This week’s Parsha, Toldot, provides understanding of Rav Kook’s philosophy of Jewish militarism and power. It sheds light on what should be a Jew’s attitude toward serving his Nation, and on the use of Jewish power.
Rivkah didn't want to deceive her husband, she Just wanted Jacob to display another side.
Isaac appreciated Esau’s ability to hunt and dominate the beasts, the trait needed to dominate bestial peoples. Could Yaakov do the same?
Merkaz HaRav Yeshiva, founded by Rabbi Avraham HaCohen Kook, served as the nucleus for the major spiritual and educational role played by Religious Zionism in the Jewish State. Last week thousands of alumni and friends came to offer their thanks and celebrate.
In our time, “the voice of Yaacov,” spoken with supplication, with gentle spirit, and with a sincere desire to bring satisfaction and goodness to others, must serve as a guiding light.
The wondrous outcome of Rivkah's pregnancy, is that all that the nations create in this world, in the end result, is for the benefit of Bnei Israel, in their service of Hashem.
Water has been a defining component of Israel’s history, from Noah’s flood through the lives of our Patriarchs to our own time. It is part of the symbiotic connexion between the Jewish nation and the Land of Israel. As the Land has welcomed its nation back home, so the nation has rejuvenated the Land.
The story of the blessing of Yaakov is full of deception. How can we understand that?
A reflection on the 18th anniversary of the Mumbai terrorist attack and the Yartzheit of Gavriel Noach and Rivka Holtzberg הי“ד. In memoria
Everyone invited to dinner gets to eat. G-d’s portion is the Torah that we study and the food we give to the poor.
This parasha teaches us that even when the chances of success seem slim, a person must make an effort, do his part, and leave the rest in Hashem’s hands.
From the root of the word atar (“to entreat”), the Sages derived that prayer is heard only when there is peace among those praying.
An appreciation of man’s godliness should both deter murder and inspire us to bring more human life into the world.
In recent years, the clear divide between the seen and unseen has diminished. The force that broke this divide was not religion but science itself.
Ethiopian Jewish immigrants to Israel brought a willingness to contribute and a pure Zionism centered on longing for Jerusalem as a heavenly city, but they also brought a previously unknown holiday that has been officially recognized in the State of Israel.
We all confront many situations in which it is tempting to put a spin on things and manipulate the facts so that they are more in line with our interests or prevent catastrophe. Are we allowed to do so?
Yitzchak and Rivkah loved what they lacked.
Rabbi Hauer's shloshim took place this week. His way of life was humility, but as our Sages wisely said, “one who runs from honor, honor chases after him.”
How can it be possible that so many great haredi Rabbis err in their opposition to Zionism?
The three great dangers that have always confronted Am Yisrael, in days of yore and today.
It is the “Patriarchs’ acts of kindness” and their vibrant, natural Torah that will redeem their descendants in the final generation
The children of Ishmael are destined to rule the Holy Land when it is empty, and they will hinder Israel from returning, until the merit of their circumcision, which is an incomplete covenant, ends, just as the period of the giants ended.
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob: The Morning, Dusk, and Night of Judaism.
The demands of public service can strain devotion to one’s own family - a tension faced by three of the most important figures in Jewish history: Avraham Avinu (our patriarch), Moshe Rabbeinu (our teacher), and David Hamelekh (the king).
The Tanya compacts four millennia of Jewish wisdom to answer the great personal and existential questions of life. It has revolutionized the way we think about G -d the human soul, the world and our place in it.
Life confronts us with the Absolute and the Ideal. The former leaves no place for compromise; the latter demands that we be flexible. The parasha shows us the differrence.
Sarah recognized Hashem - with Abraham - when she was thirty-eight, the thirty-eighth year being reckoned with the earlier period, of not knowing Hashem.
Once again Hebron and the Land of Israel are rising to renewed life, this time through the descendants of Avraham our father, who settle the Land of the Patriarchs and Hebron with self-sacrifice.
Rabbi David Samson: "Just as a person can’t pick up a scalpel and become a brain surgeon without years of preparation, a person cannot become a Jewish Meditator without first meeting all of the entrance requirements."
