יום חמישי, כ״ה חשוון תשפ״זThursday, November 5, 2026
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One of the major messages of the Lubavitcher Rebbe was to utilize every situation in which we find ourselves for good.
This is the true meaning of Pesach – to restore the unique relationship between ourselves and our Creator, as individuals and as a collective.
Let us begin with the facts. We were poor slaves in Egypt – fact! We ate matzos when we left Egypt – fact! We eat matzos to remind us of our poverty of slavery in Egypt – fact????
Indeed, the very name for Heaven, shamayim, is a composition of aish and mayim, fire and water, which though usually in opposition are fused together peacefully in the Heavens.
Don't be humble, you're not that great. -Golda Meir
While it is unfortunate that even observant Diaspora Jews can be corrupted by the moral values of their host countries, the greater tragedy is that they are not living up to their full potential in life.
Why is this Shabbos different from all other Shabboses? On this Shabbos, Israel became a nation unified in our service of Hashem, as was anticipated two weeks ago on Shabbat HaChodesh.
When one buys or builds a new house, he should make a chanukas habayis. It’s an important act of thanking Hashem . . . a time of dedication when one energizes the holiness of the dwelling.
HKB”H, in most circumstances, tries to minimize the shame caused to the sinner... With lashon hara it is exactly the opposite. The entire procedure is deliberately made as visual and as public as possible.
R’ Chaim chose to sit in the middle of the shul, off to the side. Anyone could have the honor of sitting next to him, something that was the dream of a lifetime for many.
Absence diminishes little passions and increases great ones, as wind extinguishes candles and fans a fire. -Francois de la Rochefoucauld
The Gemara explains the discrepancy in the offerings in a beautiful way, to the effect that Israel will bring what they have available and Hashem will accept it.
Do not allow any bad thought to arise in our hearts, heaven forbid, neither when we are awake nor in a dream.
We can admire and learn from people who are able to find the extraordinary strength to see the oneg while understanding and empathizing with those who are having a hard time seeing past the negah
The mere existence of life is not sufficient. Life derives its true value and meaning as a tool to be used in the service of the Divine.
Wishing all a Happy New Year-but when?
Even more curious is the latter part of the Midrash – to prevent becoming afflicted with the nega’im, what should one do? Eat, drink and be happy! Have a continual party – that is the remedy!
On this Night of Heritage, when we have the opportunity to etch the fundamentals of our faith into our children and grandchildren’s memory banks, it behooves us to spend time in preparation for this monumental task.
His son, Rabbi Shlomo Kanievsky touched the crowd with stories of childhood games played with his father, the mastermind, and uncovered a little bit about the relationship with his deceased wife, Batsheva.
I count life just a stuff to try the soul's strength on. -Robert Browning
Israel is to participate in - and elevate - every sphere of national life in order to reveal the inner connection of all that exists to the Divine Ideal.
The rebbi felt terrible that there was a child sitting in his class who was not eating lunch…
HKB”H created most of the human body with redundancy. We have two eyes, ears, nostrils, arms, legs, hemispheres in the brain, chambers in the heart, lungs, kidneys, reproductive organs, etc., the logic being – “if one fails, we have a spare.”
Since Hashem despises the evil person as He is, so to speak, nauseated from the praise of the wicked, it is a good idea to preface our Seder with teshuvah.
Israel has dramatically returned to the world stage in what has so far been merely the introduction to a revolutionary process destined to free humankind from a global order that promotes injustice.
When our haftara was designated for a week such as this, thousands of years ago, the sages saw fit to add another couple of verses to the end, spoken by Yirmiyahu almost a thousand years before that.
The intent of the commandment to clean the ashes was to bring his thoughts down to the people on earth, for him to ‘see’ the hard-working people who were involved in everyday life.
I know very few who enjoy matzo year round. Most people can’t wait for Pesach to end, to get rid of all their leftover matzo.
How many times have any of us said to ourselves: “I felt so badly that I wanted to die.” And yet, G-d does not demand that of us. He wants us to live and do teshuvah.
On the stage of history, we have been taught that Hashem often uses the wicked to destroy the wicked. One evil nation will conquer another, only in due course to be conquered by the next to arise.
On Shabbat we finished reading the book of Exodus with its emotional description of the completion of the Mishkan, the spiritual center that accompanied us in the desert. This apparently was the first crowd-funding endeavor of our people.
