Rosh Hashana 5785
When the Torah commands us to observe the festival of Pesach, it tells us clearly that it celebrates our freedom from slavery in Egypt. When the Torah commands us to observe the festival of Sukkot, it clearly tells us that…
Can You Make G-d a Cup of Green Tea?
This is a repeat of an email from 12 years ago this week! I hope you enjoy the vintage Shabbos email from time to time! I introduced my wife to the pleasures of good sushi on our seventh date. In…
Ki Savo 5784
In the glorious days of the Holy Temple, every week, in cities all over the Land of Israel, one of the 24 families of Cohanim (and the Levites assigned to them), would meet to travel together to Yerushalayim. There were…
You Can’t Always Get What You Want<br>Ki Saitzei 5784
You can’t always get what you want. But sometimes you get exactly what you want. Today, I got exactly what I wanted. I wanted to write a Shabbos email, and was looking for inspiration, when my good friend Noach Klein…
Parshas Ki Tezei 5784
In this week’s portion, the Torah commands us (Deuteronomy 22:8): (ח) כִּי תִבְנֶה בַּיִת חָדָשׁ וְעָשִׂיתָ מַעֲקֶה לְגַגֶּךָ וְלֹא תָשִׂים דָּמִים בְּבֵיתֶךָ כִּי יִפֹּל הַנֹּפֵל מִמֶּנּוּ 8) If you build a new house, you shall make a fence for your…
I’m going to Huff and Puff, and…<br>Parshas Shoftim 5784
There used to be four seasons a year; spring, summer, fall and winter. But these days we have created many more seasons for ourselves. There is constructions season from April to Nov, Pumpkin Spice Latte season, which had an early…
Biting the Hand that Feeds You<br>Parshas Re’eh
Let’s play a game. I’m going to introduce you to four people, and you have to figure out which one doesn’t fit in the group. Up first is Yousef Muhammad Al-Zahari, a 53 year old man from Akhmin, a small…
Get out! Yes, I’m talking to you, Get Out!<br>Parshas Ekev 5784
Dear Reader: I’m currently in Montana, learning and teaching with about 40 young Jewish men from all over the US and Canada. Therefore, I don’t have the time to write a Shabbos email from scratch, so I’ll share one from…
How Many Horsepower do You Have<br>Parshas V’eschanan
Hand Built in England. That is the proud claim that greets you as you open the door of an Aston Martin DB9 Volante, long considered to be of the most beautiful creations in the automotive universe. The next thing that…
Tanner St Trouble…<br>Parshas Devarim
As a child, Will always seemed to gravitate to more violent forms of play than the other boys in his neighborhood. Even when his mother took away his toy guns and swords, Will found a way to turn the most…