Like most rabbis, Rabbi Price held that it is appropriate to convert non-Jewish spouses, even if they do not intend to observe mitzvot, in order to preserve the Jewish identity of the Jew and their descendants.
The Moadim are a time when we meet with Hashem - either by physically travelling to the Beit HaMikdash or, at least, by being in His Presence.
Family ties form the basis of our service of Hashem.
Completing the aliyah of Ethiopia’s 7000 remaining Jews would proclaim to the world - and to ourselves - that even in war, the Jewish heart remembers its calling: to gather its dispersed, to uphold dignity, and to act with compassion. Opinion.
Rabbi Kahane used to say, “If you want to know what they’d (the Arabs) do to us if given the chance, look at what they do to each other.” Therefore, the Jewish people must never again be spectators in their own destiny.(Must read: an excerpt from his writings at the end.)
Israel's first Chief Rabbi presciently writes about how a return from almost certain death, similar to the return of the living hostages a short while ago, affects a person and the nation.
Just as the quantum field binds the physical world through invisible forces, faith binds the soul to the field of divine intelligence.
Abraham did not give up or put his faith in God to bring about these promises through miracles. Instead, he set about fulfilling those promises through his own efforts.
The duty of Jews everywhere is to face the nisyonot of our generation with the same firmness that Avraham Avinu showed.
The Avnei Nezer gave a special entrance exam for the young by, then ordained as a rabbi at 18. To earn a living, he invested in real estate, amassed wealth, and then opened his own bank, but when the Nazis rose to power, fled with nothing. Then in Toronto, he headed the “Torat Chaim” Yeshiva for 38 years and continued to serve as head of the Toronto Rabbinical Court until his passing.
Torah law and majority rule are compatible when moral limits are applied, for example, to decisions of the majority.
What happens when the castle returns to being just sand, when the waves which just minutes ago were on the shore begin to flow out to sea, unrecognizable in the vastness of ocean.
When we light our menorahs this Hanukkah, we are not just commemorating an ancient military victory. We are celebrating something far more profound: the triumph of a unified Jewish people who refused to disappear.
Now, what are the chances that you, or I, or anybody, might actually come across the pillar of salt which used to be Lot’s wife to say the mandated blessings? The meaning of this commandment is much deeper.
A child is not required to be a servant to his parents in his personal life decisions (within an observant framework), as HaRav Tzvi Yehuda Kook explained.
Seforno notes, that Jewish custom at the circumcision of a child is to leave a chair unoccupied to represent a designated makom for the Shechinah [Hashem’s earthly presence].
What is so significant about these two affirmative mitzvot of brit milah and the Pesach sacrifice that places them in the Karet category?
The study of Torah, when undertaken with humbleness and dedication, can lead one to a special encounter with HaKadosh Baruch Hu.
“I will restore your judges as at first, and your counselors as at the beginning. Afterward you will be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city. Zion shall be redeemed through justice, and her returnees through righteousness.”
The whole sorry episode of Sodom and Gomorrah teaches is that yes, there can be an entire metropolis, and entire region, in which every single man, woman, and child, down to the new-born baby, is judged and found to be evil.
Commentators weigh in on the unexpected laughter of Matriarch Sarah at the news that she would bear a son.
Kitah weekly videos suggest topics for discussion at your Shabbat table.
Mothers are always praying for their children, even when they aren’t aware of doing it.
Avraham and Isaac didn’t let their greatness get to their head.
The use of egg donors raises many halakhic and ethical questions.
Our devotion to God does not require that we sacrifice the family relationships most dear to us. On the contrary; true devotion to God demands that we invest in those relationships.
The Jewish people are no strangers to uncertainty and at the Orthodox Union, we are more determined than ever to continue advocating for the needs of the Jewish people.
Lot’s story is a warning for every generation: chesed without understanding deceives the heart and misleads the hand. We see it clearly today.
The Tanya compacts four millennia of Jewish wisdom to answer the great personal and existential questions of life. It has revolutionized the way we think about G -d the human soul, the world and our place in it.
Of course, it is preferable not to employ those who oppose our existence in this Land. However, as long as there is no practical alternative, it is forbidden to halt the building of our land, lest we repeat the Sin of the Spies.
