torah

Mattos begins with the issue of vows and oaths. “When a man makes a vow to Hashem or swears an oath to make something forbidden,… Read More »Delivery From G-d Through Your Mouth

“Man was born to toil,” said Iyov, and indeed, how we toil! We seem to be under constant pressure, ever working to provide for ourselves… Read More »The Age Of Experience

Friday YEARS AGO I was fortunate to have come across the sefer called Tuv HaAretz. It was written by Rabbi Noson Shapira in the 1600s,… Read More »Tuv HaAretz…Goodness of the Land

“Do not take a ransom . . . And you will not pollute the land . . . rather you shall execute him.”(35:33,34) The Sifri… Read More »Your Flattery Will Be The Death of Me

“War,” said General Sherman, “is not the glory that boys make of it.” He termed it even worse; the antithesis of Heaven. The ramifications of… Read More »Collateral Damage

It was an ordinary Sunday afternoon in yeshivah, when I noticed Yaakov Werblowsky putting on a tie right before Minchah. I assumed that he had… Read More »Dressed for the Occasion

When Yosef’s brothers arrived they prostrated themselves (vayishtachavu) before him. (Bereshith 42:6) Yosef’s brothers prostrated themselves fully before him, stretching out their hands and feet,… Read More »Precision In Prayer

QUESTION 24: HAVING THE MONEY FOR A LAWYER When a person goes to a lawyer, often the lawyer asks for some money down, and expects… Read More »Having The Money For A Lawyer

The Sages said: ‘[For] three sins a person is punished (lit., ‘it is collected from a person’) in this world, and he has no share… Read More »Chapter 7, Law 3(a) – Cynicism: The Joy of Inexistence, Part I

In this week’s reading, G-d tells Moshe to ascend Mt. Avarim and look upon the Promised Land, which Moshe would not enter. Rather, he would… Read More »The Face of A Dog