Category: Justice

  • Leaders Need a Moral Compass

    The reason that Judah became a great leader was that he had a moral compass. And when he was wrong he admitted it.

  • Own Up to Your Actions

    פרשת בראשית / כ”ו בתשרי תשפ”ג

    The reason for the punishment of Adam & Eve was not that they had violated God’s one commandment. It was that they denied culpability.

  • We’re In A Partnership With God

    פרשת האזינו / י”א בתשרי תשפ”ג

    This week’s portion deals with the problem of success. Many of us achieve success and forget that God had a hand in it. This is a clear warning not to.

  • God Wants Actions, Not Words

    פרשת האזינו / ח’ בתשרי תשפ”ג

    The key to the Yom Kippur service is that we read the Book of Jonah at Minha on that day. Jonah is called upon to announce to the Assyrians that they have to repent. When recounting the story, the Book of Jonah does not talk about their prayers but about their actions.

  • It’s Up to You

    פרשת ניצבים / כ”ב בלול תשפ”ב

    When Moses speaks to the people, he speaks to all of the people. This shows that in Judaism we can achieve greatness through our efforts. No matter how we start we can achieve great things. We are equal when we start. Where we finish is up to us.

  • Don’t Be Average

    פרשת כי תבוא / ט”ו באלול תשפ”ב

    In the curses that we receive if we do not follow the Torah is that we will become an average people. While there is nothing wrong with being average it is not a great accomplishment either. The Torah wants us to be above average in our moral and ethical behavior.

  • The Danger of Cheating in Business

    פרשת כי תצא / י”ג באלול תשפ”ב

    The admonition of having accurate weights & measures is a warning against dishonest business practices. It is immediately followed by a warning about Amelek. The two are related. Amelek is looking for weakness in society. This is brought on by being dishonest and causing dissention in society.

  • Do Not Shame Your Brother

    פרשת כי תצא / י”ב באלול תשפ”ב

    We are admonished not to let the body of a person convicted of a capital offense hang overnight. This is so the family will not be shamed. It is assumed that the family is embarrassed by the actions of the criminal. We don’t have to rub in.

  • You Are Responsible

    פרשת כי תצא / י”א באלול תשפ”ב

    The Torah admonishes us not to blame the father for the son’s sins and not to blame the son for the father’s sins. This underscores a major concept that we are responsible for our own actions. Not to blame others.

  • Assume People Will Do Stupid Things

    פרשת כי תצא / י’ באלול תשפ”ב

    One of the commandments this week is that we are required to put a fence around the roof of a building. We do this because we assume that a person will go up on the roof and fall off. Our job to prevent, as much as possible people harming themselves through stupid actions.