Podcasts about Midrash

Sara Lippman and Seth Rogoff believe that "foundational texts must be read anew or they become tools of conservatism and reaction." But it's not just a belief they hold -- together, they actualized it into a new book, entitled Smashing the Tablets: Radical Retellings of the Hebrew Bible. This book offers a wide variety of new texts, radically revisioning stories from the Bible in many creative forms. The two co-editors join Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation about their book, about re-envisioning the Bible more generally, and why "smashing" inherited texts is not only a rebellious act, but also an important tool in the spiritual toolbox.------------------------------------Judaism Unbound's offerings for 3-week mini-courses in the UnYeshiva are now open for registration! Check out class descriptions (on topics ranging from "Elul: Your on-Ramp into Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur" to "The Siddur Unbound: Making the Prayer-Book Your Own") at JudaismUnbound.com/classes. Financial aid is available for all UnYeshiva classes! Interested in thinking about how to reframe and reinvigorate your meditations on the cycles of grief and change? Sign up for Elul Unbound 2025 to receive biweekly wisdom and introspective prompts to guide you through the late summer days.Access full shownotes for this episode via this link. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!

The Midrash Rabbah on Megillat Ruth, quoting Rabbi Yehoshua, teaches: יֹתֵר מִמָּה שֶׁבַּעַל הַבַּיִת עוֹשֶׂה עִם הֶעָנִי, הֶעָנִי עוֹשֶׂה עִם בַּעַל הַבָּיִת — More than the homeowner does for the poor person, the poor person does for the homeowner. One application of this Midrash is in how we view the time we invest in helping others. People often think — especially when life is busy and responsibilities pile up — I'd love to do more chesed… I'd love to learn more Torah… I'd love to do more mitzvot… but I just don't have the time. It sounds logical: every minute we spend doing Hashem's work is a minute we could have spent on ourselves. But Hashem's accounting works very differently. When we give our time for His mitzvot, we don't lose time — we gain it. And it's not simply returned; it comes back with blessing. The more we give, the more we are given. Often, this isn't obvious, but sometimes we see it clearly in our own lives. A man who had recently moved into a new apartment discovered that one of his neighbors was an elderly, broken Jew who lived alone with no family or support. He decided to offer a small kindness: a hot meal. That small act quickly turned into a daily delivery. His family joined in, and it became part of their routine. But over time, the chesed became harder. The neighbor began requesting more specific meals — vegetables chopped finely, fruit salad prepared fresh. At first, the man complied, but eventually, the demands wore on him. He decided to stop chopping and simply sent whole vegetables and fruit, reasoning, He knows how to cut them himself. Around that same time, his healthy baby — who had always eaten well — suddenly refused to drink formula. The baby cried through feedings, turned his head away, spit out whatever he managed to drink, and each feeding became a stressful, time-consuming ordeal. The man didn't connect the two events — until a friend who also knew the elderly neighbor praised him for his kindness. "You have no idea what kind of mitzvah you're doing," the friend said. Then he added, "If you could please send the food nicely, prepared fresh the way he likes it, it's a very big part of the mitzvah." Those words struck a chord. The very next day, the man went back to preparing the food exactly as the neighbor preferred. That same day, his baby ate without crying, spitting, or resisting. The connection was crystal clear. When he tried to save time by doing less chesed, he ended up losing time in another area. We never lose by giving — we only gain. The time we "lose" on a mitzvah is never truly lost; it's invested. Hashem repays us with smoother days, calmer outcomes, and, yes, even babies who cooperate. But when we guard all our time for ourselves, we often find that it slips away anyway — tasks take longer, frustrations mount, and things don't flow. So the next time the yetzer hara whispers, You don't have time for this mitzvah, for Torah learning, or for chesed, whisper back: I don't have time not to.

התוכן ישנם ב' פירושים (במדרש) בפסוק שבשני דפ' עקב "המוליכך במדבר הגדול והנורא נחש שרף ועקרב וגו'": 1) כפשוטו – זה קאי על המדבר. 2) זה קאי על הקב"ה. והתיווך: דוקא בזה שבנ"י הלכו במדבר במקום "נחש שרף ועקרב" ובכ"ז לא ניזוקו, מתבטא ה"הגדול והנורא" של הקב"ה. וזוהי התשובה להטוענים שנמצאים בחושך כפול ומכופל "במדבר הגדול והנורא" כפשוטו, והראי', שדוקא בדורות האחרונות נעשה ההכרח ללמוד פנימית התורה כדי להתגבר על החושך, ומדור לדור מתגבר החושך, שלכן הוצרך להיות הוספה בהפצת המעיינות בהתייסדות ישיבת תו"ת ע"י כ"ק אדנ"ע, ובביאור פנימיות התורה ב"שבעים לשון" ע"י כ"ק מו"ח אדמו"ר וכו' – עליהם לדעת פירוש השני בפסוק זה – ש"הגדול והנורא" קאי על ה', כי דוקא כשיש "נחש שרף ועקרב", ואעפ"כ, לא רק שאין מזיקים אלא מסייעים לבנ"י – בזה מתבטא גדלות ה'! [המשך יבוא]משיחת אור לט"ו באב ה'תש"מ ל"הנחה פרטית" או התרגום ללה"ק של השיחה: https://thedailysicha.com/?date=11-08-2025 Synopsis There are two interpretations in the Midrash on the verse (in sheini of parashas Ekev): “Who led you through the great and awesome desert, snakes, vipers, scorpions etc.” One is that “great and awesome” refers to the desert, and the other is that it refers to Hashem. The connection between them is as follows: That Hashem is “great and awesome” is expressed specifically in the fact that the Jewish people traveled through the desert, a place of “snakes, vipers and scorpions” without being harmed. Some argue: we find themselves in a double and redoubled darkness, literally in a “great and awesome desert,” the proof being that specifically in recent generations it has become necessary to study the inner dimension of Torah in order to overcome the darkness, and the darkness intensifies from generation to generation, which is why it was necessary to increase in the spreading of the wellsprings by the Rebbe Nishmaso Eden establishing Yeshivas Tomchei Temimim and by my father-in-law the Rebbe translating the inner dimension of Torah into the seventy languages etc. But the response is that they must know the second interpretation of the verse, that “great and awesome” refers to Hashem: it is precisely when there are “snakes, vipers, and scorpions,” and nevertheless, not only do they not cause harm, but they assist the Jewish people, that Hashem's greatness is expressed. (To be continued.)Excerpt from sichah of 15 Av 5740 For a transcript in English of the Sicha: https://thedailysicha.com/?date=11-08-2025

Este audio es parte del estudio de Tora en el Centro de Estudios Nazarenos.

We are to begin our day, each day of our lives, by expressing our gratitude to Hashem for all the blessings He has granted us. Immediately upon awakening, we recite "Modeh Ani," thanking Hashem for restoring our souls, and we are then required to recite a series of Berachot known as "Birkot Ha'shahar" – the morning blessings. These Berachot thank Hashem for our ability to open our eyes to see, the ability to get out of bed and walk, and other basic functions of the body. They also thank Hashem for spiritual blessings, such as His having chosen us and given us the Torah. As parents, we know how much it means when a child expresses gratitude. The more our children acknowledge what we do for them and thank us, the more we want to do for them. But when children act ungratefully, and do not thank their parents, the parents will be less inclined to give them what they want. We are Hashem's children, and we owe Him an enormous debt of gratitude for the countless blessings He gives us each day, starting with life itself. The more we thank Him for the blessings we have received, the more He will continue blessing us. We therefore thank Hashem each morning for some of the precious gifts that He has given us. Rav Natrunai Gaon (9 th century, Babylonia) traces the origins of the Birkot Ha'shahar to the obligation to recite one hundred Berachot each day. This obligation was taught as a "Halacha Le'Moshe Mi'Sinai" – a law that Moshe heard at Mount Sinai and has since been transmitted orally from one generation to the next. In ancient times, there were no fixed Berachot, and everyone was expected to recite Berachot on his own, until reaching a total of one hundred each day. However, without a fixed text of Berachot, and without specific Berachot required at certain times and on certain occasions, people became lax, and failed to recite the obligatory one hundred Berachot. In fact, the Midrash relates that when a devastating plague ravaged the Jewish Nation during the time of King David, killing one hundred people a day, King David determined that this was caused by the people's failure to fulfill this obligation of reciting one hundred Berachot every day. He therefore issued an edict to ensure that people recite the required number of Berachot, and the plague suddenly stopped. Still, this obligation was not always fulfilled. Therefore, the Ansheh Kenesset Ha'gedola (Men of the Great Assembly), a group of scholars and prophets that was formed at the beginning of the Second Commonwealth, established fixed Berachot that we are required to recite every day, thus ensuring that we recite one hundred blessings over the course of the day. Included in these Berachot are the eighteen Birkot Ha'shahar that we must recite each morning. Indeed, the Shulhan Aruch discusses the Birkot Ha'shahar in the same Siman (chapter) in which he mentions the obligation to recite one hundred Berachot each day – indicating that, as Rav Natrunai Gaon explained, the Birkot Ha'shahar are related to this obligation. They were instituted to help ensure that a person recites the required amount of Berachot every day. As mentioned earlier, underlying the requirement of Birkot Ha'shahar is our debt of gratitude to Hashem. Not surprisingly, we find a close connection between the obligation to recite one hundred Berachot each day and the concept of gratitude. First, the 100 th chapter of Tehillim is the chapter "Mizmor Le'toda" – the song which was sung to express gratitude to Hashem, thus establishing an association between the number 100 and gratitude. And, the first two letters of the word "Modim" ("We thank") are Mem and Vav, which together in Gematria equal 46 – the Siman in the Shulhan Aruch that speaks of the obligation of one hundred Berachot. We might wonder, why is it necessary to recite these Berachot each and every day? Why does it not suffice for us to occasionally praise and thank Hashem for all He gives us and does for us? An important answer to this question is offered by the Rashba (Rav Shlomo Ben Aderet, Barcelona, Spain, 1235-1310). He writes that every morning, we must see ourselves as born anew. As the verse says (Echa 3:23), "Hadashim La'bekarim, Rabba Emunatecha" – G-d performs great kindnesses for us each and every morning by restoring our consciousness, by giving us a new day, showing us His trust in our capacity to achieve and accomplish. Yesterday's blessings do not suffice today, because today we have been created anew, and so we must express gratitude to G-d anew. The Berachot that comprise Birkot Ha'shahar thank Hashem for many things – such as our vision, our ability to stand up straight and walk, our clothing, our having been chosen by Hashem – but does not appear to be exhaustive. Rav Haim Palachi (Turkey, 1788-1868) raised the question of why the Sages did not institute a Beracha thanking Hashem for the ability to speak. It goes without saying that the faculty of speech is one of the human being's most important capabilities. In fact, the Torah says that when G-d created Adam, He infused within Him "Nishmat Haim" – "a living soul" (Bereshit 2:7), and Targum Onkelos translates this expression to mean "Ru'ah Memalela" – "a spirit that speaks." The power of speech can be said to be our defining characteristic, the quality that distinguishes the human being from other creatures in the animal kingdom. Why, then, do we not have a special blessing thanking Hashem for this most precious gift? An answer to this question appears in the work Petah Ha'debir by Rav Binyamin Pontremoli (Turkey, d. 1784). He notes the aforementioned verse, and Onkelos' translation, which teaches us that the faculty of speech is a function of the Neshama, the human soul. Now the Sages instituted as one of the Birkot Ha'shahar a special Beracha thanking Hashem for the soul which He has given us – the blessing of "Elokai Neshama." Hence, as the ability to speak stems from the Neshama, this Beracha which thanks Hashem for giving us our soul also thanks Hashem for the power of speech. (It would thus seem that if parents have a child who, G-d forbid, is not developing the ability to speak, or struggles with speech issues, they should have special intention when reciting the Beracha of "Elokai Neshama," and have in mind the child's soul through which they wish that he develop the faculty of speech.) Moreover, Rav David Abudarham (Spain, 14 th century), in explaining the Beracha of "Elokai Neshama," cites the verse in Tehillim (115:17), "Lo Ha'metim Yehalelu Y-ah" – "It is not the dead that will praise G-d." Once a person's soul is taken, he is no longer able to express Hashem's praises. Rav Abudarham notes the implication of this verse that the primary purpose of speech is to praise G-d. (This is indicated in the text of "Elokai Neshama," in which we say, "As long as the soul is within me, I give thanks before You…") Accordingly, it stands to reason that when we recite "Elokai Neshama" and give thanks to Hashem for giving us a soul, this includes an expression of gratitude for our ability to speak. A second answer to this question was offered by Rav Shmuel Alexander Unsdorfer (1920-2002), who explained that we express gratitude for the faculty of speech by reciting Birkat Ha'Torah – the blessing over Torah learning. The Misva of learning Torah includes the obligation to speak words of Torah and to transmit them to others, and so when we thank Hashem for this precious Misva, we automatically thank Him also for the gift of speech. A different question was asked regarding the omission of the faculty of hearing from the Birkot Ha'shahar. Clearly, our hearing is exceedingly important. In fact, if somebody injured another person and caused him to lose his hearing, he must pay compensation for the damages. Why, then, is this capability not included in our morning blessings? One answer given is that the ability to hear is included in the Beracha of "Ha'noten La'sechvi Bina Le'havhin Ben Yom U'ben Layla" – thanking Hashem for granting the rooster the knowledge to crow in the morning, thus waking people up. Of course, the rooster's crow is effective in waking people only because of the ability to hear, and so this Beracha implicitly expresses gratitude for the sense of hearing. Another answer is that the morning blessings thank Hashem only for those abilities which we lost, as it were, during the night when we slept, and were restored in the morning. Thus, for example, we thank Hashem for restoring our vision after our eyes were closed throughout the night, and for allowing us to get out of bed, stand upright and walk, after we spent the night lying down. Our sense of hearing, however, is unaffected by sleep; we can still hear while sleeping, and so this capability is not included in Birkot Ha'shahar. (Interestingly, the Ben Ish Hai (Rav Yosef Haim of Baghdad, 1833-1909), in his work Mi'kavse'el, cites a Rabbi who wanted to apply this theory to explain why we do not recite a Beracha over the ability to speak. This Rabbi noted that some people talk in their sleep, and so this capability is not technically "lost" at night, such that we should give thanks for it when we wake up in the morning. The Ben Ish Hai dismissed this answer, noting that some people sleepwalk, and yet we still recite each morning the Beracha of "Ha'mechin Mis'adeh Gaber," thanking Hashem for the ability to walk. One might, however, distinguish between talking in one's sleep and sleepwalking, as a person who sleepwalks is not actually sleeping as he walks, whereas those who talk in their sleep really are still asleep and have not woken up to talk.) The Sefer Hasidim (Rabbenu Yehuda Ha'hasid, Germany, 1150-1217) writes that he once met an exceptionally pious individual who recited additional blessings each morning, thanking Hashem for each and every part of the body, and the Sefer Hasidim expressed great admiration for this practice. He noted the verse in Tehillim (84:3), "Libi U'bsari Yeranenu El Kel Hai" – "My heart and my flesh shall sing praise to the living G-d" – implying that each and every part of the body which functions properly is a sufficient reason to give praise to Hashem. A different verse in Tehillim (35:10) states, "Kol Asmotai Tomarna, Hashem Mi Kamocha" – "All my bones shall declare: G-d, who is like you?" Indeed, it is worthwhile to express our gratitude to the Almighty for each and every limb and organ in the body. The Hida (Rav Haim Yosef David Azulai, 1724-1806), in his commentary to Sefer Hasidim, asserts that this righteous man could not have actually recited additional Berachot, for a Beracha that was not instituted by the Sages constitutes a Beracha Le'batala – a Beracha recited in vain, which is forbidden. Undoubtedly, this man expressed his gratitude to Hashem for all his working body parts without reciting formal Berachot. By contrast, Rav Meir Mazuz (1945-2025) suggested that this righteous man followed the opinion that one is permitted to create his own Beracha to give praise to Hashem. In any event, the truth is that we do not need additional Berachot – formal or informal – to express our gratitude to Hashem for everything in our body that works properly. The Tur (Rabbenu Yaakov Ben Asher, Spain, 1270-1340) notes that in the Beracha of "Asher Yasar," which one recites after using the restroom, we say that Hashem created "Halulim Halulim" (hollow spaces in the body). The Gematria of the word "Halulim," the Tur observes, is 124, and we recite this word twice, for a total of 248 – the number of limbs and organs in a person's body. This expression, then, alludes to all our body parts. Thus, when we recite "Asher Yasar," we give thanks to Hashem not only for the wondrous ability to eliminate the waste from our body, but also for each and every body part. The Rishonim (Medieval scholars) debate the question of whether a person recites a Beracha that is not applicable to him, because he unfortunately does not have the ability for which that Beracha gives thanks. For example, does a blind person recite the Beracha of "Poke'ah Ivrim," in which we thank Hashem for the gift of vision? The Rambam (Hilchot Tefila 7:7-8) writes explicitly that a person recites each of these Berachot only after performing the action referred to by that Beracha. For example, after standing upright, one recites the Beracha of "Zokef Kefufim" ("Who makes the bent upright"), and after getting dressed, one recites the Beracha of "Malbish Arumim" ("Who clothes the naked"). The Rambam writes that if, for whatever reason, a person did not experience that which a given Beracha speaks of, then he does not recite that Beracha. In the Rambam's opinion, the Birkot Ha'shahar resemble the Berachot recited over food, which one recites only when eating. By the same token, one recites each of the morning blessings only after receiving the benefit for which each blessing gives praise. The Shulhan Aruch follows this opinion. By contrast, the Kolbo (anonymous work from the period of the Rishonim), citing several of the Geonim, writes that every person recites all the Birkot Ha'shahar, regardless of whether or not he personally experiences these phenomena. According to this opinion, the morning blessings express gratitude not for one's personal experience, but rather for the general phenomena mentioned by these Berachot. Even if one is not, Heaven forbid, able to see, for example, he still recites the Beracha of "Poke'ah Ivrim" to praise Hashem for the phenomenon of vision. Common practice follows this view of the Kolbo. One of the interesting questions asked regarding the Birkot Ha'shahar relates to the Halachic principle that applies in situations of a "Beracha Semucha La'haveratah" – a Beracha which is recited immediately following another Beracha. Normally, when a Beracha is recited right after another Beracha, it does not begin with the word "Baruch." Thus, for example, the text of Birkat Ha'mazon consists of four Berachot recited in immediate succession of one another, and thus only the first Beracha begins with "Baruch." The three subsequent Berachot are covered, so-to-speak, by the "Baruch" which begins the first Beracha, and so they do not require the introductory word "Baruch." In the Amida prayer, too, only the first Beracha begins with the word "Baruch," whereas all the subsequent Berachot do not, because they are recited immediately after the first Beracha. When it comes to Birkot Ha'shahar, however, the blessings all begin with the word "Baruch," despite the fact that they are recited as a series of Berachot, one right after the other. Tosafot in Masechet Berachot (46) offer two answers. First, they explain, unlike the blessings of Birkat Ha'mazon and the Amida, the blessings of Birkot Ha'shahar were not instituted as a series of Berachot. The Sages did not require reciting them together in a particular sequence. As we saw, the Rambam maintained that one recites each Beracha as he experiences the phenomenon referred to by each Beracha, and the Rambam writes explicitly that there is no set order for these Berachot. The rule of "Beracha Semucha La'haveratah," Tosafot write, applies only to a series of Berachot which were instituted to be recited together in a particular order, and so it does not apply to Birkot Ha'shahar. Secondly, Tosafot suggest, this rule applies only to relatively lengthy Berachot, such as the Berachot of Birkat Ha'mazon and the Amida. The Birkot Ha'shahar, however, are very brief, and thus they require the introduction of "Baruch Ata Hashem." A person should not unnecessarily get involved in other matters before reciting the Birkot Ha'shahar. Ideally, the Hesed La'alafim (Rav Eliezer Papo, 1785-1827) writes, the first words that come out of a person's mouth in the morning should be words of praise and gratitude to Hashem. One should not write text messages, make phone calls and the like before reciting the morning blessings. The Kaf Ha'haim (Rav Yaakov Haim Sofer, Baghdad-Jerusalem, 1870-1939) warns that according to the Kabbalah, unnecessarily delaying the recitation of Birkot Ha'shahar has the effect of allowing the Kelipot (negative spiritual energies) access to the person's soul, which can cause great harm. One should not be doing anything else while reciting a Beracha. This applies not only to Birkot Ha'shahar, but to all blessings that we recite. The Ben Ish Hai writes that "Lo Tiheyeh Ka'zot Be'Yisrael" – it should never happen that a Jew recites a Beracha while being involved in some other activity. And the Ben Ish Hai laments the fact that many people make this mistake. One common example is Netilat Yadayim – many people mistakenly recite the Beracha while drying their hands. One must ensure not to begin reciting the Beracha of "Al Netilat Yadayim" until after he finished drying his hands. Another common mistake is people reciting Birkot Ha'shahar while rushing to get to shul. This is improper. One should recite a Beracha while standing in place and doing nothing else, focusing his attention fully on the Beracha. The Taz (Rav David Ha'levi Segal, Poland, 1586-1667) writes that one who recites a Beracha while performing other activities is included in the Torah's harsh warnings against serving Hashem "Be'keri" – in a casual, haphazard manner, without focus and attentiveness. Rav Chaim Brim (1922-2002) tells that he once went to visit Rav Moshe Yehoshua Landau in the middle of the night. Rav Landau was in the restroom when he arrived, and so he waited. When Rav Landau came out, he recited the Beracha of "Asher Yasar" without realizing that he was being watched. Rav Brim said that at 2am, without realizing that anyone was around, Rav Landau recited "Asher Yasar" with greater concentration and emotion than most people have while reciting Ne'ila in the synagogue on Yom Kippur. We start our day by thanking Hashem for all the great blessings He has granted us. I had the occasion during my trips to Israel to visit Israeli soldiers who, unfortunately, sustained injuries that necessitated the amputation of limbs. They do not have the ability that the rest of having to easily get out of bed and move about. We need to appreciate these great blessings that Hashem gives us anew each morning, and try, as much as possible, to recite the Berachot with thought and concentration, truly appreciating all that Hashem does for us.

