Behar-Bechukotai 5783-2023

“The Revolutionary Nature of Shemita and Yovel” (updated and revised from Behar-Bechukotai 5764-2004) by, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In parashat Behar, the first of this week’s two…

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Vayakhel 5784-2024

“Bezalel's Artistic Legacy” (updated and revised from Vayakhel 5765-2005) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald When this week’s parasha, parashat Vayakhel, lists the abundant talents of Bezalel,…

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Emor 5761-2001

"The Gift of Celebration" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In the second half of this week's parasha, parashat Emor, there is a review of most of the Biblical festivals of the Jewish…

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Vayakhel 5768-2008

"Rochel the Riveter" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week's parasha, parashat Vayakhel, continues the excruciatingly detailed description of the building of the Tabernacle and its…

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Vayakhel 5765-2005

"Bezalel's Artistic Legacy" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week's parasha, parashat Vayakhel, is one of the few instances (cf. parshat Ki Tisah, Exodus 31:1-6) in which the Torah…

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Behar-Bechukotai 5764-2004

"The Revolutionary Nature of Shemita and Yovel" by Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald In the first of this week's double parashiot, parashat Behar, we encounter the remarkable laws of Shemita--the…

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Shelach 5760-2000

"Finding Meaning in the Rituals" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This coming week's parasha, Parashat Sh'lach, concludes with the well-known third paragraph of the Shema prayer concerning…

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B’ha’alot’cha 5763-2003

"The Message of the Manna" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week's parasha, we encounter the A'saf'suf, the mixed multitude, who were dissatisfied with the Manna, the food that has…

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Yom Kippur 5765-2004

"G-d's Gift to His People on Yom Kippur" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald The Torah reading scheduled for this Shabbat would normally have been V'zot Habracha--the final parasha of the Torah.…

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Sukkot 5771-2010

“A Turning Point for Humankind” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald To most observers, Sukkot is a festival that is closely associated with the celebration of nature. The Torah (Exodus 34:22)…

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