Abraham
Kristallnacht: A Lesson for All Time
The Holocaust, a systematic attempt to exterminate the Jewish people carried out by the German Nazi party during World War II, is a dense cloud of darkness in human history that should never be forgotten lest we descend again into the...
A Relationship Under Pressure
By Rabbi Elie Mischel As we read about the awe-inspiring and history-altering moments of Abraham and Sarah’s life, there is another, parallel story that we read about in the Bible – the story of their relationship. It’s a more subtle...
Do You Walk With God or Before God?
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz The Biblical story of Noah is probably the most universally known story. Everyone knows that Noah built an ark, brought in the animals and saved his family. But perhaps one of the more interesting aspects of the...
Moab: A Nation Worse than Amalek?
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz When I went away to college and began dating seriously, with every girl I met I heard that voice in the back of my mind that had been put there since my bar mitzvah; make sure she’s Jewish. It seriously limited...
Abraham Accords Signals the Reconciliation Between Isaac and Ishmael
The Torah says that Ishmael was a wild child, whose bad behavior caused him to be kicked out of the household of Abraham. Sarah sees Ishmael’s evil practices and banishes him and his mother Hagar out of their home. Ishmael goes on to...
Did Abraham Overpay for the Cave of Machpela?
My grandfather, Rabbi David Stavsky always loved sharing his insights into the weekly Torah portion. Every year, when we would read about the burial of Sarah in Hebron, my grandfather would ask, how did Abraham and Ephron settle on the...
Do Jews Believe in the Afterlife?
After 175 years, Abraham passes away and the Torah uses a very specific formula to describe what happens to him: he was gathered to his kin. Isaac (Genesis 35:29) and Jacob (Genesis 49:33) are similarly described, as are Moses...
Was Isaac Resurrected from the Dead?
Do you believe in the Resurrection of the Dead? Judaism does! Some even believe that Isaac was the first to be resurrected after Abraham killed him on Mount Moriah. The final test that Abraham must endure is the most challenging and...
Abraham’s Lesson: Life is a Test
Rabbi Pinchas Winston discusses the Torah portion of Vayeira in his video series "Salvation through Genesis." Abraham welcomes a number of desert wanderers who turn out to be angels of God. Rabbi Winston points out that life is a test,...
The Spiritual Connection Between Abraham and Trees
In this video class, "Spiritual Growth Through Genesis: Portion of Vayeira" Rabbi Avraham Arieh Trugman explains the connection between Abraham our forefather, and trees. Did you know that according to Jewish mysticism, Abraham and Sarah...
