commands Moshe: נָשֹׂא אֶת רֹאשׁ בְּנֵי גֵרְשׁוֹן - Take a census (lit. lift up the heads) of the sons of Gershon (Bamidbar 4:22). On a simple level, the Torah is...
With the arrival of Shavuos, we celebrate one of the most transformative moments in Jewish history: Matan Torah. More than a commemoration of a past event, Shavuos is the annual re-experiencing of our standing at Har Sinai and our acceptance of the Torah anew. Yet unlike...
Parshas Bamidbar is always read the Shabbos before Shavuos, the yom tov that commemorates Matan Torah. Chazal teach us that this juxtaposition is not incidental. The Torah reading that precedes Shavuos carries within it an essential message about the preparation necessary to receive the Torah. At...
With the reading of Parshas Behar, the Torah presents a number of mitzvos that govern economic life, interpersonal responsibility, and sensitivity toward others. Among these is a pasuk that, at first glance, appears in the context of financial dealings, yet Chazal reveal its far deeper...
With the reading of Parshas Emor, the Torah presents the cycle of the Jewish calendar year (Vayikra 23). Beginning with Shabbos and continuing through Pesach, Shavuos, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Succos, the Torah outlines the sacred times that shape the rhythm of Jewish life. At...
With the reading of Parshas Kedoshim, the Torah presents one of the most well-known and foundational mitzvos in all of Torah - the commandment to love one’s fellow as oneself. The pasuk teaches: לֹֽא־תִקֹּ֤ם וְלֹֽא־תִטֹּר֙ אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י עַמֶּ֔ךָ וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵֽעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ אֲנִ֖י ה, You shall not take...
With the reading of the parshios of Tazria and Metzora, the Torah turns to the laws of tumah and taharah (ritual impurity and purity), beginning with the ritual impurity of a woman after childbirth, followed by the complex and intricate laws regarding the metzorah (one...
With the onset of Chag HaPesach, we relive the foundational moment of our nation’s birth - yetzias Mitzrayim, the Exodus from Egypt. We recount the miracles, the plagues, the splitting of the sea, and the transformation of a nation of slaves into a people redeemed...
With the reading of Parshas Tzav, the Torah continues to detail the avodah of the korbanos in the Mishkan, as well as the role of the kohanim who performed this sacred service. While the procedures of the offerings are elaborated upon, we are also reminded...
With the reading of Parshas Vayikra we begin Sefer Vayikra, the third book of the Torah. If Sefer Shemos chronicled the birth of the Jewish nation - from slavery to redemption, from Egypt to Sinai, and from Revelation to the building of the Mishkan -...