by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine The Book of Bamidbar, or “Numbers” as it is known, begins with a mitzvah to obtain the count of the Jewish people. What is interesting is that the total is exactly the same as the count that took place just a few months earlier when the Jews built the Mishkan/ Sanctuary more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Moshe was instructed to take a tally of the Jewish families according to their tribes. Various reasons are given for this counting. Among them: To make the Jewish people realize how much they had been blessed. Just three hundred years earlier they had been a family of 70 people. Since that more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Of the many commandments that were given to us, a significant number were taught to segments of the Jewish people, one group at a time. In this week’s portion, however, Hashem directs Moshe to “tell the entire congregation: You shall be holy.” Why was it necessary to make this statement to more »
Tazriya- Connections of Holiness by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine This week’s Parsha describes the laws of Metzorah, a person afflicted with a skin ailment resulting from a spiritual shortcoming. His purification process includes immersing in a mikvah to achieve spiritual elevation. In its simplest sense, a mikvah consists of rain water that was gathered naturally. What more »
The Perfect Mitzvah by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Mazal Tov! A woman had just given birth. The Torah describes the laws if the baby is a boy or if a girl. Then the Torah proceeds to describe the karbanos that the woman should bring when she comes to the Beis Hamikdash. Says the Talmud: Why does more »
Mining the Blessing by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine This week’s Torah portion discusses a skin condition that afflicted a person who had a spiritual shortcoming. Tzoraas, as it is called, could affect a person who spoke Lashon Horah. Such a person, after maligning others, might find himself afflicted. He would have to be seen by a more »
Wanted: Dead & Alive by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine “If you will go in My laws, and observe My commandments…” So begins the description of Hashem’s blessings if we will conduct ourselves in the ways of Torah. But the statement seems redundant. What does it mean to “go” in the laws, that would not have been more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine In this week’s portion we learn about a most interesting type of slavery: the slavery of the Jewish slave. The Torah describes how a poor Jew decides to sell himself as a slave to another Jew. The Torah allows him to do it. But it is a slavery unlike any other. more »
The Shabbos Elevator by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine When the Torah describes the Sanctuary offerings it states an interesting rule. “From eight days on an animal will be accepted.” The Medrash explains that the requirement to wait eight days is so that every animal should first greet the Shabbos before being offered to G-d. The Medrash more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine One of the fascinating points about the Sanctuary service is the way they disposed of the ashes from the Altar. Each morning a Kohein would take a small portion of ash from yesterday’s sacrifices, and would place it next to the Altar. Afterwards the Kohein would remove the rest of the more »