The Torah mentions several times that Bnei Yisroel are the am hanivchar. What exactly does that mean? Does it mean that just like parents sometimes favor one child over the others Hashem favors Klal Yisroel, and...
The end of Acharei Mos contains the prohibition of giving one’s children over to the pagan worship of Molech. This tragic form of Avodah Zarah (idolatry) involved transferring one’s child to the priest of Molech, who would...
Last Thursday, adult-use marijuana sales became legal in the Garden State — opening the doors to what analysts believe could be a $2 billion market by 2025. Voters in the state first approved a ballot measure...
The Gemora calls our ancient sages Sofrim, people who know how to count. This seems to be an odd name for our great men who were endowed with encyclopedic knowledge, erudition, and deep piety. However, the name Sofrim depicts...
The Gemorah in Berochos states, “when the month of Nissin is upon us, one goes out to recite a beracha on a tree that is starting to bud.” The Shita Mekubetzes says this beracha was instituted because it expresses Hashem’s...
We read in Parashat Ahareh-Mot of the spe- cial service which the Kohen Gadol would perform on Yom Kip- pur in the Bet Ha’mikdash. One of the many fascinating features of this service is the...
Medical marijuana is permissible, but recreational use prevents us from being our best selves. _________________ In 1970, President Richard Nixon signed the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”), essentially declaring a war on drugs, including marijuana. American’s attitude and US...
In the second chapter of Pirkeh Avot, we read the following teaching of Rabbi Shimon: וכשאתה מתפלל, אל תעש תפלתך קבע, אלא רחמים .ותחנונים לפני המקום When you pray, do not make your prayer “permanent,” but rather compassion...
In Germany they came first for the Communists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew. Then they came...
“For the winter has passed,… the time of the songbird has arrived, and the blossoms of the tree are seen throughout the land.” (Shir HaShirim 2:11-12) We read Shir HaShirim this past Achron shel Pesach....