The Dramatic Paradox of the Hebrew New Year
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz When I first started my journey toward “being religious”, I was concerned about the prayers on Rosh Hashana. During the rest of the year, we bow at the waist while reciting the Aleinu prayer. But on Rosh Hashana, we prostrate ourselves fully,...
Alien Fire: What Exactly Was the Sin of Nadab and Abihu
The Torah describes the death of Nadab and Abihu, the two eldest of Aaron’s four sons, as a punishment for bringing “alien fire, which He had not enjoined upon them” (Leviticus 10:1). The tragedy took place on the eighth day of the inauguration, the first official day...
What Did Moses Actually See When God Showed Him His Back?
There is no doubt that Moses was close to God, even speaking with Him “face to face, as one man speaks to another” (Exodus 33:11). But Moses wanted even more and requested, “Oh, let me behold Your Presence!” (33:18). God assented to His faithful servant’s request but...
The Unconditional Acceptance of the Torah
When Moses presented the Jews with the prospect of receiving the Torah at Sinai, they respond: “All that Hashem has spoken we will do!” (Exodus 19:8). This expression of acceptance was repeated and expanded in a phrase that has characterized Jewish observance...
The Many Names of God
In Moses’ dramatic first encounter with God, he asks who he should say sent him to free the Jews. More precisely, he asks, “When I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is His name?’...Related Content
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God's Outstretched Hand
How the Burning Bush Foreshadowed the Giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai
