Balak 5779-2019
“History Repeats Itself! Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose” (Revised and updated from Chukat-Balak 5760-2000) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s Torah portion, parashat…
Passover II 5779-2019
“On the Seventh Day the Walls of Water Split” (Revised and updated from Passover 5765-2005) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald The Passover holiday is divided chronologically into two parts,…
Passover 1 5779-2019
“The Passover Seder–Focus on the Children” (Revised and updated from Passover 5760-2000) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald As is the usual practice on all Shabbatot that coincide with Jewish…
Shavuot,Weekly Message,Bamidbar
Bamidbar-Shavuot 5778-2018
“Counting a Very Special People” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald With this week’s parasha, parashat Bamidbar, Jews throughout the world begin reading the fourth book of the Torah,…
Vayechi 5778-2017
“Blessing the Children--Revisited” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Vayechi, is chock-full of blessings. Before his passing, Jacob not only blesses his…
Noah 5778-2017
“Rebuilding the World Through the Children of Noah” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Although this week’s parasha, parashat Noah, focuses primarily on the Flood, it also traces the history of…
Re’eh 5777-2017
“Coming to Jerusalem–-The Festival Pilgrimages” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Re’eh, we learn of the commandment for the Children of Israel to come to…
Passover I 5776-2016
“The Children, The Children!” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald As we have previously discussed (Passover 5760-2000), children play a central role in the Passover Seder and in the Haggadah.…
Chayei Sarah 5776-2015
"The Legacy of Ishmael" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Chayei Sarah, opens with the death and burial of the matriarch, Sarah, at age 127, and closes with the…
Lech Lecha 5774-2013
"Setting the Stage for the Jewish Future" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Lech Lecha, the Torah tells of the exploits of Abraham and Sarah. The remarkable…