פרשת תצוה / ו’ באדר א’ תשפ”ב
The breastplate sits on the High Priest heart to remind him to feel the pain of those who are suffering as well as the joy of those who succeed in life.
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Be The Fire in the Menorah
פרשת תרומה / ג’ באדר א’ תשפ”ב
When Moses is shown the prototype of the Menorah for the Tabernacle, he notices that it is engulfed in flame. This is to teach us to approach being Jewish with a lust, not to be robots.
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Approach Life with Happiness
פרשת תרומה / ב’ באדר ’ תשפ”ב
As we enter the month of Adar, we should remember that no matter what problems that we have the best way to approach them is with happiness. That is the best way to avoid depression.
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Where is Holiness?
פרשת תרומה / כ”ט בשבט תשפ”ב
In this week’s parsha God commands that we build a tabernacle for the purpose that He should dwell among us. We can understand this when we combine the previous commands from last week. We bring God into the world through Godly behavior.
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Do Not Rely on Karma
פרשת משפטים / כ”ו בשבט תשפ”ב
The commandment for the court to execute a murderer for his crime shows that the Torah does not rely on karma but on us to do the right thing. Also, that doctors are commanded to cure the sick regardless of what they think of them teaches this concept.
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Do Not Pervert Justice
פרשת משפטים / כ”ה בשבט תשפ”ב
The Torah states that when administering justice we have to be equal to all. We cannot follow the current public opinion. Also, it goes out of its way to remind us that we should not think about the economic status of the one on trial. Neither poverty nor wealth is an excuse.
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Why Kill the Ox That Gores
פרשת משפטים / כ”ד בשבט תשפ”ב
When an ox gores for the third time it has to be destroyed and the owner is not compensated. Why is this so. Perhaps the answer lies in the fact that an ox is usually a passive animal. There has to be a reason it became dangerous.
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Crime & Punishment
פרשת משפטים / כ”ג בשבט תשפ”ב
The Torah shows that there is a connection between the thief and the victim. That the thief cannot make repentance until the victim is made whole, and the only one who can do that is the thief. Only then can the thief ask for forgiveness and only from the victim, not anyone else.
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God Does Not Want Slaves
פרשת משפטים / כ”ב בשבט תשפ”ב
The Commandment to drill a hole in the ear of a slave that refuses to go free seems odd. The reason could be that God does not want His followers to be slaves. He wants us to be free to choose to do the commandments,
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Making the Mundane Holy
פרשת משפטים / כ”א בבשבט תשפ”ב
The Torah should continue with holy matters after the giving of the 10 Commandments at Mount Sinai. Instead, it goes into detail on how we treat each other, both on a personal and business level. Why the detour? To teach us that a mundane act has to be done in a holy way.