The calendar this year has us reading “Parshat Parah” (Bamidbar 19, which speaks of the Red Heifer) in the week following our reading of the tale of the Golden Calf (in Ki Tissa). Is … more

At the very beginning of his instructions about the construction of the Mishkan, Moshe says to the people regarding their terumah (donations), “Take from yourselves terumah to G-d, all those … more

Aheteronym in the Torah appears in three contexts which have too many parallels to be ignored. The prophetess Miriam (M-R-Y-M) appears on the scene to sing about the splitting of the sea, and then we … more

With a small push, yet surprisingly little creativity, we can easily notice that the Exodus from Egypt mirrors the events that surround the last evening of the existence of Sodom. In Egypt, the … more

How old was Moshe when he fled from Egypt in Chapter 2? Depending which midrash you follow, he was either a teenager, 20, or 40. No matter which approach we follow, he spent at least 40 years in … more

Commentaries have a field day trying to pinpoint the sin that sealed Moshe’s fate not to bring the people into the Promised Land. Even the language of the Torah is inconclusive, because when … more

A Jew who reads the Torah as a historical account of the beginnings of our people may easily swell with pride and yiddishe nachas over the way Yosef gains control of the entire Egyptian … more

Have you ever bumped into someone you haven’t seen in over 20 years? This is a common occurrence in unfortunate circumstances such as funerals and shiva homes, but is also known to happen at … more

Bundles of grain and stars bow down to Yosef. What does it all mean? In this week’s parsha, Vayeishev, Yosef relates his first dream to his brothers and tells his father about his second … more

Before they went out of style, mother-in-law jokes were very popular. Have you ever heard of a father-in-law joke? I suppose if anyone were to author such a joke, it would be our forefather … more