The mitzvah of the parah adumah (Red Heifer) is the focal point of the beginning of our parasha: “This is the statute of the Torah that the L-rd commanded, saying: Speak to the children of … more

It was a blisteringly hot day, and the shade of the trees offered little respite for the 40 prisoners of the Waldkommando (forest brigade) whose job it was to cut down trees for lumber for the … more

Our parasha, Chayei Sarah, begins with one of the greatest human tragedies, the death of one’s spouse. Avraham’s beloved wife, confidant and inspiration, was no more. In the midst … more

Not being ‘cross’ By Rabbi Avi Billet Issue of Sept. 12, 2008 Chapter 22 has a unique list of seemingly random commandments: You may not forego returning a lost object you come … more

More than what he was saying, it was his face that caught my attention. Flicking on the television absent-mindedly as I was getting dressed for a wedding, I came across the middle of a program on what, after a moment, I realized was a story from the Second Lebanon War. more

Our underlined phrase, “you shall judge your fellow with righteousness,” is found in the second of the two parshiot we read this Shabbat. As noted in Talmud Bavli, Shevuot 30a, one of the interpretations of this expression is the obligation to judge our fellow Jews in a favorable fashion: “Our Rabbis taught: ‘You shall judge your fellow with righteousness’ - judge your neighbor to the side of merit (Hevay dan et chaverchah l’kaf zechut).” more

Jabalya. Anyone who has been there has no desire to go back. A nasty piece of real estate in the Gaza strip, Jabalya is a densely overpopulated refugee camp that is always waiting to explode, … more

Tetzaveh, this week’s parsha, ends with a seemingly out of place description of the commandment for making the “mizbeach hazahav” (small altar), the golden, spice-burning … more

This week’s parsha, Vayishlach, is replete with life-events that did not go the way those involved in them would have wanted. And yet, positive thinking people try to find silver linings. … more

Yosef is the sole figure in Tanach to whom our Sages attach the title hatzaddik, the righteous one. The second-century work Seder Haolam Rabbah is one of the earliest Rabbinic sources where this … more