The Rules of Rebuke
Aug 9, 2024 By Ariel Ya’akov Dunat | Commentary | Devarim
In Leviticus 19:17 we are commanded: “You shall not hate your fellow in your heart. Rebuke your fellow, but incur no guilt on their account.” Rashi teaches that when the Torah says “rebuke your fellow, but incur no guilt on their account,” we come to learn that in giving rebuke, we need to be considerate of how we do it. Location, audience, and method all matter. Rebuking someone publicly may cause embarrassment. Our tone or our choice of words can also belittle them, even if unintentionally. When giving rebuke, we must keep the recipient’s dignity in mind. In Parashat Devarim, Moses expands this principle of dignity further.
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“What’s God?”—and Other Questions Kids Ask
Aug 2, 2024 By Chaim Galfand | Commentary | Masei | Mattot
This week’s double Torah reading specifies 42 locations where the Israelites camped between leaving Egypt and entering Canaan. While the list could be seen as pro forma, a beloved teacher of mine—Dr. Eliezer Slomovic—always insisted that God is not a blabbermouth; everything in Torah is imbued with meaning, even a list of 42 place names. Toward the end of Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, a supercomputer famously reveals the Ultimate Answer to Life, The Universe, and Everything to be the number 42. The numerical parallel to the 42 Israelite encampments provides a serendipitous opening to consider how the seemingly mundane might be the gateway to a wider awareness of something greater than ourselves.
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Making Space for Life
Jul 26, 2024 By Joel Alter | Commentary | Pinehas
It’s not for nothing, this reputation God has for consuming anger. The Torah itself makes the case. Our parashah opens with yet another instance of God hovering at the brink. God is prepared to wipe us out in a rage over our incessant violations of the inviolable. We read in Numbers 25:10-15 that God grants Pinehas a “covenant of peace” for having leapt into action (at the end of last week’s parashah), publicly slaying two people who grossly violated sacred boundaries before the entire people. “Pinehas,” God explains, “has turned back My wrath from the Israelites by displaying among them his passion for Me, so that I did not put an end to the Israelites through My zeal.” (25:11)
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The Sound of No Hands Clapping
Jul 19, 2024 By Marcus Mordecai Schwartz | Commentary | Balak
The Yerushalmi (Jerusalem Talmud) will draw the connection between our parashah and clapping. It states that clapping, particularly when done in anger, is discouraged on Shabbat, and bases the prohibition on Numbers 24:10, where Balak, enraged by Balaam’s blessings instead of curses, claps his hands together in frustration. Balak’s clapping symbolizes a loss of control and submission to anger—actions that go against the peaceful spirit of Shabbat.
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Heroes and Humans
Jul 12, 2024 By Amy Kalmanofsky | Commentary | Hukkat
But Moses also has shortcomings. His initial reluctance when God first approaches him to become Israel’s liberator could indicate cowardice, or worse, a lack of faith (Exod. 4:11–12). Moses also has a temper. He gets angry at the people (Exod. 32:19) and at God (Num. 11:10–15).
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Not for the Sake of Heaven
Jul 5, 2024 By Menachem Creditor | Commentary | Korah
Parashat Korah, a poignant ancient exploration of conflict and leadership, remains frighteningly current. Korah challenges the authority of his cousins, Moses and Aaron, accusing them of elevating themselves above the community they serve. The biblical narrative communicates the palpable tension of contrasting intentions behind this dispute and the qualities that distinguish servant leaders from those whose primary motivations are attention and power.
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The Large Significance of the Littlest Letter
Jun 28, 2024 By Malka Strasberg Edinger | Commentary | Shelah Lekha
Could one tiny letter really be so important? At the beginning of this week’s parashah, as Moshe sends twelve scouts to tour the Land of Canaan, we are told that Moshe changed Joshua’s name from Hoshea to Yehoshua.
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The Journey
Jun 21, 2024 By Jan Uhrbach | Commentary | Beha'alotekha
In other words, the path forward is never clear, and God isn’t a divine GPS. Revelation and faith shape our vision of where we want to go; they offer a compass pointing to true north, orienting us in the general direction of that vision. But to get there, we need maps, road signs, traffic signals, and human guides with a variety of expertise—religious and secular.
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