Bereshit

There is a critical line: “And God blessed the seventh day, and hallowed it; because that in it He rested from all His work which God in creating had made.  “And God blessed the seventh day, and hallowed it; because that in it He rested from all His work which God in creating had made.”… Continue reading Bereshit

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V’zot Ha’beracha

Rabbi Twerski of Portland Oregon asked me how it could say Torah tziva lanu Moshe, morasha kehilat Yaacov “Moses commanded us a Torah, an inheritance of the congregation of Jacob” if Moshe is speaking. If we go back to the beginning of the Parsha, Moshe is called “the man of G-d” for the first and only… Continue reading V’zot Ha’beracha

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Shabbat Chol Hamoed (Pesach and Sukkot)

As mentioned in the parsha writeup, there is a phrase repeated three times in this short reading in various variations – matzati chain be-einecha, I find favor in your eyes. It is a common turn of phrase – but never this common. Christians might translate it as ‘grace’. It is not exclusive to G-d. Jacob says it to Esav. It first… Continue reading Shabbat Chol Hamoed (Pesach and Sukkot)

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Yom Kippur

The Holy of Holies is referenced as being within the Parochet/curtains or the House of Parochet/Curtains. The woven curtains cross between the outside world and the holiness of the Mishkan and the Holy places and the Holy of Holies. The inner curtains are a point of crossover between the timeless and the point of conversion… Continue reading Yom Kippur

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Haazinu

In the first pesukim of this reading, we have three forms of water supporting vegetation. But in the middle of these three forms, we see storm winds attacking it. The storm winds stick out. Rashi says they help vegetation grow and be strong – but they don’t really do this. Rashi was a vinter (a… Continue reading Haazinu

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Rosh Hashana Day Two

Avraham splits the wood before leaving. On the one hand this shows a tremendous level of conscientiousness. He seems to be making sure the offering faces no hickups. On the other, surely there will be wood closer to mountain. Why doesn’t he just bring Yitzchak, a knife, some fire and an ax and hop on… Continue reading Rosh Hashana Day Two

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Syria – Sept 3, 2013

I’ve been struggling with what the proper U.S. response should be to the crises in Syria. Both obvious answers (intervention or not) leave a tremendous amount to be desired. I will assume the readers of this thought are well informed and spare them the recap. I do, however, highly recommend the work of Michael Totten. He… Continue reading Syria – Sept 3, 2013

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