I write this article fully aware of the risk at stake. Namely - loosing popularity. To be honest, though, I do not publish my articles or videos in a quest to gain fanfare. And this is probably not news to you, just look at my YouTube channel and see how few views I get! My ...
Explore these relevant and interesting views into the weekly parsha. Share something insightful with your family at the Shabbos table.
On the Front Lines of Kiruv
Allow me to share with you a conversation I once had with the rabbi of an “out of town” outreach kollel in America. After spending a few days in his community I approached him to let his ears hear all the great things I had heard over the course of my visit. I told him ...
New Dead Sea Discovery
There I was on the shores of the Dead Sea. My chavrusa, Moshe Lambert, and I had opted for a change of scenery for our daily chavrusa. We packed our bags with all the essentials - swimsuits and of course, our gemaras. Little did we know, however, as we leaned back in our beach chairs ...
Jerry Garci-nan: Skeletons from My Closet
As the smoke clears from Chicago’s Soldier Field there could not be a more appropriate time to address a particular phenomenon that I think every ba’al teshuva is familiar with. Namely, finding things in the Torah world that hint towards people, places, and things that we know only from our secular upbringing. For example, ...
Israel, Politics, & the Jews
Without getting overly involved, I’d like to share with you a thought or two about the recent events in Israel and its effects on the Jewish world. A Rabbi once told me one of the great benefits Jews have gained since the establishment of the State of Israel is the preservation of the Jewish identity ...
The Drinks Are On Me
Reb Levi Yizchok of Berdichev was legendary for his ability to highlight the greatness of the Jewish people even in their ugliest moments. His stories are classics of the Chassidic dynasty, and if I had one that likened to his it would be the following.
It was a mid-summer day and I was walking ...
Why do Jews Love to Donate?
"Cause for concern" was the common thread running through two articles I read recently on the topic of Jewish-American philanthropy. Research shows that while Jews rank amongst the most charitable, the community at large is more likely to support a non-Jewish organization than a Jewish one.
As negative as this may sound, it does lead ...
Jewish Women
Positioned at the foot of Har Sinai, the Jewish people take camp and prepare for the epic moment of Matan Torah. Hashem opens the heavens and calls to Moshe - כֹּה תֹאמַר לְבֵית יַעֲקֹב וְתַגֵּיד לִבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל - "So you should say to the House of Jacob and relate to the Children of Israel" ...
Following the Leader
Imagine you were one of the Jews leaving Egypt. You've got your wife and kids, very limited supplies, and the choice of heading into the vast, barren desert or cruising along a well supplied and populated road. What would be your course of travel? Parshas Beshalach begins with Hashem leading the Jewish people out of ...
Pay Day
There's an interesting code-of-conduct cited in the Talmud. The rule is: if someone has something that is yours, do not be sneaky about retrieving it, lest you appear like a thief. Rather you should go into his house, use as much force as is necessary, and take back what is yours (Bava Kama; 27b).
Having ...