| Sort articles by: date | title | views |
 Did G-d Reject Our Prayers? .: Viewed: 3101 times :.
The night before the murdered bodies of our precious and holy teenagers were found, nearly 100,000 Jews gathered in Rabin Square in Tel Aviv to pray for the youths' safe return. Secular celebrities sang songs from the Psalms, and the huge crowd joined in. Afterwards Iris Yifrach, the mother of Eyal, addressed her missing son, "The whole nation is uniting. Everybody is worried about you. I turn...
Published: July 11, 2014 |
Sacrifices of the Temple Altar: Symbol of the Soul .: Viewed: 3077 times :.
The Book of Vayikra is taken up with sacrificial laws and rituals. For many people, it is easier to relate to narrative portions of the Torah or commandments that apply in our day than to those dealing with Temple sacrifices. The last sacrifices were offered in 68 C .E., before the Second Temple was destroyed. Many people would find it hard to conceive how the sacrificial system could actually...
Published: May 24, 2011 |
NEILA – Locked In With G-d .: Viewed: 3072 times :.
Jay and the Americans had a hit song called “Let’s Lock the Door”. Jay attended Yeshiva Torat Emet in Boro Park. Was he singing about NEILA on Yom Kippur?
The Hebrew word for the Satan is numerically equivalent (Gematria) to 364. The Midrash explains that during the 364 days of the year, the Satan has the power to prosecute the Jewish people. But on one day, Yom Kippur, he...
Published: September 17, 2017 |
Will the Final Redemption Parallel the Exodus? .: Viewed: 3063 times :.
The prophet Micah said (7:15), "As in the days of your leaving Egypt, I shall show them marvelous things." His words imply that the Exodus is the precedent for the Final Redemption, as the Midrash expounds:
"Just as in Egypt, I shall redeem you in the future from subjugation to Edom and shall perform miracles for you, as it says, 'As in the days of your leaving Egypt, I shall display...
Published: May 24, 2011 |
The Agony Of Agunot .: Viewed: 3058 times :.
"Kotzo Shel Yod" ("The Point on Top of the Yod"), the 1887 poem by Judah Leib Gordon, includes a description of the cruel harassment by rabbis of an unfortunate agunah (literally, a "chained woman," whose husband deserts her or disappears without divorcing her, thus preventing her from remarrying). Â The description is vitriolic, wicked, dishonest, and disgraceful, in the spirit of the poets...
Published: December 27, 2006 |
Yom Kippur's Mystical Challenge .: Viewed: 3051 times :.
The common perception of Yom Kippur is the ultimate "Don't - Can't" experience. Don't eatDon't drinkCan't even wash your face. For most people, Yom Kippur is an ordeal that we have to get through, an exercise in self-denial that is even more constricting than Shabbat.  The long synagogue service and repeated emphasis on guilt and sin turn Yom Kippur into a day of awe and anxiety despair...
Published: September 19, 2007 |
Baruch Hashem! - Does G-d Need Our Blessing? .: Viewed: 3049 times :.
What is so important about declaring, "Boruch Hashem"? The Rambam writes that public prayer begins with the Chazan saying Kaddish and Borchu (Hilchot Tefillah 9). If you think about it, "Borchu et Hashem" is a summons by the Chazan for the congregation to say "Boruch Hashem". The Rishonim explain that the Chazan adds "Hamevorach…" so as to include himself in the declaration that G-d is...
Published: March 18, 2015 |
Kabbalistic Secrets Of The Korban Pesach .: Viewed: 3037 times :.
In several places, our Sages view the Korban Pesach (Paschal sacrifice) as serving to break the ties of idolatry. We read in Shemos Rabbah (16): "We find that when the Jewish people were in Egypt, they worshiped idols, as it is written (Ezekiel 20:8), "They did not cast away the abominations of their eyes." Hashem told Moshe, "As long as the Jewish people worship the gods of Egypt, they shall...
Published: May 9, 2003 |
The Mitzvah to Redeem Captives: Symbol of The Entire Torah .: Viewed: 3037 times :.
Gilad Shalit has now been held captive for over 5 years by our "peace" partners. Throughout history, Jews have gone to remarkable lengths to retrieve their brethren from hostile hands. This mitzvah is referred to in rabbinic literature as "pidyon shivuyim" (redemption of captives). It is the only precept designated by the Talmud as a "mitzvah rabba" (great mitzvah). Its special status in...
Published: July 6, 2011 |
Is There Conflict Between Evolution And Judaism? .: Viewed: 3032 times :.
The Torah and science are completely compatible. Judaism insists that this world is not the result of an accident or blind chance but the result of a purposeful Act of Creation. Once the principle of Divine Creation is accepted Judaism allows much latitude in belief as to how the creation was effected. Â There is no religious objection to the acceptance of the Theory of Evolution provided it...
Published: October 17, 2007 |
Arab Terror: An Ongoing Tisha B'Av .: Viewed: 3028 times :.
The Shin Bet has just informed us that Arab terror attacks are up 50% from last year. The Moslem fast days of Ramadan, which began on June 17, have coincided with a surge of murderous terror attacks against Jews.
The moving Kinah of "ARZEI HALEVANON", which is recited on TIsha B'Av states, "The martyred Jews were filled with good deeds like the seeds of a pomegranate and like the corners of...
Published: July 2, 2015 |
How to Know Your Mission in Life .: Viewed: 3027 times :.
Why are we here? What is the purpose and meaning of our existence? There is a perplexing verse in Genesis 2:18, God said, “It is not good for man to be alone. I will make for him a helpmate who is against him.” Â At first sight this verse seems to be a paradox: a helpmate assists, she does not oppose. The Talmud (Bavli Yevamot 63a) phrases the question as follows. The Hebrew...
Published: October 27, 2011 |
Does G-d Wear Tefillin? .: Viewed: 3023 times :.
The Talmud in ( Brachot 6a) states, " That G-d Wears Tefillin". However, one of the Thirteen Principles of Faith of the Rambam states that G-d has no physical body, so how does He "wear" Tefillin? To answer this question, we must ask another, because a Jew answers a question with a question. The question is why do we pray?
We are accustomed to regard prayer as a person either praising G-d...
Published: October 28, 2013 |
How To Find The Lost Keys of the Holy Temple .: Viewed: 3022 times :.
Four days a year Jews fast and mourn, commemorating different historical events of the destruction of the Holy Temple. The 17th day of Tammuz is one of the four days, and it begins a three week period of limited mourning that climaxes with Tisha B'Av, the day of the destruction of the bothTemples. These four days of fasting are found in the prophet Zechariah. Consistent with Judaism's...
Published: July 20, 2011 |
Rosh Chodesh: The Gift Of Renewal .: Viewed: 3018 times :.
The Zohar, in explaining the importance of the new moon and our celebration of its renewal each month, states: "The Jewish nation is compared to the moon. Just as the moon wanes and seems to disappear into darkness only to be reborn, so too the Jewish people often appear to be overwhelmed by the forces of darkness, only to reemerge as a nation reborn." The main religious teaching of Rosh...
Published: March 1, 2006 |
|