יום שלישי, ל׳ חשוון תשפ״זTuesday, November 10, 2026
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The Aish Kodesh taught his community, in the abyss of dehumanization and annihilation, that they had been given an opportunity to elicit Hashem’s power to redeem the world and fulfill His promises to our forefathers.
Even a single person’s Torah learning makes the whole world worthwhile!
Eikev gives us the source of the mitzvah to daven. Once again, Rabbinic law has given us the how many times a day, at what times, and what to say. It should, however, never escape us that the Torah’s command to “Serve G-d with all our heart” is the core of our davening.
Covenant grows up here. It moves from bedtime prayers to morning spreadsheets. From mezuzahs on doorposts to mercy in hospital rooms. Not because we are commanded, but because we remember.
There was no danger of becoming arrogant in the desert. There were no self-made men there. It was clear to all that manna rained down from heaven, that water was provided in merit of Miriam, that clothes lasted forever and one’s feet did not swell in the heat (8:4).
The Chazon Ish answered him that Torah is not wisdom; it’s a neshama, a soul.
By not revealing the reward for (most of) the positive mitzvot, HaKadosh Baruch Hu prevented a situation where we would excessively observe only some mitzvot at the expense of others.
As we previously explained, the purpose of techeiles and tzitzis is to straighten the bent path and help connect us back to Hashem, our Source.
Disenfranchised and prolonged grief often require additional support, as they involve barriers – emotional, social, or both – to normal mourning.
A person would think twice before he spoke about someone else, knowing that one statement of lashon hara can cause him to contract tzaraas.
By Risa Rotman
Sunday morning as I was packing up for my retreat, I threw in the Arnica even though I felt like my hand was already feeling and looking much better. It can’t hurt, I thought as I tossed in a few more maybe items.
Our Turn ‘A Gentile Nullifies His Idolatrous Relic...’ (Avodah Zarah 52b)
Eliyahu shared his own pain. I’m Elyakim’s father, he said. He was a security guard at the Nova festival. He saved lives and was killed doing so. And you, Nachman, you survived. Tell me, why did you survive? Nachman had no answer.
Question: I recently returned from a trip abroad and wanted to say HaGomel. When I mentioned this to the officers of my synagogue, however, they told me that I would have to wait until Shabbos to do so. I was not given any reason for this and did not wish to display my ignorance, so I quietly acquiesced. Can you please explain why I had to wait? Name Withheld Via E-mail
To destroy is easy. To build is sacred, slow, and infinitely more precious.
According to our Tradition, not only was it decreed that the adult male population of the generation of the Midbar should wander for 40 years and die out without entering the Holy Land (except for Yehoshua and Kalev), but they actually died on Tisha B’Av – about 15,000 each year.
Adhering to a prohibition like sha’atnez which has kept the Jews alive, but makes as little sense to the layman as the chemical-formula of a life-saving medication, earns the respect of the nations because it is a secret formula that neither they nor us could ever have invented.
The baal habayis could not understand why he merited a visit from R’ Avraham and his son. He waited for the Rav to eat from the delicacies that had been prepared, but R’ Avraham just sat and didn’t do anything.
Most people, at some point in their lives, have felt invincible, unstoppable, almost G-dly. And yet, at other times, these very same people have felt weak, incapable, deflated, and worthless.
Moshe gave the Shema knowing he would not cross the Jordan. He prepared his people not with possessions, but with patterns. That is the quiet brilliance of leadership: offering rhythm in place of proximity.
This is why Rebbe Yossi ben Kisma rejected a substantial monetary offer to move to a city lacking a strong Torah presence. He explained that he prioritized Torah learning and good deeds over money because we take only the former with us to the next world (Avot 6:10).
If a person has an optimistic attitude, the cognitive bias will seek reasons to feel better. It is an inescapable factor in human consciousness that the attitude itself shapes the outcome.
Regarding payment of wages, there is an explicit mitzvah to pay wages promptly (b’yomo titen scharo) and a prohibition to withhold them (bal talin) (Vayikra 19:13; Devarim 15:15; C.M. 339:1).
