The Torah’s 30-day renewal programme
How long does it take to form a habit, and how do we know when it's time to renew? The Sfat Emet finds this in the secrets of the moon.
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Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis
News and updates about Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Shmini: The most important ingredient for great leadership
At the crucial moment, the nation's spiritual leader holds back from approaching the altar. What was holding him back?
UK Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis tests positive for COVID
Chief Rabbi Mirvis is reportedly feeling well but is waiting for the results of a PCR test.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Tzav: The beauty of compromise
"Zot torat Haolah" is a verse telling you about a certain kind of person. Are you that person?
Where do we find Adam in Vayikra?
Rashi finds his name right at the beginning of Vayikra and this is no coincidence.
Why is Purim celebrated in the second Adar and not the first?
Thanks to the inspiration we’ve received from our rabbis, we guarantee that indeed when it comes to celebrations we are on a roll.
What will you be doing on the day after?
Moshe didn’t want the new tablets to be a one day memory. He wanted it to change their lives for the better. A lesson in educational goals.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Ki Tisa: Palindrome in the parasha
Palindromes in the Torah - yes, they can be found and there is a reason they are there.
Enablers are as important as achievers!
The poles were an inseparable part of the Ark. They were never removed. "A tree of life to those who suppot her."
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Mishpatim: Do your pets know when it is Shabbat?
Why does the Torah say to rest on the Sabbath "in order that" your animals should rest?
Yitro: The best entry points to greater Jewish engagement
What is the best entry point through which more people can engage better with their Judaism?
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Integration without assimilation
He is probably the most outstanding Biblical role model for our times.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Bo: The slave to the compass has freedom of the seas
T"he slave to the compass has the freedom of the seas." How can we harness the power of this statement to find our own freedom?
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Va’era: Never tolerate the intolerable!
Sometimes one can be enduring a totally unacceptable situation, but have gotten used to it.
Getting to know you...
What is the antidote to polarization? Pharaoh and Joseph are a case in point.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
What is your greatest blessing?
You might think it is the greatest blessing if your children are blessed, but there is a step beyond that.
Old wine, new bottle
Vayigash: Are you like old wine in a new bottle?
Office of UK Chief Rabbi
Eight lights for eight nights
The Maccabees discovered that an uncertain future and having peace of mind were not mutually exclusive..
VAYESHEV:
Our greatest inspiration can be found within ourselves!
Information can be taught, but strength of character and integrity are your own responsibility.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Vayishlach: The legacy of those who perished in the Holocaust
Holocaust victims have no headstones, no matzeiva. I derive some chizuk, some support, from the beautiful teaching in Parshat Vayishlach.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Vayetze: After Covid, will we go back to sleep?
Hashem was saying something to us. What will our response be? Will it be to turn over and ignore it, or will we respond appropriately?
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Toldot: The key to our survival in a missing letter!
A missing letter allows a different reading and a different meaning to a verse.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Chayei Sarah: In this world, we’re all just passing through
UK Jewish community at odds over assisted dying legislation
Proposed assisted dying legislation has been opposed by Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis but many leading Jewish legal experts are in support.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Vayeira: True kindness has empathy at its heart
Avraham “rushed to the tent, to Sara,” and said,“Mahari!” – “Quick!” – We’ve got to get a meal going as soon as possible. Why the rush?
UK Chief Rabbi: Assisted dying bill is 'profoundly disquieting'
Rabbi Mirvis joins Catholic and Anglican leaders in joint statement opposing Assisted Dying Bill on its second reading in UK parliament.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Jewish history in a nutshell.
Two blessings that appear beside one another in Hashem's words to Avraham are a synopsis of what keeps happening to the Jewish people.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
How responsible was Noah for the flood?
In Isaiah, the flood is called "the waters of Noah." What does that imply?
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
How inaccuracy was the undoing of Eve
A puzzling story that's been told for millennia, there is much to question in the tale of Adam and Eve.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Shmini Atzeret: The conclusion we’ve been waiting for
In Temple times there was a fascinating halakha relating to visitation to Jerusalem, one which has a message beyond its content.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Succot: Fast asleep with your eyes wide open!
