Weekly Torah Studies

Sometimes, It's Best To Shrink Your Audience To Amplify Your Message Was there ever something you felt strongly about, yet kept to yourself for fear of losing your audience? It's a tough call each time, and the divergent legacies of Abraham and his wife Sarah are quite instructional. Ultimately, it's Sarah who wins the day.

Sustainable Love is a Quiet Affair To be “in love” is to be generous, wide open, and full of dreams. That's a great first step—but it's only the first step. Abraham, the first Jew, was a man of kindness, yet the wells of emotion he dug were ultimately stuffed up. It took his quiet, disciplined son, Isaac, to redig them and open them forever. It's much the same in our lives, too.

The Synthesis Runs a Lot Deeper Than You Think. Just Do It Right. Many have grappled with the apparently irreconcilable differences between religion and science; “Religion is the domain of faith; science, that of reason,” is a common attitude. A new read of when G-d disrupts a grand feat of modern engineering teaches a refreshing approach.

A Primer for Acting, Feeling, and Identifying as Jewish What is the defining feature of a healthy relationship? Doing things for each other? Remaining committed even when there's betrayal? Perhaps another intangible we're not even talking about? The joyous holiday of Sukkot provides a good primer for these important questions.

True Love Doesn't Blind; It Embraces and Hopes for Better Come to think of it, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are really the same thing: two serious days about making things right for a new year. So why do we need them both? “High Holiday” doesn't have the same ring to it, but it could do. So why the double-act? Discover the true meaning of Yom Kippur.

Finding Common Ground from a G-dly Perch In divisive times, when neighbors, friends, and even family turn on one another, it is more important than ever to find common ground that unites us all. Indeed, the New Year provides us an opportunity to gain a G-dly perspective on humanity that will surely bring us together.

The Super Power of Baal Teshuva Have you ever wished you could rewrite the past and retrieve a broken part of yourself? Through a surprisingly fresh look at the horrible list of curses in our parshah, we discover a most incredible power: the power to redeem the irredeemable.

Recognizing Your Limits Is the Secret to True Growth To assume infallibility is a dangerous game. History has demonstrated time and again that he or she who deems themselves beyond reproach is most often the first one to fall. A fresh look at the mitzvah to erect a fence on the roof of our home brings this message into stark relief.

To Leave Egypt, You Must Really Leave It Behind. All of It. A Jewish king is not allowed to own too many horses. Sounds interesting, but why? So he doesn't head back to Egypt and settle there. A fascinating ride through some complex halachic intricacies lands us at the doorstep of this important conclusion: There's no such thing as “partially” leaving Egypt.

Gaining Perspective on the Things that Vex Us Most “I have given you blessing and curses; take a good look and make the right choice!” Scripture declares. Is this really such a choice that requires examination? A deep look at some thorny theological questions gifts us this nugget: How we look at life is, indeed, entirely ours to choose.

Giving Up Halfway Is Not an Option Have you ever started a new pet project or embarked on a new “year of change”—and then you fell flat just a couple of months in? This class argues that when fate sets you down a certain path, G-d expects you to see it through to the end. The good news? He empowered you to do it. So, carry on.

Appreciating That We're Catching Up to the Torah There's a certain sense of wonderment that children seem to lose as they mature. An inspired Mishnah and a curious quirk in the mitzvah of Torah study urge us to maintain that sense of wonder—and the humility that comes with it.

Dispelling the Notion That Anyone Has a Claim More than You Do Does the Torah really belong to every Jew? Aren't there class divisions in Judaism: say, for example, the priests and the rabbis? Perhaps the Torah actually highlights some of our differences? No, it does not. In this lesson, discover how.

Are You Waiting for the Right Messiah? Ask anyone in synagogue what Messiah is, and you'll get answers about utopia, peace, love, and harmony. While that's not untrue, it's time to take a proper look at the legal definition of Messiah so we know what we're waiting for. The answer may surprise you.

Emulating Korach's Noble Intentions For too long, Korach has been perceived as a one-dimensional villain. This class argues that there's much to learn from his intentions. After all, there's something to say about someone who has a passionate drive to connect with the Divine. Ask yourself: Does a lack of G-d in your life make YOU cry?

