Passing the Torch by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Among the mitzvos in this week’s parsha is the mitzvah to light the menorah. “Command the Jewish people and they should take oil …” What is striking is that we already encountered this very mitzvah previously in Parshas Titzaveh. Why does the Torah repeat this mitzvah? The commentaries more »
A Double Standard by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine The Kohein Gadol was special. Even among the Kohanim who served in the Beis Hamikdash, the Kohein Gadol was the chosen one. To the public, his was a powerful position. He had the ability to lead and to rebuke as necessary. In private, he was the chosen one more »
Divine Fingerprints by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine The holiday of Pesach, which we recently celebrated, is a model for the Jewish belief system. At the Seder we transmit the story of the Exodus from one generation to another. And so it is with all of Judaism. The transmission, or Mesorah, is the foundation of our belief more »
Matzoh of Hope by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine For me, one of the greatest moments of the Pesach Seder is “Yachatz,” when we break the middle matzoh. At that moment my memories turn fondly to the seder in my parent’s home where my father, an accountant by trade, always tries to break the matzoh into two more »
Destination Judaism by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine The Parsha begins- “Vayikra” – Hashem wished to speak to Moshe so He called to him. The commentaries observe that the word “Vayikra” denotes endearment. It means that Hashem went out of His way, so to speak, to speak to Moshe. Contrast this with the word “Vayiker” which is more »
May the Best Loser, Win! by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Moshe descended from Mount Sinai in disappointment. He had been away for just 40 days, and somehow the people had fashioned a golden calf. As he reached the bottom of the mountain and encountered Yehoshua. Yehoshuawas waiting loyally for Moshe’s return and was unaware of what more »
Hashem Has His Waze by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine One of the difficulties that some people have with religious perspective is that they find it hard to believe that G-d really pays attention to the individual. Perhaps their logic is, “If indeed G-d is great, why would He care about me.” The Torah perspective is that more »
Harvesting the Light of the Menorah by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine The Parsha of Terumah is a heartwarming Parsha describing the building of the Mishkan/ Sanctuary in the desert, an edifice described as the love palace for the relationship between Hashem and the Jewish people. Ultimately the power of the Mishkan would be that its lofty more »
“Go Ask G-d” by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Following the Ten Commandments in last week’s portion, the Torah proceeds to introduce the mitzvos. “These are the laws that you shall place before them.” In many cases, the laws are clear. We simply study the laws and do our best to observe them. But, in the course more »
Yours, Forever by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine The Revelation at Sinai was accompanied by many awe inspiring sounds and sights. Among the sounds was the sound of the Shofar. Rashi tells us that it was the shofar of the ram that replaced Yitzchok at the Akeida. Asks the Ramban, “But the ram at the Akeida was more »