We might have our eyes open and be walking around, but if we aren’t contributing to the world around us, there’s no value to our lives.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
What Creation can teach us about New Year's Resolutions
When Hashem created the world, He embedded clues for how to start, continue and finish a project-clues that we can use in the New Year.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Shoftim: We are separate but always together
We are individuals in our own right and at the same time we are part of our nation.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Re’eh: What we have always had is new every day!
How we should relate to the mitzvot on every day of our lives - how lucky we are!
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Va'etchanan: Climate Change and Moshe Rabbeinu
A very current message about climate change can be derived from the actions of Moshe Rabbeinu.
Office of the UK Chief Rabbi
Can one ever graduate from Jewish education?
In the book of Dvarim, Moshe reminds the Israelites that they stayed at Mount Sinai for a long time and left it enriched with Torah.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Matot-Massei: Pack this in your bags – it doesn’t weigh anything
When travelling, the most important thing to take with us doesn’t weight anything at all.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Pinchas and the best invitation ever
In this parasha, an invitation arrives from Hashem Himself in order to enable us to have a life changing experience. Be sure to RSVP.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
From where can the Jewish people derive comfort and consolation?
Once we recognise where we have gone wrong, we can begin to put our national house in order to guarantee a bright and successful future.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Something extraordinary happened in our living room!
A Flame Lily inspires this week's D'var Torah about why it's so good to connect.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Sometimes blind people see more
Does a blind person say the daily morning blessing:thanking G-d "“Who opens the eyes of the blind.”?
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Beha’alotcha: Exacerbating Jewish suffering?
When struck by one of your own, the consequences are more severe. That surely is a major lesson of Jewish history.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
60 armed warriors surrounded King Solomon’s bed every night!
King Solomon's kingdom saw forty years of peace, but who, or what, were his mightiest warriors?
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Count each day to make each day count!
“Teach us to number our days in order that we should become wise hearted,” said the Psalmist, a message fitting for the period of the Omer.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Shemini: The surprising value of self-doubt
If you think that you’re not good enough, perhaps that’s the very reason why you’re the best person for the job.
Vayikra: Adding salt to bread helps us to improve our characters
The effect of salt on food differs inherently from that of yeast, sugar or honey.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Ki Tissa and Zoom: There's nothing like the real thing
When one misses something, one comes to appreciate it all the more.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Beshalach: Why should our children and grandchildren do mitzvot?
The Chief Rabbi’s D’var Torah for Parshat Beshalach
Office of the Chief Rabbi
A lesson about nitpicking
The Chief Rabbi’s weekly insight for Parshat Bo: Moses knew that some people always find what is wrong instead of appreciating the good.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Va’eira: The impact of Covid-19 on our senior citizens
The Chief Rabbis’ insight for Parshat Va’eira in light of Psalm 71: "Do not cast us aside when we are old and our strength has failed.".
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Shemot: What does our name mean to others?
The Chief Rabbi’s weekly insight for Parshat Shemot.
Our Covid-19 journey – how should we respond to its uncertainty?
The Chief Rabbi’s weekly insight for Parshat Vayechi.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
A Fast on a Friday? Asarah B’Tevet this year
Treating the root cause, not the symptoms.The Chief Rabbi’s D’var Torah for Asarah b’Tevet and Parshat Vayigash.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
By sharing, we receive more than we give
How Pharaoh knoew that Joseph was someone who’s word he could rely on.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Hanukkah and Vayeshev: We can always climb higher!
The way in which we light the Hanukkah candles teaches us how to achieve our full potential.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Vayishlach: The hidden challenge facing the Jewish people
What are the three greatest challenges facing the Jewish people?
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Make the journey count as much as the destination
It’s important to prepare for where we’re going and in doing so, derive meaning from the journey.
Jacob and the Pandemic
Why are our voices today more powerful than ever before?
Office of the Chief Rabbi
Chayei Sara: Is the title misleading?
A tribute to Rabbi Lord Sacks z”l.
Office of the Chief Rabbi
The greatest leaders
The greatest leaders, just like great parents and teachers are all defined by one thing.