For our first-ever live Judaism Demystified podcast shiur, we're honored to welcome back Rabbi Chaim Eisen — visiting from Israel for his third appearance on the show. In front of a packed audience, Rabbi Eisen takes us on a riveting journey into one of the most profound and misunderstood topics in Jewish thought: Are the miracles of the Exodus (and other miracles) an extension of nature — or its negation? This shiur explores the complex interplay between miracles and nature, the boundaries between the natural and the supernatural, and the deeper theological implications of Hashgakha Pratit (individual Divine providence) and Hashgakha Klalit (general providence). Drawing from the rich traditions of Rambam and Ramban, Rabbi Eisen unpacks their points of divergence and surprising convergence — shedding light on how each understood the hand of God in the workings of the world. While no single session can fully address the vast scope of these ideas, this shiur offers clarity on many common misconceptions and opens the door to deeper inquiry into how we understand miracles, nature, and Divine involvement in our lives.---*This episode is dedicated to the refua shelema of Sarah Miriam bat Tamar, Binyamin ben Zilpa, and our dear friend Yaakov ben Haya Sarah Malakh---• Bio: Rabbi Chaim Eisen is the founder and dean of Yeshivath Sharashim – Zion Bible Studies, a Web-based educational venture to engage users worldwide in a deepening understanding of the Hebrew Bible and other religious classics, through live, recorded, and written content. An acclaimed speaker, he's been stimulating audiences throughout Israel, North America, and Europe for over 40 years. For nearly all his career, he's been involved in adult education, principally as a senior rabbinical lecturer at the Orthodox Union (OU) Jerusalem World Center, where he taught for more than 36 years. For over 20 years, he also taught Talmud and Midrash, Biblical commentary, and especially Jewish thought and philosophy at various yeshivot in Israel. In addition, he served as a Torah lecturer in the Israel Defense Forces Rabbinate Torah Lecture Corps (reserves), for over 16 years, and continued to volunteer there, after his retirement. Besides teaching, he was founding editor of the OU journal 'Jewish Thought: A Journal of Torah Scholarship' and has written and edited numerous essays in this field. He's been teaching, editing, and publishing Judaica for more than four decades. In particular, he feels passionately that, to pave the way for God's “great and awesome day” (Yoel 3:4 and Malachi 3:23), there's a burning urgency now to enunciate the Torah's message in the global marketplace of ideas, where, all too often, it's so sincerely sought — and so sorely missing. Tragically, nowadays, few who value the Torah's message appreciate the global marketplace of ideas — and vice versa. Most of all, he's committed to harnessing a lifetime of Torah study and teaching, to address and redress this absence, by the Torah's light. This is his mission — and the raison d'être of Yeshivath Sharashim – Zion Bible Studies.---• Check out his channel: https://www.youtube.com/@jewishphilosophymatters ---• Welcome to JUDAISM DEMYSTIFIED: A PODCAST FOR THE PERPLEXED | Co-hosted by Benjy & Benzi | Thank you to...Super Patron: Jordan Karmily, Platinum Patron: Craig Gordon, Rod Ilian, Gold Patrons: Dovidchai Abramchayev, Lazer Cohen, Travis Krueger, Vasili Volkoff, Vasya, Silver Patrons: Ellen Fleischer, Daniel M., Rabbi Pinny Rosenthal, Fred & Antonio, Jeffrey Wasserman, and Jacob Winston! Please SUBSCRIBE to this YouTube Channel and hit the BELL so you can get alerted whenever new clips get posted, thank you for your support!

