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Our culture often treats aging as something to resist. Judaism sees it differently: years are not merely something that happen to us; they can become a source of wisdom, purpose, and depth. Drawing on the mitzvah of shiluach hakein in Parshat Ki Teitzei, the Torah's promise of long life, the mitzvah of honoring parents, and the Rebbe's teachings about aging, Rabbi Yisroel Bernath explores what it really means to “lengthen our days.”As Elul invites us to look back over another year, the deeper question is not simply, “How much older did I become?” but “How much deeper did I become?”Through the moving example of Brahm and Ilana Shiller, the sermon becomes a meditation on courage, resilience, love, and living fully even when life does not unfold as we would choose. Perhaps a long life is measured not only by how many days we receive, but by how much life we put into each day.Key PointsJudaism does not see aging as decline. Long life is a blessing, and lived experience itself carries dignity and holiness.You can retire from a career, but never from purpose. As our stage of life changes, our mission may change with it, but our ability to matter does not disappear.Ki Teitzei teaches us not to exploit devotion. Both shiluach hakein and honoring parents remind us to recognize and honor those whose love causes them to keep giving.Elul is not merely about another year passing. Growing older happens automatically. Growing deeper requires choice.Difficulty can reveal character. Real positivity is not denying pain; it is being able to say, “This is hard, and I am still going to live today.”Courage also belongs to the person standing beside the struggle. Caregivers and spouses carry their own quiet burden of love, worry, strength, and hope.Arichut yamim, long life, can also mean full days. A day filled with love, laughter, generosity, presence, and an open heart contains an extraordinary amount of life.The Elul question: We cannot always choose what happens to us, but we participate in choosing who we become within what happens.#ParshatKiTeitzei #KiTeitzei #Judaism #Jewish #Torah #Bible #BibleStudy #Elul #chabad #Rabbi #JewishWisdom #AgingWithPurpose #LongLife #purpose #resilience #Courage #ShiluachHakein #chassidus #therebbe #LivingFully #gratitude #JewishInspiration #RabbiBernath Rabbi Yisroel Bernath's New Book The Forgiveness Experiment is Available now:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/Forgiveness-Experiment-What-Would-Your/dp/1069217638Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FR2QNJL6Audiobook: https://bit.ly/4tPFZhVSupport 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
Click this link for the new Living Emunah from Artscroll on Tefillah https://www.artscroll.com/ Books/lemtfh.html This week's parasha opens up with the words, "כי תצא למלחמה על אויבך – when you go out to war against your enemy." The Zohar HaKadosh writes that אויבך-your enemy is referring to the יצר הרע – our evil inclination which means the Torah is calling our struggle with the evil inclination a war. Sometimes people get down on themselves because they always have to struggle to do anything proper in religion. "Nothing is ever easy," they say, and they feel like that means that Hashem doesn't want their service. Others get down because they feel that they are so evil. "Why can't we be happy for other people's good fortune?" They think to themselves, or, "Why is it so hard for us to forgive people?" We must internalize the fact that everybody is created with an evil inclination and it is that inclination which enables us to bring glory to Hashem. The Mabit writes there would be no kavod (glory) to Hashem if we only had our pure neshama that wants to do good all the time. All of the glory comes when we subdue that evil inclination and serve Hashem despite the pull the other way. We should not feel down when we have inclinations towards evil. We should feel excited at our opportunity to bring glory to Hashem by overcoming them. The sefer Nafshi Cholat Ahavatcha uses this Mabit to give us chizuk when it comes to praying. Many times the yetzer hara gets us to not pay attention to what we're saying when we're praying. And even when we try hard and extra hard to focus our minds, our minds still manage to somehow wander and we become frustrated. The natural tendency of a person in that situation would be to just stop trying and say to himself, "It's not helping anyway so why should I bother?" And even if a person does manage to want to make an attempt after he failed, the yetzer hara