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Shema Israel…but who is listening today? We have reached the fifth book of the Torah, Devarim also known as Deuteronomy. It was written in a more personal way where Moshe Rabeinu reminds the people of all their experiences, whereas the Creator dictated the first four books. Here, we see Moshe as being more human, and […]
Who is the Torah for? Last week I was asked this question by someone who is writing his second book, “Do you have anything you can suggest from your rabbi’s teachings that underscores the importance of Israel for the church to know?” My first thought was “Why is that only important for the church?” The […]
16 Av 5782 Why do we make things so complicated? Do listen to the recorded message, click on: https://youtu.be/5r2RGlwTI7o I can’t tell you how excited I was as I was reading this portion, Vaetchanan. It’s a long one but it is such an important message for us today. I could hear Moshe’s desperation; first, as he […]
What Makes us Different? This week’s portion, Va’etchanan וָאֶתְחַנַּן (and I pleaded), recounts one of the most emotional and profound speeches in history; it is Moshe’s personal message to his beloved nation, Israel. God had allowed him to climb up, to contemplate the land of Israel, but he didn’t only see the physical land; the future of […]
What will it Take to Turn the Tide? Av 11 5780 The word Va’etchanan וָֽאֶתְחַנַּ֖ן, “I pleaded” is related to the word חַנַּ֖ן chanan which means grace or mercy. It depicts someone who is requesting an undeserved gift. In Gematria, the sum of its letters is 515, which according to our sages, represents the number […]
There is only one God 16 Av 5777 In Deuteronomy, Moshe explained to his people that they were a privileged nation and needed to take heed of the Creator’s Words reminding them that no other nation had such a God and Protector who would be with them always. He advised them to teach this to […]
16 Av 5776 פרשת וָאֶתְחַנַּן, ט”ז אב, תשע”ו In the end of the last portion, we read that the LORD our God goes ahead of us to fight for us. Moshe will constantly be quoting the past in order to prepare this next generation who would be the ones to enter the Promised Land. In […]
