יום שלישי, ל׳ חשוון תשפ״זTuesday, November 10, 2026
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Wishing that everyone will be remembered for life.
This week's parsha presents us with an example that balances the need to guard information with the need to reveal it on some level.
An inspired and inspiring list of "SHOULDS" for Elul--and the whole year
No matter how hard we work on ourselves, we can never be totally prepared for the challenges ahead. And that is actually a good thing. Not only would life be less interesting, but a great deal of its meaning would otherwise be taken away. As Rebbe Nachman said, “If you are not a better person tomorrow than you are today, what need have you for a tomorrow?”
Our repentance can retroactively cleanse the spiritual ledger. It can wipe the slate clean and allows us to start our spiritual accounting anew, refreshed, rejuvenated.
The more we realize our obligation to Hashem, the greater the joy will be when we fulfill that obligation.
l the parshiyot we read during Elul serve as reminders for how we can fix and improve our lives before the coming new year. The opening verses of each of these parshiyot point toward the direction we should go
Terumah thanks kohanim for their service and supports them (more so than bikkurim, which were a smaller percentage of the crop). It makes sense to allow each Jew to choose recipients, to thank him or them for all they’ve done.
We glorify God, not in numbers, but in expansiveness. We too, are bringing our First Fruits when we're not busy battling each other over what is ours or who speaks the truth. Our Bikkurim begin with affording room for people to explore and grow.
The Kobriner Rav says (mentioned in the Nesivos Shalom-Elul), if you want to become holy, if you want to begin doing teshuva, you must start with Shabbos.
The area in life which is most difficult to a person is why he was sent down to Earth. Man was sent here to overcome the tendency which bothers him the most. It takes a lifetime to overcome these issues, and that's why God gave us a lifetime.
Sports or Judaism--two top athletes made the right decision
Since not saying lashon hara is easier said than done, here is something to help you: Just remember what happened to Miriam!”
The wise Sages declared that every individual is related to himself! In fact, we are our own closet relative, even more than our own parents and children.
the Talmud explains that a judge must not take a bribe even if it is in order to acquit the innocent and accuse the guilty. Accepting a bribe is wrong even if the verdict issued is ultimately correct!
Our powers of self-justification mean money is as much a danger for us as for a judge. Given two options, we, like Rashi’s judges, will become sure, the claim which benefits us is also the truer claim. Like Rashi’s judges, we need to guard ourselves from slipping away from truth without realizing it.
This week's portion, Re'ei, speaks of our need for a sense of place, how difficult it often is to find, and how we must protect others' sense of place. It also guides us in how to manage the experience of no place
In view of the seeming sanctity that the Torah imparts to blood, why would it tell us to spill animal blood indiscriminately?
The myth of Narcissus is not a myth at all-127 people have died worshiping their own image.
The Nile misleads Egyptians into forgetting they are just as dependent on Hashem as we are, water issues or noIsrael’s “poverty,” its less consistent water, helps its inhabitants remember Hashem.
Rabbeinu Bechaye (on Deuteronomy 11:13 Ekev) explains that to serve God with all of our heart is nothing other than prayer, elaborating that there are 3 particular powers to prayer: the power to change nature. the power to save one from danger, the power to annul negative divine decrees
When Mashiach comes we will have a nechama, not just a consolation, but a brand-new vision of history.
Though I have heard many explanations about the meaning of this day ( Tisha B'Av)– senseless hatred and violence, ignorance and alienation – I had never heard anything like the explanation I received this week:}
The delicate balance of the Jews place in the world: The impact of interacting with other cultures
The author of the zemer is telling us that although we yearn for the Beis HaMikdash and know that the ultimate redemption is not yet at hand, there is one thing which can give us strength and comfort: Shabbos.
The Ari HaKadosh – Rabbi Yitzchak ben Shlomo Luria (1534-1572) – passed away 446 years ago this week. Here is a simple teaching from him.
The fifth and final book of the Torah, Dvarim, is filled with history, laws, articles of faith, as well as a vision for the future. Moses describes, among a plethora of items, the creation and comportment of a judiciary.
