Sukkot 5774-2013
"Half for You, and Half for G-d" by Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald In parashat Emor, the Torah states that creative labor is forbidden on the first and seventh day of the festival of Passover.…
Bereshith 5774-2013
"Beginning at the Beginning–-Again" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald As we begin the study of the Torah once again, it seems appropriate to attempt to clarify the purpose of Torah study. The…
Vayeishev 5774-2013
"Reuben is Credited with Saving Joseph’s Life" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Joseph is dispatched by Jacob on a fateful mission to check on the well-being of his brothers who had gone to…
Vayigash 5774-2013
“The Dreams and the Divine Covenant” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Vayigash, Joseph reveals himself to his brothers. After twenty-two years of separation,…
Passover 5774-2014
“The Opening Act” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald As every good scriptwriter, playwright or novelist knows, the opening act of a television presentation, a Broadway show or the opening…
Emor 5774-2014
“The Sadducees and the Counting of the Omer” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Among the 63 mitzvot (24 positive and 39 negative) found in this week’s parasha, parashat Emor, is the mitzvah of…
Devarim 5774-2014
“Moses: The Lonely Leader” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Devarim, opens the fifth book of the Torah, the book of Devarim, also known as Deuteronomy. Much of…
Lech Lecha,Weekly Message,Genesis
Lech Lecha 5775-2014
“Lot Grows Increasingly Estranged from his Uncle Abram” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Lech Lecha, Abram (he has not yet been renamed Abraham) concludes the…
Toledot 5775-2014
“Good Families Bad Children, Bad Families Good Children” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Toledot, we read of the birth of Esau and Jacob, the twin sons who…
Vayeitzei 5775-2014
“Twenty Years in the House of Laban” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Vayeitzei, Jacob follows his parents’ advice to leave home in order to escape the wrath…