Parshas Vayakhel 5785
This week’s portion Vayakhel follows on the heels of Parshat Ki Tisa, the portion that relates the story of the golden calf. A brief overview of the events leading up to where we are now will give us a greater…
The Pinch Who Stole Purim<br>Parshas Tetzaveh/Purim
Pinch never liked Purim. It was too happy of a day, and frankly, Pinch wasn’t into the whole happiness thing. Pinch hated passing playgrounds filled with kids happily climbing and swinging, he hated weddings filled with smiling dancing people, he…
Parshas Zachor 5785
The month of Adar has begun, and we are commanded to increase our happiness! The Talmud says (Taanit 29a): אמר רב יהודה בריה דרב שמואל בר שילת משמיה דרב: משנכנס אדר מרבין בשמחה Rabbi Yehuda the son of Rav Shmuel…
Stay in Your Lane!<br>Parshas Terumah/Shekalim
It took Sam Goldstein forty-three years to buy his Aston Martin Vanquish. It’s not that the waitlist was that long, the waitlist was only six months, but it took Sam that long to get to the place where he could…
Parshas Terumah 5785
The Mishkan (Tabernacle) - the portable sanctuary that accompanied the Jewish people during their 40-year trek in the wilderness - was built with the donations of the Jewish people who donated all of the necessary building materials. The Torah tells…
Playing in the Pain<br> Parshas Mishpatim 5785
An operating room can be a pretty tense and chaotic place, which is why it is no surprise that about 70% of surgeons prefer to have music playing while they operate. Already in the early 1900’s, a Pennsylvania surgeon wrote…
Parshas Mishpatim 5785
And Parshat Mishpatim starts in a peculiar way. The Hebrew text (Exodus 21:1) begins with a “ו“, which translates as “And,” a word usually used to connect two ideas or concepts. But this is the beginning of a new portion!…