Most of Devarim consists of Moshe’s final speech to the people. Rashi and Ramban fascinatingly read Moshe as implying he faced MORE difficulties in leading them even than those we know from the text
When one vows to do something, or to refrain from doing something, the Torah views that pledge with tremendous seriousness. Violating one’s word is referred to as a “desecration of one’s word.”
The tribes of Ruben and Gad by being more concerned with their animals than with their own families, doomed themselves, eventually being left with neither. Indeed, the tribes to the east of the Jordan would be the first to be exiled and, seemingly, lost to Jewish history.
The contemporary question,how to balance family and work, is actually a biblical one,addressed by Moses in his subtle rebuke to the tribe of Re'uven.
The two and a half tribes--Rueben, Gad, and part of Menasseh-- listened to the accusations and realized that they were already being forgotten.
The Torah knows that we are likely to understand the journey in the desert as essentially one long trip. And so it tries to make us stop and realize that there were actually two journeys and not just one. The first ended with the death of Aharon; the second began with resistance from the Canaanite king
Shabbos is a window into the euphoric Messianic world when this world will be completely devoted to G-d, on all levels.
A gem from the Or HaChaim, one of the greatest Torah commemorated, whose 275th yahrzeit was last week
What would it mean to the world to suddenly have hundreds of millions of people, perhaps over a billion souls, identify themselves as Jewish, and show solidarity with Israel?
Rules for true leadership by the greatest leader of all.
Having 'real' vision permits an entirely different, improved view of events and the world.
To understand who Bilam was let us examine the interaction between Bilam and his donkey in this week's parsha.
The highlight of Prince William's visit to Israel is he merited to be the first British royal to make an official visit to Israel.
What has changed? The simple reality is that women in those days dressed modestly because there was a prevailing sense of propriety and self-respect.
Balak was furious. Balaam was defeated in his mind by a greater prophet, Moses, who would record Balaam's words and shame for eternity, despite not being present at the performances. Rather than perform his blessings or curses, Balaam projected a picture of the future with his ideas in it; he offers his vision of the End of Days (14) with all his hints to Israel's future failings hidden within his words of praise.
Pinchas unexpectedly saved the day. How did Pinchas help? Pinchas shifted the eventual divine justice from plague to targeted killings, so only actual sinners died
It is impossible to be involved in life without somehow sensing endings. We need not be permanently scarred by our beginnings, nor scared of what seems to be the death of a relationship.
Never in the course of history has the speed of change been so dramatic and apparent, or brought such extraordinary power and wealth to the average person.
The challenge of observing-especially-when understanding is elusive.
History repeats itself: Israel extends the hand of peace to a neighbor and is rebuffed
Displacement as motivation? Just ask Korach's sons.
Moshe's response to Korach expressed the very essence of what defines a true Torah leader.
What is the connection between the story of the spies and of Korach?
Seems men are puppets and women pull the strings.
Each nation has a specific role to fill in Hashem’s plan and we pray that through these offerings Hashem will inspire them to true service.
Self-censorship occurs when members of the decision-making team refrain from making suggestions that are counter to the prevailing consensus of the group.
One of the most important books you will ever read is your autobiography.
Change is good; being a "Changer" is better.
The paradoxical truth of a very, very good land--Israel.
"What's in a name?" Apparently, the essence of relationships...
Ultimately our job is not to overcome sin but to transcend the pitfalls and challenges of life.
This story is significant because Two-Gun Crowley wasn’t insane. He wasn’t a psychopath.
Constitutional democracy is a better form of spiritual government than either anarchy or totalitarianism. G-d wanted intellectual diversity and as close to universal accountability as possible.
Moses acted properly in his role of prophet but he failed in his role as a husband; he did not see Tziporah's suffering, her black cloud.
We know that every word, every letter, and every crown in the Torah is vital.
Many items in this world were created strictly for man’s enjoyment. One example is food.
Parshat Nasso and the issue of the sotah and coming face-to-face with our own responsibility and not just throw it on others.
When one taps into the forces and elements around us, to free ourselves of extraneous masters, we are able to acquire the wisdom, the insight, the light, the well-being and the strength that the Torah can impart.
Proper use of downtime is a concept familiar to all Bnei Torah. It is safe to say that nobody becomes an expert in his or her field only through what they learn in school.
