These divrei Torah were adapted from the hashkafa portion of Rabbi Yissocher Frand’s Commuter Chavrusah Series on the weekly portion: ##221, Exhumation: When Is it… Read More »Ephraim and Menashe: Role Models for Jews in Galus
Yisrael strengthened himself, and sat up on the bed.[2] Open any edition of Mikra’os Gedolos, and you’ll find marginal annotations known as the Mesorah .… Read More »Strengthening One Dooms the Other
And Yaakov lived in the land of Egypt for seventeen years, and Yaakov’s days, the years of his life, were a hundred and forty-seven years.… Read More »Living the Life
The Avos, the Gemora says, were called Yesharim, the Upright Ones, and that they were. Few, if any other peoples, have such illustrious ancestors who… Read More »Straight Away
Note: The Shabbos Torah Reading is divided into 7 sections. Each section is called an Aliya [literally: Go up] since for each Aliya, one person… Read More »Parsha Summary for Parshas Vayechi
M’lochim I 2:1 The Talmud in Bava Matzia 87a tells us that Yakov Avinu [our father] was the first person to “get weak” prior to… Read More »Haftorah Summary for Parshas Vayechi
This week we read the parsha of Vayechi, completing the Sefer {Book} of Breishis. “Vayechi Yaakov {And Yaakov lived} in the land of Mitzrayim {Egypt}… Read More »Tears of Joy
How terrible the disappointment must have been for Simon and Levi! How crushing! They had come to their father’s bedside together with all their brothers… Read More »Stolen Crafts
“And Yoseph died at the age of one hundred and ten years and they put him in a coffin in Egypt.” (Genesis 50:26) Thus ends… Read More »Hope in a Box
In the V’al Hanisim part of the davening we mention “In the days of Matisyahu” and the family, but we don’t directly give them credit. … Read More »Nisim in Ordinary Life