“The Jewish voice must be heard, not because it's more right or less right, but it's there. The suffering is there, the grief is there, and human grief is human grief.” As Jews around the world mark Tisha B'Av, we're joined by Columbia University professor and award-winning poet Owen Lewis, whose new collection, “A Prayer of Six Wings,” offers a powerful reflection on grief in the aftermath of October 7th. In this conversation, Lewis explores the healing power of poetry in the face of trauma, what it means to be a Jewish professor in today's campus climate, and how poetry can foster empathy, encourage dialogue, and resist the pull of division. *The views and opinions expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views or position of AJC.   Listen – AJC Podcasts: The Forgotten Exodus: Untold stories of Jews who left or were driven from Arab nations and Iran People of the Pod:  Latest Episodes:  An Orange Tie and A Grieving Crowd: Comedian Yohay Sponder on Jewish Resilience From Broadway to Jewish Advocacy: Jonah Platt on Identity, Antisemitism, and Israel Sexual Violence as a Weapon of War: The Dinah Project's Quest to Hold Hamas Accountable Follow People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you've appreciated this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Transcript of the Interview:   Owen Lewis:   Overheard in a New York Restaurant.   I can't talk about Israel tonight.    I know.    I can't not talk about Israel tonight.    I know.    Can we talk about . . .   Here? Sure. Let's try to talk about here.   Manya Brachear Pashman:   On Saturday night, Jews around the world will commemorate Tisha B'av. Known as the saddest day on the Jewish calendar, the culmination of a three week period of mourning to commemorate several tragedies throughout early Jewish history.  As a list of tragedies throughout modern Jewish history has continued to grow, many people spend this day fasting, listening to the book of Lamentations in synagogue, or visiting the graves of loved ones. Some might spend the day reading poetry.  Owen Lewis is a Professor of Psychiatry in the Department of Medical Humanities and Ethics at Columbia University. But he's also the award-winning author of four poetry collections which have won accolades, including the EE Cummings Prize and the Rumi Prize for Poetry.  His most recent collection, A Prayer of Six Wings documents in verse his grief since the October 7 terror attacks. Owen is with us now to talk about the role of poetry in times of violence and war, what it's been like to be a Jewish professor on the Columbia campus, and a Jewish father with children and grandchildren in Israel. And also, how to keep writing amid a climate of rising antisemitism. Owen, welcome to People of the Pod. Owen Lewis:   Thank you so much, Manya. Manya Brachear Pashman:   So you opened with that short poem titled overheard in a New York restaurant. I asked you to read that because I wanted to ask whether it reflected how you felt about poetry after October 7.  Did you find yourself in a place where you couldn't write about Israel, but yet you couldn't not write about Israel? Owen Lewis:   Among the many difficult things of that First Year, not only the war, not only the flagrant attacks on the posters of the hostages one block from where I live, 79th and Broadway, every day, taken down every day, put back up again, defaced. It was as if the war were being fought right here on 79th and Broadway.  Another aspect that made this all so painful was watching the artistic and literary world turn against Israel. This past spring, 2000 writers and artists signed a petition, it was published, there was an oped about it in The Times, boycotting Israeli cultural institutions.  And I thought: artists don't have a right to shut their ears. We all need to listen to each other's grief, and if we poets and artists can't listen to one another, what do we expect of statesmen? Statesmen, yeah, they can create a ceasefire. That's not the same as creating peace. And peace can only come when we really listen to each other. To feel ostracized by the poetry community and the intellectual community was very painful. Fortunately, last summer, as well as this past summer, I was a fellow at the Yetzirah conference. Yetzirah is an organization of Jewish American poets, although we're starting to branch out. And this kind of in-gathering of like-minded people gave me so much strength.  So this dilemma, I can't talk about it, because we just can't take the trauma. We can't take hearing one more thing about it, but not talk about it…it's a compulsion to talk about it, and that's a way to process trauma. And that was the same with this poetry, this particular book.  I feel in many ways, it just kind of blew through me, and it was at the same time it blew through me, created this container in which I could express myself, and it actually held me together for that year. I mean, still, in many ways, the writing does that, but not as immediately and acutely as I felt that year.  Manya Brachear Pashman:   This book has been praised as not being for the ideological but for the intellectually and emotionally engaged. So it's not it's not something that ideologically minded readers will necessarily be able to connect to, or is it actually quite the opposite?  Owen Lewis:  Well, it's very much written from the gut, from the experience, from in a sense, being on the ground, both in Israel and here in New York and on campus, and trying to keep a presence in the world of poetry and writers. So what comes from emotion should speak to emotion. There are a few wisps of political statements, but it's not essentially a politically motivated piece of writing.  I feel that I have no problem keeping my sympathies with Israel and with Jews. I can still be critical of aspects of the government, and my sympathies can also be with the thousands of Palestinians, killed, hurt, displaced. I don't see a contradiction. I don't have to take sides.  But the first poem is called My Partisan Grief, and it begins on October 7. I was originally going to call the bookMy Partisan Grief, because I felt that American, Jewish, and Israeli grief was being silenced, was being marginalized. And I wanted to say, this is our grief. Listen to it. You must listen to this. It doesn't privilege this grief over another grief. Grief is grief. But I wanted ultimately to move past that title into something broader, more encompassing, more humanitarian. Manya Brachear Pashman:  And did that decision come as the death toll in Gaza rose and this war kept going and going and the hostages remained in captivity, did that kind of sway your thinking in terms of how to approach the book and frame it?  Owen Lewis:  Yes, but even more than those kind of headlines, which can be impersonal, the poetry of some remarkable Palestinian poets move me into a broader look. Abu Toha was first one who comes to mind Fady Joudah, who's also a physician, by the way. I mean his poetry, I mean many others, but it's gorgeous, moving poetry.  Some of it is a diatribe, and you know, some of it is ideological, and people can do that with poetry, but when poetry really drills down into human experience, that's what I find so compelling and moving. And that's what I think can move the peace process. I know it sounds quite idealistic, but I really think poetry has a role in the peace process here. Manya Brachear Pashman:  I want to I want to unpack that a little bit later. But first, I want to go back to the protests that were roiling Columbia's campus over the past year and a half, two years. What was it like to be, one, writing this book, but also, teaching on campus as a Jewish professor?  Owen Lewis:  Most of my teaching takes place up at the Medical Center at 168th Street. And there I have to say, I didn't feel battered in any way by what was happening. I had a very shocking experience. I had a meeting that I needed to attend on, or that had been scheduled, I hadn't been quite paying attention. I mean, I knew about the encampments, but I hadn't seen them, and I come face to face with a blocked campus. I couldn't get on the campus. And what I'm staring at are signs to the effect, send the Jews back to Poland. I'm thinking, Where am I? What is this? I mean, protest, sure. I mean we expect undergraduates, we expect humans, to protest when things really aren't fair. But what did this have to do…why invoke the Holocaust and re-invoke it, as if to imply the Jews should be punished? All Jews.  And what it fails to account for are the diversity of Jewish opinion. And you know, for some Jews, it's a black or white matter, but for most thinking Jews that I know, we all struggle very much with a loyalty to Israel, to the Jewish people, to the homeland and larger humanitarian values. So that was quite a shock. And I wrote a piece called “The Scars of Encampment,” in which I say, I can't unsee that. " And I go to campus, and, okay, it's a little bit more security to get onto campus. It's a beautiful campus. It's like an oasis there, but at the same time, I'm seeing what was as if it still is. And in a way, that's the nature of trauma that things from the past just roil and are present with almost as much emotion as when first encountered. Manya Brachear Pashman:  So did you need to tune out those voices, or did that fuel your work? Owen Lewis:  No, that fueled my work. I mean, if anything, it made me feel much more, a sense of mission with this book. And a commitment, despite criticism that I may receive, and no position I take is that outlandish, except to sympathize with the murdered on October 7th, to sympathize with their families, to resonate with what it must be like to have family members as hostages in brutal, brutal conditions. Not knowing whether they're dead or alive. So I really felt that the Jewish voice must be heard, not because it's more right or less right, but it's there. The suffering is there, the grief is there, and human grief is human grief. Manya Brachear Pashman:  Owen, if you wouldn't mind reading another poem from the collection. Of course, many of us remember the news out of Israel on Thanksgiving Day 2023, right after October 7th. And this poem is titled, “Waiting for the Next Release, Reported by the New York Times, November 23 2023”. Owen Lewis:  Waiting For the Next Release, Reported N.Y. Times, Nov. 23, 2023    Maybe tomorrow, if distrust  doesn't flare like a missile,  some families will be reunited.    How awful this lottery of choice; Solomon would not deliberate. Poster faces always before my eyes,   Among them, Emma & Yuli Cunio.  Twins age 3, Raz Katz-Asher, age 4, Ariel Bibas, another four year old.    What do their four year old minds make  of captivity? What will they say? What would my Noa say?    What will the other Noas say?  Remembering Noa Argamani, age 26,  thrown across the motorcycle    to laughter and Hamas joy.   I have almost forgotten this American day,  Thanks- giving,   With its cornucopian harvests,  I am thinking of the cornucopian  jails of human bounty.    (What matter now who is to blame?) Manya Brachear Pashman:  Really beautiful, and it really captures all of our emotions that day. You have children and grandchildren in Israel, as I mentioned and as you mentioned in that poem, your granddaughter, Noa. So your grief and your fear, it's not only a collective grief and fear that we all share, but also very personal, which you weave throughout the collection.  In another poem, “In a Van to JFK”, you talk about just wanting to spend one more hour with your family before they fly off to Israel. And it's very moving.  But in addition to many of the poems, like the one you just read, they are based on and somewhat named for newspaper headlines, you said that kind of establishes a timeline. But are there other reasons why you transformed those headlines into verse? Owen Lewis:  Yes, William Carlos Williams in his poem Asphodel, says, and I'm going to paraphrase it badly. You won't get news from poems yet, men die every day for wanting what is found there. And I think it's a very interesting juxtaposition of journalism and poetry. And I mean, I'm not writing news, I'm writing where my reflections, where my heart, goes in response to the news, and trying to bring another element to the news that, you know, we were confronted.  I mean, in any time of high stress, you swear off – I'm not watching any more TV. I'm not even gonna look at the newspaper. And then, of course, you do. I can't talk about Israel today. I can't not talk about it. I can't read the paper. I can't not read the paper. It's kind of that back and forth. But what is driving that? And so I'm trying to get at that next dimension of what's resonating behind each one of these headlines, or resonating for me. I mean, I'm not claiming this is an interpretation of news. It's my reaction, but people do react, and there's that other dimension to headlines. Manya Brachear Pashman:  That seems like it might be therapeutic, no? Owen Lewis:  Oh, totally, totally. You know, I'm very fortunate that having started a career in medicine, in psychiatry, and particularly in child and adolescent psychiatry. I always had one foot in the door academically. I spent, you know, my life as, I still teach, but I'm very fortunate to have, maybe 10+ years ago, been introduced to a basically a woman who created the field of Narrative Medicine, Rita Sharon. And now at Columbia in the medical school, we have a free-standing Department of Medical Humanities and Ethics, of which she's chairman.  So I've had the fortune of bringing psychiatry and medicine and writing together in a very integrated way. And yes, writing is therapeutic, especially, I could say in medicine, which has given itself over to electronic medical record keeping, but our whole society is moving towards the electronic. And what happens when you sit and write, and what happens when you then sit and read, you reflect. Your mind engages in a different way that is a bit slower than the fast pace of electronic communications and instant communications and instant thinking. And now with AI, instant analysis of any situation you want to feed data from.  So that's sorely lacking in the human experience. And the act of writing, the act of reading has huge therapeutic values, huge salutary benefits for humans in general, but particularly in times of stress. In a lot of work on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, finding an outlet, an artistic outlet, it doesn't have to be writing, but that's often a way of transcending the trauma.  And medicine is filled with trauma. People trying to come to terms with acute illnesses, chronic illnesses. Doctors and caregivers trying to come to terms with what they can and can't do. And you know, we're coming up against limitations. But how do you make peace with those limitations? And it's not that it's a magical panacea, but it's a process of engagement, not only with the subject, but with yourself in relation to the subject. Manya Brachear Pashman:  I mean, I imagine dialogue is really the healthiest way of conversation and speaking through and interacting with a topic. And so I would imagine poetry, or, as you said, any art form, responding to news reports, it makes that a two way conversation when you're able to process and it's not just the headlines shouting at you, you're actually interacting and processing it by writing and reaction, or painting and reaction, whatever you choose to do. Owen Lewis:  Exactly. Manya Brachear Pashman:  You have said that poetry can serve a purpose during times of war. Is this one of the purposes to to be therapeutic or are you talking more in terms of what statesmen could learn from it?  Owen Lewis:  Well, yes, of course, what statesmen could learn from it, but it's human nature to want to take sides. I mean, that's kind of just what we do. But I think we can always do better than that. So I'm really talking about the people. I mean, there are also many Jews who are so angry at Israel that they can't listen to the story of Jewish grief. They should be reading mine and others poetries from this era. I wish the Palestinian poets were. I wish the Palestinian people. I mean, of course, in their current situation, they don't have time when you're starving, when you're looking for your next glass of fresh water. You don't have time for anything beyond survival.  But once we get beyond that, how long are these positions going to be hardened. I mean, I think when the people of all sides of the dilemma really listen to the others, I mean, they're, I mean, if, unless as Hamas has expressed, you know, wants to push Israel into the sea, if Israel is going to coexist with the Palestinian people, whether they're in a nation or not in a nation, each has to listen to the other.  And it's, you know, it's not one side is right, one side is wrong. It's far too complex a history to reduce it to that kind of simplicity. And I think poetry, everyone's poetry, gets at the complexity of experience, which includes wanting to take sides and questioning your wanting to take sides and moving towards something more humanitarian.  Manya Brachear Pashman:  You said earlier, you recommend Abu Toha, Fady Joudah, two Palestinian poets who have written some beautiful verse about– tragically beautiful verse–about what's happening. But there have been some really deep rifts in the literary world over this war. I mean, as you mentioned before, there was a letter written by authors and entertainers who pledged to boycott Israeli cultural institutions. Some authors have refused to sell rights to their books to publishers in Israel. So why not reciprocate? And I know the answer. I think you've already addressed it pretty well. What's wrong with that approach? Owen Lewis:  In any conflict, there are at least three sides to the conflict. I mean, claims to nationhood, claims to who shoved first, who. I mean, you don't entangle things by aggressively reacting. I mean, if we learned anything from Mahatma Gandhi, it's what happens when we don't retaliate, right? And what happens when we go the extra mile to create bridges and connections.  There are a host of people in Israel who continue to help Palestinians get to medical facilities, driving them back and forth, working for peace. I mean, there's a Palestinian on the Supreme Court of Israel, and well, he should be there. You know, that's the part of Israel that I am deeply proud of. So why not retaliate? I think it entrenches positions and never moves anything forward. Manya Brachear Pashman:  So have you gotten any negative feedback from your writing colleagues? Owen Lewis:  Some cold shoulders, yes. I mean not nothing overtly. I haven't been slammed in a review yet. Maybe that's coming. But when I publish pieces, I tend not to look at them. I had an oped in the LA Times. I've had some other pieces, you know, that precipitates blogs, and I started to read them.  And the first blog that came off of the the LA Times oped was, God, is he an opportunist, just taking advantage of having a daughter in Israel? And trying to make a name for himself or something. And I said, You know what, you can't put yourself out and take a position without getting some kind of flack. So occasionally, those things filter back, it's par for the course. Manya Brachear Pashman:  Right, not really worth reading some of those. You included Midrash in this book. You also spelled God in the traditional sense in the poems. Why did you choose to do that? Owen Lewis:  Well, I felt it honors a tradition of Jewish writing. It mean we have yud, hey, vav, hey, you know, which in English comes down as Yahweh, but it's unpronounceable. The name of God is unpronounceable. And, you know, yud, hey, vav, hey is just a representation. It isn't God's name. And there's a tradition that the name of God, when it's written down, can't be destroyed. And it's a way of honoring that tradition. Millennium of Jewish writers, you know, it's similar to say Elokim, instead of Elohim when the text is written. To sort of substitute. We know what we're talking about, but really to honor tradition, to pay respect and sort of to stay in the mind frame that, if there is a God, he, she, they, are unknowable. And somehow it creates, for me, a little bit of that mystery by leaving a letter out. It's like, G, O, D, seems more knowable than G-d. It's leaving that white space right for something bigger, grander, and mysterious, for the presence of that  right in the word itself. Manya Brachear Pashman:  And what about including Midrash? Owen Lewis: That's a very interesting question. You know Midrash for me, when you steep yourself in traditional Midrash, there's stories that exemplify principles and they fill in gaps. I mean, some of the most important. I mean, we have this notion of Abraham breaking the idols of his father before he left. No. That's Midrash, thats not in the Torah. And yet, nine out of ten Jews will say that's in the Torah, right? So, it kind of expands our understanding of the traditional text. But it also very much allows a writer to creatively engage with the text and expand it. It's like a commentary, but it's a commentary in story, and it's a commentary in terms that evoke human responses, not necessarily intellectual responses. So frankly, I think it's every Jews' responsibility to write Midrash. That reinvigorates the stories, the texts, and the meanings, and then we write midrashes upon midrashes. And you know, we get a whole community buzzing about a single story. Manya Brachear Pashman:  Which is very much what you've done with this collection, you know, writing poetry in response to news stories and engaging it in that way. It's very Jewish response, I would argue.  Do you observe Tisha B'av? Owen Lewis:  You know what I do. You're gonna laugh. My grandmother always warned us, don't go in the water on Tisha B'av, the sea will swallow you up. So I'm a big swimmer. I love swimming. I don't swim on Tisha B'av, because I hear my grandmother's voice, I'm going to be swallowed up. Manya Brachear Pashman:  If you could please wrap up this conversation by sharing a poem of your choice from your latest collection. Owen Lewis:  A poem I love to read again starts with a headline.   2000 Pound Bombs Drop, Reported N.Y. Times, Dec,, 22 2023.   In Khan Younis, the call to prayer  is the call of a dazed Palestinian child crying baba, standing at the brim of a cavernous pit of rubble   biting his knuckles–baba, baba . . .  It's so close to the abba of the dazed  Israeli children of Be'eri, Kfar Azza. There is no comfort. From his uncles   he's heard the calls for revenge– for his home and school, for his bed  of nighttime stories, for his nana's  whisper-song of G-d's many names.   His Allah, his neighbor's Adonai,  cry the same tears for death  and shun more blood. No miracle these waters turning red. Who called forth    the fleets of avenging angels? By viral post: Jewish Plagues on Gaza! A firstborn lost,  then a second, a third. What other plagues  pass over? Hail from the tepid sky?   From on high it falls and keeps falling.  Though we've “seen terrible things,” will you tell us, Adonai, Allah, tell us– do You remember the forgotten promise?   From the pile once home of rubble stone, a father's hand reaching out, baba, abba crushed by the load. We know the silence  of the lost child . . . G-d “has injured us   but will bind up our wounds . . .” Mothers  Look for us, called by the name yamma, calling  the name imma. Our father of mercy, not the god of sacrifice. Our many crying heads explode. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Owen Lewis, thank you so much for talking to us about how this book came about and for sharing some of these verses. Owen Lewis:   Thank you so much. Manya Brachear Pashman: If you missed last week's episode, be sure to listen to my conversation with Israeli comedian Yohay Sponder on the sidelines of AJC Global Forum 2025. Hear how his Jewish identity shapes his work, how his comedy has evolved since the Hamas terror attacks, and what he says to those who try to silence him.