Question: I recently returned from a trip abroad and wanted to say HaGomel. When I mentioned this to the officers of my synagogue, however, they told me that I would have to wait until Shabbos to do so. I was not given any reason for this and did not wish to display my ignorance, so I quietly acquiesced. Can you please explain why I had to wait? Name Withheld Via E-mail
An Idolatrous Eruv ‘Wood From An Asheira’ (Avoda Zara 49b)
If one were to ask: was it worth experiencing a Holocaust which decimated one third of our people in order to attain a State of Israel? – not only would an affirmative answer be blasphemous, but so is the question.
Notwithstanding Moshe’s defense, the common theme running through these incidents is ingratitude. They had so much to be thankful for. Yet they chose to complain.
If Tzion is to be redeemed, will her captives not be freed as well?
I was taught to make a Kiddush Hashem no matter where I stand; in a parking lot among our own, or as the only Jew in town. Space doesn’t define sanctity. Behavior does. Especially when no one’s watching. Especially when they are.
In a world saturated with the stench of antisemitism, the Gemara puffs a pleasant breath of fresh air.
The Churban “All the Roman commanders who saw the internal conflict among the Jews viewed it as a gift from heaven and urged an immediate attack. But Vespasian wisely counseled patience: ‘If we wait, we will find our enemy fewer in number, after they have worn themselves out through their internal struggle. It […]
The whole Book of Devarim takes place in one location – Arvot Moav – over just 37 days.
How often do we see suffering before our eyes, but somehow we do not notice what is happening?
How was Yonasan allowed to rebuke his own father, Shaul?
How contemporary the Gemara rings when it says the destruction of Yerushalayim puzzled and perplexed the sages, prophets, and angels! It shouldn’t cause us any wonder that we are unable to explain the atrocities of the Holocaust when even prophets and angels were confounded by the similar disasters of yesteryear.
We are guardians over our bodies, not their owners.
Psychologically and sociologically, a conspiracy need not involve maniacal villains plotting world control. It can be an unconscious collusion of interests.
The meraglim not only misunderstood their experience, but they then reported this distortion back to Klal Yisrael.
There’s a limit to how long a person can survive when he is outside of his natural element. When the earthly provisions are depleted, it isn’t long before he will die, unless he returns to a natural earthly environment.
When the borrower refuses to return the borrowed item and continues to use it wrongly, he is considered sholei’ach yad, one who misuses an entrusted item, or sho’el shelo mida’as, one who borrows without permission, and is tantamount to a thief.
When Is Chalav Akum Allowed? ‘Milked By A Gentile’ (Avodah Zarah 39b)
Our justice and our morality are the truth. I’m learning Torah now – chassidut, parashat hashavua. How did I not know about this treasure until now? You shouldn’t have to lose a child, or turn 57, to begin asking who you are and why you’re here.
Question: I recently returned from a trip abroad and wanted to say Ha'Gomel. When I mentioned this to the officers of my synagogue, however, they told me that I would have to wait until Shabbos to do so. I was not given any reason for this and did not wish to display my ignorance, so I quietly acquiesced. Can you please explain why I had to wait? Name Withheld Via E-mail
Each time a phenomenon appears in units of forty in the Torah text, a new reality is about to be born.
G-d instructs Moshe that before he dies he must wage war against the people of Midian for having enticed the leaders of Israel to behave immorally with the Midianite women. This event led to the plague that killed 24,000 Jews (Bamidbar 25:9).
The first notable number is 42. That’s the number of places in which Bnei Yisrael encamped, from the time they left Egypt until they stood poised at the threshold of Eretz Yisrael. If you count the places, you will need to include the place they left Egypt from (Ra-m’seis) among the 42 places.
The Gemara states that one should turn south during prayer if he wants wisdom, and north if he wants wealth. There is no explanation given in the Gemara...
In every home I’ve lived in, one thing has remained constant, a quiet covenant. It’s a reminder of Hashem’s presence, much like a mezuzah, though not one in form.