Yes, Hashem gives free will to man – He gives us the ability to make choices – but He governs the outcome.
The magic of Sinai began when the people camped "with unified hearts and minds" facing Sinai. A single camp of shared purpose. I suspect that this is the message behind the Sages' teaching that Shabbat is the key to redemption: We do not share a common purpose other than a belief that the world can become a place of peace, a Shabbat world
Considering tzanua and achieving a balanced version of it in order to walk with G-d
We wash and raise our hands to Hashem, reminding and displaying to ourselves that we have nothing without Hashem Yisbarach.
A Jew is either rising or falling; he never remains in one place. It all pivots on Torah learning. If he labors in Torah, he rises to the heights. If not, he begins to fall.
Hoe the Torah establishes the value of the individual--and how that ensures humility.
If one's fear of sin exceeds wisdom, his wisdom will endure.
At all our significant life events we remind ourselves to continue working with the raw materials Hashem gave us, and to make something out of them.
Interestingly, it’s not just anger that colors our vision. Jealousy does too – as does greed, desire, and arrogance.
Some argue that when a Talmudic rabbi declares that a law “never was and never will be”, he is actually signaling a moral shift in which a Torah law is quietly put out to pasture. I am not convinced by this argument.
If a person is constantly preoccupied with his physical desires and needs he can't be a spiritual person.
If the merit of Avraham protected an entire nation, surely it will protect us, his direct descendants.
The true definition of holiness is to cross the boundary between heaven and earth. We are forbidden to combine species connecting their lowest common denominators, their purely earthly definitions. We are encouraged to make combinations that allow each world to meet beyond their highest common denominators so that, together, they can connect heaven and earth.
“Remove the blasphemer to outside the camp. All those who heard will rest their hands on his head. The entire congregation will pelt him.” I suggest that the blasphemer was not executed. Rather, he was taken to the scaffold and pelted with a single rock.
A healthy religious society has room for both chakhamim and chasidim, but knows that the latter are generally more to be admired than imitated.
Having an evil eye means that one has low tolerance for others, and especially for their success.
Hashem took us from under His throne of glory and put us into a body to give us a chance to grow, to accomplish and to change our essence. But, it wasn’t just us we were charged with perfecting.
Chag Sameach-Happy Yom Ha'atzmaut and Shabbat Shalom
Great leaders like Lincoln have the strength of character to overlook wrongs and see the broader picture.
Why should a person be rewarded for not doing something he wouldn’t have done anyway?
That man is more than flesh is obvious to the Torah, but the Torah’s task is to make it obvious to man.
why is gossiping worse than all three of the cardinal sins put together? Because a gossiper destroys all of these bonds, and more
This week's Torah portion contains the dramatic story of Nadav and Avihu, two of Aaron's sons, who bring a strange offering to God. This is so unacceptable that a fire consumes them on the spot and they die. The Midrash (Yalkut Shimoni, Parshas Shemini, Remez 524) suggests seven reasons why Aaron's sons deserved death: Nadav […]
Many commentators point at this command as the unspoken reason why Nadav and Avihu were killed: They entered the Tabernacle drunk.
Even the merit of the entire Jewish people was stupendous. While not every member had remained on the highest level, as a nation they had remained loyal to Hashem.
The retelling of the exodus at Pesach is meant to deepen our faith; and the excerpt from the Mishnah towards the beginning of the Haggadah presents a model for how to do that. It teaches us to follow the example of R. Elazar
Our problem is that in the daily bustle of life we hardly ever stop to smell the flowers.
We should never feel as if we are lugging around heavy suitcases of avodas Hashem.
Of course, Aharon didn’t veer to the left or the right. This was the avodah in the Mishkan he was performing, and the directives came straight from Hashem!
Judaism most certainly does not ascribe to the belief that there are powers other than Hashem who can stand in the way of His will.
Learning to give THANKS and preparing ourselves for Pesach.
Why is the act of sacrifice so powerful psychologically? Why do human beings naturally express themselves religiously through sacrifice, whether they are expressing fear or gratitude?
Obviously, sin and happy are not words that go together well. But, says Rabbi Yochanan, when people admit to and atone for their sins, that is cause for happiness.
November 6, 2026 
