Shabbat Eykev Do as you would be done by

August 22, 2024 by  
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The weekly reading of Eykev follows the pattern of the previous three weeks. Read more

Shabbat Vayeytzey: Initiative

November 23, 2023 by  
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When we first encounter Jacob, he is described as “Ish tam yoshev ohalim” which can be translated as a simple person living in tents or a straightforward, honest person living in tents.

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Shabbat Toldot: Esau or Ishmael

November 16, 2023 by  
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Last week, we read about how Isaac and Ishmael came together to bury their father. And in fact, they lived together at the same place, Be’er Lechai Roi. Their coming together seems to have been complete. Read more

Unimaginable pain

November 10, 2023 by  
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The unimaginable pain on seeing the evidence of children tortured, limbs cut off and burnt to death, screams for an explanation. Why did God let this happen? Read more

Once a Jew, always a Jew?

October 16, 2023 by  
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Yom Kippur thoughts

September 18, 2023 by  
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Rabbi Raymond Apple shares his thoughts. Read more

Teshuvah is for everyone

September 11, 2023 by  
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No moment in Jewish history was as breathtaking as the revelation at Sinai. Read more

Shabbat Ki Tavo: The Land of Israel

August 31, 2023 by  
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“When you enter the land that your God is giving you as a heritage, and you possess it and settle in it, you shall take the first fruit of the soil, which you harvest from the land that your God giving you, and put them in a basket and go to the place that God chooses and to the priest in charge at that time and say to him, “I acknowledge this day before your God that I have entered the land that swore to our fathers to assign us.” ( Deuteronomy 26:1-2). Read more

What is one to make of Albert Einstein’s statement that “The Jewish God is simply a negation of superstition”?

July 31, 2023 by  
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What is the meaning of life?

July 3, 2023 by  
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Shabbat Behar & Behukotai – The Good the Bad and the Ugly

May 11, 2023 by  
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The book of the Torah called Vayikra or Leviticus, is also called the Book of Purity. Read more

Shabbat Tazria & Metzorah: Healthy in body and mind

April 20, 2023 by  
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The chapters of the Torah that we are reading now are concerned with health and what happens when our bodies do not function effectively or normally. Read more

Q. Why do (Orthodox) synagogues not allow the use of organ music?

April 17, 2023 by  
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Shabbat Vayakhel Pekudei: Repetition is Good

March 16, 2023 by  
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It is an interesting phenomenon that the major events of the Torah that play a crucial role in the life of the people from a philosophical point of view are repeated in slightly different ways. Read more

Why?

February 17, 2023 by  
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Innocent worshippers were shot outside a synagogue. Read more

Shabbat BeShalach: Women at Sea

February 3, 2023 by  
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Rashi, commenting on this week’s amazing events at the Red Sea, quotes the Midrash ( Mechilta 15:22) that at the Red Sea, God was seen by the humblest maidservant in a more powerful way than even the greatest of the prophets. Read more

Does Judaism have any list of banned books?

February 1, 2023 by  
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Can I reconvert to Judaism?

January 27, 2023 by  
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Shabbat Shemot: Who is God?

January 12, 2023 by  
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Throughout the Torah, God has been referred to anthropomorphically. Read more

Shabbat Vayeytzey: Dreams and Fears

December 1, 2022 by  
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Jacob flees his parents’ home because he fears that Esau will kill him for taking the blessing from Isaac. Read more

Was the fruit of the Tree of Life from which Adam and Eve ate really an apple?

October 19, 2022 by  
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On the other hand

October 16, 2022 by  
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Without a doubt, one of the most evocative highlights of Sukkot (Tabernacles) is the massed blessing of the Kohanim at the Kotel. Read more

Shabbat Ki Tavo: Rewards and punishment

September 15, 2022 by  
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The Torah this week contains blessings and warnings. Read more

Shabbat Devarim: Optimism despite it all

August 4, 2022 by  
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The Book of Devarim, the last book of the Torah, is dominated by the personality of Moses even more than the previous three books. Read more

Shabbat Shelach Lecha: Grasshoppers

June 23, 2022 by  
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Moses was instructed by God to send men to go on a tour of the Land of Canaan. Read more

Shabbat Kedoshim: About sex

May 5, 2022 by  
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The part of the Torah we read this week, Kedoshim,  contains more moral and ethical laws than any other part of the Torah, that you will be familiar with. Read more

Shabbat Acharei Mot: Arrogance

April 28, 2022 by  
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Previously in Leviticus Chapter 9, the two sons of Aaron, Nadav, and Avihu had watched and participated in the dedication of the priests and the tabernacle. Read more

Failed priests and prophets

April 8, 2022 by  
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There seems to me to be a permanent state of conflict in all religions between religious authority and individual spirituality or mysticism. Read more

Shabbat Tazria: Rosh Hodesh Nisan – Purity

March 31, 2022 by  
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Having dealt with the sacrificial system and its ceremonials, the Torah now turns to human beings and how they should take steps to care for their physical as well as spiritual lives. Read more

Shabbat Pikudei: The Messiah

March 3, 2022 by  
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The term Mashiach is usually associated with the apocalyptical idea of a Messiah who will change the world to make it a more peaceful and honest place. Read more

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