Rabbi Moshe Kempinski

Israel Snapshots - celebrating a gift

If the Jews of the shtetl, the ghettos and casbahs could see the beauty of this country, they would dance with joy despite the heavy price.

Metzora: The malady that brings healing

The corruption of a soul that separates one from his holy essence and his people results in the spiritual eruption of Tzaraat and exile.

Tahara (purity) and Tumah (impurity)

TAZRIAH Leviticus 12:1-13:59: These are concepts that can only be explained in picture form. They represent a state of being.

THE WISE HEART; Divine Duality

What can the blend of a Heart imbued with Wisdom mean?

Teruma: If everything is G-d's, what can we give Him?

All things belong to G-d ,yet the choices of the heart are left in the control of His creations.

Finding courage

The Torah Portion of VAYIGASH Genesis 44:18–47:27: The ability to acknowledger mistakes is a powerful but rarely found tool of spirituality.

The hidden light of Hannukah

Sparks hidden from the light of the first day of Creation reveal themselves for those who have eyes to see.

"I am searching for my brothers"

We cannot lose our sense of a common goal. We cannot raise banners of ultimate truth without co-opting all the positive powers around us.

Jacob's solitude

Jacob was neither the first nor the last of his people who would need to learn the power of solitude.

The angels of Israel

To better understand the idea of angels, it is better to see them as “the message” rather than as “the messenger”.

The lesson of the wells

Digging wells is a mirror image of uncovering G-d within our physical reality. Op-ed.

The secret of Jewish survival

Ultimately, Jewish history is fashioned and determined by those individuals who are motivated by passion and directed by faithfulness.

For we are Your people

Preparing for Yom Kippur.

Names and Rosh Hashannah

Rosh Hashannah is the day Man and Woman were given names.It was the day that all the creations of Hashem were given a name as well.

Answering the question

What question was the farmer answering as he stood before the priests ( Kohanim) with his first fruit offering?

Being children of Hashem

Being Hashem's children means we have obligations, but also that we must keep from harming ourselves.

Devarim's message for Tisha B'Av: Going forth

Most of humanity is comfortable with the world view it knows and the patterns of life it has become accustomed to. Especially today.

Reuven, Gad and the Three Weeks

Mattot-Maasei Numbers 30:2–36:13: The lure of easy gratification and achievement has dulled our yearning for Hashem’s Temple and redemption.

Chukat:Living waters

We need to stop, rest and drink deeply from living waters before continuing the arid wilderness we seem to have entered.

"The earth beneath them opened its mouth"

The earth is a symbol of lower, base objectives, as in the new coalition focused on hatred and the self-aggrandizement of its leaders.

Walking with G-d

To be a Hebrew, an Ivri, means you never walk alone.

Hodu LaHashem ki tov - yes, His mercy endures forever

At the Kotel after the flag march was cancelled: Images that became metaphors, powerful statements of faith and resolve.

Yom Yerushalayim, holiday of miracles

One needs to always remember that behind very dark cloud the sun never ceases to shine and miracles never cease..

Moed: An appointed time

In the Jewish view, dates and appointed times are gates through which time flows in a cyclical, upward spiral fashion, toward a purpose.

Six, seven and eight

All numbers have symbolism in Judaism, but eight is a higher level than 7, which in turn is higher than 6.

The small aleph

The aleph may be unusually small in the first word of the book of Leviticus, but its size symbolizes a secret power that depends on us.

Experiencing the Glory of G-d

The “Glory of G-d ” is usually seen as being synonymous with the concept of the Shechina - Presence of G-d . Yet that cannot be the case.

The priestly garments and the role of disguise

The Megillah is replete with symbols of disguise and hiding and it is not by chance that the Torah reading talks of the priest's garments..

The gaze of the Cherubim

Did the cherubim gaze at one another or at the Ark? A profound idea can be learned from the answer to that question

The start of an eternal dialogue

Parshat Mishpatim Exodus 21:1–24:18: G-d talks and G-d speaks-is there a difference? The Jews agree to do and to listen-what comes first?

Encountering the Divine

YITRO; Exodus 18:1–20:23:Revelation, fear and a pathway to Hashem paved with three instructions.

Waiting through the night

Faith and Faithfulness amidst and through a "long night".Then and now.

G-d did not need to see the blood on the doorpost

The spiritual redemption empowers the physical one/

Revealing Hashem in the world

The world must comprehend the 3 truths determined by G-d's actions in Egypt.

Blessing our children

My wife and I bless the children every Friday night with the words in this Torah reading followed by the Priestly Blessing.

Understanding Joseph's actions

What could have been a swift though painful meeting becomes a drawn out process. What was Joseph’s purpose behind these actions?

Seeing in the midst of darkness

Seeing behind the darkness, the curtains and camouflage, is a constant challenge to humanity. We see it in the Bible and we see it today..

What did Isaac see in Esau?

Isaac rightly felt that Jacob's potential needed the help of Esau's activism, but that synergy can only happen at the end of time.

To leave 'a place'

There will be time where we all need the courage to exit and leave our safe and comfortable zones to do the work that needs to be done.

Prayer and choices

Praying is a process that moves in two directions.