Naso - Orthodox

Numbers 4:21−7:89

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

The Service Of Song

The duty of the Levites to accompany the Tabernacle service with music and song reminds us to serve God with joy.

The G-d-centric, Torah-centric, Mishkan (Tabernacle)-centric Israelite camp described in the opening section of the Book of B’midbar [Numbers] is ordered, sanctified and serene. A census of the population is taken. The tribe of Levi is counted separately, and their holy tasks in the Mishkan are assigned:

All those that were numbered, whom Moshe and Aharon and the princes of Israel counted of the Levites according to their families and according to their fathers’ houses; from thirty years old and upward, until fifty years old, all those who come to perform service to a service (avodat avodah) and the service of carrying in the Tent of Meeting. Their accounts were 8,580. According to the word of Hashem through Moshe did he appoint them, each one to his service and to his burden, and those that were numbered constituted that which Hashem had commanded Moshe (Bamidbar 4:46-49).

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B'midbar - Orthodox

Numbers 1:1−4:20

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Questioning Chronology

The lack of chronological order in Parashat B'midbar allows expressions of God's love for Israel to precede the trials and tribulations of desert wandering.

It is surprising that the sometimes tumultuous book of B’midbar commences with such a prosaic passage as the taking of a census:

And Hashem spoke to Moshe in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year of their coming out from the land of Egypt, saying: Take a census of all the congregation of the Children of Israel by their families, by their fathers’ houses, with the number of names, every male by their head count (B’midbar 1:1-2).

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B’chukotai - Orthodox

Leviticus 26:3-27:34

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Stubbornness And Chance

The two interpretations of the word keri illustrate different understandings of the reasons for the punishments listed in parashat B'hukotai.

As the Book of Vayikra, the book of sanctity, draws to a close, the Torah delineates the consequences of obedience and disobedience to Hashem’s will. This is the Tochechah, the passage of admonition (chapter 26) that concludes the covenant of Sinai.

If the people embrace Hashem’s commands, the land will be blessed with prosperity, security and peace (verses 3-13). Conversely, rejecting Hashem’s edicts will result in the curses of disease (verses 16-17), famine (verses 18-20), wild beasts (verses 21-22), war (verses 23-26), destruction and exile (verses 27-39).

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B'har - Orthodox

Leviticus 25:1-26:2

By Rabbi Asher Brander, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

A New World

The reinterpretation of the term "forever" encourages us to strive for new realities within our own lifetimes.

The primacy of the Oral Law has always been the bedrock of our belief system. Torah Shebichtav (Written Law) without Torah Sheba’al Peh (Oral Law) is likened to a body without a soul. Thus, when Oral Law seems to contradict the Written Law our sense of textual loyalty seems violated.

Our parsha is home to one of the classic examples of this apparent incongruity. The Torah states, “You shall sanctify the 50th year and proclaim freedom throughout the land for all of its inhabitants; it shall be the Jubilee year (Yovel) for you.”

What are the implications of this freedom?

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Emor - Orthodox

Leviticus 21:1−24:23

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Sanctifiers Of Time

The commandment to proclaim the festivals includes concepts of communal responsibility and imitating God.

In the midst of a book devoted to kedusha (sanctity), the apex of the Torah’s value system, we revisit the subject of the festivals:

And Hashem spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to the Children of Israel and say to them: The festivals of Hashem which you will proclaim (tikr’u otam) as holy convocations, these are My festivals.

For six days shall work be done, and on the seventh day is the Shabbat of complete rest, a holy convocation, all work shall you not do, it is Shabbat to Hashem in all your dwellings.

These are the festivals of Hashem, the holy convocations which you will proclaim (tirkr’u otam) at their occasion. (Vayikra 23:1-4)

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Kedoshim - Orthodox

Leviticus 19:1-20:27

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Constructive Criticism

The commandment to rebuke one another teaches the importance of mutual responsibility.

Morality is not enough. As important as it is to build an ethical society in which no harm is tolerated, the Torah sets a higher standard: to create a holy society.

Among the many mitzvot (commandments) in this part of Vayikra [Leviticus], the book of the sanctified society, we find:

You shall not hate your brother in your heart; you shall surely rebuke your friend, and you shall not bear sin upon him (Vayikra 19:17).

