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.…
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…
The Burial at Betar
In war, a common means of humiliating the enemy is to refuse them burial of their dead (which is forbidden by the Geneva Convention). Certainly, demoralization was the goal of the Romans…
The Burial at Betar
In war, a common means of humiliating the enemy is to refuse them burial of their dead (which is also forbidden by the Geneva Convention). Certainly, demoralization was the goal of the…
The Burial at Betar
In war, a common means of humiliating the enemy is to refuse them burial of their dead (which is also forbidden by the Geneva Convention). Certainly, demoralization was the goal of the…
Eikev 5764-2004
"Battling the Contemporary Abominations" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week's parasha, parashat Eikev, Moses once again encourages the people of Israel to put their faith in G-d.…
Va’eira 5769-2009
"Why Didn't the Egyptians Rebel Against Pharaoh?" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In parashat Va'eira, we learn of the first seven plagues that struck Egypt: Blood, frogs, lice, wild…
Chukat 5778-2018
"The People of Israel are Taught to be More Independent" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Chukat, opens with the laws of the פָּרָה אֲדֻמָּה, Parah Adumah, the…
Eclipse
One might expect the sages to record eclipses as moments of awe, but instead the Talmud (Sukkah 29a) ascribes what seems to be a strange meaning to them:“Our Rabbis taught, When the…