יום שלישי, י״ט אלול תשפ״וTuesday, September 1, 2026
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The Jewish people's love for their land is under assault, whether by Arab terror or UNESCO treachery
By Tzvi Fishman
What should one learn from the first words that G-d says to Avraham: Go to the Land of Israel!
Even in the most drastic of circumstances, a Jew can never be written off completely and one must even be willing to endure total mesirus nefesh for another’s sake.
Noah's children teach different responses to being disappointed by someone dear-or even God Himself
The more a person grows, the more clearly he relates to his spiritual side, and the less the Nefesh Ha’Bahami clouds his vision.
It was only after permission was granted to eat animals that man was permitted to fully own animals.
Unfortunately, the new world that Adam attempted to start through Seth became corrupted.
Examining the frequent failures of humanity in this parsha and how they set the scene for Abraham.
The remarkable gift of unity should be a powerful tool to further mankind and to further God’s will.
Rashi said Noah was lacking in faith. His faith in God wasn't weak, his self-faith was lacking
And Adom said, “The woman that you placed with me, she gave me from the tree and I ate.” — Bereishis 3:12 Adom HaRishon was given one mitzvah: not to eat from the Eitz HaDas. When he transgressed it, Hashem gave him the opportunity to do teshuvah. Not only did Adom not repent, he […]
By Rachel Weiss
Each month of the Jewish year is associated with a letter of the Lashon Hakodesh.
Birds, which were created on the fifth day, can accept tumah when they become food.
Apparently, the perseverance demonstrated in multiple attempts at creating an acceptable world is an example of an important characteristic of Hashem that man must emulate, based on the precept of V’Halachta B’Drachav
Every Jew is required to try to influence the world in a positive way.
In every leadership situation there are basic gauges and indicators that must never be ignored.
Constantly investing energy safeguarding separation, life & world is man's participating in creation
Truly understanding the hidden meaning in Parshat Bereishit will provide insight to the entire Torah
Creation is everlasting in the sense that all of us add brushstrokes & notes-that is its perfection
What is the world? Bereshit’s answer: The world is “creativity.”
After all, many sinners live in mansions, and in the post-Holocaust era it’s impossible to conclude that those who suffered sinned.
‘God doing exactly as He planned’ does not mean that all occurred without any ambivalence & tension.
Tosafos quotes an explanation from R’ Meshulem that the halacha requires that the one who is called up to the Torah for those pesukim must read them himself and cannot have a baal korei read them for him.
‘You shall dwell in booths (sukkos) for seven days because I caused the Jewish People to dwell in booths when I took them from the land of Egypt.’
Judaism stipulates that not only does Hashem reveal Himself to the prophets, but to all creation.
If you were the most generous, loving person in the world, and you were completely devoted to help me, if my time on this planet is up there is nothing that you can do to change that; any human is powerless to change my destiny.
Are we, through our prayers, able to convince God to change the course of history?
Why is Sukkot deemed the ultimate holiday of happiness and joy?
The Sukkah is the place from which we venture into the world, applying Torah to all aspects of life.
For the most part, we don’t usually experience a great revelation from performing a mitzvah.
The common theme between these two situations is that they are defined as acts of Kabbalat Ol Malchut Shamayim, accepting the yoke of Heaven.
“More than what the rich man does for the poor man is what the poor man does for the rich man” (Midrash Rabbah, Rus 5:9).
Haazinu encourages Jews in times of national emergency & documents our eternal connection to God
Rabbi Fohrman delves into psalm 90 connecting it to stories from Torah & the building of the Mishkan
Said the Ba’al Shem Tov “God is also crying. For as much as He looks for us, we rarely look for Him”
Consider this: Why should Hashem accept our teshuva when we often repeat the same aveiros year after year?
Rambam says that when the sinner approaches Hashem he expresses Chatati Aviti Pashati; I think I am Mayzid but perhaps I acted B’Shogeg.
The answer to the question on Rashi seems to be that the namesakes of the shevatim were in fact men of unimaginable greatness,
The Minchas Chinuch writes that although it seems that gathering in the Beis Hamikdash is necessary, perhaps the mitzvah can be performed anywhere in Yerushalayim.
The precision required and the time constraints imposed make the High Priest’s task almost humanly impossible.
How did Moses feel approaching the land of Israel, knowing he wouldn’t enter Israel with his people?
Moshe's message lives on forever: Life's potential is a very lofty goal that we must strive to reach
You might argue that in truth it is not a prayer; rather, it is a statement, affirmation and declaration of fact that one day we will see the cities and streets of Yerushalayim full of ecstasy.
The story of Bilam, the gentile prophet, is most peculiar. It begins when Balak, the king of Moav, recognizes that he is in danger. The Jewish nation had just destroyed Sichon, and Moav was next. Out of desperation, Balak sent messengers to Bilam saying, “Please, curse this nation so that we can remain in our […]
The second covenant between Abraham and Hashem included the obligation to observe the commandments.
The Rambam also says that one must verbalize his confessions in order for it to be valid (vidui b’peh).
The Netziv’s point: Self-assessment should be based on who we are, not based on who our neighbor is.
Only in Israel do we have the sovereignty & independence to become a light to the nations.
Baruch means either blessed should be God, or praised should be God.
Why was the mitzvah of Hakhel reserved for this particular time?
Ki Tavocan be broken into 2 main sections but is there a common thread that unifies our parsha?