Here, we are taught about the importance of mutual responsibility. In the sanctified society, each individual has a personal interest that everyone aspires to holiness. This sometimes requires constructive criticism.

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Ahare Mot - Orthodox

Leviticus 16:1-18:30

The Limits Of Spirituality

Nadav and Avihu died in an act of sanctification; our goal should be to sanctify God through our lives, not our deaths.

By Rabbi Moshe Morduchowitz, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Nadav and Avihu, two of Aaron‘s four sons, were killed, the Torah states, "when they came close before God." The Torah then goes on to describe the service performed by Aaron on Yom Kippur.

Who were Nadav and Avihu, and what do their deaths have to do with Yom Kippur?

Furthermore, why were they killed? Is it not the duty of every Jew to strive to come close to God?

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Acharon Shel Pesach, Deuteronomy 14:22-16:17; Numbers 28:19-25

By Rabbi Howard Stein for the Greater Pittsburgh Rabbinic Asssociation

The regular Torah reading for the eighth day of Passover discusses the consecration of all firstborn animals to God and the festival calendar, clearly connecting to the observance of the holiday.

However, because the last day of Passover falls on the Sabbath this year, we also read the preceding section, which describes the annual tithe and the shmita year, the seventh year when all debts were cancelled and (more significantly for Passover) all Hebrew slaves were freed. While we might think that this section is added on to give a longer Torah reading for the Sabbath, this section has its own connection to the themes of Passover.

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Yom Rishon shel Pesach - 1st Day of Passover

Exodus 12:37-42, 13:3-10

Rabbi Weinreb’s Parsha Column, Shabbat and First Day of Pesach: “Imagine That!”

Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, OU

There was a time when I would only go out of my way to listen to speakers who were older and more experienced than I. Recently, however, I have changed my preferences and have begun to seek out speakers, rabbis and teachers, who are young and relatively inexperienced. I find their ideas fresh and often very much on the mark. After all, they are in much better touch with our fast changing world than I am.

Last year, during a visit to Israel, I sat in on a series of lectures which were designed to prepare the audience for the upcoming Passover holiday. The speaker, a brilliant young rabbi, focused upon the Seder night, and particularly upon the text of the Haggadah. He spent most of his opening lecture elaborating upon what he considered the most difficult task with which we are all confronted on the first night of Passover. The task is described in the following famous passage:

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Shabbat HaGadol/The Great Sabbath: Metzora - Orthodox

Leviticus 14:1-15:33

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

The Subtleties Of One Letter

We can learn numerous lessons from the statement of the owner of a house that appears to be afflicted with spiritual defilement.

The first signs of tzaraat [a disease often translated as leprosy] must be examined carefully. Tzara’atis the collective name for afflictions that attack the body, clothing or house; the usual translation of “leprosy” is inaccurate. Tzara’at is a source of tum’ah (a hard word to translate as well; the best we might say is “spiritual defilement” determined by physical conditions), and requires purification (taharah).

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Shabbat HaChodesh: Tazria-Orthodox

Leviticus 12:1−13:59

By Rabbi Joseph Ozarowski, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Parental Sacrifice

The burnt offering and the sin offering that a woman brings after childbirth symbolize the dual nature of parenting.

The opening verses of Tazria deal with the various rituals a woman undergoes after childbirth. After the birth of a child she brings two offerings: a year-old lamb or a turtledove or a pigeon as an olah, a burnt offering; and a turtledove or a pigeon as a chatas, a sin offering.

The Talmud questions the order of the offerings as they are described in the Torah, pointing out that when these two offerings are brought as a pair, the chatas is always offered first. Yet in these verses about childbirth, the olah is listed first.

Raba maintains that, in fact, the chatas is brought first. Why, then, is it listed second?

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Shemini, Parshat Parah - Orthodox

Leviticus 9:1-11:47

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

The Role Of The Elders

Several commentators discuss the relationship of the elders to the priests, the people, Moses, and God.

The great day has finally arrived! All that preceded this day–the Exodus from Egypt, the Revelation at Sinai, and the building and dedication of the Mishkan (Tabernacle)–was a process designed to bring Hashem’s uninterrupted Presence into the camp of Israel. The shameful sin of the golden calf nearly brought about the destruction of the people of Israel.

