In the first verses of parshat Vayeira, it seems as though it is though Abraham is the central actor, but the Torah does not specify him by name until later. Why does the Torah leave this vague? Marc Fein, regional director of Upstate NY NCSY, presents an interpretation from Rav Jonathan Rabinowitz of Netiv Aryeh.
Could Abraham leave temporarily to escape the famine in Egypt and still have faith in the bigger picture and in God? Towards the end of this week’s Torah portion we come across a very peculiar story.
During the events of Parshat Lech Lecha, our patriarch, Abraham, the father of monotheism, is given wine and bread after a military victory by a righteous leader from Jerusalem. What is the point of this simple feast? Rabbi Ari Segal, head of school at Shalhevet High School in Los Angeles and a former advisor for
The story of Noah is famous: G-d sends a flood to wipe out the world for being wicked, except for one man, Noach, and his family, who are tasked with building an ark so that life may prevail. But what did humanity do that was so bad? Rashi blames the little stuff. Corrine Malachi, an
Like any good story, the Torah begins with the origin of EVERYTHING: Bereishit. Just as with Spiderman, ‘with great power comes great responsibility’, but when the people in this first chapter of the Torah are given the chance to take responsibility, they do not. They fail. In this season following Yom Kippur, Sam Zitin, associate
Sukkot is an opportunity for seven days straight of happiness. When else do you get such an opportunity? Rabbi David Markowitz, the COO of Aish HaTorah New York, shares the insight from Rabbi Noach Weinberg z“l that if you can focus on what you have AND if you don’t take any pain in what you don’t,
What are you bringing to synagogue on Yom Kippur? Rabbi Dovid Cohen, who has gone from an advisor for Long Island NCSY to Rabbi at Young Israel of the Upper West Side in Manhattan, leads us on a journey into the Unetanneh Tokef prayer, specifically the line “וּתְשׁוּבָה וּתְפִלָּה וּצְדָקָה מַעֲבִירִין אֶת רעַ הַגְּזֵרָה”, that
Even though it’s a short week, it spans two years! Rabbi Jon Green, director of NCSY Camp Sports, has a short drasha for Rosh Hashanah about how it commemorates not just the creation of Mankind, but the day that we are each spiritually recreated as Jews, as people, for the coming year. Stick around for
Shanah Tovah from NCSY Alumni! This Rosh Hashanah, Rabbi Tzali Freedman, director of Central East NCSY, has some realistic advice on how to make it meaningful without being overwhelmed. There are some practical things you can do between now and Yom Kippur to bring you closer to the Creator during these Days of Awe. If
There is one verse written in the first Torah portion, Parsha Va’Yelech, that lends itself to a fascinating topic: “The hidden are for the Lord our God, but the revealed are for us and our children until forever.” The simple meaning of the verse is that hidden sins are the province of God alone; for these sins, God holds no one responsible but the sinner himself. However, the community at large is responsible and therefore culpable for openly committed sins.