התוכן איתא במדרש "בשבעה בחודש . . נכנסו נכרים להיכל ואכלו ושתו וקלקלו בו". התורה מספרת זאת כדי שזכרון הדברים יביא לתיקון סיבת החורבן ובדרך ממילא ייבטל המסובב. ועפמ"ש במדרש "בא וראה כמה חביבין תינוקות לפני הקב"ה . . כיון שגלו תינוקות גלתה שכינה עמהן", מובן, שכשילדי ישראל יתנהגו באופן כזה ש"לא מגיע" להם להיות בגלות, ייצאו ביחד עם כל בנ"י מהגלות ושכינה עמהם. 2) הוראה ממ"ש בשיעור תהלים היומי "אבואה אל מזבח אלקים . . מה תהמי עלי הוחילי לאלקים וגו'" – כשיהודי מתחיל "לתמוה" איך אפשר שלאחרי מאות שנה בגלות יבוא משיח צדקנו ברגע א' – אומרים לו "הוחילי לאלקים" – ברור שע"י הבטחון בה' "אבואה אל מזבח אלקים וגו'" תיכף ומיד!ב' חלקים מהשיחות יום א' פ' ואתחנן, ז' מנחם-אב ה'תש"מ, להתלמידים ולהתלמידות שיחיו ל"הנחה פרטית" או התרגום ללה"ק של השיחה: https://thedailysicha.com/?date=01-08-2025 Synopsis The Midrash states, “On the seventh of the month…gentiles entered the Sanctuary, and they ate and drank and desecrated in it.” The Torah tells us this so that by remembering these events, we will correct the cause of the destruction, and then automatically the destruction will be undone. When Jewish children conduct themselves in such a way that they don't deserve to be in exile, they will leave the exile, together with the entire Jewish people and together with the Shechinah, as the Midrash states, “Come and see how beloved children are before the Holy One, blessed be He…when the children were exiled, the Shechinah was exiled with them.” (2) Today's Tehillim states, “And I will come to the altar of G-d…Why are you downcast, my soul, and why are you perturbed within me? Hope to G-d…” – when a Jew is perturbed and wonders how it's possible that after hundreds of years in exile Moshiach Tzidkeinu will arrive in a single moment, he is told, “Hope to G-d” – it is clear that by trusting in Hashem, “I will come to the altar of G-d…” literally right now.2 excerpts from Sunday, parashas Va'eschanan, 7 Menachem-Av 5740 – to children For a transcript in English of the Sicha: https://thedailysicha.com/?date=01-08-2025 לזכות שיינא בת מושקא שתחי' ליום ההולדת שלה ז' מנחם-אב - לשנת ברכה והצלחה, ואריכות ימים ושנים טובות

Welcome to Daily Bitachon. We are now in the pesukim of Eichah , where Yirmiyah gives us words of chizuk (3,27) יֵשֵׁב בָּדָד וְיִדֹּם כִּי נָטַל עָלָיו Let one sit in solitude and be submissive, for He has laid it upon him. " What does this mean? Rashi says we're referring to someone who is going through a difficult challenge and finds himself completely alone — יֵשֵׁב בָּדָד. That's his situation. The difficulty is the loneliness. What do we tell him to do? וְיִדֹּם / wait, wait, wait… and hope for the future. Why? Because Hashem has placed this upon him. This is not happenstance. The comfort offered here is that this isn't something random, it is by Hashem's will. That's how Rashi explains it. In this context, the word וְיִדֹּם means " to wait ." He even brings a source in Shmuel, where the word יִּדֹּם means " to wait." But the Sefer Lechem Dim'ah offers a different explanation: יִּדֹּם means " to be silent." When someone is in a challenging situation, Yeshev Badad , he should remain silent. Like Aharon HaKohen, when, bar minan, he lost his 2 sons , it says , Vayidom Aharon/ And Aharon was silent. He didn't ask questions. And the Midrash says that Aharon was rewarded for his silence. That's how Lechem Dim'ah explains כִּי נָטַל עָלָ י- by quietly and silently accepting the suffering, the individual merits tremendous reward. The reward of accepting Hashem's will, even without understanding, through silence, כִּי נָטַל עָלָיו /he will be greatly rewarded. Another explanation from the Lechem Dim'ah , quoted in the past few days from Shmuel DeUzidah, citing his teacher — either the Arizal or Rav Chaim Vital — sees it differently. He says Yeshev Badad is not the challenge. The challenge is not that the man is sitting alone because he's suffering. Rather, it's the solution, the advice for how to deal with the challenge: יֵשֵׁב בָּדָד sit alone The word בָּדָד is related to hitbodedut / to contemplate , to think, to be in solitude. When a person is alone, the mind is free to think. And when he thinks, he can begin to process what's happening. So that's the advice: sit alone, and reflect. You can almost use the word " meditate ." Think deeply about your situation and how to respond. Rav Yonatan Eybeschutz offers one more explanation — a totally different one: Yoshev Badad is not referring to someone suffering. It's not advice for coping with challenges. It's words of comfort from the Torah, a vision of peace. It's connected to the Torah's words וַיִּשְׁכֹּן יִשְׂרָאֵל בֶּטַח בָּדָד עֵין יַעֲקֹב — "The Jewish people will dwell in safety, alone — like in the times of Yaakov Avinu." Alone, but protected. Not fearing the nations, not fearing wild animals. This is what will happen in the future. So Yeshev Badad is a promise: Don't worry about the past. The time is coming when Hakadosh Baruch Hu will take care of us וַיִּשְׁכֹּן יִשְׂרָאֵל בֶּטַח בָּדָד . Vayidom, wait, its coming., don't despair. נָטַל עָלָיו /and don't worry. We've already carried so much suffering, we've taken more than our share . So wait for that bright future of יֵשֵׁב בָּדָד . Also, in Ha'azinu , it says: ּ / Hashem will lead them alone ה' בָּדָד יַנְחֶנּו In this world, we were separated, mocked, and unaccepted by the nations. But in the future, because of that, we will be set apart —and no other nation will share in the reward that is coming to Am Yisrael. So this is a positive יֵשֵׁב בָּדָד. We will end with a Kabbalistic note, based on this understanding of Badad/being alone — and the verse ה' בָּדָד יַנְחֶנּוּ. We turn to the Ben Ish Chai, in his hakdamah to Parashat Ha'azinu, where he shares something deep: He explains that there are two names of Hashem: שַׁדַּי אֲדֹנָי When Adam HaRishon sinned, the verse uses the words: /The snake seduced me הַנָּחָשׁ הִשִּׁיאַנִי The word הִשִּׁיאַנִי /he'shiani/ seduced contains the words שַׁי and אֲנִי . What does that mean? The שַׁי left from the name שַׁדַּי is — only the ש and the י remain. The name אֲדֹנָי is left with just אֲנִי — the daled is gone from both names, and our Rabbis say that when you rearrange הִשִּׁיאַנִי , it can be read as יֵשׁ and אֲנִי — it's about " I " and what " I have." It becomes self-centered: I exist, I have — no mention of God. The snake made us focus on ourselves, not on Hashem. That's what knocked out the two daleds , and that's what has led to all our suffering. So how do we fix it? The Ben Ish Chai brings the verse: לִשְׁקֹד עַל דַּלְתוֹתַי יוֹם יוֹם "To to hasten to My doors every day." This simply means to rush to the Bet Midrash . The full pasuk in Mishlei 8:34 says: אַשְׁרֵי אָדָם שֹׁמֵעַ לִי, לִשְׁקֹד עַל דַּלְתוֹתַי יוֹם יוֹם, לִשְׁמֹר מְזוּזוֹת פְּתָחָי " Praiseworthy is the one who listens to Me, who rushes to My doors every day, guarding the doorposts of My entranceways." so this man is in shul every day. But the Ben Ish Chai reads this differently: לִשְׁקֹד עַל דַּלְתוֹתַי to constantly restore the daleds. He is consistently working to bring the daleds back. So it won't just be the name of יֵשׁ and אֲנִי . But rather, restoring Hashem's full names. Yesh Badad- the time will come when the two daleds will return to us . וְיִדֹּם — wait and hope for that day כִּי נָטַל עָלָיו — because we've suffered deeply since that first sin, and we are ready for that future, when Hashem will lead us alone / ה' בָּדָד יַנְחֶנּוּ

Ancient Jewish texts offer surprising insights into contemporary debates on judicial activism, restraint and independence Join us as we delve into a fascinating exploration of Moses' farewell address in Parashat Devarim. This episode uncovers striking parallels between ancient concerns about judicial integrity and modern debates over judicial reform in Israel. Key Takeaways Moses' emphasis on judicial reform highlights its critical importance to societal stability The tradition of leadership farewell addresses often includes moral warnings for the future Ancient Jewish texts offer surprising insights into contemporary debates on judicial activism and restraint Timestamps [00:00:00] – Opening: Moses' Final Warning is About Justice [00:02:27] – Farewell Speeches as a Genre [00:05:12] – Eisenhower's Farewell and Military-Industrial Complex [00:09:00] – Urian's Speech and Jewish Exceptionalism [00:12:00] – Moses' First and Final Acts: Appointing Judges [00:14:45] – Deuteronomy 1:12–18 – The Core Torah Passage [00:17:00] – Eicha (How?!) – Midrash and Lamentation Connection [00:21:32] – Ramban: Justice Means More than Judges [00:26:00] – Judicial Activism vs. Restraint in Rashi [00:28:00] – Maimonides (Rambam) on Appointing Unfit Judges Links & Learnings Sign up for free and get more from our weekly newsletter https://madlik.com/ Safaria Source Sheet: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/665537 Transcript here: https://madlik.substack.com/

Congratulates the Bar Mitzvah boy, blessing him to begin a full Jewish life in Torah and mitzvos. Shares the Midrash about Yitzchak's Bar Mitzvah and Og's mockery, teaching not to be intimidated by challenges or ridicule. Encourages him to live with strength and influence his surroundings positively, bringing true Jewish nachas to his family. https://www.torahrecordings.com/rebbe/004_igros_kodesh/sivan/1062

התוכן 1. נמצאים אנו ב"תשעת הימים" בתחלת חודש "מנחם-אב", שנק' כך כי הובטחנו מה' ש"והפכתי אבלם לששון". שע"י עשיית התשובה, שעי"ז מתבטלת סיבת הגלות ש"מפני חטאנו גלינו מארצנו", יקויים היעוד "יהפכו ימים אלו לששון ולשמחה ולמועדים טובים" בגאולה האמיתית והשלימה – ימים טובים ושמחים יותר מהרגיל כ"יתרון האור מן החושך וגו'". ולכן יש להוסיף בימים אלו בלימוד התורה ובקיום המצוות, ובמצוה התפלה ובקשה מה' לברכותיו וכו'. 2. עפמ"ש במדרש "בא וראה כמה חביבין תינוקות לפני הקב"ה, גלתה סנהדרין ולא גלתה שכינה עמהם, גלו משמרות ולא גלתה שכינה עמהם, וכיון שגלו תינוקות גלתה שכינה עמהם, הלא הוא דכתיב 'עוללי'ה הלכו שבי לפני צר' מיד 'ויצא מבת ציון כל הדרה'" – מובן שביטול סיבת הגלות וההשבה לארצנו הק' תלוי בראש ולראשונה בתורה, תפלה וצדקה של ילדי ישראל.ב' שיחות להתלמידים ולהתלמידות שיחיו, בבית הכנסת, אחרי תפלת מנחה, יום ה' פ' דברים, ד' מנחם-אב ה'תש"מ ל"הנחה פרטית" או התרגום ללה"ק של השיחה: https://thedailysicha.com/?date=29-07-2025 Synopsis (1) We are now in the Nine Days, at the beginning of the month of Menachem-Av, which is called by that name because Hashem has promised us that “I will transform their mourning into gladness.” By doing teshuvah, which nullifies the cause of the exile (“Because of our sins we were exiled from our land”), we will merit the fulfillment of the promise, “These days will be transformed into joy and gladness and happy festivals” with the true and complete Redemption – even greater and more joyous than ordinary festivals, because there will be the “advantage of light from the darkness” etc. Therefore during this time of year, one should increase in Torah and mitzvos, and in the mitzvah of davening and asking Hashem for His blessings etc. (2) The Midrash states: “Come and see how beloved children are before the Holy One, blessed be He. The Sanhedrin was exiled, but the Divine Presence did not go into exile with them. The priestly watches were exiled, but the Divine Presence did not go into exile with them. But when the children were exiled, the Divine Presence went into exile with them, as it is written: ‘Her young children went into captivity before the enemy…' and then immediately, ‘Gone from the daughter of Tzion is all her splendor.'” Based on this, it is understood that the nullification of the cause of the exile and the return to our Holy Land depends first and foremost on the Torah, tefillah, and tzedakah of Jewish children.2 sichos delivered to children, Thursday, parashas Devarim, 4 Menachem-Av 5740 For a transcript in English of the Sicha: https://thedailysicha.com/?date=29-07-2025

Today Lisa Snell explains the amazing parallels between the travels of the Hebrews after leaving Egypt and the ministry of Yeshua (Jesus).

Today Lisa Snell explains the amazing parallels between the travels of the Hebrews after leaving Egypt and the ministry of Yeshua (Jesus).

The Midrash Shoher Tob (Tehillim 91) speaks about a dangerous "demon" called "Keteb Meriri" that is covered with scales and hair, has eyeballs all over its body, and sees from the eye situated on its chest. It generally resides in areas that are partly sunny and partly shady, and moves by rolling like a ball. Anyone who comes near this demon, the Midrash comments, exposes himself to great danger. The Midrash in fact relates that there were schoolchildren who suffered harm as a result of "Keteb Meriri." It is specifically during the three weeks of between Shiba Asar Be'Tamuz and Tisha B'Ab, the Midrash teaches, that this harmful spirit surfaces and poses danger. It is very uncharacteristic for the Shulhan Aruch, which was written as a strictly Halachic code, to include Kabbalistic concepts in presenting Halachic guidelines. Yet, the Shulhan Aruch indeed writes that during the three weeks one should not go outdoors to partially shady areas between the fourth and ninth hours (referring to Halachic hours) of the day, when this demon is most threatening. He adds that during this period, parents should make a point not to hit their children, and teachers should likewise refrain from smacking students, in order to avoid risks. The Midrash tells the story of Rabbi Abahu who saw a teacher with a branch ready to hit an unruly student. Rabbi Abahu sharply condemned the teacher, noting that "Keteb Meriri" was standing right behind him with an iron rod, ready to strike. This story shows the dangers of administering any type of corporal punishment during this period, when we are exposed to the dangers of "Keteb Meriri." The Aruch Ha'shulhan (work by Rabbi Yehiel Michel Epstein, Byelorussia, 1829-1908) cites authorities who limit this Halacha to uninhabited areas, such as forests and the like. Inside a city, however, the presence of many people, as well as the presence of Mezuzot on the doorposts, offers a degree of protection from this harmful spirit. On one level, this restriction essentially renders this Halacha practically irrelevant nowadays, when we usually spend our time in towns, cities and other inhabited areas. Nevertheless, this Halacha demonstrates the importance of avoiding danger during this three-week period and keeping a "low profile," as this period is particularly suited for mishaps and calamity, Heaven forbid. It is therefore advisable to remain in safe, secure quarters during the three weeks, especially between the fourth and ninth hours of the day. Summary: It is advisable to avoid desolate, outdoor areas between the fourth and ninth hours of the day (as defined by Halacha) during the three weeks between Shiba Asar Be'Tamuz and Tisha B'Ab. More generally, it is proper to avoid all dangerous situations during this period, which is a particularly inauspicious time for the Jewish people.

Eikha Rabbati: Rachel's Tears, by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom How are we to understand the Midrash about Rachel's tears saving Am Yisrael? The Midrash Rabba collection on Megilat Eikha includes some of the most moving literature in the canon. A brief introduction to Midrash Agada, followed by a briefer introduction to Midrash Eikha, is followed by a study of a famous proem ("Petichta") involving the unsuccessful intervention by the Avot and Mosheh Rabbenu to defend the people - until Rachel speaks up and tells her story... Source sheet >>

Through the powerful image of a king carrying his ailing son away to heal, the Midrash brings fresh insight into God's boundless love for His people. Take three minutes to remember that we are always loved.

