Monthly Archives: October 2021

Yisro 5782

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MIND THE GAP

Our Sages teach us that the reason HaShem chose Mount Sinai to be the location where He gave the Torah to His people was because it was smaller than the other more significant mountains. The Sages go on to teach us that Torah is given to those who are humble. Throughout our holy books there is tremendous emphasis placed on the importance of humility. There are many other fine qualities that we should adopt, why is humility placed ahead of those other qualities?

It must be clarified that humility should in no way be confused with poor self-worth or low self-esteem. The latter is detrimental to the health of a person and certainly of the Jew. HaShem is not interested in having a nation of people who do not believe in themselves. Quite to the contrary; He wants a nation whose people are driven to be-come great and to make a difference in the world. This can only be accomplished by people who believe in themselves. So then what is humility?

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B’shalach 5782

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ONE OF MANY GOLD NUGGETS

The splitting of the Red Sea was a seminal event in the development of Klal Yisroel. Our Sages teach us that even those who were least initiated in the realm of spirituality were exposed to revelations that even our prophet Yechezkel could not see. The Shira that was sung by our ancestors on the banks of the Sea was incorporated into the words of Torah. One cannot properly comprehend what great revelations were seen. We do know that there is much to learn and much to gain.

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Bo 5782

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THE JEWS; THE PEOPLE WITH THE BIGGEST HEART

Our Parsha opens with Pharaoh granting Moshe permission to leave. “You may go serve your G.D, who is planning on going?” Moshe responds “With our young and with our old, with our son’s and with our daughters, with our sheep and with our cattle we shall go for it is a Holiday of HaShem” Pharaoh responds “Not so! Only the men shall go for that is what you are interested in!”

Pharaoh is suggesting that Moshe is lying by saying that his interest is to serve HaShem. His argument is that if your interest is to serve HaShem why must women and children go? The implication is that Pharaoh does not understand that serving HaShem is a family event. Pharaoh is a man of religion, albeit idolatry, why does he not understand?

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