The fact that there are 42 journeys is not incidental, it corresponds to the name of HaKadosh Baruch Hu that has 42 letters.
As opposed to the word “peace,” which is related to the word “appeasement,” the Hebrew word “shalom” means whole or complete.
The person who sinned and has now repented had to fight harder to conquer his Evil Inclination than the righteous individual.
Another way to get close to the Shechinah is by visiting the sick. As Rashi teaches us in Parshas Vayechi, The Shechinah always resides by the head of a choleh, an ill person.
There are two levels of reality: The first is how things appear on the physical surface; the second is the meaning that lies behind that exterior.
During the years that I was a division head, 98% of the campers in my division who were homesick were completely fine and enjoying camp within a week. But that first week can be gut wrenching.
In principle, certain sins indeed leave a mark and are absorbed so deeply that the body must be destroyed. Yet, if the internal actions and repentance reach a level that rationalizations peel away – or at least significantly weaken – the vessel is reformed without actual destruction.
Even investments, which do belong to the person in his lifetime, should ideally be divided according to the beneficiaries. Although these investments are part of his estate, since the person designated beneficiaries, the principle of mitzvah lekayem divrei hames applies.
An Essential Agent ‘Set In The Skin Of The Rennet Of Nevela’ (Avodah Zarah 35a)
When someone makes shalom between rival parties, what does that mean?
Question: I recently returned from a trip abroad. When I entered my synagogue early one weekday morning, I asked the officers for an aliyah so that I could bless Gomel. I was informed that I could receive an aliyah; however, as per the rabbi’s instruction, I would have to wait until the Sabbath to bless Gomel. I was not given any reason for this and did not wish to display my ignorance, so I quietly acquiesced. Can you please explain what was meant? Name Withheld Via E-mail
We daven together in synagogues that feel familiar whether we’re in Toronto or Tel Aviv. We mourn together when tragedy strikes and we celebrate together when a lost hostage comes home or an aliyah flight lands in Ben-Gurion Airport.
Going out before the people and going in before them is one type of leadership. It is the leadership of the humble public servant who bends before the needs of his people.
Not every gut impulse is a moral directive. When we confuse conscience with certainty, we risk mistaking personal anger for sacred missions.
If Parshat Bamidbar showed why the Book of Bamidbar is called the Book of Numbers, then Parshat Pinchas confirms that name.
Rabbbeinu Bachye finds it problematic to accept the literal interpretation that Hashem somehow erred, requiring our intercession on His behalf. He explains that the real purpose of this mitzvah of the Chatat on Rosh Chodesh is to give hope to those who have gone astray but wish to return to the faithful service of Hashem.
Striking the right balance between Torah and one’s livelihood is a tricky business. Especially since making a living is a mitzvah in itself.
We might think ancient society was cruel to women – and in many ways, the ancient world did not sufficiently protect individual rights – but I can’t think of anything more cruel than the modern conception that a woman should feel obligated to compete in the employment marketplace and jump back into work six weeks or three months after the most profound experience of childbirth.
We don’t wait for spirituality to come to us; we proactively seek it out. We don’t let time wash over us; we actively ride the waves of time.
Working six days and resting on the seventh reminds us that Hashem did the same when He created the world. Shabbat is a weekly reminder of how the world came to be. It was created by Hashem, and is not just here on its own.
It’s that sense of altruism and unity that gives us hope that we will merit to witness Mashiach.
I understand that halacha frowns on engaging in personal needs before Shacharis, including travel, Eliyahu said. But I have a choice between davening at home and then fighting traffic, often getting late to work, or joining a minyan near work and avoiding traffic. Rabbi Dayan listened attentively. Eliyahu asked, Can I drive to work and daven Shacharis there?
A Matter Of Time ‘One Who Is Recognized As An Expert...’ (Avoda Zarah 26b)
We live such public and exposed lives today, yet in this week’s parsha we are reminded to seek the blessing of privacy.
