On the eve of Passover, adjacent to minḥa time, a person may not eat until dark, so that he will be able to eat matza that night with a hearty appetite. Even the poorest of Jews should not eat the meal on Passover night until he reclines on his left side, as free and wealthy people recline when they eat. And the distributors of tzedakah should not give a poor person less than four cups Continue Reading »
And he spread the tent (ohel) over the tabernacle (mishkan), and put the covering of the tent above upon it; as God commanded Moses. Exodus 40:19 God’s blueprint for a traveling sacred space to accompany the Israelites during their journey through the wilderness has now been completed. As the Israelites travelled, they would carry a place for Continue Reading »
The opening word of this week’s parasha, Vayakel (And he gathered), is from the Hebrew root which also gives us the words kahal and kehilla, congregation and community. The Torah tells us that the entire people of Israel gather together as they embark on the task of building the Mishkan, the Tabernacle. Rabbi Avraham of Continue Reading »
“And God passed before him and called out … ” Exodus 34:6 Rabbi Yochanan stated, “Were it not for the fact that Scripture said it, it would be impossible for us to assert it. The Holy One wraps Himself in a tallit as prayer leader to show Moses the proper order of prayer for Continue Reading »
Zachor/Remember what Amalek did to you on your journey, after you left Egypt — how, undeterred by fear of God, he surprised you on the march, when you were famished and weary, and cut down all the stragglers in your rear. Therefore, when the Lord your God grants you safety from all your enemies around you, Continue Reading »
He who kidnaps a man – whether he has sold him or is still holding him – shall be put to death. Sh’mot/Exodus 21:16 A kidnapper is liable for capital punishment if he kidnaps a Jewish person, brings him into the kidnapper’s own domain, makes use of him, and then sells him to others, as Continue Reading »
I the Lord am your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, the house of bondage: Sh’mot / Exodus 20:2 Biblical commentators through ages have observed that in the verse above the words your and you are written in the singular in the Hebrew even though God is speaking to the entire nation Continue Reading »
Shabbat Shira today marks the beginning of Jewish Music Season. Originally, the designation of this special Shabbat referred to the reading of the Song at the Sea with its special melody as part of the Torah reading and the chanting of the Song of Deborah as the Haftarah. As Jewish music has proliferated and diversified Continue Reading »
He [Pharaoh] summoned Moses and Aaron in the night and said, “Up, depart from among my people, you and the Israelites with you! Go, worship the Lord as you said! Sh’mot / Exodus 12:31 Our teacher Rabbi Yitzchak Zelig Morgenstern of Sokolov (1) quotes his grandfather Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk: Worship God as Continue Reading »
“These are the names of the children of Israel who came to Egypt …” Exodus 1:1 The Book of Exodus opens with a brief review of the descent of Jacob and his family into Egypt where they will be trapped in fulfillment of the divine warning to Abraham that his descendants will be strangers in Continue Reading »
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