tells him, "Now you're going to start concentrating? You already messed up most of the prayer. Of what value is it now to have kavana for just one paragraph?" We must think to ourselves, it's exactly the opposite. Because it has been so difficult to concentrate, that is precisely why every word that we do concentrate upon afterward is so precious. That is what brings all the glory to Hashem. Hashem has so much satisfaction when we battle this inclination and then we overcome it. There is no glory in a computer being able to know the meaning of the words, because that's what it's programmed to do. But for a person who has so many thoughts flying through his mind and still manages to focus on some of the words he's praying to Hashem, that is extremely valuable. We should never underestimate the value of concentrating on even one word of the tefila. As the Chovot HaLevavot says, what might seem to be small in our eyes is very big in the eyes of Hashem. For someone who is jealous of his friend's successes and he cries to Hashem for help because he wants to improve in his middot and he works on himself and he reads sefarim that help him with those middot and finally after months, or even years, he is able to be happy for another person, that is where all the glory is because he did battle and he overcame that terrible, evil inclination. If someone feels his inclinations are so evil, and he says to himself, "I'm such a bad person," he is not understanding it properly. It just means he has a greater opportunity to serve Hashem by overcoming it. We are in constant battle with this yetzer hara, but that's the will of Hashem for us, to go to war against it, to do our best to overcome it and if we're fighting hard, we'll merit the continuation of the pasuk, "ונתנו ה' אלוקיך בידך – Hashem will help us beat him." Don't get down, don't feel bad when you have those inclinations. Fight them. Do your best. Every victory is so precious and brings such glory to Hashem. Shabbat Shalom.
Death of the Ego
Forgiveness is a Gift
Christopher Nolan turns one of Western literature's oldest homecoming stories into something darker: an epic about war, moral consequence, and the difficult work of return. In this spoiler-filled episode of PopTorah, we discuss how Nolan transforms Odysseus from a triumphant hero into a man slowly awakening to the destruction he has caused—and what the film's […]
Congregation of the Living Word, a Messianic Jewish Congregation
Parshat Re'eh: Blessings And Curses - English and Spanish. The primary message of Yahweh is still unchanged! Deuteronomy 11:26 teaches: I set before you a blessing and a curse. Recorded August 8, 2026. Parashá Re'eh: Bendiciones y maldiciones - Inglés y español. ¡El mensaje principal de Yahweh sigue siendo el mismo! Deuteronomio 11:26 enseña: «Os pongo ante vosotros una bendición y una maldición». Grabado el 8 de agosto de 2026.
A Story Prepared Years in Advance (Parshat Re'eh)A story heard years earlier became the strength that was needed at exactly the right moment. Parshas Re'eh teaches that nothing we see or hear is accidental.
Israel's Victory is Spiritual
BH Are ypu wearing the correct glasses?
Congregation of the Living Word, a Messianic Jewish Congregation
Parshat Re'eh: Testing The Spirits - English only. Testing the spirits requires one vitally important tool. This is a digitally remastered recording of a previously unpublished sermon originally recorded August 23, 2003.
The weekly Torah portion includes far more depth than what appears in a quick review of its passages. Each week in Beyond the Letter of the Law, Harry Rothenberg, Esq. (Rothenberg Law Firm LLP, https://injurylawyer.com) provides interesting insights and take-away lessons from the Torah portion and the Jewish holidays. Subscribe to enjoy his unique blend of analysis, passion, and humor. A Project Of Ohr.Edu Questions? Comments? We'd Love To Hear From You: Podcasts@Ohr.Edu https://podcasts.ohr.edu/
Learning weekly from Rav Tzaddok HaCohen from Sefer Pri Tzaddick at Shirat David Efrat. Seeing the Outside Noise (nations of exile) bringing us to the Inner Good Path Home (holy land) - Parshat Reah & Chodesh Elul, etc... 5787 for the blessing
If the Ir HaNiDachat never happened and never will, why is it included in the Torah?
Congregation of the Living Word, a Messianic Jewish Congregation
Parshat Re'eh: The Laws Of Kosher And The Death Of Aaron's Sons - English only. This week's Torah portion contains laws of kosher food. The account of Aaron's two sons can help us understand God's perspective on these laws. Recorded June 18, 2026.
