• How To Become Holy

    The Book of Leviticus tells us about the Temple service. Yet it suddenly takes a detour to discuss societal issues. What we are being told is that the Temple is just a building unless we behave correctly toward our fellow man.

  • A Social Disease

    This week’s portion of the Torah deals with the disease of Matzora. This is a disease caused by gossip. The lesson here to avoid malicious gossip.

  • We Celebrate With Friends

    Any thanksgiving offering that we bring is too much for one person to consume. Yet it has to be consumed by the end of the day. This forces us to bring our friends to celebrate. This shows that the Pascal Sacrifice is also a Thanksgiving offering.

  • We Are United by Passover

    The Seder stresses the idea that there will always be those who wish to destroy us. That the defense against these threats is our unity.

  • The Source of Evil

    In the Seder we are admonished to set the teeth of the wicked son on edge. The reason is that the source of his being wicked are the words that he abuses.

    https://youtu.be/LbLic2KD6j8

  • Experience the Seder

    The real message of the Passover Seder is that it is not an intellectual account of the story but an experiential one. We are meant to experience leaving Egypt.

  • Be Grateful For What You Have

    We are required to bring a Thanksgiving Offering to the Tabernacle. This is to teach us to be thankful for what God has done for us. It is very easy to forget that God is the source for all that we have, including life.

  • Be The Right Man For the Job

    The Torah first tells us what to do and then announces who will be the High Priest. This is to teach us that more important than who is doing the service, that the service should be done correctly.

  • From Day to Day, Continuity

    One of the important aspects of what the Priests in the Tabernacle had to do was to carry the fire of the Altar from day to day. This is to teach us that if you want the next generation to follow you have to show them the way.

  • Leaders Are Accountable

    There were special offerings given by the leaders if they inadvertently made a mistake, both the religious leaders as well as the religious. The reason is that people will base their decisions on what they do and say.