The right horn of the ram offered by Abraham will be used as the Shofar of Redemption. (Pirkei D'Rabbi Eliezer, Chapter 31.) We blow the Shofar on Rosh Hashana to recall the merit of Abraham's great deed, which happened on Rosh Hashana, and to mention...
Then all the men who were aware that their wives were sacrificing to other gods, as well as all their wives, answered Jeremiah. There was a great crowd of them representing all the people who lived in northern and southern Egypt. They answered, “We will...
I can sense the young boy’s desire for that pie. He is probably dreaming of a way to climb up there, with his friend’s help, of course, and taste the pie that was so cruelly placed beyond his reach. I can smell the pie and imagine...
The 1st of Elul is the Yahrtzeit of Rav Chanoch Henach Dov Maierof Alesk, the Lev Sameyach (1800-1884). Rav Chanoch married Frieda Rokeach, daughter of the first Belzer Rebbe, Rav Shalom. Following
“You shall not plant for yourselves an idolatrous tree - any tree - near the Altar of God, your Lord, that you shall make for yourself.” (Deuteronomy 16:21) It was the custom of idolaters to landscape their temples in order to attract worshippers. (Rambam, Sefer...
"As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over...
Sometimes we have to consult with the strangest people: Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish taught: If you sold your healthy body to the Luddites, who are cannibals, you could have gotten a great price, but now, that you have not cared for your health, you will...
A constant refrain of my childhood was: “A bubblegum tree will grow in your stomach if you swallow your gum.” It was intended to frighten me out of swallowing my gum, one of the greatest pleasures of my life. I could not imagine that my...
“A twisted thing cannot be made straight; and what is not there cannot be numbered.” (Ecclesiastes 1:15) In this world, he who is crooked can be made straight and he who is wanting can be numbered; but in the World To Come, he who is...
“I am to my beloved and my beloved is to me.” (Song of Songs 6:4) At first glance it seemed that I was observing an actual Asheira – a tree dedicated as an idol – worshipper. Numerous colorful African scarves were wrapped around his head and...
Awhile he holds some false way, undebarr’d By thwarting signs, and braves The freshening wind and blackening waves. And then the tempest strikes him; and between The lightning bursts is seen Only a driving wreck, And the pale master on his spar-strew-deck With anguish’d face and flying hair Grasping the rudder hard, Still bent...
"Excessive sorrow laughs. Excessive joy weeps." William Blake I’ve been mulling Blake’s words all week. I admit that although I have a sense of what he means, I am not certain. The Seven Weeks of Nechama address deep, deep sorrow, leading into the Days of Awe,...
In the clearing stands a boxer And a fighter by his trade And he carries the reminders Of ev'ry glove that laid him down Or cut him till he cried out In his anger and his shame "I am leaving, I am leaving" But the fighter still remains From ‘The Boxer,’ by Simon...
I have been looking forward to this Shabbat for a few weeks because two of my closest friends, I think of them as brother and sister, will be with us. I love looking forward to things! I usually wake up looking forward to something. In the...
A knight of the Templar who kills an evil man should not be condemned for killing the man but praised for killing the evil. St Bernard of Clairvaux, Liber Ad Milities Templi Who is the most hated person in the Bible? Pharaoh, Balaam, Korach, Goliath, Nebuchadnezzar and Haman...