Question: I recently returned from a trip abroad. When I entered my synagogue early one weekday morning, I asked the officers for an aliyah so that I could bless HaGomel. I was informed that I could receive an aliyah, however – as per the Rabbi’s instruction – I would have to wait until the Sabbath to bless HaGomel. I was not given any reason for this and did not wish to display my ignorance, so I quietly acquiesced. Can you please explain what was meant? Name Withheld Via Email
In Parshat Balak, Bilaam never saw the people he was meant to curse. He viewed them from a distance; abstractly, impersonally. His words came not from relationship, but rather from obligation, from politics, from agenda. And yet they could have reshaped a people’s destiny.
Balak realized that Midyan and Moav, the erstwhile enemies, would have to make a truce and gang up as allies against Israel. But since G-d was on Israel’s side, there was no way he could prevent the Jews from ultimately taking over the land.
Balak precedes the Fast of the Fourth Month (that’s what the navi calls Shiv’a Asar b’Tammuz) almost 80% of the time. That includes, in Chutz LaAretz, the years when Shavuot is Friday-Shabbat and the sedra right before the fast is Chukat-Balak.
Balak was evil – he did not want to elevate himself to the level of Am Yisrael, he wanted to reduce Am Yisrael down to his level, or even lower.
One may not sell lions to Gentiles, according to the Talmud, because lions can cause injury to the public (Avodah Zarah 16), to put it mildly.
His father told him: You decide which yeshiva you want to go to. Don’t tell me your decision. When the day comes to leave to yeshiva, take your suitcase, go to the yeshiva, and I don’t want to know where you are going.
By Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks z"l
According to he Netziv, If Jews live distinctive and apart from others they will dwell safely, but if they seek to emulate ‘the nations’ they ‘will not be reckoned’ as anything special at all.
Though the Shulchan Aruch agrees with the Rambam’s broad prohibition, his final clause might offer some room for an answer. It is permitted to note the beauty of an idolator if the focus of the comment is to praise G-d and not the person.
Idolatry is insidious and it sneaks into the hearts of the unwary by way of small compromises and prohibited acts that appear insignificant at first.
Rabbi Sauber told his class, We are about to learn about the greatest act of self-sacrifice that ever occurred.
The most obvious form of chesed is giving money, but this is far from ideal. Short-term monetary gifts do not usually solve a long-term struggle with poverty; the person will therefore remain dependent and poor.
If the borrower slipped payment through the mail slot without prior arrangement, and somehow it got lost in the household shuffle or some other manner, it is unclear whether this is considered valid repayment, replied Rabbi Dayan.
Exchanging Land? ‘Nor Shall You Show Them Favor’ (Avodah Zara 20a)
Is there a halachic source for the Mi Sheberach other than its presence in the siddur?
It is impossible to reach an agreement with Amalek, because the only thing that will satisfy them is our obliteration and…G-d's name in the world can never be complete until Amalek is obliterated.
Unlike the two previous sedras of Shelach and Korach, each of which were two-thirds story and a third juxtapositional mitzvot, Chukat’s three mitzvot are part of the same mitzvah topic – namely, para aduma (the red heifer), with the bulk of the sedra being a string of episodes in the Midbar-wandering period.
Because if it is corruption we are worried about, there is no greater corruption and source of impurity than the presence of death itself.
We are living in a world of chaos, never sure what tomorrow brings. As I write these words it is impossible for me to know what our days will look like by the time you read my message.
The attitude that one knows that you’ve got my back isn’t born overnight. It’s achieved with a persistent series of small acts and gestures where husband and wife demonstrate that you are first in my book.
Like many Israeli leaders, Netanyahu often peppers his speeches with biblical verses, usually used as cultural or historical touchstones rather than as expressions of personal religiosity. Keinon points out that Netanyahu’s use of the Shema prayer is less typical and perhaps indicative of a deeper religious arousal.
When one makes peace in his home, the Torah considers it as if he established peace among the entire Jewish Nation.
November 6, 2026 
