Category: Rabbis blog

Bahalotecha This week the contest for leader of the conservatives which will decide who is the next Prime Minister was in full swing.(as of writing we are down to the final two!) Watching the TV debates online it really brought home to me the sad reality of our current political landscape where it seems to me that honesty and true commitment to what is best for this country are in short supply. The rhetoric being wielded by the candidates was more tactical - to get through to the next round - then truthful. Contrast this with weeks Parsha where Moses is tasked with inaugurating the Levites into the service of the Tabernacle. God tells Moses that the Levites " are wholly given over to Me from among the children of Israel". In Hebrew the double expression "Nessunim Nesssunim heima li" is used. The Torah is teaching us that the ideal life is one that is dedicated in service to something more than the self- in this case the Divine service in the...

Naso  In parshas Nasso is recorded the Birchas Kohanim, the Priestly Benediction. The benediction is a powerful and beautiful blessing that expresses Hashem’s greatest blessings upon the Jewish People. The Kohanim have the responsibility and honor to serve as Hashem’s messengers to impart these special blessings to His people. The Zohar says that any Kohen that does not love the congregation should not participate in Birchas Kohanim. This is because of the verse, טוב עין הוא יבורך – “He with a good eye should be blessed (proverbs 22:9).” The Zohar says, do not read that, “He with a good eye shall be blessed,” rather read, “He with a good eye shall bless others.” (זח”ג קמז,ב) The Shulchan Aruch - Code of Jewish law based on the above Zohar instructs that a Kohen who (God forbid)  hates a congregant should actually leave shul so as not to  do Birchas Kohanim, since saying Birchas Cohanim while hating a congregant is dangerous for the Kohen. The Zohar brings a story of a Kohen who once stood up to say Birchas Kohanim, and before he finished he became a pile of bones. The reason,...

Bamidbar- Shavuot  As we approach Shavuot I have been working up my appetite for my all favorite cheesecake! There are many reasons given for eating milky over Shavuot some of which we will discuss at Monday's discussion - yes over cheesecake! Usually I write original pieces for this section but on this occasion I would like to share a very interesting chassidic take on cheesecake by Rabbi Aron Moss: The teachings of Chasssidus in general is a perspective of Torah that helps us connect to the deeper and inner experience of the Torah and its Mitzvot. He writes as follows Milk is actually refined blood. In a complex and wondrous process (taking certain proteins etc), the mammary glands transform blood into pure white milk.There's something supernatural about that. To take a liquid as pungent and distasteful as blood, and convert it into a nourishing and drinkable food is nothing short of miraculous. We can simulate this miracle in our own lives. Blood represents raw animalistic passion and untamed...

Bechukosai There are three types of mitzvos: 1) Eidus - testimonies that remind us of a particular aspect of our relationship with Hashem Eg Shabbat reminds us of creation, Pesach - the exodus etc 2) Mishpatim- ordinances or laws that make sense to our natural inborn moral sense 3) Chukim- statutes which are laws which transcend our limited human wisdom The parsha opens with the promise of blessings for following the pathway of Torah. If you follow My statutes and observe My commandments and perform them then ..." It is interesting to note that the Torah encapsulates the mitzvot with the term "bechukotai" (related to chukim - statutes). The Torah does not say "if you will walk in my testimonies or ordinances" This is because at the heart of every mitvzah even the testimonies and ordinances that make sense to our minds and hearts is a Chok- a statute that transcends reason. Whilst we should and are even commanded to learn Torah and uncover spiritual depths of Hashem's wisdom, nevertheless at the...

Behar At the heart of Judaism is our faith that the Torah is the eternal word of Hashem Creator of the universe. The 8th and 9th of the 13 principles of faith articulated by Maimonides address this. they are: 8. The belief in the divine origin of the Torah. 9. The belief in the immutability of the Torah. Yet some question of the Divine origin of the Torah and find it difficult to accept. The question gnaws away at their hearts even God forbid affecting and eroding their observance or love for their Judaism. Perhaps Moses a most intelligent man wrote the Torah? [Note: Judaism welcomes questions. After all God created us with intellects and so it is also important to create an intellectual framework for our faith. However it always important to remember that underlying motivation for our observance of Mitzvos should not be dependent on understanding. Rather we observe Mitvzos due to our deep seated faith in God which is unshakable. This faith derives from our soul which is...

Kedoshim  This weeks Parsha contains dozens of Mitzvot. To be precise 13 positive commandments and 38 negative prohibitions out of the total of 613 commandments. These Mitzvot include: mandatory gifts to the poor, many interpersonal laws most famous being Love your neighbour as yourself, not to gossip, honesty in ones business dealings, sexual morality , to avoid idol worship and many more. It is difficult to discern a pattern to why these specific Mitzvot are grouped here and in a particular order. To understand this we must look at the opening verse of the Parsha You shall be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am holy (Vayikra 19:2) There has been two basic approaches over the ages to this verse and whether it counts as an actual commandment. Ramban (Nachmanides 13th Cent Rabbi,Kabbalist and commentator) explains this verse as an actual positive commandment to be Holy. Rambam (Maimonides 12th Cent) did not count ~"to be Holy" as one of the 613 specific Mitzvot because he believed that...

Emor The Torah attaches great importance as to how we utilise our power of speech. Last week in Kedoshim we were commanded "You shall not go around as a gossipmonger amidst your people." Lashon Harah (lit evil speech) is considered one of the worst Sins in the torah. It damages both the speaker the listener and the one who is spoken about. The world was created by God through speech. And God said let there be light etc. We reflect this idea in our morning Teffilah in the opening blessing to the verses of Praise (pesukei dezimra)- "Blessed is the one that spoke and the world came into being" This teaches us that words have creative power. The saying "sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never harm me" is the antithesis of what Judaism teaches. The Torah even allows us to extend the prohibitions of the Torah through the power of a vow. This is a "mere" utterance with a particular formula that makes...