Most people have the will to win, few have the will to prepare to win. -Bobby Knight (all-time great college basketball coach)
The offering of the korbanos in itself does not achieve atonement. It is when the person’s mind and heart are overcome with thoughts of teshuvah that there is atonement.
We are in the land of “What have you done for me lately?” where the standard is “What’s in it for me?”
If the sin originated with food, then its remedy and atonement must involve food. This is why Purim is so food oriented...
Alexander Kaganovsky, president of our cong. asked for silence and said: 'I want to thank all the emissaries who have stayed behind with us. For many years you have been saying that you are an inseparable part of us, but now you proved it in the moment of truth.'
When it came to the “Jewish question,” Achashverosh seemed to be completely neutral. So how could he be as bad as the man who destroyed the Temple?
It was Mordechai's pivotal decision not to bow or budge before Haman that catapulted the Jews into a situation of possible annihilation, and it was he who commanded Esther, his own wife, to risk her life to save her people.
It's important to recognize the internal development of the Hebrew tribes from the Exodus from Egypt to the Brit Sinai and consecration of the Mishkan.
One word of derision can offset a thousand words of mussar.
In our haftara, we find Shlomo HaMelech completing the construction and initiating the dedication of the First Beit HaMikdash. In Shlomo we find a unique synthesis of the attributes of Moshe and of Betzalel.
These last two years have demonstrated how vital it is to feel solidarity not only toward those who have passed away but toward those who have been sick but are not yet fully recovered, toward business owners, toward coping parents, and, in fact, toward everyone who has been affected,--which means every one of us.
Our Sages tell us that righteous men and women merit that their descendants continue in their ways.
The wickedness of men and women can live long after they are gone.
If Dan is the extreme expression of Yosef in the same way that Shimon is of Yehuda, what was the importance of appointing tribesmen of Yehuda and Dan to lead the construction of the Mishkan?
Baal and his prophets are not worth the time or the energy of the last remaining prophet to Hashem. His mission is to the people of Israel who have abandoned the service of Hashem.
If one is quiet, it indicates that the matter at hand does not concern him.
The old adage, the best present you can give to your children is more of your presence, is an extremely vital concept. So too is the famous acronym for the word “family” – “Father and Mother I Love You.”
A mistake that nearly had catastrophic results for the entire people of Israel ultimately revealed Moshe's true greatness as a national leader.
Many years ago, I took my children to the Museum of Natural History in Manhattan. A guide took us around and was patiently describing the history of the world, showing us fossils with great enthusiasm, and talking in detail about prehistoric times. About 15 minutes into the tour, one of my daughters, four years old […]
Avoid popularity if you would have peace. -Abraham Lincoln
Initially, we have the task of simply lighting a fire. To educate, to explain, to pay close attention and to inspire.
When the navi Yechezel is given a vision of the third Beit HaMikdash, he is commanded to teach its measurements and dimensions to the people of Israel. The people to whom he delivers this prophecy have yet to build the second Beit HaMikdash, so it's a bit incongruous to be speaking of a third.
By submerging individual identity into the collective Hebrew nation, the kohanim work to cleanse the children of Israel from all transgressions and to inspire the people with a powerful show of kedusha.
R’ Simcha Bunim noted, If you want to go collecting you need a coat with two pockets. One for the honor that some will give you, and the other is for the ridicule that will come your way.
The human contribution is the essential ingredient. It is only in the giving of oneself to others that we truly live. -Ethel Percy Andrus
It is considered very mature to salt away money for our retirement. But let’s ask ourselves: If we retire at 65, how long will retirement be? Another 50 years?
What can the Mishkan teach us about the ways Divine revelation is channeled into our world?
The trebled height of the Beit HaMikdash the Malbim associates with greater ambition that Shlomo has for the spiritual purpose of the Sanctuary that he has built.
The goal is not to have God do what we want, but rather to do what He wants and thereby sanctify Him in the world. Often, that is accomplished by praying, but sometimes it is better accomplished by not praying – we are to look to halacha to tell us which situation is which
Swept up in their love for the mitzvah and the joy of having an opportunity to fulfill another mitzvah, the impending doom was cast aside.
How should we understand the difference between the Written Torah and the Oral Torah within the context of Israel's identity and development?
I would not want to worship a G-d whose ways are understood by the mind of mere mortals.
