Parashat Emor A Second Chance in Life Saturday, May 2, 2026 / 15 Iyar 5786 Zoom at Noon Tonight – A Second Passover One of the central themes this Shabbat is the bringing of the Omer to the Temple, the first fruits of the trees. The Omer represents the 49 steps we climb from Passover [...]
Parashat Acharei-Kedoshim What is life after death? Saturday, April 25, 2026 Zoom at Noon Join me this Shabbat for the double portion. It begins with Acharei Mot—“After the Death”—recalling the tragic death of Aaron’s two sons, Nadav and Avihu, who brought a “strange fire” before God, teaching us about the awe, responsibility, and discipline required [...]
Parashat Tazria-Metzora What does it mean to be pure? Saturday, April 18, 2026 Parashat Tazria–Metzora invites us to reflect on the profound and often misunderstood concepts of purity (taharah) and impurity (tumah). These categories are not about hygiene or moral worth, but about spiritual states connected to life and death, presence and absence. Moments such [...]
Parashat Shmini After the Rebirth Parashat Shmini – The Meaning of Eight and Rebirth Parashat Shmini comes immediately after the eight days of Passover, and its very name—Shmini, meaning “eighth”—invites us to reflect on the significance of the number eight in Jewish thought. While seven represents the natural order of creation, such as the seven [...]
Shabbat of Passover Teaching
Parashat Tzav The Great Shabbat – Waiting in the Wings for Freedom What is so great about this Shabbat? It is the Shabbat before Passover—the Shabbat when the Israelites took the idols of Egypt, the lambs that the Egyptians worshipped, and set them aside to be slaughtered four days later. Moses pleaded with Pharaoh not [...]
Parasha Vayikra A New Beginning – The Book of Leviticus What is our divine calling? n Parashat Vayikra, we begin a new book of the Torah. As its name suggests, Vayikra—“And He called”—invites us to ask: What is our divine calling, and how do we learn to hear and respond to it? This book teaches [...]
Double Parasha – Vayakhel Pikudei The Shabbat of the Congregation When Moses congregates all the people around the completed Tent of Meeting “Vayakhel” means “gathering.” Moses assembles the People of Israel after the completion of the Mishkan—the Tent of Meeting—the first form of the Temple, the sanctuary of God among the people. Now that the [...]
Parashat Ki Tisa Saturday, March 7, 2026, Zoom at Noon Many times, in life, just as we are engaged in the holiest work, we encounter pushback from the opposite side — a negative force that seeks to resist it. This is not random or accidental. It is built into both the physical and spiritual worlds: action and [...]
Shabbat, February 21, 2026 - Parashat Terumah—Building the House of God on earth. How do we build a heavenly footstool for God on earth? Last Shabbat, we explored the foundations of justice—the courts and ethical systems that God commands us to establish so that He can dwell among us. Justice creates the conditions for God’s [...]