How can Rashi say that all we need to do in order to reach that lofty level is to fully accept Hashem’s mitzvos?
The bikkurim declaration praises Gd & distills the Egyptian experience down to its spiritual essence
The Chasam Sofer (Yoreh Deah 106) explains that the Torah never commanded us to lend non-Jews money; it only allowed it.
The common translation of the opening words of this week’s parsha, Ki Seitzei, is: “When you go out to war against your enemy.” Actually the text reads “al oyvecha” upon your enemy. The Torah is saying that when Israel goes out to war, they will be over and above their enemy. The reason why Bnei […]
The love between Gd & Israel is deeper than marriage; beyond the infinite love of parent for child
Since giving the machatzis hashekel will not change his financial situation, he is obligated to do so even though it is more than a fifth of his income.
Each month is associated with a particular tribe. The month of Elul is matched up with Gad. What makes Gad unique?
Sanctions and indictment of the Jew, holding him to a higher standard, is as common and misplaced as ever.
To allow for free will, there are times when Hashem will allow a person the “opportunity to be the messenger.”
Mighty Amalek deliberately attacked enemy's weakest members, despicable even by ancient standards
You may wonder, how can we be excited and joyful at a time when His Judgment, not Fatherly Love, reigns supreme?
Children resist authority and struggle against structure, chores, and rules. But deep down they feel loved when they are granted guidelines and limits.
Judges, essentially apolitical, fulfilled a temporary purpose and then returned to private life
Torah teaches that trees must be protected for the trees themselves, sake of man, & for life lessons
Everything you see – from the flower to the bee, from the oceans to the mountains, rivers, planets, the sun, the moon and the stars – all just sort of happened.
The articles in this column are transcriptions and adaptations of shiurim by Rav Joseph Ber Soloveitchik, zt"l. The Rav's unique perspective on Chumash permeated many of the shiurim and lectures he presented at various venues over a 40-plus-year period. His words add an important perspective that makes the Chumash in particular, and our tradition in general, […]
We can suggest that since Hashem Himself appointed Dovid there is no question. The rules are only in place for when we must chose a king ourselves.
When we see the new moon at the start of each month, it is a sign from Hashem that we can renew ourselves spiritually.
The world is changing so fast and our youth are confronted with more information on a daily basis. There is nothing that we can do about it.
Perhaps a careful reading of the pesukim in the parsha will shed light on this dilemma.
Like the he-goat and the Temples, it is a guarantor for the Jewish People, to accept punishment on their behalf.
“When Hashem…will broaden your boundary as He spoke to you, and you say, ‘I will eat meat,’ for you will have a desire to eat meat, to your heart’s entire desire you may eat meat.” – Devarim 12:20 For forty years in the midbar the Jewish people ate mon. Guided by Moshe Rabbeinu, engaged […]
Why do Rabbinic laws seem different than Biblical? What does law have to do with God & spirituality?
Parshat Re’eh discusses our obligations upon entering Israel, Yerushalayim & our covenantal mission
God's greatest gift for growth & coming closer to Him is "feedback;" Eretz Israel is set up that way
3 Jewish rituals–family purity, ksahrut, and Shabbat-help us understand that mitzvot are our benefit
By Rachel Weiss
"Who said one must pray with a whole heart? Perhaps it's preferable to pray with a broken heart."
I take pride in being a disciple of the Rebbe. I love everything about Chabad Lubavitch and the wellsprings of chassidus.
We need to have the endurance Napoleon demanded from his troops.
At the end of his exhausting second 40 day effort, again without food or water, Moshe was rewarded with a command to hew new tablets, as Hashem accepted his petition and forgave them.
The farmer understands he didn’t bring the rain. It wasn’t his acumen that stopped the pestilence.
The second parshah of Shema is referring to keeping the rest of the mitzvos, and there the Torah does not require that one spend all of his money in order to perform the mitzvos.
Is it because of merit or the promise to our ancestors that B'nai Israel gets to enter Israel?
In the Shema, Jews sense personal address but know deepest expression of loyalty to God is communal
By internalizing the Exodus, it is as if we ourselves were redeemed from Egypt.
Why would Moshe Rabbeinu have thought that the vow that disallowed him to enter Eretz Yisrael was annulled simply because he was allowed to conquer and enter the land of Sichon and Og?
Man has conflicting wishes and desires. Man has forces pulling him in competing directions.
Perhaps the admonition here is that we should not trivialize the events of the past by saying that they are irrelevant to the modern Jew.
By Tzvi Fishman
One must view the settlement of Israel in a positive light. Thinking otherwise is a grievous sin.
Reaching a stronger understanding of what Moses actually did to prevent him from entering the land
The 10 Statements main point was not content but the encounter between G-d & His nation, Israel
Before going in, I had told R’ Nachum all of the things we were doing in Philly, and how it was very important to receive a good bracha on behalf of our newest venture, a Russian Kollel.
Devarim often parallels the stories in Bereishit but in reverse & can be considered as a corrective
On Super Bowl Sunday itself, life seems to stop. Over one hundred million people watch the game. About half of the households in the country show it in their living rooms and dens.
Moses begins Sefer Devarim reviewing much of the 40 years in the desert & why he can't enter Israel
While they are definitely special occurrences, why are they cause for a new holiday?
By Tzvi Fishman
Torah wasn’t given to be kept in Sinai; Brooklyn or Beverly Hills-It was meant to be kept in Israel!
August 28, 2026 
