Ancient Connection – Modern Pioneers
Our parsha concludes with the story of Miriam speaking ill of Moshe and God punishing her with tzara’at. While this story does not seem to be of critical importance in relation to the other stories of the parsha, nonetheless, later in the Torah God commands the Jewish people to remember this incident. Some commentators even […]
At the end of the Torah, when Moshe retells the story of the Giving of the Torah, he says as follows: The Lord came from Sinai and shone forth from Seir to them; He appeared from Mount Paran and came with some of the holy myriads; from His right hand was a fiery Law for […]
Shir HaShirim is a love song between God and the Jewish people. In one verse, God tells the Jewish people the following: “You are fair, my beloved, as Tirzah, comely as Yerushalayim, awesome as the bannered legions.” The Midrash in our parsha offers a variety of interpretations to this cryptic praise from God. One interpretation […]
The opening verse of the parsha seems to indicate that once the Jewish people enter the Land of Israel they are immediately obligated to observe shemitah: “When you enter the land that I assign to you, the land shall observe a Shabbat of God.” The midrash, though, subjects the verse to a close read and […]
When discussing the holiday of Sukkot, the Torah states that “you should take on the first day [of Sukkot] the [etrog, lulav, haddasim and aravot].” The Midrash hones in on the phrase “the first day” and explains that through the mitzvah of the four species the Jewish people will merit many “firsts.” R. Berechia says: […]
Our parsha opens with God’s charge to the Jewish people: “Be Holy!” What is the precise meaning of this mandate? Rabbi Shimon Shkop offers a fascinating interpretation. He writes that “hakdashah” or “sanctification” in Jewish law always refers to the designation of an item to a specific and higher purpose. For example, if one has […]
The Jewish people left the Egypt in a haste. On the night of the first Seder they had to show their hurriedness by eating with their walking sticks and travel clothing. Then, they were rushed out by the Egyptians and did not have time for their dough to leaven. Interestingly, though, this hurriedness seems to […]
This year, the first day of Pesach coincides with Shabbat. We are familiar from other holidays that this cooccurrence changes our practice of the laws of the holiday. Most notably, we do not blow shofar or shake the lulav on Shabbat. The Talmud explains that the rabbis prohibited the performance of these mitzvot on Shabbat, […]
This Shabbat is an important step in our preparation for and march towards Pesach. Commemorating the miracle of the Jewish people safely taking the sheep for the Korbon Pesach, this Shabbat is traditionally a time for studying the laws of the holiday and even for reading sections of the Hagadah. The Sefat Emmet notes that […]
This week’s parsha opens with the laws of childbirth. We are taught that the mother of the new baby becomes impure for a period of time and cannot enter the Beit HaMikdash. Many commentators have expressed bewilderment over this law. Ritual impurity is usually rooted in items or processes relating to death or negative phenomenon. […]
