The Prophecy in the Traffic Jam
The Prophecy in the Traffic Jam Please allow me to share a personal story. Over the summer, I have the distinct privilege of teaching the young men of OU-JLIC’s summer internship program. Appropriately named SIJM (Summer in Jerusalem for Men), we have been studying Masechet Makkot together right outside the walls of the Old City. […]
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Reverse Engineering Destruction
Reverse Engineering DestructionAs Hashem prepares Klal Yisrael to enter Eretz Yisrael, He repeatedly emphasizes the need to stamp out the idolatry of the Canaanite nations. He adjures Moshe to warn them (Bamidbar 33:55) that if these nations are not entirely removed from the land – along with their immoral and idolatrous practices – there will […]
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Ten Tragedies, One Slow Collapse
Ten Tragedies, One Slow CollapseIn the Mishna in Ta’anit, Chazal delineate five things that we mourn during the fast of Shiva Asar beTammuz: 1) the luchot were broken, 2) the korban tamid was discontinued (the Rishonim debate whether this occurred during the First or Second Beit HaMikdash), 3) the walls of Yerushalayim were breached by […]
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A City of Power or Submission?
A City of Power or Submission?When reading through the narrative of Parshat Balak, Bila’am seems to be surprisingly confident in his prophetic capabilities. He tells the ministers of Moav and Midyan to stay the night, assured that Hashem will inform him what to do before morning. He seems to have constant access to prophetic revelation […]
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Your Innards Are Holy: Yerushalayim and the Human Body as Vessels for Sanctity
The vow of abstinence declared by the nazir spawned a major hashkafic and halachik debate among Chazal and the Rishonim regarding asceticism and fasting. On the one hand, the Torah describes the nazir as קדוש הוא לה’ – holy to Hashem. Yet upon successfully completing his vow, the nazir must bring a korban chatat, a […]
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Tours -Bamidbar 5786
Tzahli Group- Sherut Leumi girls next year and Jewish Culture High SchoolFort Lauderdale
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Ariel Awakens: the Mikdash and the Lion of God
Throughout Tanach and Chazal, one finds constant references to lions, which serve as metaphors for power, royalty, and ascendance. Throughout Chumash, the Torah repeatedly compares individuals and tribes to the lion. In Yaakov’s blessings, it is clear that the lion symbolizes Shevet Yehudah and the malchut that will eventually emerge from him. In the prophecies […]
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Guarding the Sacrifice, Guarding the Name
The Torah commands the kohanim to carefully guard the sanctity of the korbanot and sets deatiled rules for consuming and disposing of sacrificial meat. As these laws are introduced, the Torah links improper engagement with the korbanot to desecration of God’s name: וְיִנָּֽזְרוּ֙ מִקָּדְשֵׁ֣י בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וְלֹ֥א יְחַלְּל֖וּ אֶת־שֵׁ֣ם קָדְשִׁ֑י – they shall separate from that […]
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Children’s Projects, Tazria-Metzora
Chugim Wittenberg centre Kids activities in carpentry in Shiloach
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