Eikev 5775-2015
“‘D’vay’kut’--Bonding with the Al-mighty” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Eikev, we read of the deeply spiritual mitzvah of דְּבֵקוּת “D’vay’kut,” of…
Bereshith 5777-2016
“The Decline and Fall of Humankind” by Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald With this week’s parasha, parashat Bereshith, we begin, once again, to read the first of the Five Books of Moses--the Book of…
Tzav 5777-2017
“Lessons from the Ceremony of the Consecration of the כֹּהֲנִים — the Priests” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald A good part of this week’s parasha, parashat Tzav, describes the…
Lech Lecha 5778-2017
“The Beautiful, Barren Matriarchs” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Lech Lecha, G-d commands Abram and Sarai (their names had not yet been changed), to give…
Eikev 5779-2019
Eikev 5779-2019 “Feast or Famine--What Judaism Says About Food” (Revised and updated from Eikev 5760-2000) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Eikev, the…
Emor 5780-2020
“Death, and the Kohanim--the Children of Aaron” (updated and revised from Parashat Emor 5762-2002) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Emor, the…
Bamidbar 5780-2020
"Jewish Continuity through Family Structure” (Updated and revised from Bamidbar 5761-2001) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Bamidbar, G-d instructs Moses to…
Va’eira 5772-2012
“The Decline and Collapse of the Egyptian Magicians” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Va’eira, we learn of the first seven plagues that strike the Egyptians.…
When Moses was the High Priest
In Modern Hebrew, mi’lu’im connotes reserve military duty that Israel Defense Force (IDF) soldiers who complete their compulsory service, are required to fulfil. Mi’lu’im service can…
These Lights We Kindle
While the mitzvah of lighting the menorah is an outward-focused mitzvah - the menorah is lit in a window or doorway - it is also an opportunity for personal reflection on the deeper…