Shelach 5763-2003
"Can Human Beings Achieve Immortality?" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald One of the most heartrending and challenging juxtapositions in the Bible appears in this week's parasha, Shelach…
B’ha’alot’cha 5770-2010
"The Murmurers" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This coming week's parasha, parashat B'ha'alot'cha, is a complex and fascinating parasha. The first three chapters of the parasha contain many…
Shelach 5783-2023
"Where Did the Scouts Go Wrong?" (updated and revised from Shelach 5764-2004) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Shelach, G-d tells Moses (Numbers 13:2): שְׁלַח…
Chukat 5764-2004
"A Tribute to Miriam, Our Sister" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Numbers 20:1 informs us of the death of Miriam. It reads as follows: "Va'yah'voh'ooh v'nay Yisrael, kol hah'ay'dah, mid'bar…
Pinchas 5770-2010
"The Colorful Biography of Pinchas" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald At the end of last week's parasha, we learned that a prominent couple performed a lewd act in public in order to directly…
Chukat 5771-2011
"The Well of Miriam" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Chukat, we learn of the passing of one of the great Jewish matriarchs, Miriam, the sister of Aaron and…
Va’etchanan 5778-2018
“Never Despair!" In this week’s parasha, parashat Va’etchanan, Moses pleads with the Al-mighty to display His greatness and to forgive Moses’ sin, and allow him to cross into the…
The Hebron Massacre of 1929
One of the most ancient cities in the land of Israel, Hebron is mentioned in the Bible as the location of the Cave of the Patriarchs (Me'arat Ha'mach'pelah), which Abraham purchased…
The Power of Positive – An Anniversary Treat
“Pop psychologists” often like to discuss the power of perspective by referring to the glass half empty versus the glass half full. Alas, it is a common human trait to look for the…
Visiting Graves
Graveyard tours are often promoted in the month of October as an opportunity for spookiness. Judaism, however, encourages visiting the burial sites of relatives and holy people at all…