Musings
Dig Deeper!
Shalom friends! I hope you had the most beautiful Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Adar! I know we are already gearing up for parshas Terumah, but I want to share a thought I had over Shabbos on the opening pesukim in parshas Mishpatim. (The tzaddikim teach that the first three days of the week draw their energy…
Read More“My Abba!”
I was sitting at the dining room table this morning with my wife and our Shmuel. I was in tallis and tefillin, davening, and Shmuel was coloring. It was silent, serene, a rare and welcome break from the frequent chaos of quarantine. Suddenly, Shmuel looks and says, “Abba?” I look up and smile, nodding my…
Read MoreThe Inner Light of Chanukah #1: Universal Individuality
In the beginning of hilchos Chanukah, we find two halachos whose contrary implications point to a deeply fundamental idea in Jewish thought. The Shulchan Aruch (671:1) states that one who does not have enough money to afford the materials required to fulfill the mitzvah of hadlakas ner Chanuka in even its most basic form (a…
Read MoreDon’t Ruin the Rare “Neshama Sighting”!
You are at the zoo with the family on a lazy summer Sunday. As you enjoy watching the cute little Capuchins perform their antics and marvel at the majesty of the elephants, something catches your eye. You notice a crowd of people crowding around one of the enclosures over by the lions or the bears.…
Read MoreThe Greatness of the Mekablim
It has long been suggested that the world is split into two kinds of people – givers and takers; “Mashpi’im u’mekablim”. I think this truth comes to the fore particularly in the area of Torah study, especially with regard to matters of “hashkafa”. There are those who feel comfortable wading into the vast ocean of…
Read MoreUnderstanding “Chassidishe Kana’us”
I received the following question and thought it might be something others have wondered about as well. I know the answer is more complicated than can be properly treated over a short Facebook message, but I think it is a start. Question: Hi! I have a question about the different sects of chassidut… These sects…
Read MoreA Sentence is Completed
A few minutes ago, I was working on a future book, merrily pounding out words on the keyboard and minding my own business when something suddenly caught my eye. As I typed, I noticed a small creature, so tiny it was barely there at all, scurrying frantically between the keys on my laptop. It is…
Read MoreThe Ocean of the Talmud
The term “Yam HaTalmud” traditionally serves as a metaphor for the Gemara’s breadth. However, perhaps even more so, it must be seen as a reference to its awesome and mysterious depth. The black and white columns of static letters ebb and flow; questions and answers, challenge and resolution, Halacha and Aggadah. Those with sensitive hearts…
Read MoreA Question of Vessels
Yesterday, on the way to my weekly class in Yeshivat Mevaseret Tzion, I had the radio tuned to a Jewish music station. They were playing “oldies but goodies” and I was thoroughly enjoying songs I hadn’t heard since my childhood when, suddenly, the music abruptly stopped, replaced by a static hiss. I was passing through…
Read MoreExplore the Open Avenues!
As a kid, I used to come down with strep throat every year or so. I would feel it coming on the night before and inevitably wake up with swollen tonsils, a pounding headache, and the inability to swallow. After a quick trip to the doctor, the recovery process was pretty simple; 24 hours after…
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