Why did Hashem create a world in which inspiration, physical sensation, and emotional delight always fade? What is the deep spiritual idea behind this pattern?
In our society, one of the biggest problems is the burgeoning jail population. Society is saddled with sheltering and catering to the needs of its malefactors and, sadly, the system is largely ineffective.
The wise person does not become distracted by nonsense.
The covenant was a last chance for the Jewish nation to show that they were worthy of their sovereignty and wealth.
Why were the Hebrews so surprised by the sudden realization that they would receive the Torah as a set of laws & a mission for the rest of humanity?
We have heard and not understood. We have seen and not known. Now we are those holy seeds lying in the ground waiting to sprout so that the decrees of Hashem might at last be heeded and carried out.
If the drowning of the Egyptians was because of the drowning of the Jewish babies in the Nile, shouldn’t the Egyptian soldiers have drowned in the Nile rather than in the Red Sea?
Our fervor and dedication to Torah study must never wane. In that way, Hashem will achieve true satisfaction and pleasure, as He did when we stood at Har Sinai and accepted the Torah.
In Parshas Yisro, Klal Yisrael hear the ultimate truth, the Aseres Hadibros (Ten Commandments), as they embrace their lofty mission in this world.
When Jews came to America and they were confronted with the WASP society that didn’t allow them into the country clubs, some made the mistake of thinking that if they became more American they would be more accepted.
Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook wrote: Leaving Egypt will forever represent spring for the entire world.
Man is born free, yet he is everywhere in chains.-Jean Jacques Rousseau
Why didn’t G-d wipe out the army in Egypt? Why was it necessary to have them pursue the Jewish people into the Sea of Reeds?
Between the smashing of Egypt's military at the Sea of Reeds and the war against Amalek at Rephidim, the Hebrews had to develop a national perception of emuna in preparation for receiving the Torah.
Krias Yam Suf was in fact a necessary step before the Jews could receive the Torah. What is the significance of the water of the Yam Suf, especially in regards to the Jewish People's journey from Mitzrayim to Har Sinai?
The difference between the righteous and the wicked is in the longevity of positive passing thoughts.
One must strive to always be moving upwards spiritually, with no restrictions or restraints in his Torah learning. In this way, the person gains a more educated and knowledgeable grasp of mitzvos, aveiros, and one’s mission in life.
Let not thy will roar, when thy power can but whisper. -Thomas Fuller
Rav Shimon ben Gamliel in Pirkei Avos states, All my life I grew up among great sages and I never found anything better for one’s body than the virtue of silence.
What nation has ever returned from exile, or even been remembered after a thousand years or more?
The Nature of nature
What were the necessary steps for Israel to develop a national consciousness ahead of leaving Egypt?
The ten plagues were part of a deliberate process to educate not only Egypt and Israel but also humanity.
Do we grant ourselves time "to pause, look around, and consider" in order not to miss the announcement that redemption is coming, so that we can adjust the direction in which we are headed accordingly?
The comfort zone takes our greatest aspirations and turns them into excuses for not bothering to aspire. -Peter McWilliams
All things are equal, we should certainly pick for our children purely Jewish names. Even the surnames should be distinctly Jewish.
Apparently, it was not only Moshe but the entire tribe of Levi who were, astoundingly, not subject to Pharaoh’s persecution. Why was that?
When someone makes an unsubstantiated argument, it is impossible to counter it with a logical explanation. That would imply that the two opinions are of equal value.
Our true salvation and our joy doesn’t come from the downfall of the wicked.
We each get to choose who we will become. Let us be inspired to straighten the bent path
After despairing of a slave revolt, did Moshe seek to create a new nation in Midian to replace Israel?
The Sefardim and Ashkenazim read different portions for the haftara this week. These portions seemingly have little to do with each other or with the parsha.
Our Sages tell us that all prayers make a strong impression in the Heavens and are answered. It is possible, however, that one may need to wait for the answer or may not understand the response.
Ever since the funeral, thousands of people began to perform wonderful deeds in her memory – from distributing Shabbat candles and challahs throughout New York City to holding large havdalah gatherings for passersby in Jewish neighborhoods.
Learning of mishnayos is one of the greatest protections one can do against the possible future punishments of Gehinom.
As Einstein famously said, "if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life believing it's foolish". We cannot compare ourselves to someone else, as we are completely different people.
November 6, 2026 