Bringing Am Yisrael Together We read in Parashat Matot of the request made by the tribes of Reuven and Gad to permanently settle in the region east of the Jordan River. Beneh Yisrael had captured this territory from the kingdoms of Sihon and Og, and Reuven and Gad – who owned lots of livestock – saw that this land had vast amounts of pasture which was well-suited for their herds. They thus approached Moshe and asked permission to make this area their permanent home instead of crossing into the Eretz Yisrael. Moshe granted their request after receiving their promise that they would participate in the battles waged by the other tribes to conquer the Land of Israel. Surprisingly, the Torah tells that when Moshe distributed this territory, he apportioned shares not only to the tribes of Reuben and Gad, but also to part of the tribe of Menashe. This tribe is not mentioned at all previously in this story. From what we can tell, the people of Menashe did not come with Reuben and Gad to Moshe to ask for this land. Why, then, did part of the tribe of Menashe receive a portion in Eber Ha'Yarden (the region to the east of the Jordan River) together with Reuben and Gad? One answer can be suggested based on a mysterious comment by the Midrash, teaching us about the background to the division of the tribe of Menashe. Back in the Book of Bereshit, we read of how Yosef's brothers sold him as a slave to merchants who brought him to Egypt, where he ultimately rose to the position of vizier. When famine struck the Land of Israel, Yosef's brothers came to purchase grain from Yosef – not realizing that this was his brother. Before they made their way back to Eretz Yisrael, Yosef ordered his advisor – whom the Midrash identifies as his son, Menashe – to plant his goblet in the bag of the youngest brother, Binyamin, to frame him as a thief. Later, after the brothers left Egypt, Yosef told Menashe to run after them and charge them with theft. When the goblet was discovered in Binyamin's bag, the brothers tore their garments, as tragedy had now befallen the family. The Midrash comments that since Menashe had caused the brothers to tear their garments into two halves, the tribe that descended from him would similarly be "torn" into two pieces, with part of the tribe residing in Eretz Yisrael, and the other part residing east of the Jordan River. At first glance, the Midrash seems to be saying that Menashe was punished for causing his uncles anguish. But if we probe deeper, we will see that to the contrary, Menashe was actually given a great privilege to split into two halves. A number of commentators explain that Yosef's intention in framing Binyamin was to determine whether his brothers had fully repented for their sin of selling him as a slave – by putting them in a situation where another younger brother would be in trouble. Yosef framed Binyamin to see if the brothers would do everything they could to save him and bring him home – just the opposite of how they treated him, driving him out of the family. As we know, Yehuda stepped forward to offer himself as a slave in Binyamin's stead, showing that the brothers had indeed fully repented and changed. At that point, Yosef revealed himself to his brothers, and the family was reunited. Menashe made the brothers rend their garments – but in so doing, he brought the family back together. This process, unfortunately, entailed the pain of "tearing," but it had the effect of mending the rupture that had plagued the family for many years. With this in mind, we can return to the story of Reuben and Gad. Moshe feared that Reuben and Gad's settlement across the river would cause a rupture in the nation. The Jordan River was a natural border that could have divided the nation into two, resulting in Reuben and Gad's dissociation from the rest of the nation. Moshe therefore devised a plan – he would have half of one of the other tribes live together with Reuben and Gad across the river. Having half of a tribe on one side, and the second half on the other side, would help ensure that the river would not become a border separating between the two regions, that there would be ongoing contact and communication between the tribes in Eretz Yisrael and the tribes in Eber Ha'Yarden. For this crucial purpose, Moshe selected the tribe of Menashe – the tribe whose ancestor is credited with bringing the family together. Menashe had bequeathed this quality to his descendants, and so they were the best choice to ensure that Am Yisrael remains united despite the geographic separation between them. Just as Menashe had united the family by planting the goblet in Binyamin's bag, so would his descendants assure the unity of the Jewish Nation by living on both sides of the Jordan River and connecting all the tribes with each other.

Why was Shevet Menashe the only tribe split in two? And why were they chosen to teach Torah on the other side of the Jordan River instead of Yissachar, the tribe known for learning? In this week's Parshas Matos-Masei, we uncover a stunning 250-year chain of ripple effects that will transform how you view every action you take. Through a fascinating Midrash about hidden long-term consequences, discover how Hashem's perfect system of measure-for-measure operates across generations. This isn't just ancient history – it's a wake-up call about every action we take. Prepare to see your daily decisions through an entirely new lens.

Welcome to Daily Bitachon . As many of our listeners know, I like delving into pesukim to see the beauty in them. They are full of treasures if you look into them. So, for the next two weeks, we're going to focus on some pesukim in Eicha . Eicha is, of course, a book of lamentations, but there are words of chizuk in chapter 3. We'll start with where it turns around: The prophet Yirmiyahu says זֹאת אָשִׁיב אֶל לִבִּי עַל כֵּן אוֹחִיל /This I bear in mind, therefore I will still hope. " The next pasuk says, חַסְדֵי ה׳ כִּי לֹא תָמְנוּ /Hashem's kindness surely has not ended; כִּי לֹא כָלוּ רַחֲמָיו , nor are His mercies exhausted. Simply speaking, what does the prophet bear in hope? זֹאת אָשִׁיב אֶל לִבִּ . What the next pasuk says: chasdei Hashem ki lo tamnu . And that's how Rashi explains it. So the pasuk , זֹאת אָשִׁיב אֶל לִבִּ is really just an introduction. What am I going to bear in mind that will give me hope? Chasdei Hashem —the kindness of Hashem. The Chida , in his sefer Nachal Eshkol on Eicha , quotes the Zohar , and we'll see in a moment that we don't even need a Zohar ; we can go to the simple Midrash Rabbah for a similar approach. We'll start with the Chida , who says the word זאת refers to the Shechina, as it says: וְאַף גַּם זֹאת בִּהְיוֹתָם בְּאֶרֶץ אֹיְבֵיהֶם —but despite all of this, biheyotam b'eretz oyeveihem / they will in the land of their enemies: לֹא מְאַסְתִּים / I have not been revolted by them; וְלֹא גְעַלְתִּים /nor have I rejected them לְכַלֹּתָם /to utterly obliterate them לְהָפֵר בְּרִיתִי אִתָּם / to annul My covenant with them. Ki ani Hashem Elokeihem /I am Hashem, their God . So, the word zot here simply means af gam zot /besides all of this, etc., etc. Which means, despite all that we're hearing about— this is the end of the tochachah in Bechukotai —despite all of this, the Shechina will still be with us. And that's why we will not be destroyed. Hashem has not revolted against us. The Shechinah is always with us. In the Chida 's words: ze tokef habitachon shelanu —this is the power of our reliance. Ya'aseh lemaan Shemo —God will do it for His name. Like we say every day in the Amida lemaan Shemo b'ahavah . And therefore, when the Shechina goes out from galut —and surely, eventually, the Shechina will come out of galut —God's name will be revealed. We're going to go out with Him. Imo netzeh min ha'galut . And this is important. We cannot stress this enough: on Rosh Hashanah when we're praying for Hashem's name to be revealed. People often struggle with this, " What about me?" But what we don't understand is—that is you. If God's going to take us out lemaan Shemo —for His name —then if we pray for His name to be revealed, then we're going to go along. We're going to tag along in that revelation. So that's the power of zot . Zot refers to the Shechina . We can point to it. Like ba'avur zeh — zeh is masculine and zot is feminine. Zot is something you can point to. Zeh E-li ve-anveihu —for this, zeh , I'm pointing to the Shechina Zot , I'm pointing to the Shechina . Zot ashev el libi . This— this fact that the Shechina is with me —that's enough. Al kein ochil —that's why I'm going to have hope . I don't even have to go on to the next pasuk of chasdei Hashem . This pasuk in itself is a chizuk . Zot —the fact that the Shechina is with us. Imo anochi b'tzarah —God is with us in our pain. The Midrash Rabbah in Eichah 3:7 says a beautiful mashal on this pasuk : There was a king who married a princess, and he wrote a beautiful ketubah —a marriage contract. And he said, " Such-and-such amount of canopy, I'm going to make for you, such-and-such amount of beautiful drapery I'm going to make for you. " And after all those promises of the beautiful palace and dream home they'd live in—he left and went on a trip overseas. And he delayed. Her friends came and taunted her, saying, " The king has left you. He went off far away. He's never coming back. " And she would cry and groan. She would go into her house, take out the ketuba, and read it—all the promises. And then she would comfort herself. Eventually, the king came and said, " I'm amazed—how did you wait so long, all those years?" And she said, " My master, the king—if not for that ketubah that you wrote me, I would have been long lost from the taunting of my neighbors." And so too, the goyim are taunting us, saying, " God has hidden His face from you. His Shechina has left you. He's not coming back." And we cry, and we groan. But when we go into the shuls and the Bet Midrash , and we read the Torah , and we read what it says there—all those promises—we are comforted. And when the Ge'ulah comes, HaKadosh Baruch Hu will say to us, " My children, I'm amazed—how have you waited so long?" And we will say, " If not for Your Torah that You gave us, we would have been long lost." And that's what it means: zot ashev el libi . You know what keeps me going? This zot . Ve-ein zot ela Torah —and zot refers to the Torah . As they say: vezot haTorah — when the Torah is taken out, we say vezot haTorah . Vezot . Is this Zohar arguing with the Midrash ? Of course not. The Torah and the Shechina are one and the same. Orayta v'Kudsha Brich Hu chad hu —the Torah and HaKadosh Baruch Hu are one. The Torah is the will of God. So what keeps us going is knowing the Shechina is with us. What keeps us going is knowing that the Torah is with us. And as David HaMelech says: lulei Toratecha sha'ashu'ai, az avadeti b'onyi —if not for Your Torah , which was my delight, I would have been lost in my suffering. That's what gives us our hope. That's our first pasuk in Eicha —a pasuk of hope. What's the hope? Just the fact: zot —I have the zot . I have the Torah , I have the Shechinah . I might not see it—but it's here with me. Imo anochi b'tzarah /God is with us in our difficulty . And that's what gives us our Hizzuk.

In the beginning of this week's parasha , Pinchas, we read about the great rewards Pinchas received for doing the will of Hashem under very difficult circumstances. The Midrash at the end of parashat Balak asks how could it be that Moshe Rabbenu forgot the halacha of what was supposed to be done with Zimri and Kozbi? Thr Midrash answered, it was מן השמים, in order to give Pinchas the ability to get what Hashem wanted to give him. Although when we read the pesukim it seems like everything happened in the natural course of events, in actuality, it was Hashem pulling the strings. Now was Pinchas's time and if, in order for that to happen, the greatest Rabbi in history needed to forget a halacha , then that's what was going to happen. But it goes even further. Every person's tests and opportunities for growth have already been mapped out for them way before they were even born. Hashem knows what each person needs to fulfill his mission and He sets each person up with the tests that they need to accomplish that mission. The Vilna Gaon writes, Bilaam was being tested by Hashem to see if he would go to curse the Jews against His will. Hashem sent him many obstacles to give him help with that test and he failed each time. That story, as well, seemed very natural. The nation of Moav became afraid of the Jews after they conquered Sichon and Og, and so they hired someone who seemed capable of cursing them to remove the threat. Chazal tell us, one of the things Hashem created on the sixth day of Creation during bein hashemashot was the פי האתון – the mouth of the donkey who tried to dissuade Bilaam from continuing on. This means, already from the beginning of time, Hashem was preparing the tests that Bilaam needed to go through. Korach was tested when he didn't receive the position he wanted. His job was to say, "It's מן השמים ," and accept it. But instead, he made a revolt against Moshe and Aharon. There as well, everything seemed very natural, but Chazal tell us, the spot of the earth which swallowed up the eida of Korach was created already on bein hashemashot during the six days of Creation. At that time, when Hashem was creating the world, He was already preparing the necessary components for the test he was going to give Korach thousands of years later. Avraham Avinu's tenth test of Akedat Yitzchak , which we are still benefiting from today, did not just happen at that time. That ram that he slaughtered instead of Yitzchak was created during the six days of Creation. Already from then, Hashem was planning out every single nisayon that Avraham would need to go through. And the same is true of every single individual. Sometimes we find ourselves in situations we don't want to be in and we start trying to figure out how we got there. Our job is not to backtrack and see how we could have avoided it. Our job is to do what Hashem wants us to do in that very situation. Every circumstance we find ourselves in had been carefully planned out for us to achieve our purpose here. What may seem to be a bunch of natural happenings is nothing other than the yad Hashem. In life, we need to pass each test as it comes. We don't know how much is riding on each one of them. The next test could be what we need that will make us zocheh to the beracha that we have been seeking. Every one is necessary for us to pass and b'ezrat Hashem, if we do, then we will be fulfilling the purpose of our creation. Shabbat Shalom.

The Halacha below was generated by AI based on multiple classes given by Rabbi Eli Mansour in the Bekiim B'Halacha series. Click on any of the dates below to hear the original audio file. This write-up has been reviewed, but if any errors remain , we welcome corrections. 06-17-25 ; 06-18-25 The Three Weeks—also known as Ben HaMesarim —represent a time of national mourning over the destruction of the Bet HaMikdash . While many of the customs during this period are observed passively (such as refraining from music or haircuts), Tikun Hatzot is an active custom that allows a person to express sadness over the Hurban (destruction of the Bet HaMikdash ) in a personal, heartfelt way. In this Halacha, we will explore what Tikun Hatzot is, why it is especially appropriate during the Three Weeks, and how and when it should be said. What Is Tikun Hatzot ? Tikun Hatzot refers to a set of prayers recited around midnight to mourn the Hurban and the exile of the Shechina . The Zohar and many Mekubalim praise it as one of the highest spiritual practices, particularly during this period. Rav Haim Vital writes that the Arizal himself would say Tikun Hatzot regularly, and especially during the Three Weeks. The Tikun is traditionally divided into two parts: Tikun Rahel : Emphasizes mourning and sorrow over the destruction. Tikun Leah : Focuses more on hope, rebuilding, and longing for redemption. During the Three Weeks, especially at night, it is fitting to recite both parts, though some only recite Tikun Rahel if they are pressed for time or emotionally unable to complete both. Why Is Tikun Hatzot So Powerful During This Time? The Three Weeks are designated as a time to feel the loss of the Bet HaMikdash and yearn for Geula. Tikun Hatzot allows us to turn that feeling into prayer. The Arizal taught that crying during Tikun Hatzot at this time carries immeasurable value. The act of waking up at night, sitting on the floor, and expressing pain over the exile of the Shechina is considered a personal partnership in the national mourning of Am Yisrael. As the Midrash says, "Whoever mourns the Hurban will merit seeing the rebuilding." How and When Is Tikun Hatzot Recited? Tikun Hatzot is ideally recited at Halachic midnight ( Chatzot Halayla ), which varies depending on the season. It typically falls around 12:30 a.m. in the summer months. The person should sit on the floor or a low stool, remove leather shoes, dim the lights, and recite the Tikun slowly and tearfully. If one cannot stay up until midnight, it may still be recited later in the night, and some authorities permit it slightly before Chatzot . If one is unable to recite the entire Tikun, he should at least say a portion or even sit in silence contemplating the loss of the Bet HaMikdash . The sincerity is more important than the length. Can Tikun Hatzot Be Said on Shabbat or Friday Night? No. Tikun Hatzot is not recited on Shabbat or Yom Tob, including Friday night, as it is a time of joy. Mourning rituals are suspended on these days, just like we don't say Tahanun or observe other mourning customs. Is This Custom for Everyone—Or Only the Very Pious? While Tikun Hatzot is classically associated with Mekubalim and very pious individuals, during the Three Weeks it becomes a powerful tool available to all. Even one who does not say it year-round should consider adding it during this time. One does not need to be a scholar or mystic to sit on the floor and say Tehillim or express longing for the Bet HaMikdash . The emotion and sincerity are what matter most. Summary Tikun Hatzot is a midnight prayer of mourning the Hurban, highly appropriate during the Three Weeks. It consists of Tikun Rahel and Tikun Leah; both are ideal, but even saying part has value. It is best said at Halachic midnight, but later or earlier is allowed in some cases. Not recited on Shabbat or Yom Tob. Open to everyone—not just scholars—and especially encouraged during Ben HaMesarim .

