By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz Hanukkah is quickly approaching and I am reminded of a joke my father, of blessed memory, used to tell every year after lighting the candles. With the doughnuts and potato pancakes arranged on the table and...
Father’s Day is a delightful blend of a secular and religious holiday, combining consumerism with the Biblical mandate to “Honor thy father.” But is it artificially amplified? Are fathers really that important? Mothers are clearly...
In Leviticus, God prohibits Israel from eating blood in the strictest terms. This prohibition also includes hunting and eating from the carcass of a dead animal (Leviticus 17:10-16), and the punishment for one who violates this is karet....
The Shabbat which immediately precedes the holiday of Purim is known as Shabbat Zachor, the Sabbath of remembering. In addition to the regular Torah reading, we read the verses commanding the Jews to remember what Amalek did to them when...
The Hebrews are attacked by the Amalekites in Rephidim. Joshua is ordered by Moses to lead Israel in battle, and Moses watches from a hillside with the staff of God in his hand. When Moses' hand is raised, Israel prevails, but when it is...
The narrative of Joseph's descent into Egypt is put aside for one chapter as the Torah relates the unusual story of the levirate marriage between Judah and his daughter-in-law Tamar. This unusual union resulted in twins and, similar to...
Jacob is perhaps the Biblical character whose life is more closely followed than any other, with the Torah following his conflict with his brother while still in the womb and relating his deathbed blessings. Perhaps the most pivotal...
While she was pregnant, Rebecca complained of pain. God reassured her that the twins she was carrying would both establish great nations (Genesis 25:23). The Bible follows the story of Jacob as his family grows into the nation of Israel....
What's the difference between getting high on drugs and getting high on God? Rabbi Shlomo Katz explains based on the Torah portion of Toldot that a Godly high keeps you high, but getting high on drugs, leaves you feeling low.
Have you ever wanted to learn the Bible in Hebrew? Rabbi Elan Adler goes through the weekly Torah portion of Toldot and offers insights into the Hebrew meaning of the stories between Jacob and Esau.