However, after much painful soul-searching, Hashem and His people are reconciled. For seven days, Aaron and his sons have trained to serve as the Kohanim (priests); now, on the eighth day, nearly one year since the Exodus on the first of the month of Nisan, the moment of Divine union is here:

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Tzav - Orthodox

Leviticus 6:1−8:36

By Rabbi Lawrence S. Zierler, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

The Obligation To Give Thanks

The thanksgiving offering teaches us the importance of thanking God as a communal sharing of faith and appreciation.

Much can be learned, in terms of social graces and religious etiquette from the korban todah, the thanksgiving offering detailed in this week’s parshah. Rashi, basing himself on the Talmud, lists the four who bring a todah: one who returns from travel at sea; one who returns from a journey in the wilderness; one who is released from prison; and one who recovers from an illness.

This comment of Rashi requires an explanation. We know that bringing a thanksgiving offering is not obligatory; it is a voluntary heartfelt gesture. The priests and the courts could never demand that someone bring a todah.

How can Rashi then imply that specific cases require one to offer an animal as evidence of his thanks?

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Shabbat Zachor; Vayikra - Orthodox

Leviticus 1:1−5:26

By Rabbi Steven Weil, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

The Role Of Sacrifices

Sacrifices allow us to reach out to God using our physical and emotional drives.

The theme of Sefer Vayikra (The Book of Leviticus) is korbanos, the animal sacrifices brought in the Tabernacle and, later, in the Temple.

The Rambam (Maimonides), in his Guide to the Perplexed, writes, “The purpose of sacrifices being incorporated into the Divine service of the Jewish people was to accommodate the transition of the people going from the extreme falsehood of idol worship to the extreme truth of worshipping one true God.

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Pekudei - Orthodox

Exodus 38:21-40:38

Don’t Sit: Walk

This week's Torah commentary by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks may be read as a PDF or listened to as an audio file.

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Shabbat Shekalim: Vayakhel - Orthodox

Exodus 35:1–38:20

By Rabbi Aaron Cohen, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

The Tabernacle and Shabbat’s Shared Message

Holiness is not limited to one sphere.

Our sages note the juxtaposition of Shabbat and the Mishkan (Tabernacle) at the beginning of Parshat Vayakhel.

The Mishkan, the “resting place” of the Shechinah (divine presence), was built to serve as the focal point of religious life for the Jewish nation. But therein lay a latent danger — the possibility that the Jewish people would contrast the pristine spiritual world of the Mishkan with the mundane society at large and mistakenly perceive that any significant kedushah (sanctity), any closeness to God, could be achieved only within the confines of the Mishkan.

Such a perspective, however, undermines the very essence of the Mishkan’s message: “veshachanti betocham — and I [God] will dwell among them.” Ultimately, God desires not an oasis of kedushah (holiness), but a spiritual wellspring that quenches the thirst of a Jew for closeness to God, influencing, inspiring, and elevating all those encamped around it — not just inside it. God wishes to dwell among us.

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Ki Tissa - Orthodox

Exodus 30:11-34:35

By Rabbi Aaron D. Mehlman, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Veiling And Unveiling

Moses was sensitive to the needs of the people, changing his appearance in order to enhance their ability to communicate with him.

When Moses returns from Mount Sinai after forty days and nights, he descends with more than just the second set of luchos (tablets). Moses brings the very Shechinah (divine presence) with him as well.

The Torah teaches that after receiving the Law, Moses’ face shone. The Daas Zekeinim Mibaalei Tosafos (collection of comments by the Tosafists of the 12th and 13th centuries in France and Germany) explains that the luminosity of Moses face was, in fact, the light of the Shechinah. Hashem transferred the splendor of His presence to Moses in order to assure a post-golden-calf Klal Yisrael (people of Israel) that no other leader was as worthy as Moses. Subsequently, they unanimously received him as their leader.

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Tetzaveh - Orthodox

Exodus 27:20-30:10

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Moses’s Absence

Parashat Tetzaveh foreshadows the connection the Children of Israel will have with God after the death of Moses.

Hashem [God] continues His instructions for the building of the Mishkan (Tabernacle), which will bring the people of Israel into intimate, uninterrupted conjunction with Him.

It is a well-known observation that, from the beginning of Exodus until the beginning of Deuteronomy, there is not a Parashah in which Moses is not mentioned, except for Parashat Tetzaveh, which is always read close to the seventh day of Adar, the anniversary of Moses’s death.