The pasuk in Kohelet says: " עֵת לָלֶדֶת וְעֵת לָמוּת " — "A time to be born, and a time to die." (Kohelet 3:2). The Midrash in Kohelet Rabbah teaches that from the moment a person is born, Hashem determines exactly how long that person will live. Every breath, every second, is measured. And it is considered a great merit for someone to live out every single moment of their allotted time in this world. We cannot begin to grasp the infinite value of just one second of life. Sometimes, patients who are suffering deeply may wish to pass on rather than continue living in pain, connected to machines. Their families, too, may struggle watching them suffer. These situations are deeply painful and emotionally charged—but they are also halachically complex, and a competent Rav must always be consulted. These are not decisions anyone should take into their own hands. Halachah teaches us that we desecrate Shabbat to extend the life of a patient even in a vegetable state, even if it's just for one more second. That is how precious life is in Hashem's eyes. Rabbi Aryeh Levin once visited a man who was suffering terribly in the hospital. The man asked the rabbi, "Why should I continue living like this? I can't pray, I can't learn. I'm just in pain." Rabbi Levin gently took his hand and answered, "Who knows? Perhaps one word of Shema said in pain is worth more than a lifetime of mitzvot done in comfort. Every breath you take now—with emunah—brings Hashem so much nachat." The man began to cry. From that moment on, he accepted each breath with emunah and gratitude. He passed away just a few days later—peaceful, uplifted, and surrounded by meaning. Chazal say: "Sha'ah achat shel teshuvah u'maasim tovim ba'olam hazeh yafeh mikol chayei ha'olam haba"—one hour of repentance and good deeds in this world is greater than all of the World to Come. In just one moment, a person can elevate himself spiritually forever. The Gemara in Avodah Zarah shares three separate stories of individuals who earned their entire portion in the World to Come in one moment of their life. When Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi heard them, he wept, recognizing the unimaginable power of even a single second. The Sifrei Kodesh teach that even one thought of teshuvah can have massive spiritual effects. Even a person on his deathbed, who cannot speak or move, can—through one pure thought, one yearning for Hashem—accomplish more than all the angels in Heaven combined. If all a person can do is breathe, that breath is a treasure beyond comprehension. As long as someone is breathing, Hashem wants him alive. His mission in this world is not yet complete. A man shared with me that his father, Eddie, recently passed away. He had told his children that if he reached the end of life, he didn't want to be kept alive artificially and in pain. But when the time came, his children called Chayim Aruchim, an organization that helps families navigate end-of-life issues according to halachah. They were given a personal Rav who was an expert in this field. He came down to the hospital and explained the halachic importance—and the spiritual benefit to Eddie and his family—of staying connected to the machine, even for a short time. The Rav monitored his condition every day for ten days, ensuring halachah was followed precisely. Eventually, the doctors said Eddie's final moments had come. His children gathered around his bed and watched their father take his last breaths. They were so grateful they had consulted daat Torah and allowed their father to live every moment Hashem had intended for him. And then, just as they left the hospital, a truck drove by with the word "Eddie's" written in big letters—something they had never seen before. To them, it felt like a wink from Hashem, a small smile from Above, affirming that they had done the right thing. Every second of life is a priceless gift. In one moment, a person can earn eternity. And sometimes, the last breath we breathe with emunah is something that brings the greatest glory to Hashem.

Are you pressing snooze or snatching mitzvot? In Bilaam's poetic description of the Jewish people, he praises them as those who "rise like a lioness" and "leap up like a lion." This powerful metaphor reveals profound wisdom about how we approach each morning and, consequently, our entire lives.The Midrash explains that this lion-like rising refers specifically to Jews waking with enthusiasm to "lachtof es hamitzvos" – eagerly snatching mitzvot. This isn't sluggish awakening but springing from bed with purpose to don tallis, recite Shema, and lay tefillin. The comparison to lions is particularly apt – these magnificent creatures typically awaken between 5:30-6:00 AM with a powerful roar announcing their readiness for action.How many of us can honestly claim we wake with such vigor? When we press snooze, we're essentially saying, "Thank you for life, but I need five more minutes of death." This seemingly small decision cascades into countless others throughout our day. Successful people don't fight their alarm clock daily; they establish consistent routines that become automatic. Whether rising at 4 AM or 8 AM, creating a set schedule takes just three consecutive repetitions to begin building that "rich man's mindset."While billionaires wake early to build wealth, we have an even greater purpose – serving God from our first conscious moments. That initial choice between discipline and sluggishness determines much about our day's trajectory. "Mitzvah goreret mitzvah" – one good deed leads to another, creating a positive spiral of purposeful living.Ready to transform your mornings? Stop making excuses and start embracing Bilaam's vision of the Jewish people. Wake up like a lion, grab life by its horns, and discover how your first five minutes can revolutionize everything that follows.Support the showJoin The Motivation Congregation WhatsApp community for daily motivational Torah content!---------------- SUBSCRIBE to The Weekly Parsha for an insightful weekly talk on the week's Parsha. Listen on Spotify or 24six! Access all Torah talks and listen to featured episodes on our website, themotivationcongregation.org ----------------Questions or Comments? Please email me @ michaelbrooke97@gmail.com

For a 10% discount on Rabbi David Ashear's new book LIVING EMUNAH VOL 8 click the link below https://www.artscroll.com/Books/9781422644645.html The Chafetz Chaim writes that in the entire narrative of Bilam attempting to curse the Jewish people, there are no paragraph breaks—no פ or ס —in the Torah. This is because the danger was so severe, the Torah did not want to pause until the threat had passed. Balak and Bilam stood on a mountaintop with the potential to cause immense destruction, and meanwhile, the Jewish people were completely unaware of the danger surrounding them. But Hashem, as always, the שומר ישראל , was watching over His nation. He did not allow any harm to come to us. From the words Hashem placed in the donkey's mouth, and later in Bilam's own mouth, we see what Hashem found so impressive about Am Yisrael. The donkey referred to the שלש רגלים , and Rashi explains that Hashem was saying to Bilam: this is a nation that travels three times a year to Yerushalayim for the שלש רגלים —you will not be able to harm them. The Jewish people would leave their homes and land open and vulnerable, trusting completely in Hashem's promise that no one would invade while they were away celebrating at the Beit HaMikdash. That kind of אמונה is a shield no curse can penetrate. Bilam then says: מי מנה עפר יעקב How many mitzvot do the Jewish people perform even with the simple dust of the earth? מה טובו אהליך יעקב משכנותיך ישראל How beautiful are our shuls and batei midrash, filled with Jews praying and learning. עם כלביא יקום We are a nation that rises like a lion in the morning to grab mitzvot(Tzitzit, Tefillin, and Shema) with passion and strength. We didn't even know the danger we were in, and therefore we couldn't pray to Hashem to save us. But Hashem, who loves us infinitely, provides us with constant opportunities to earn זכויות , which He uses to protect us exactly when we need them most. As Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya teaches: רצה הקדוש ברוך הוא לזכות את ישראל, לפיכך הרבה להם תורה ומצוות Hashem wanted to give us many merits, so He gave us many mitzvot. The pasuk says: לב מלך ביד ה׳ It is no coincidence that the recent war was named " עם כלביא יקום ." Those very words came from Hashem's mouth through Bilam and now once again through the Prime Minister. They describe a nation full of spiritual power, rising early to do mitzvot—and that is our true strength. Despite the immense danger we faced—those missiles had the potential to kill thousands—Hashem once again, the שומר ישראל , stood guard over His people. Since the horrors of October 7th, we have witnessed an awakening across Am Yisrael. So many people who didn't even know the words " שמע ישראל " are now full ba'alei emunah , looking to grow in Torah and mitzvot. This renewed devotion gives us tremendous זכות , and it makes Hashem so proud of His people. We've seen the downfall of our enemies this year. We know that we are in the end of days and we await the גאולה שלמה . But we are not there yet. We are still in galut, and we are still without the Beit HaMikdash. Now begins the period of בין המצרים , the three weeks between שבעה עשר בתמוז and תשעה באב . We pray that this year תשעה באב will be a day of joy and celebration, but there is still work to be done. The pasuk says: וישא בלעם את עיניו וירא את ישראל שוכן לשבטיו ותהי עליו רוח אלוקים Bilam wanted to recall the sins of the Jewish people, such as the חטא העגל , to bring about their destruction. But what he saw instead was unity—Israel dwelling peacefully, each tribe in its proper place—and that unity brought down the שכינה , causing Hashem to transform his curses into blessings. The Midrash teaches that even if we, Heaven forbid, engage in עבודה זרה , as long as there is peace among us, no harm will befall us. That is the power of unity. Now more than ever, it is incumbent upon us to repair divisions. This is the time of year to go above and beyond to make peace, to apologize, to be more tolerant, and to bring love and unity to Am Yisrael. May these days of mourning soon be transformed into days of rejoicing. אמן .

What does a donkey have to do with your soul? In this episode, Rabbi Micah Streiffer explores stories from Midrash and Torah about donkeys - and how they teach people about our ethical and spiritual responsibilities.   --------------------------------- Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom study groups and other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/. To support the production of this podcast, visit either laasok.org/support/ (for a tax-deductible one-time or monthly contribution) OR www.patreon.com/sevenminutetorah (for per-episode contribution. Comments or questions? Email info@laasok.org, or contact Rabbi Micah Streiffer directly at micah@laasok.org. 

Can Midrash Determine Halakhah? (6) - "Hazan's Amen to Birkat Kohanim" by Rabbi Avi Harari

Midrash (מִדְרָשׁ)—from the Hebrew root ד־ר־שׁ (darash), “to seek, inquire, interpret”—is not merely commentary. It is a living dialogue with the sacred text, seeking not only what it says, but what it does, and how it continues to speak. In the Aramaic mindset, where language reveals reality through action rather than abstraction, Midrash becomes a performance of the Word, an interpretive drama within the covenant community. In this way, Midrash is both interpretive theology and spiritual excavation, where each layer of the scroll reveals another layer of the soul. Two Levels: Covert and Overt Midrash We can divide the midrashic interpretive strategies in Qumran into two functional categories—overt and covert—based on their level of disclosure and hermeneutical transparency. For More Teachings check our online Video Academy: www.twinsbiblicalacademy.com   

Every single good deed—and even a good thought—in Avodat Hashem is incredibly precious. When a person sees in the future the immense reward given for even the smallest intention, he will wish he had done more. Sometimes, even one thought of teshuvah can change everything. In this week's parashah, we read about the earth opening up and swallowing all those who joined in Korach's rebellion. Yet the Torah tells us that the sons of Korach did not die. Chazal explain that at the very last second, just before they were swallowed, they had a thought of teshuvah—and that alone saved them. The Midrash emphasizes that they didn't even have enough time to speak a word of repentance. Hashem accepted their teshuvah based solely on a thought. In last week's parashah, we learned that Kalev was promised he would enter the Land and that his children would receive an inheritance there. Rav Moshe Feinstein, in Darash Moshe , asks what Kalev did to earn such a great reward. He answers that when Kalev spoke up against the spies and expressed Emunah that Hashem could bring them into the land, for a brief moment the Jewish people believed him. Although they quickly reverted to fear and doubt, that fleeting moment of emunah was considered a moment of teshuvah. It was so precious that it brought great merit—not just to the people—but to Kalev himself as their source of inspiration. We should never underestimate anything we do in our service of Hashem. It is never "all or nothing." Every small act counts. A man shared that he had been walking with his friend Chaim, when Chaim's phone rang with a reminder that his hour of shemirat halashon was about to begin. The man found it odd—why keep it for only one hour if we are obligated to guard our speech all the time? Chaim explained that of course we try to keep these halachot at all times, but even setting aside one hour of extra vigilance is extremely valuable. It's a way to strengthen ourselves and build up consistency. Every extra moment of self-control is meaningful. Chaim then told a story he knew firsthand. His parents' neighbor, Nitzan, once called him asking for guidance on how to become fully observant. Until then, Nitzan had not kept mitzvot but said that something happened that completely changed his outlook. A few months prior, he had decided to keep a small part of Shabbat—from midnight on Friday night until 10 a.m. Shabbat morning. People laughed at him when they heard this, thinking it strange and inconsistent, but he felt it was a meaningful step he could take. He kept his commitment seriously. On one Friday night, he was out driving with friends and saw that it was 11:30 p.m. He told them firmly that no matter where they were, he would be getting out of the car at 11:50. His friends tried to persuade him to stay with them until around 12:15, but he wouldn't budge. At 11:50, he stepped out of the car and turned off his phone. He was far from home, so he slept on a bench and planned to take a taxi at 10 a.m. when his personal observance of Shabbat would end. When he got home the next morning, his parents were overwhelmed with joy and tears. They had just heard that the car he had been in the night before was in a devastating accident. Everyone in the car had died. They thought he had been with them. He told them that it was his decision to keep even a small part of Shabbat that had saved his life. That moment became a turning point for Nitzan. He decided from then on that he wanted to become fully observant. Every little act in Avodat Hashem matters. Even a moment of restraint, a fleeting thought of teshuvah, or a limited commitment can be the key to transformation—or even salvation. We can never underestimate the power and value of the smallest efforts or intentions. Shabbat Shalom

Join us for our post service Q&A with the Jacobs Tent family!If you are enjoying this podcast, PLEASE consider sending in an offering, tithe, or donation to help us continue spread the gospel free from Jacob's Tent. We work hard to make sure this is an enjoyable experience to our online community, but it doesn't come without a price. Give online via the Jacobs Tent app, our website, or text any amount to 84321 to support this ministry. Yahweh bless you and keep you! Shalom.

The pasuk in this week's Parashat Shelach tells us that the Meraglim (spies) came to a place called נחל אשכול , the Valley of the Cluster, and there they removed a massive cluster of grapes. This enormous cluster was later used to frighten the Jewish people, as the spies described the giants who inhabited the land and implied that Bnei Yisrael had no chance of conquering it. Then the pasuk says the place was named אשכול —"Cluster"—because of the cluster they took. But the Sefer Minchat Ani asks an important question: it seems the place was already called נחל אשכול before the cluster was taken, as the Torah says they arrived at the Valley of Eshkol before picking the grapes. The Midrash resolves this by explaining that the place was already called Eshkol, all the way back to the time of Avraham Avinu. The Midrash quotes the pasuk " מגיד מראשית אחרית "—Hashem reveals the end from the beginning—and teaches us that Hashem sees the past, present, and future all at once. One of Avraham's close companions was named Eshkol, and Hashem placed that name in the minds of Eshkol's parents because of the future cluster that would be taken by the Meraglim in that very location. But this raises an obvious question: why? Why would Hashem cause a man to be named "Eshkol" because of an event that would occur hundreds of years later? The Minchat Ani brings another Midrash that sheds light on this. When Avraham was commanded to perform a brit milah , he consulted his three friends. Aner told him not to do it—he was too old to harm himself. Eshkol warned that if he did it, he would be weakened and vulnerable to attack. But the third friend, Mamre, encouraged him, saying: "The same Hashem who saved you from the fiery furnace, from the four kings, from famine—He is now commanding you. He will protect you." This powerful moment became a lesson passed down through generations. Every Jewish child would grow up learning how Avraham courageously performed the brit milah , how Mamre showed emunah , and how Aner and Eshkol doubted. And now, centuries later, that same test returned. The Meraglim echoed the voices of Aner and Eshkol, casting doubt on Hashem's power to bring them safely into Eretz Yisrael. They cut the Eshkol—the very cluster that symbolized the mistake of the man Eshkol from generations before. And just like Mamre, Caleb stood up and proclaimed his emunah , telling the people that Hashem, who had always protected them, would continue to do so. Hashem arranged it all—placing the Meraglim at the same site as Eshkol's legacy, giving them a chance to correct the mistake of the past. This wasn't random. Their test had been developing for centuries. Nothing in this world happens by chance. Every test a person faces is custom-designed by Hashem, planned with precision before that person even enters the world. We have no idea how much our actions matter, how intentional each situation is, and how carefully Hashem prepares our challenges. In the case of the Meraglim , Hashem gave them every opportunity to succeed. He placed them at Nachal Eshkol , at the exact site where history had already taught the lesson they needed to learn. But they failed. Still, the message for us remains: Tests are given to make us great. Hashem not only gives us challenges, but also provides us with the strength, wisdom, and circumstances to overcome them. Every test we face is hand-tailored to help us grow, elevate ourselves, and earn eternal reward. If we internalize this, we'll face our own tests with clarity and strength. And with Hashem's help, we'll overcome them—and fulfill our unique mission in this world. Shabbat Shalom.

