Rabbi Berel Wein

Moses was the first Jewish fundraiser

He was doing them a favor. And it is still doing a favor for Jews in requesting their help in building Torah in the land of Israel..

The flesh and sinews of Jewish law

The basic question is the problem of defining the behavior that we wish to accompany our lofty moral goals. Where is this to be found?

The Conversion Bill will cause more problems than it solves

There are hundreds of thousands of non-Jewish Israelis not interested in a halakhic conversion or a lifestyle of any Torah observance.Op-ed.

Pharaoh at the point of no return

Sometimes the present is predetermined by things done in the past.

Shemot: The exile pattern

It is easy to see history repeating itself, down to the enthusiastic Egyptization of the tribes during Joseph's lifetime. But later on,..

VAYECHI 5728

A blip on the radar screen

Our father Jacob looks forward to the future, knowing the present, as earthshaking as it may seem, is only a blip on history's radar screen.

VAYIGASH 5782

Was Jacob aware of what the brothers had done to Joseph?

Parents know that there are things about their children and their progeny that they do not wish to be informed about.Is that the case here?

MIKETZ

Heaven's perfect timing

Among the fallacies of human thought is the idea that we not only control events, but have the power to decide when those events take place.

Favoritism is a fact in families - how can we we deal with it?

One need not demean others to establish one's own greatness and talents in a family setting. That is a lesson Joseph learned the hard way.

VAYISHLACH 5782

Facing our own Eisav

Yaakov apparently is done with running, and now turns to face his problems and his adversary, head-on, face-to-face.

VAYETZE 5782

The master of dreams.

The Talmud teaches us that some dreams have the quality of being a minor type of prophecy.

TOLDOT 5782

Should this Torah reading have been called "Yitzchak"?

There is an inherent difference between the generations and genealogy of Noach and that of Yitzchak.

CHAYEI SARAH 5782

What is the "good life"?

Sarah has no illusions about the challenges she will face, having embarked with Abraham on the founding of the Jewish people.

VAYERA 5782

How can one go to school to become a prophet?

Prophecy is one of the highest forms of communication with God. There were, in ancient times, schools that trained people to become prophets

Abraham the innovator

Abraham is the first human being recorded as having a normal conversation with his Creator.

Paradise lost

Milton's epic poem describes the impossibility of returning to Paradise once lost. The Torah presents that return as a challenge..

It's Sukkot - what a relief!

In other climates, having to leave the house for a booth open to the elements may not be such a pleasant experience, but in Israel...

Ultimate witnesses

Nature itself, with all its wonders, unpredictability, and beauty is the greatest testimony regarding the covenant between God and Israel.

Holiday memories

We all feel that it is not only those who are present that are commemorating the holiday, but also those who are no longer with us,

A binding and unchangeable covenant.

Within the Jewish soul, as part of our DNA so to speak, no matter how far we have strayed, we know that we are a covenantal people,

Just send me the link

The right link is the vital component of Jewish survival, both personally and nationally. Op-ed.

No opinion

Much of life really is governed by the concept of "it all depends". Circumstances change overnight, ideas come and go, Op-ed.

Shoftim: Earthly standards for justice

The Torah set standards for us to try and achieve. It never demands the impossible from human beings.

The "shiputznik" phenomenon - an Israeli saga

There are various causes that necessitate the human desire never to leave well enough alone. Op-ed.

There are no small choices

Choices all have consequences and later effects that may be unknown to us when we make the choice

Reward and punishment

What are we to make of the obviously literal lesson that this week's Torah portion seemingly teaches us?

Bashert

The aptitude to live and function within the limitations of one's own shortcomings is a great talent which many do not possess.

Devarim: Accountability

From Moses, we see that It is impossible for truths to be described without the personality and subjective view of the person doing so.

People, memory and memorials

Part of the damage that the passage of time inflicts upon us is the inevitable loss of people whose presence in our lives we value. Op-ed.

Mattot-Maasei-joined for calendar convenience or is there more?

There must be a connecting bond, a common denominator that unites these two apparently disparate and different sections of the Torah.

Zealotry

In theory, pacifism is a noble idea, but with the dangerous world human beings live in, we must ensure evil does not triumph. Op-ed.