Avoiding His Name

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Terumah

Exodus 25:1-27:19

On The Way To Sanctity

The sanctification process of materials for the Tabernacle and Temple teaches us that everything has the potential to be used for holiness.

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

The purpose of the Exodus was always more than the liberation of the Hebrew slaves; it was the establishment of a physical existence in which Hashem would reign. And, at the center of that existence, would be the Mishkan (Tabernacle), the portable sanctuary:

And they shall make Me a Sanctuary, that I may dwell among them (Exodus 25:8).The establishment of the Mishkan will make it possible for Hashem’s Presence to dwell in the midst of the people.

Every aspect of the Mishkan teaches us how to serve Hashem.

How to Serve Hashem

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Mishpatim

Exodus 21:1−24:18

By Rabbi David Avigdor, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Murder And Atheism

In claiming power over human lives, a murderer denies that God alone possesses that power.

"He who smites a man and [the man] dies shall surely be put to death."

A Houston, Texas newspaper published the story of a young Eastern lawyer who complained to an old Texas Judge about the Texas way with crime. "I don’t understand Texas justice," said the lawyer. "You will suspend the sentence of a convicted murderer, but you will hang a horse thief."

The old judge rang a spittoon with a stream of tobacco juice. "Sorry," he replied, "I reckon that’s cause we got men that need killin’, but we ain’t got no horses that need stealin’."

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Yitro

Exodus 18:1–20:23

 Preparing To Receive God’s Message

Unlike the first tablets, the second tablets, which were hewn by human hands, endured.

By Rabbi Melvin I. Burg, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

"And Moses went up to God." The great event, toward which all of creation moved from the hour of its inception, was about to take place. The entire universe was hushed and attentive to the sublime drama that was about to unfold in the wilderness of Sinai.

In view of the vivid circumstances surrounding the Divine Revelation, it is most disconcerting that its substance rapidly dissipated. For shortly after Sinai, the Hebrews create a golden calf and Moses, learning of it from atop the mountain, shatters the tablets containing the Ten Commandments. What a magnificent beginning! What an abysmal ending!

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B'shalach

Exodus 13:17−17:16

The Source Of Spirituality

The glorification of God in the Song at the Sea provides us with several models of attaining spirituality.

By Rabbi Solomon Freilich, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com
"Spirituality" has become a centerpiece of our contemporary vernacular. New books intending to help people find more meaning in their lives, to infuse their lives with spirituality, appear regularly. Even medical doctors, psychotherapists, and health care professionals have adopted spirituality as a modality for therapy.

What is Spirituality?

What is the Jewish understanding of this concept, and what are the means to attaining this phenomenal experience?

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Bo

Exodus 10:1−13:16

By Rabbi Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Defining Service Of God

As the Israelites transition from being servants of Pharaoh to servants of God, they acknowledge that God will instruct them in how to best serve God.

Pharaoh’s Conditions

After the plague of darkness immobilizes Egypt, Pharaoh is prepared to discuss releasing the slaves so they can worship God. However, he dictates conditions:

And Pharaoh called for Moses and he said, "Go, worship Ha; however, your sheep and your cattle will stay; even your children will go with you." And Moses said, "You will even give sacrifices and burnt-offerings into our hands, and we will offer them to Hashem our God. Also, our own livestock will go with us, not a hoof will remain, for from it shall we take (nikach) to worship Hashem our God, and we will not know how (mah) we will serve Hashem until our arrival there."

And God strengthened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not want to let them go. And Pharaoh said to him, "Leave me! Watch yourself, do not continue to see my face, because on the day you see my face you will die!" And Moses said, "You have spoken well; I will not continue to see your face again" (Sh’ mot / Exodus 10:24-29).

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Vaera

Exodus 6:2−9:35

By Rabbi Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Brothers Bringing Redemption

Moses and Aaron play complementary roles in communicating God's message of redemption to both the Children of Israel and to Pharaoh.

Things have gone from bad to worse.  As intense as the slavery had been, now the Children of Israel must produce their quota of bricks without being provided with the straw they need.  Although at first they believed that the redemption was imminent, now they have lost hope.  Moses repeats God’s promises to save them, “but they did not hearken to Moses out of impatience and out of hard bondage” (Exodus 6:9).

The Narrative is Interrupted

And, when God insists that Moses return to speak to Pharaoh, Moses’s reaction is understandably full of frustration:

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