Pidyon Ha’ben – Redeeming the Firstborn
“You must redeem the firstborn of a person ... when he is one month old, for the value of five silver shekels” (Numbers 18:15-16). God sanctified the firstborn male Israelites when He…
Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai and the City of Yavne
Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai lived during the tumultuous times when the Jewish residents of Judea rebelled against Rome, and the Romans besieged and then destroyed Jerusalem. At the time,…
The Holy Ari: Rabbi Isaac ben Solomon Luria
When Rabbi Isaac ben Solomon Luria arrived in Safed, in 1569, the town had already become a center of Jewish learning, with a particular emphasis on the kabbalah (Jewish mysticism). By…
Shem ben Noah
When the great flood that inundated the world began, eight people entered the ark: Noah and his wife, Na’ama, and their three sons and three daughters-in-law. Because Noah and Na’ama had…
Vayishlach 5769-2008
"What's in a Name?" by Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald Parashat Vayishlach seems to be a virtual endurance test for poor Jacob. In this parasha, Jacob at last encounters his brother Esau who has…
The Second President
Yitzchak Ben-Zvi, the second President of the State of Israel, was born on November 24, 1884 in Poltava, Ukraine. After participating in the Jewish self-defense units organized…
The Second President
Yitzchak Ben-Zvi, the second President of the State of Israel, was born on November 24, 1884 in Poltava, Ukraine. After participating in the Jewish self-defense units organized during the…
Vayishlach 5775-2014
“She Called His Name ‘Ben Oni’” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Vayishlach, Jacob, after many years of separation, finally reunites with his long-estranged…
Shelach 5773-2013
"Tzitzit: The Unpretentious Mitzvah" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald At the conclusion of this week’s parasha, parashat Shelach, we learn of the mitzvah of Tzitzit, the fringes that are…
The Tosafot Commentaries
One of the most fascinating aspects of Jewish study are the layer upon layer of enlightening and edifying commentaries that can be found when studying texts of the Torah or the Talmud. Of…