The Daughters of Israel are Beautiful, All of Israel are Princes
Last week, we discussed the miraculous redemption of Rebbe Yishmael ben Elisha. After rescuing the grandson of Rebbe Yishamel Kohen…
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Rebbe Yehoshua ben Chananya: the Redemption of Rebbe Yishmael
Rebbe Yehoshua ben Chananya was one of the chief disciples of Rebbe Yochanan ben Zakkai. As we discussed last week,…
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The Arzei Levanon of Jerusalem: Rebbe Shimon ben Gamliel
We famously commemorate the ten great martyrs, known as the asarah harugei malchut, every Tisha B’Av and Yom Kippur. These…
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A Tale of Three Domes
Allow me to describe one of my favorite berachot to recite. When traveling to the Kotel HaMaravi from Sha’ar Tzion,…
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Soul of the Holy City
Last week, we described the miraculous capacity of Eretz Yisrael and Yerushalayim to accommodate throngs of Jews beyond normal physical…
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VeNahaphoch Hu
The entire story of Megillat Esther takes place in Shushan, the capital city of the Persian empire, located in modern…
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The High Priest in Jerusalem
The Kohen Gadol is possibly the most rarefied and sublime figure in the Torah. Bedecked with an extra four articles…
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Ten Plagues in Egypt and Ten Miracles in Jerusalem
The fifth chapter in Masekhet Avot delineates many examples of groupings of ten throughout history. Hashem created the world with…
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Split Between the Lion and Wolf: Jerusalem Unites Rachel and Leah
In Yaakov’s blessing for his son Binyamin, he makes cryptic references to his youngest son as a “snatching wolf”. The…
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The Lowly Jew’s Fire for Jerusalem
The Midrash Rabbah (Noach, 32) recounts a bizarre story about the great Tannaitic sage Rebbe Yonatan, who was a principal…
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