Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch: Yitro
Rendering yourself non-existent
Don’t smother the unique characteristics with which Hashem blessed you.
Don’t smother the unique characteristics with which Hashem blessed you.
Matzah reminds us that we left Egypt thanks to G-d’s grace alone.
Yosef targeted his brothers' feelings by appealing to their minds.
G-d wants us to accomplish, not just exist.
Pity comes naturally; sympathy doesn't.
Equality before G-d is supposed to govern human society.
Esav sought to escape Yaakov's influence.
G-d is our father… and our lawgiver.
Even if she could fool Yitzchak, there's no fooling G-d.
If he did, what happened to her?
Avraham rushed to serve pagan guests.
Avraham’s spirit elevated Hagar into an entirely different person.
A functioning society is impossible without objective language.
Imparting pure philosophical truth isn’t the Torah’s primary aim.
We all have a role to play in the divine plan.
Denying religious truth is often convenient.
One category of sin isn’t “better” than another.
The fate of a nation rests on its mothers.
Our actions – not “black arts” – determine our future.
Truth, not feelings, must govern our actions.
Supporting a family is no excuse for violating the Torah’s commands.
Truth isn’t equivocal, and we dare not present it as such.
Our body must ultimately succumb to nature; not so our soul.
Hashem wants us to defend His honor.
Bilaam couldn’t harm us, but our own misbehavior did.
Moshe hoped Korach’s men would reconsider if given time to reflect.
The physical world may affect our spiritual nature more than we realize.
Our ancestors didn’t know their arrival and departure dates.
Why are the Hebrew words for education and strangulation connected?
In Jewish law, a maidservant isn’t a lowly slave.
Hashem promised us three periods of exile – each one better than the next.
The existing parties won’t save Israel. The country needs roaring lions, and it needs to find them. Here's how. Op-ed.
Why did Yericho’s walls crumble to the ground?
On Sukkot, both nature and man recede into the background.
The Torah doesn’t demand the impossible.
Torah truth must permeate a person’s mundane life.
Private property comes with responsibilities – to others.
The laws of tzaraas are incomprehensible if we adopt the general translation.
The Prophetic Books are not more “ethical” than the Pentateuch.
Every statement she’s made regarding Israel can be explained without assuming anti-Semitism on her part. Opinion.
Animosity is often better than indifference.
Why couldn’t the Jews erect the Mishkan at night?
G-d wants us to sanctify the physical, not shun it.
The Torah enables us to rise above the natural order.
The Jewish lamb is happy, joyful, and virile – not meek.
The menorah teaches us how to live our lives.
An unusual law in Parshas Mishpatim makes the case for the divine authorship of the Torah.
Neither the heart nor the deed is sufficient. G-d wants both.
We’re not supposed to start from scratch every generation.
Tell your children what you believe and why.
Pharaoh didn’t take Moshe seriously because he didn’t take his own religion seriously.
Outsiders don’t see what happens beneath the surface.
Individuality is valuable but only if the Torah lies at its core.
Asnas came from a very different background than Yosef, but she embraced his vision.
Hashem wants every aspect of our life to be fuel for His fire.
A guilty conscience plagued Yaakov before meeting Esav.
One cannot find any moral hand-wringing among the classic Bible commentators when fighting the enemy..
The solution is on earth, not in heaven.
Yistchak and Rivkah raised Esav without regard to his nature.
They can be – if they follow Sarah and Rivkah’s example.