In this conversation between Rabbanit Oshra Koren and Rabbanit Karen Miller Jackson, they discuss the different images of comfort in the prophecy from Yeshayahu 44-45, with a particular emphasis on the building of Israel and the central role it plays in these words of comfort and the nation's identity. Today's podcast is dedicated to Ashley Brygel, from Melbourne Australia, by his family in honor of his birthday.
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Why Make Them Hungry?The Jewish people ate miraculous food every day. So why does the Torah describe it as an affliction? (Parshat Eikev)
Torah Class - Parshat Re'eh: The Secret of Chabad's impactCommunity involvement vs. The mission of the Rebbe.
Miracles by the Water
Eretz Yisrael is a land whose stones are iron. This is explained as a reference to the people whose character helps build it..
The weekly Torah portion includes far more depth than what appears in a quick review of its passages. Each week in Beyond the Letter of the Law, Harry Rothenberg, Esq. (Rothenberg Law Firm LLP, https://injurylawyer.com) provides interesting insights and take-away lessons from the Torah portion and the Jewish holidays. Subscribe to enjoy his unique blend of analysis, passion, and humor. A Project Of Ohr.Edu Questions? Comments? We'd Love To Hear From You: Podcasts@Ohr.Edu https://podcasts.ohr.edu/
What happens when playtime gives way to screen time? In this episode of PopTorah, we explore Toy Story 5's encounter between beloved old-school toys and a new generation of smart devices. Along the way, we discuss parenting in the age of tablets and social media, the pressure children feel to fit in, what technology does to […]
The Gemara tells us that a person who eats before making a Bracha has stolen from Hashem. What has he stolen?
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Torah Class - Parshat Ekev: No Free LunchThe promise is granted in advance, but the right to receive it must be earned.
The Prayer Within
BH Only WE can hear Hashem Speak to us!
In this dynamic conversation with Dr. Elana Stein Hain, we explore the evocative images utilized by the prophet in this week's Haftarah (Yeshayahu 49-51). We flesh out how they are used to describe the depths of Tzion's feeling of abandonment and the ways God promises to bring us back to the land and remain His nation. This year the Matan Podcast is studying the weekly Haftarah reading.
This week begins the seven prophecies of comfort chosen from Yeshayahu 40-66, which stretch all the way until Rosh Hashanah. This conversation between Dr. Tanya White and Rabbanit Rachelli Sprecher Fraenkel explores the literal and existential concept of comfort when relating to the Jewish people and to God Himself. What does it look like to have hope after tragedy? What comforts the weary? Our hosts study this famous prophecy in search of responses to these questions. This year The Matan Podcast is exploring the weekly Haftarah.
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Angel of Israel
Congregation of the Living Word, a Messianic Jewish Congregation
Parshat Matot/Masei: The Sin At Peor - English and Spanish. Why was the sin at Peor more than just idol worship? Recorded July 11, 2026.
When Even Generals Salute (Parshat Matot -Masei)The Story of Rabbi Tzvi Rotenberg and the Timeless Message of Matot–Masei: Standing Firm in Your Principles Wherever Life Takes You.
Preserving Wealth Spiritually
BH Is your base strong enough, so that you can journey out?
When considering if a breakaway is appropriate or not, one could look at the story of b'nei Reuven v'Gad for a historical lesson.
We finish off Sefer Bamidbar with an incredible look at killings and Weddings! Chazak Chazak V'Nitchazak!
In this weeks Parshah we begin discussing there concept of Nedarim (making vows) and how to nullify if need be. Then the minyanim are taking to account for that they did to the yidden with a war.
We continue in Parshat Matot as we learn about the war with Midyan the death of Bilaam and the splitting of the land for the Shevatim of Reuven and Gad.. Outside of Israel!
We continue with Parshat Masei and learn about the places the Yidden traveled and the borders of the land of Israel. We begin to learn about killing b'shogeg as well. What is that ? Give a listen to find out !
Finding Our Lot in Life