I don’t care very much to compare women and men simply because I think the comparison isn’t fair. Human we all are, but other than the obvious physical differences, I believe that the natural differences that come from being different genders make comparisons ill-conceived. It’s almost like comparing a tennis player to a soccer player, wondering which is a better athlete. more

Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, Shifra bat Chaim Alter, and Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, and the refuah shlaimah of Yosef Shmuel ben Miriam and Moshe Reuven ben Chaya. more

“If a person (‘man’ here is generic) opens a pit, or uncovers a pit, and leaves it uncovered (when not working on it), and an ox or donkey fall into it, the owner of the pit (e.g. the one who opened it) must pay money to the owner of the animal, and the [animal’s] carcass belongs to him.” (21:33-34) Rashbam spells out the debate regarding to whom the carcass belongs – to “who” does “him” refer? more

Sunday mornings for me, even twenty years later, still have a tinge of sadness. While Westerners most often view Sunday morning as the chance to sleep late, relax with the family, and catch up on the news, for most Israeli soldiers it is the most depressing moment of the week. more

Friday night. The sun had long since set, dark clouds hid the stars, and the wind was howling off the Shouf mountain range in central Lebanon. I had managed to quietly sing the Kabbalat Shabbat service while en-route to the ambush site, and even pray the evening service while in the staging ground, before giving my men a final inspection, but I had no idea what to do about Kiddush. more

It is quite uncommon for the entirety of the Jewish people to agree about something. I would venture to bet that all of the Jews agree to the historical and national significance of the Land of Israel, but not all Jews agree as to the validity of the State of Israel (this disagreement is a shame). more

It is hard to imagine, looking down at the windswept desert floor far below, what it must have been like 2000 years ago, to be a Jewish rebel soldier atop the isolated fortress of Masada. What kept you going, as you gazed down at the might of three Roman Legions, bent on your destruction? more

In this most dramatic of Torah portions, the opening pesukim (verses) read like storyboards of a film’s opening sequence of images around the locale where it is set. The people turn from going straight along the Mediterranean coast towards the Red Sea. Moshe is arranging the transfer of Yosef’s bones. They travel from Sukkos (first stop 12:37). We then see the people during the day being led by the Pillar of Clouds. In the dark of night, the Pillar of Fire provides the necessary light and protection. more

The three plagues of Parshat Bo can be summarized in one word: Darkness. The locusts “covered the entire surface of the land, making the land dark.” (10:15) The plague of Darkness speaks for itself. And the Death of the Firstborn takes place around midnight (12:29), in the darkness of the shadows of the night. Death, as those of us who have experienced loss know, is the ultimate darkness. more

In his “Living Torah,” Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan summarized the many options of what the 4th plague may have been, based on Midrash and commentaries: Flies (Rabbi Nechemiah), wild animals (Rabbi Yehuda) (Sh’moth Rabbah 11:4) (based on a literal reading of Psalms 78:11); dog-flies (Septuagint); blood-suckers (Philo); mixture of insects and snakes (Sefer HaYashar); Beetles (scarab or dung beetle); wolves (Rashbam), panthers, eagles or other birds (Midrash Tehillim 78:45); giant squid (Midrash Aggadah). more