A WEEKLY TORAH THOUGHT FROM RABBI MORDY This week’s Parsha gives us a host of ethical and practical laws. It tells of laws relating to Shabbat, to acting in fairness in business, to honoring one’s parents, to, famously, the cardinal law to “love one’s fellow as oneself,” which is referred to by our sages as the great principle of the… Read More

A WEEKLY TORAH THOUGHT FROM RABBI MORDY In addition to giving us a series of laws, this week’s Parsha (Acharei Mot) opens with its title. These words, literally, “After the death…” refer to the laws being taught after the deaths of the sons of Aaron the High Priest. They passed away prematurely because they entered the Holy of Holies (in… Read More

A WEEKLY TORAH THOUGHT FROM RABBI MORDY Tonight begins the Shabbat of Passover. These are days which commemorate the splitting of the Sea of Reeds (being approximately a week after the Jewish people were freed) as well as celebrate – strangely, in anticipation of- the future Redemption. Much is discussed about what “the Redemption” means and people tend to have… Read More

A WEEKLY TORAH THOUGHT FROM RABBI MORDY This week’s Parsha (Metzorah) continues the saga of the “leper” discussed last week. The word “Metzorah” literally means, “one with Tzaraas,” so makes sense to contain these laws—and yet we find something intriguing. The laws relating to actually having Tzaraas were found in last week’s Parsha; this week contains the laws of purification… Read More

A WEEKLY TORAH THOUGHT FROM RABBI MORDY This week’s Parsha (Tazria) tells us about various pure and impure situations, most notably, “tzaraat,” a biblical era malady that we typically liken to leprosy. But one things stands out as a theme in the portion overall—the impact our words can have on reality. We sometimes think of words as here today, gone… Read More