A weekly midrash shiur taught by R. Marcus Rubenstein on Sundays at 10am.

Join us for our post service Q&A with the Jacobs Tent family!If you are enjoying this podcast, PLEASE consider sending in an offering, tithe, or donation to help us continue spread the gospel free from Jacob's Tent. We work hard to make sure this is an enjoyable experience to our online community, but it doesn't come without a price. Give online via the Jacobs Tent app, our website, or text any amount to 84321 to support this ministry. Yahweh bless you and keep you! Shalom.

What if a single, solid piece of gold could teach us about unity? Explore the profound symbolism of the menorah in Parshas Beha'aloscha and discover how its intricate design serves as a metaphor for the unity and diversity within the Jewish people. We'll weave insights from the Midrash, Rashi, and the teachings of the Arizal to show how the menorah represents a harmonious blend of different tribes and customs, all focused towards the central light, symbolizing the Almighty. The episode offers a rich tapestry of tradition and faith, highlighting the importance of uniformity and equality, especially during Hanukkah.Imagine a world where materialism is mastered, not the master. The Talmudic prophecy of Moshiach arriving on a donkey takes on new meaning as we explore its metaphorical significance in today's material-driven society. This episode emphasizes the intrinsic value of every Jew, likening them to gold refined by trials, and underscores the connectedness of the Torah, God, and the Jewish people. We'll reframe traditional blessings as reminders of the unique responsibilities borne by the Jewish people, advocating for inclusivity and compassion over claims of superiority.Can you envision a world where everyone maximizes their unique talents and gifts? Through a moving tale of a sage who pursued his destiny against all odds, this episode highlights the essential responsibility to fulfill one's divine purpose. We'll draw from historical examples in the Talmud and stress the role of parents in nurturing their children's talents, ensuring they flourish in their unique roles. This conversation also extends to the broader societal and religious contexts, where understanding and fulfilling one's responsibilities is key to maintaining harmony and peace. Join us for an inspiring exploration of unity, diversity, and purpose, as represented by the components of the menorah._____________This episode (Ep 7.33) of the Parsha Review Podcast by Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe on Parshas Beha'aloscha is dedicated in honor of our Holy Soldiers in the Battlefield and our Torah Scholars in the Study Halls who are fighting for the safety of our nation!Download & Print the Parsha Review Notes:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ncaRyoH5iJmGGoMZs9y82Hz2ofViVouv?usp=sharingRecorded at TORCH Meyerland in the Levin Family Studios (B) to a live audience on June 10, 2025, in Houston, Texas.Released as Podcast on June 11, 2025_____________DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!_____________SUBSCRIBE and LISTEN to other podcasts by Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe: NEW!! Prayer Podcast: https://prayerpodcast.transistor.fm/episodesJewish Inspiration Podcast: https://inspiration.transistor.fm/episodesParsha Review Podcast: https://parsha.tansistor.fm/episodesLiving Jewishly Podcast: https://jewishly.transistor.fm/episodesThinking Talmudist Podcast: https://talmud.transistor.fm/episodesUnboxing Judaism Podcast: https://unboxing.transistor.fm/episodesRabbi Aryeh Wolbe Podcast Collection: https://collection.transistor.fm/episodesFor a full listing of podcasts available by TORCH at https://www.TORCHpodcasts.com_____________EMAIL your questions, comments, and feedback: awolbe@torchweb.org_____________Please visit www.torchweb.org to see a full listing of our outreach and educational resources available in the Greater Houston area!_____________#Torah, #Parsha, #Numbers, #Bamidbar, #Menorah, #Unity, #Diversity, #JewishPeople, #Materialism, #Moshiach, #Donkey ★ Support this podcast ★

What if a single, solid piece of gold could teach us about unity? Explore the profound symbolism of the menorah in Parshas Beha'aloscha and discover how its intricate design serves as a metaphor for the unity and diversity within the Jewish people. We'll weave insights from the Midrash, Rashi, and the teachings of the Arizal to show how the menorah represents a harmonious blend of different tribes and customs, all focused towards the central light, symbolizing the Almighty. The episode offers a rich tapestry of tradition and faith, highlighting the importance of uniformity and equality, especially during Hanukkah.Imagine a world where materialism is mastered, not the master. The Talmudic prophecy of Moshiach arriving on a donkey takes on new meaning as we explore its metaphorical significance in today's material-driven society. This episode emphasizes the intrinsic value of every Jew, likening them to gold refined by trials, and underscores the connectedness of the Torah, God, and the Jewish people. We'll reframe traditional blessings as reminders of the unique responsibilities borne by the Jewish people, advocating for inclusivity and compassion over claims of superiority.Can you envision a world where everyone maximizes their unique talents and gifts? Through a moving tale of a sage who pursued his destiny against all odds, this episode highlights the essential responsibility to fulfill one's divine purpose. We'll draw from historical examples in the Talmud and stress the role of parents in nurturing their children's talents, ensuring they flourish in their unique roles. This conversation also extends to the broader societal and religious contexts, where understanding and fulfilling one's responsibilities is key to maintaining harmony and peace. Join us for an inspiring exploration of unity, diversity, and purpose, as represented by the components of the menorah._____________This episode (Ep 7.33) of the Parsha Review Podcast by Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe on Parshas Beha'aloscha is dedicated in honor of our Holy Soldiers in the Battlefield and our Torah Scholars in the Study Halls who are fighting for the safety of our nation!Download & Print the Parsha Review Notes:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ncaRyoH5iJmGGoMZs9y82Hz2ofViVouv?usp=sharingRecorded at TORCH Meyerland in the Levin Family Studios (B) to a live audience on June 10, 2025, in Houston, Texas.Released as Podcast on June 11, 2025_____________DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!_____________SUBSCRIBE and LISTEN to other podcasts by Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe: NEW!! Prayer Podcast: https://prayerpodcast.transistor.fm/episodesJewish Inspiration Podcast: https://inspiration.transistor.fm/episodesParsha Review Podcast: https://parsha.tansistor.fm/episodesLiving Jewishly Podcast: https://jewishly.transistor.fm/episodesThinking Talmudist Podcast: https://talmud.transistor.fm/episodesUnboxing Judaism Podcast: https://unboxing.transistor.fm/episodesRabbi Aryeh Wolbe Podcast Collection: https://collection.transistor.fm/episodesFor a full listing of podcasts available by TORCH at https://www.TORCHpodcasts.com_____________EMAIL your questions, comments, and feedback: awolbe@torchweb.org_____________Please visit www.torchweb.org to see a full listing of our outreach and educational resources available in the Greater Houston area!_____________#Torah, #Parsha, #Numbers, #Bamidbar, #Menorah, #Unity, #Diversity, #JewishPeople, #Materialism, #Moshiach, #Donkey ★ Support this podcast ★

Why is there so little information on the settlements of the tribes Yissachar, Naftali and Asher? The key information is a military roster from David's army, not a register of villages and towns.And we shall visit verse 21 and a curious Midrash about the Tribe of Efrayim who left Egypt too early and who were massacred.

Join us, as we explore the intriguing dynamics of envy and its unexpected role in motivating human progress. Drawing insights from the Midrash, we uncover how envy, often seen as a negative emotion, can inspire significant personal growth, such as marrying, building homes, and establishing a family. Discover how channeling envy towards positive ends can transform it into a force for good, as demonstrated by Abraham, who was inspired by the kindness of Noah's family and established a home dedicated to hospitality and support. By learning to harness envy for noble causes, we can enrich our own lives and contribute positively to our communities.In our exploration, we also highlight the critical role of gratitude in combating the potentially destructive nature of envy. Reflecting on our morning prayers and daily blessings, we emphasize the importance of appreciating the gifts we already possess. Encouraging listeners to focus inwardly and cultivate spiritual growth, we underscore the value of recognizing and celebrating positive traits in others. By fostering gratitude and aspiring towards spiritual development, we can pursue a fulfilling life that brings us closer to our true purpose and strengthens our connection to the divine. Listen in and discover how embracing gratitude can transform our perspective and enhance our spiritual journey._____________This series on Orchos Tzadikim/Ways of the Righteous is produced in partnership with Hachzek.Join the revolution of daily Mussar study at hachzek.com.We are using the Treasure of Life edition of the Orchos Tzadikkim (Published by Feldheim)Recorded from a live audience presentation in the TORCH Centre - Levin Family Studios (B) in Houston, Texas on February 3, 2025.Released as Podcast on June 6, 2025_____________DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!_____________SUBSCRIBE and LISTEN to other podcasts by Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe:NEW!! Prayer Podcast: https://prayerpodcast.transistor.fm/episodesJewish Inspiration Podcast: https://inspiration.transistor.fm/episodesParsha Review Podcast: https://parsha.transistor.fm/episodesLiving Jewishly Podcast: https://jewishly.transistor.fm/episodesThinking Talmudist Podcast: https://talmud.transistor.fm/episodesUnboxing Judaism Podcast: https://unboxing.transistor.fm/episodesRabbi Aryeh Wolbe Podcast Collection: https://collection.transistor.fm/episodesFor a full listing of podcasts available by TORCH at https://www.TORCHpodcasts.com_____________EMAIL your questions, comments, and feedback: awolbe@torchweb.orgPlease visit www.torchweb.org to see a full listing of our outreach and educational resources available in the Greater Houston area!_____________#Contentment, #Envy, #Jealousy, #Growth, #Kindness, #Hospitality, #Gratitude, #Fulfillment, #Purpose, #Zealots, #TorahStudy ★ Support this podcast ★

Join us, as we explore the intriguing dynamics of envy and its unexpected role in motivating human progress. Drawing insights from the Midrash, we uncover how envy, often seen as a negative emotion, can inspire significant personal growth, such as marrying, building homes, and establishing a family. Discover how channeling envy towards positive ends can transform it into a force for good, as demonstrated by Abraham, who was inspired by the kindness of Noah's family and established a home dedicated to hospitality and support. By learning to harness envy for noble causes, we can enrich our own lives and contribute positively to our communities.In our exploration, we also highlight the critical role of gratitude in combating the potentially destructive nature of envy. Reflecting on our morning prayers and daily blessings, we emphasize the importance of appreciating the gifts we already possess. Encouraging listeners to focus inwardly and cultivate spiritual growth, we underscore the value of recognizing and celebrating positive traits in others. By fostering gratitude and aspiring towards spiritual development, we can pursue a fulfilling life that brings us closer to our true purpose and strengthens our connection to the divine. Listen in and discover how embracing gratitude can transform our perspective and enhance our spiritual journey._____________This series on Orchos Tzadikim/Ways of the Righteous is produced in partnership with Hachzek.Join the revolution of daily Mussar study at hachzek.com.We are using the Treasure of Life edition of the Orchos Tzadikkim (Published by Feldheim)Recorded from a live audience presentation in the TORCH Centre - Levin Family Studios (B) in Houston, Texas on February 3, 2025.Released as Podcast on June 6, 2025_____________DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!_____________SUBSCRIBE and LISTEN to other podcasts by Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe:NEW!! Prayer Podcast: https://prayerpodcast.transistor.fm/episodesJewish Inspiration Podcast: https://inspiration.transistor.fm/episodesParsha Review Podcast: https://parsha.transistor.fm/episodesLiving Jewishly Podcast: https://jewishly.transistor.fm/episodesThinking Talmudist Podcast: https://talmud.transistor.fm/episodesUnboxing Judaism Podcast: https://unboxing.transistor.fm/episodesRabbi Aryeh Wolbe Podcast Collection: https://collection.transistor.fm/episodesFor a full listing of podcasts available by TORCH at https://www.TORCHpodcasts.com_____________EMAIL your questions, comments, and feedback: awolbe@torchweb.orgPlease visit www.torchweb.org to see a full listing of our outreach and educational resources available in the Greater Houston area!_____________#Contentment, #Envy, #Jealousy, #Growth, #Kindness, #Hospitality, #Gratitude, #Fulfillment, #Purpose, #Zealots, #TorahStudy ★ Support this podcast ★

Divrei Hayamim I ch.4 is filled yet again with names. Whereas much of teh detail here seem incosequential to us, Midrash uses these texts as a commentary about some of the familiar heroes of Tanakh.

Join us for our post service Q&A with the Jacobs Tent family!If you are enjoying this podcast, PLEASE consider sending in an offering, tithe, or donation to help us continue spread the gospel free from Jacob's Tent. We work hard to make sure this is an enjoyable experience to our online community, but it doesn't come without a price. Give online via the Jacobs Tent app, our website, or text any amount to 84321 to support this ministry. Yahweh bless you and keep you! Shalom.

What if the future of Judaism depended not on scholars or sages, but on the sippy cups and crayon-covered siddurim of our children?This powerful class dives into one of the most striking Midrashim about the giving of the Torah: when G-d demanded a guarantor, our ancestors suggested the elders, the prophets, the leaders and were rejected. Only when they offered the children did G-d say: Now we have a deal.But why children? Why not the tzaddikim, the scholars, the sages? And what does it mean that our children were the only "acceptable" security on the Torah?Together, we'll explore a deeply moving interpretation shared by the Lubavitcher Rebbe in 5712 (1952), tracing how this Midrash contains the blueprint for Jewish continuity and our most urgent modern-day call to action.Through Torah, history, poetry, and tears, this class reminds us: if we want Judaism tomorrow, we must invest in our children today.KEY TAKEAWAYS:G-d Doesn't Want Retirement Religion:Torah isn't just for the nostalgic elderly or even for the rabbis, it's for every Jew, of every age and stage.Children Are the True Guarantors:When young hearts taste the sweetness of Torah, it becomes a lifelong imprint—and they end up teaching us.Jewish Education is National Security:Teachers are the true defenders of our people. Want to protect the Jewish future? Start by elevating Jewish schools.From Silence to Ruckus:After the Holocaust, there were no children left to make noise in shul. Today, we must cherish every giggle, every running step, every whispered Shema because that is the sound of eternity.Show Up at Sinai—Again:The custom of bringing children to hear the Ten Commandments on Shavuos is not symbolic it's covenantal. Without them, we can't receive the Torah anew.Support US and Win BIG www.ndgraffle.comSupport the showGot your own question for Rabbi Bernath? He can be reached at rabbi@jewishndg.com or http://www.theloverabbi.comSingle? You can make a profile on www.JMontreal.com and Rabbi Bernath will help you find that special someone.Donate and support Rabbi Bernath's work http://www.jewishndg.com/donateFollow Rabbi Bernath's YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/user/ybernathAccess Rabbi Bernath's Articles on Relationships https://medium.com/@loverabbi

