Va’etchanan 5783-2023

"The Dialectic of Body and Soul" (updated and revised from Va’etchanan 5764-2004) In this week’s parasha, parashat Va’etchanan, we encounter several well-known and significant texts.…

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Va’etchanan 5764-2004

"The Dialectic of Body and Soul" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week's parasha, parashat Va'etchanan, we encounter several weighty and significant texts. Among the most prominent…

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Sukkot 5770-2009

"Sukkot: The Dialectic of a Festival" by Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald The festival of Sukkot is referred to in the Torah (Exodus 34:22) as "Chag Ha'ah'sif," the festival of the ingathering. It…

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Holiday Decorating

During the holiday of Sukkot, Jews live in sukkot (temporary dwellings with a roof of branches or wooden boards) for seven days. Although the bare minimum required for a…

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Holiday Decorating

During the holiday of Sukkot, Jews live in sukkot (temporary dwellings with a roof of branches or wooden boards) for seven days. Although the bare minimum required for a kosher…

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Holiday Decorating

During the holiday of Sukkot, Jews live in sukkot (temporary dwellings with a roof of branches or wooden boards) for seven days. Although the bare minimum required for a kosher…

Read More

Holiday Decorating

During the holiday of Sukkot, Jews live in sukkot (temporary dwellings with a roof of branches or wooden boards) for seven days. Although the bare minimum required for a kosher sukkah is…

Read More

Holiday Decorating

During the holiday of Sukkot, Jews live in sukkot (temporary dwellings with a roof of branches or wooden boards) for seven days. Although the bare minimum required for a kosher sukkah is…

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Bereshith 5769-2008

"The Development of Civilization as Recorded in Genesis" by Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald The Torah is not intended to serve as a history lesson or as a chronicle of the development of ancient…

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Va’etchanan 5772-2012

"The Magic of the Mezuzah" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Va’etchanan, we encounter the first of two textual references to the mitzvah of mezuzah that are…

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