Failure

If the Jewish people would prove to be failures in whatever they attempt to accomplish and achieve, then anti-Semitism might lessen. Op-ed.

Was Moses' punishment asymetric?

Moshe appeared to be confident that he would yet lead his beloved people into the promised land of Israel. It was not to be.

The land of Israel has always posed a problem for some

The fear shown by the spies when Moshe said to bring a report about the land, did not die with that generation of doubters in the desert.

The elite group

The Levites were a living spiritual force that taught the people and inspired fulfillment of the mission entrusted to Israel at Mount Sinai.

Behar-Bechukotai: Life lessons from the Sabbatical Year

We are custodians, not owners, of this world.

Tragedies and humanity

Tragedies occur on a regular basis in all human societies, and they have done so since the beginning of recorded human history. Op-ed.

Lag Ba'Omer 5781

This semi-holiday is utterly unique in the calendar of the Jewish people.because it commemmorates a passive event.

It's all in the details

Isn't it enough to be a good, honest, caring human being without all of the details that make up the bulk of this week’s Torah reading?

The book of complaints

Rereading complaints often shows their pettiness, unless we would prefer to nurture hurts and frustrations rather than moving on. Op-ed.

Judaism is pro-family and pro-motherhood

Having and raising children is a positive act of faith in the future, and unlimited generosity towards others.

Keeping kosher

Being a Jew relates also to the body and internal organs of a person, and not only the cerebral notion of religion that many people have.

Counting the Omer

Counting days that have passed, as in the Omer, automatically causes us to reflect on what was accomplished and what was left undone.

Out of the depths of winter - a society of fear

This pandemic has created is a society of fear, even from those methods that can relieve the fear, along with apathy to the elections. Op-ed

Where truth can be found

The great Hasidic master of Kotzk continually maintained that truth is always hidden from public view.

Fundraising in the Parasha

Heaven placed a great burden on our teacher Moses when it required him to ask the Jewish people to part with their wealth in large sums.

Mutations

Mutations are not strictly limited to viruses. All societies continually mutate, adapt, change and attempt to renew themselves. Opinion.

Only voluntary acceptance of discipline can work

There are never enough police to enforce laws, It takes responsibility..That is behind Israel's corona crisis and why the Torah is eternal.

The first Jewish bureaucracy was in the desert

Jethro told Moshe, based upon his experience as chief executive priest of Midian, that Moshe's goal was unachievable in this world.

The anti-hero

An anti-hero accomplishes much, but not all he intended to address, he is then rejected by the very people that put him into power, Op-ed.

Why so many plagues?

G-d could have wreaked just one major plague on Egypt to achieve Jewish freedom. Why were there ten?

Jewish life is not for the faint hearted

Moshe is the most humble and modest of all human-beings, but he is not allowed to be humble and self-effacing when meeting Pharaoh.

Taking a shot

I do not understand the basis for being against this vaccination in certain groups of individuals in the Jewish religious world. Op-ed.

Jewish history is repetitive: The last words of Jacob and Joseph

The message: Chazak Chazak Venitchazek, to be strong and to strengthen ourselves and others for the tasks that always lie ahead.

Sometimes the dreamers are the practical ones

The Jewish people have survived only based on dreams. Our people to the land of Israel in our time is perhaps the greatest of dreams.

10th of Tevet: A day that commemorates several Jewish tragedies.

The rabbis subsumed several tragic events that occurred in Tevet and memorialized them on the date the siege of Jerusalem began.

Growing accustomed to miracles

We don't say the Hallel prayer on Purim at all, but we do say it on Hanukkah. In our time, the reason for this difference is clearer.

The inestimable worth of the individual

It was the Soviet Union and Communism that saw people as being mere cogs in a great machine, the state. Not so the Jews.

Toldot: How can an Isaac and Rivkah raise a child who is wicked?

Commentators give several reasons for this to have happened, as it has throughout history, but perhaps the simplest explanation is the best.

Jewish growth

I look in wonder at the growth of Orthodox Jewry in my lifetime, not only in terms of intensity of Jewish life, but numbers and population.