Juggling personal morals and values with the need to help another is a thorny ethical dilemma. Taking a closer look at the Torah's juxtaposition of two random events makes one thing very clear: staying in your own comfort zone is not an option.

An Audacious Argument to Find Yourself in the Location Least Expected It's a struggle of identity that has challenged humanity since the beginning of time: How do we maintain our unique individuality while identifying with the broader community? Many years ago, the veteran sage Hillel presented a bold answer while discussing the laws of the Passover sacrifice, and we're privileged to explore it still.

There's something about a cute little child that perhaps causes us to dismiss them, not seriously considering just how important they are in the chain of history. A detail about the Levite count in the desert sets the record straight.

Reimagining the Essence of Shabbat It's a classic question: What does it mean that G-d “rested” on the seventh day? Was He tired? Discover the true core of what Shabbat is all about—and the tremendous opportunity that comes with it. You may be surprised: it's not about sleeping in.

Judaism's Overemphasis on Raising the Next Generation Parenting is arguably the most and least rewarding job on the planet. It's tremendous work, but yields immeasurable joy. Judaism has always promoted family life; in fact, the very first mitzvah in the Torah is to have children. Discover how this value has served us so well—and should continue to do so.

The story of sacrificial scents wafting in the air inspiring Jews to do a radical mitzvah in the middle of the night sounds too fantastical to be true. Thankfully, it is true, and the message it tells us is one of attainable and practical change.

Learning to Love the Entire Package Does every part of Judaism excite you the same way? A tragic death during the most joyous of times in the desert clues us in as to how we ought to approach our religious life—the exciting, the mundane, and even those parts that feel boring.

Fewer things can be as constricting, crushing, and stifling than waking up in the morning and not being able to answer why you should even get out of bed. Discover the recipe for freedom in the story of the Exodus. Hint: The road starts and finishes right in none other than . . . YOU.

When You're Truly Small, Then You're Really Big A curiously small letter appears in the first word of book number three of the Torah. With the help of a story about a famous Rebbe teaching his young grandson, what starts off as a lesson in humility turns into a much broader instruction on how to ace the balance between humility and pride.

The last effective leadership book you read preached the qualities of placing others' needs before yours. But then life gets tricky, and certain times call for other priorities. What to do? A lofty effort of twelve noble leaders gone flat tells the story of true leadership.

TODAY OR TOMORROW? A Rip-Roaring Ride across the Talmudic Sea to the Raging Waters of Life Two Talmudic sages debated different things that seem entirely unrelated. Discover the hidden key that threads them all together, and by the time you're done navigating the waters, you may just emerge with the ship of your life steered in a profound, new direction.

Have you tried doing something while trying to leave the back door open—you know, with your eyes on the way out just in case you don't get too excited about it? If yes, it probably didn't work. Discover the formula for maturing from “why not?” to “of course!”

Reaching the Pinnacle of Human Achievement . . . and Beyond Are you possessive about your own personal space? Through the lens of an interesting discussion about the parameters of personal space in Jewish law, discover the limits of your own personal growth—and how to smash them, too.

Life presents all sorts of situations that challenge us to keep within our moral, ethical, and religious bounds. A lesser-known law of Shabbat observance that cautions against wandering too far out of town teaches us the right formula for a healthy framework.

Parenting Isn't Only about You Let's face it: parenting is really, really hard—perhaps one of the most challenging things in the world. So here's a thought: your children are entrusted to you by G-d, so He must believe in you that you're up to the job. Run with it.

Sometimes, We Must Be Unequivocal G-d brought ten plagues on the Egyptians, right? Of course. But did you know that some of them were experienced by the Jews, too? Wait . . . What? That's right: the Jews were subjected to some of the plagues to make a bold statement that some things must be unequivocal—for everyone.

A Time to Be Right, a Time to Do What's Right Elijah the prophet is one of the most beloved figures in Jewish lore, famed for mysterious visits and messianic tidings. But his life story was one of fire and brimstone. So who, really, is Elijah? Discover your inner Elijah and his historical counterpart, as well: none other than Moses.