Send us a textWhat if the future of Judaism depended not on scholars or sages, but on the sippy cups and crayon-covered siddurim of our children?This powerful class dives into one of the most striking Midrashim about the giving of the Torah: when G-d demanded a guarantor, our ancestors suggested the elders, the prophets, the leaders and were rejected. Only when they offered the children did G-d say: Now we have a deal.But why children? Why not the tzaddikim, the scholars, the sages? And what does it mean that our children were the only "acceptable" security on the Torah?Together, we'll explore a deeply moving interpretation shared by the Lubavitcher Rebbe in 5712 (1952), tracing how this Midrash contains the blueprint for Jewish continuity and our most urgent modern-day call to action.Through Torah, history, poetry, and tears, this class reminds us: if we want Judaism tomorrow, we must invest in our children today.KEY TAKEAWAYS:G-d Doesn't Want Retirement Religion: Torah isn't just for the nostalgic elderly or even for the rabbis, it's for every Jew, of every age and stage.Children Are the True Guarantors: When young hearts taste the sweetness of Torah, it becomes a lifelong imprint—and they end up teaching us.Jewish Education is National Security: Teachers are the true defenders of our people. Want to protect the Jewish future? Start by elevating Jewish schools.From Silence to Ruckus: After the Holocaust, there were no children left to make noise in shul. Today, we must cherish every giggle, every running step, every whispered Shema because that is the sound of eternity.Show Up at Sinai—Again: The custom of bringing children to hear the Ten Commandments on Shavuos is not symbolic it's covenantal. Without them, we can't receive the Torah anew.#Judaism #Shavuot #Jewish #jewishholiday #chabad #holocaust #Rebbe #Torah #shavuos #jewisheducation #therebbe #sinai #Torah #TorahLessons #Jewishfuture Click HERE to purchase a raffle ticket www.ndgraffle.comSupport the showGot your own question for Rabbi Bernath? He can be reached at rabbi@jewishndg.com or http://www.theloverabbi.comSingle? You can make a profile on www.JMontreal.com and Rabbi Bernath will help you find that special someone.Donate and support Rabbi Bernath's work http://www.jewishndg.com/donateFollow Rabbi Bernath's YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/user/ybernathAccess Rabbi Bernath's Articles on Relationships https://medium.com/@loverabbi

Rabbi Yose was one of the most important and prolific Jewish figures of the 2nd Century. There are literally hundreds of stories and teachings of his in the Talmud and Midrash, but his tenure coincided with one of the most treacherous times in Jewish history: The Hadrianic persecutions This Ethics Podcast was originally released on […]

In this episode, we study James 2:14–26, unpacking the powerful message that faith without action is dead. Through a blend of biblical teaching, cultural insight, and personal reflection, Nicole walks listeners through what it means to live out an activated faith—a faith that doesn’t stop at belief but blossoms into transformed choices, emotions, and behavior. She explores the Jewish tradition of Midrash, connects teachings from both the Sermon on the Mount and the Old Testament, and shows how stories of Abraham and Rahab illustrate the principle that genuine faith leads to meaningful action. What Does It Mean for Me? Faith transforms everything: True faith should visibly impact how we think, feel, act, and make decisions. Faith and deeds are inseparable: Good works are not the cause of faith, but the evidence of a changed life. Biblical examples matter: Abraham and Rahab demonstrate that active obedience is the fruit of authentic belief. Scripture speaks urgently: James’ tone invites us to ask tough but necessary questions about how we’re living out our faith. Spiritual maturity means visible change: Real transformation isn’t private—it’s relational, observable, and ongoing. Simple obedience is powerful: A daily prayer of surrender—"Lord, I want to go where you go. I want to do what you do."—can reorient our lives around God’s kingdom priorities.

It is standard medical procedure for expectant mothers to undergo periodic ultrasound examinations, during which the physicians see the fetus so it can be carefully examined to ensure it is developing properly. During this examination, the doctor can easily identify the fetus' gender, and doctors generally pass on this information to the parents. The question arises whether it is proper, from a Torah perspective, for the parents to learn the fetus' gender during pregnancy. The Torah commands, "Tamim Tiheyeh Im Hashem Elokecha" ("You shall be innocent with Hashem your G-d" – Debarim 18:13), which is understood as an obligation not to concern ourselves with the future, to conduct ourselves the way we see fit, placing our trust in Hashem, without trying to access information about the future. Does finding out a fetus' gender violate this principle? We do not find any clear-cut basis in Halachic literature to forbid such a practice, and it would appear that learning a fetus' gender does not indicate a lack of faith in G-d or an inappropriate attempt to access information about the future. There is, however, one interesting passage in the Midrash which perhaps leads us to discourage this practice. The Midrash (Kohelet Rabba) lists several pieces of information which G-d withheld from human beings. For example, nobody knows when he will leave this world, and, quite obviously, G-d arranged this intentionally so that we will always conduct ourselves properly, rather than wait and repent shortly before we die. As we do not know when we will leave this world, we have no choice but to approach every day as potentially our last, and conduct ourselves accordingly. The Midrash also includes in this list the thoughts of other people. G-d does not empower us to read other people's minds, because if people could access each other's thoughts, the world would be overrun by animosity. The Midrash lists a fetus' gender as one of the pieces of information which G-d withholds from us. No reason is given, but we can reasonably assume that if the Midrash includes a fetus' gender in this list, there must be a valuable reason for this information to be denied to us. Perhaps, if the mother was hoping for one gender, then knowing that the infant is the other gender could cause her distress, which might be detrimental to the child. Or, perhaps to the contrary, knowing the gender during pregnancy diminishes from the excitement when the baby is born. In any event, the Midrash clearly indicates that it is for our benefit that G-d conceals from parents their child's gender during pregnancy. While this Midrash certainly does not suffice to establish a Halachic prohibition against finding out a fetus' gender, it would seem that this is something which should be discouraged, unless there is a particular reason to obtain this information. In some situations, the parents need to know ahead of time whether a Berit Mila must be arranged, and there might be circumstances where for purposes of Shalom Bayit (harmony between husband and wife) this information is valuable. When such a need arises, it is certainly acceptable to be told the gender, as this does not violate any Halachic prohibition. We should add that if the father is a Kohen, there might actually be value in the parents' finding out the fetus' gender. The Mishna Berura (Rav Yisrael Meir Kagan of Radin, 1839-1933) addresses the question of whether a woman who is married to a Kohen may come in contact with Tum'at Met (the impurity generated by a human corpse) during pregnancy, such as by visiting a cemetery or entering a home where a corpse is present. All male Kohanim, including infants, are included in the prohibition which forbids Kohanim from coming in contact with Tum'at Met, and the question thus arises as to whether a pregnant wife of a Kohen should avoid Tum'at Met, in case she gives birth. The Mishna Berura rules that this is permissible, because it is a situation of "Sefek Sefeka" – where two uncertainties are involved. First, it is uncertain whether the fetus is a boy, who is forbidden from coming in contact with Tum'at Met, or a girl, who is not forbidden. Second, it is possible that the infant will be stillborn, Heaven forbid, in which case, of course, there is no prohibition. On this basis, the Mishna Berura permits the pregnant wife of a Kohen to go to a place where there is a human corpse. However, in a situation where Halacha permits something because of a "Sefek Sefeka," if it becomes possible to resolve one of the uncertainties, there is an obligation to do. Therefore, in the case of a wife of a Kohen who is pregnant, there is value in determining the gender in order to resolve the first uncertainty. Then, if she is carrying a boy, she would be required to avoid exposure to Tum'at Met, and if it is a girl, this would not be necessary. It should be noted that the Magen Abraham (Rav Abraham Gombiner, 1633-1683) maintained that the pregnant woman in any event would be permitted to go to a place where there is Tum'at Met, because the prohibition does not apply in such a case. Therefore, in consideration of this opinion, we would not go so far as to require a Kohen's pregnant wife to determine the child's gender. (Parenthetically, we should note that a Kohen's wife is certainly allowed to go to a hospital to deliver the child, despite the high probability that there is a human corpse in the hospital, because this is a situation of Pikua'h Nefesh – a potentially life-threatening circumstance. Additionally, the spread of Tum'a from one room to another and one floor to another in the hospital likely occurs only Mi'de'rabbanan (on the level of Rabbinic enactment), such that there is greater room for leniency.) Summary: There is no Halachic prohibition against finding out a fetus' gender during pregnancy, though it is preferable not to, unless there is a particular need, or if not knowing could compromise Shalom Bayit. If the father is a Kohen, it might, according to some opinions, be preferable to find out the gender, so that the mother will avoid places of Tum'at Met if it's a boy, and will not have to avoid such places if it is a girl. If the couple does not know the gender, the woman is nevertheless allowed to visit places where there is Tum'at Met.

David HaMelech tells us in Tehillim, וצדקתך ירננו , which the Sha'arei Chaim explains to mean that even when we face difficulties, we are meant to respond by singing to Hashem. How is that possible? The pesukim before reveal the secret: דור לדור ישבח מעשיך —each generation should relate to the next the chesed they have seen from Hashem in their lives. ודברי נפלאותיך אשיחה —David HaMelech would constantly speak, even in everyday conversation, about the wonders of Hashem. וגדולתך אספרנה —he would speak of the endless greatness and kindness Hashem bestows upon the world. זכר רב טובך יביעו —our mouths should overflow with praise for Hashem's goodness like a spring that never runs dry. If a person constantly talks about Hashem's kindness, then when something happens that appears negative, it won't shake him. He'll already be fortified with the understanding that Hashem only does good. The Midrash says that from the day Hashem created the world, no one sang shirah until Bnei Yisrael sang אז ישיר at Keri'at Yam Suf. The Sfat Emet asks: we know Adam HaRishon sang shirah— מזמור שיר ליום השבת —as did others. What does it mean that no one sang until Az Yashir? He explains that until that moment, people only sang about the salvation after it came. But at Yam Suf, Bnei Yisrael reached a higher level—they sang about the difficulties too, because they saw that even the hardships were part of Hashem's goodness. אמר אויב ארדף אשיג —they sang about Pharaoh chasing them. מי כמוך באלים ה׳ —they declared; Who is like You among the mighty, Hashem? Chazal explain on this phrase: מי כמוך באלמים ה׳ —Who is like You, Hashem, who remains silent when the worst seems to be happening? How could Hashem be silent when the enemy entered the Beit HaMikdash to destroy it? When Titus HaRasha stabbed the parochet and blood came pouring out? When the resha'im tormented His beloved people in Mitzrayim and, centuries later, in Nazi Germany? At Yam Suf, Bnei Yisrael understood the greatness of Hashem: that He could remain silent because only He saw the ultimate good in every moment. Even the most painful events, seemingly caused by human actions, were all orchestrated by Hashem for our benefit. In the Haggadah, we say: לבן ביקש לעקור את הכל -וירד מצרימה . The mefarshim ask, what's the connection between Lavan wanting to destroy Yaakov and the descent to Mitzrayim? They explain that Lavan's switching of Rachel for Leah led to the shevatim being born from different mothers. Rachel, being the more beloved wife, caused the brothers to feel resentment toward her son, Yosef. That led to Yosef being sold—and eventually to the entire family descending to Egypt. This wasn't really Lavan's doing. Hashem had planned it from the time He told Avraham Avinu that his children would be strangers in a land not their own. Nothing is random. People are not in control—only Hashem is. And He does everything for our good. The more we speak about His hashgachah, His chesed, and His love for us, the more these truths will sink into our hearts. Then, when difficulties arise, we'll have the strength to sing even through the pain. In the future, Hashem will reveal to us all the good behind every event. But if we can trust Him now—before the light shines through—and sing in the darkness, we will reach the highest spiritual levels.

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Rav Haim Palachi (Turkey, 1788-1869), in his work Mo'ed Le'chol Hai, writes that the name of the month Iyar is an acronym for the names "Abraham," "Yishak," "Yaakob" and "Rahel," and thus alludes to our righteous patriarchs. This is why it is customary to learn Pirkeh Abot during this month, as it is closely associated with the Abot (patriarchs). Rav Haim Palachi adds that it is worthwhile for those who can to visit or to donate to the burial sites of our patriarchs – Me'arat Ha'machpela and Keber Rahel – during the month of Iyar. He further writes that on Pesah Sheni, which is observed on the 14th of Iyar, we omit Tahanunim from the prayer service, and one should conduct some sort of festivity. Those who are blessed with wealth should host a meal on Pesah Sheni for Torah scholars, and some have the practice to eat Masa. On Lag Ba'omer, which is observed on the 18th of Iyar and commemorates the day of the passing of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohai, it is customary to make a pilgrimage to Rabbi Shimon's gravesite at Meron in Northern Israel. Rav Haim Palachi warns that one must ensure not to engage in frivolity at this occasion, as the opportunity to earn great merit will then be transformed into an occasion of sin. He cites the Midrash's comment that one can earn great blessings in the merit of Rabbi Shimon by participating in this event, but only if it is done the proper way. Rav Haim Palachi adds that it is proper to read on Lag Ba'omer the book Shibheh Rashbi, which tells of the greatness of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohai, and various famous passages about him from the Zohar. The 28th of Iyar marks the anniversary of the death of the prophet Shemuel, and the Shulhan Aruch (Orah Haim 580) records the custom observed by some people to fast on this day. There is also a custom to pray by Shemuel's gravesite on this day.

Rabbi Chananiah ben Akashia teaches us that Hashem desires to bestow abundant merit upon the Jewish people. For this reason, He gave us many mitzvot—each one an opportunity to earn immense spiritual reward. While the ultimate reward for mitzvot is reserved for the World to Come, Chazal teach that mitzvot also bring tremendous benefits in this world. Our sages explain that the Jewish people were not originally deserving of redemption from Egypt. It was only through the merit of two mitzvot that they were finally freed. The sea itself split in the merit of Yosef HaTzaddik, whose steadfast resistance to Eshet Potiphar became a merit for all of Klal Yisrael. The Midrash at the beginning of Parashat Ki Tavo tells us that Hashem gave the mitzvah of bikkurim (bringing the first fruits) to the Jewish people as a merit to help them enter the Land of Israel. The Torah also teaches that honoring one's parents brings the reward of long life. And in the merit of emunah , Chazal say, we will be redeemed from our current exile. There are countless examples of how mitzvot serve as a source of zechuyot . Every test and opportunity Hashem gives us is a chance to accumulate spiritual wealth that benefits not only us but our children and grandchildren for generations. We may not always see the full reward of a mitzvah, but we can be certain that every one of them helps us in unimaginable ways. A powerful modern example was shared by A.J. Gindi, the head of Renewal—an organization that helps kidney patients find life-saving matches. A woman with an extremely high PRA level came to the organization, desperately in need of a kidney. Due to her rare profile, the chance of finding a match was extraordinarily slim. Even Renewal's vast international database turned up nothing. They held a special donor event in the hopes of a miracle—and miraculously, a match was found. Before the transplant, the woman was asked what merit she believed had brought about such an unlikely success. She replied that she personally wasn't aware of any special merit, but she shared a story from her grandmother's experience during the Holocaust. While imprisoned in a concentration camp, her grandmother was shown rare kindness by an SS officer, who gave her a pass allowing her to move freely without being questioned. She thanked him and pleaded for passes for her parents as well, which he granted. Overjoyed to help her family, she returned with the passes—but was then approached by someone who begged her to obtain one more. At first, she refused, fearing that pushing further might result in the officer rescinding everything. But then the person explained: the pass wasn't for himself—it was for the Bobover Rebbe , who was in their barracks. "We must save his life," he said. The woman, a professional artist, decided to try to replicate an identical pass. She spent the entire night replicating it with precision. The pass was delivered to the Rebbe, and baruch Hashem , it saved his life. The kidney recipient concluded: "Perhaps in the merit of my grandmother saving a life, Hashem is now saving mine." After the successful transplant, the donor was asked what merit she thought enabled her to be the match. She replied, "I'm not sure, but I come from a family of rabbis. In fact, my grandfather was the Bobover Rebbe." Everyone present was stunned. Eighty years after a brave woman risked her life to save the Rebbe, Hashem repaid the kindness in kind—his granddaughter was now saving her granddaughter's life. This is just one example of how a single mitzvah can echo across generations. Every mitzvah carries infinite merit, benefiting us both in this world and the next. It is our responsibility and privilege to embrace each opportunity with joy, knowing that every act of goodness creates a ripple of blessing beyond what we can ever imagine.