(Leviticus: 1:1-5:26)     

(Haftara: Isaiah: 43:21-44:23)

1. [Vayikra]  Many commentators believe that there will be animal sacrifices in the messianic Third Temple. Rav Kuk believes that there will be no animal sacrifices, but there will only be flour offerings. Why is it so important for the Jewish people and the individual Jew that there should be offerings offered at the Temple?

2. [Haggadah of Pesach]  The passage in the haggadah about the 4 sons teaches us that each son should be taught in a way which is suitable to his understanding. This is a model of Jewish education, as it says in the book of Mishle, “Teach the youth according to his way (Mishle 22:6)”. Where in our religious tradition do we see this principle applied?

3. [Haggadah] In the Haggadah,  R. Eliezer deduces that there were not just 10 plagues on the Egyptians, but there were really 240 plagues. What purpose is served by adding onto the number of plagues written in the Torah?

4. [Haggadah] At the Pesach seder, we remember the Egyptian experience by retelling the story. We also remember the bitterness of the slavery in Egypt by eating bitters; we remember the haste of the liberation by eating matza; and we remember the liberation by drinking wine. Why are talking and eating our main ways of reliving the Egyptian experience and the redemption? Why not something more experiential, similar to the sukkah on Sukkot?

5. [Haftara: Isaiah 44:23] “Sing, heavens…shout, lowest parts of the earth…” All of creation will rejoice about the redemption—from the highest to the lowest. What does that fact tell us about the nature of the redemption?

Commentary

[1:9] “…a sweet smell for God.”

A smell can be sensed from far away, so anything that can be sensed before reaching it is called a “smell”.  The most important quality of a sacrifice is that the person who brings it should repent and improve his or her actions in the future. Without that desire for improvement, God says, “Of what use are all of your sacrifices (Isaiah 1:11). The “sweet smell” is the anticipation of the good actions in the future.

–R. Yitzchak Mayer of Gur, Poland, (1799-1866)

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And this study page is also dedicated to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker

(Exodus: 35:1-40:38)

(Exodus 12:1-20)

(Haftara: Ezekiel 45:18-46:15)

1. [35:3] We are not permitted to light a fire on Shabbat (light a match, start a stove). What is Shabbat meant to do for us, and how could it be that the lighting of a fire would spoil the effect of Shabbat?

2. [36:9…] In the inner spiritual-psychological life, the mishkan (the tabernacle), represents the place where the pure service of God is done. In the light of this, why does the Torah tell us every small detail of the mishkan?

3. [40:36] The cloud on the mishkan represents the presence of God. When the cloud lifted, the Israelites traveled. How is there a presence of God in our lives? What does it mean in the inner spiritual-psychological life when we say that when the cloud lifts, we travel?

4. [Maftir, Parshat haChodesh: 12:6] The Israelites in Egypt were commanded to take a lamb on the tenth of the month of Nissan, and keep it until the fourteenth and then slaughter it. The lamb, however was an idol of the Egyptians. Isn’t this a very brazen act for a slave-people to do? Why would God command such brazenness?

5. [12:11] At the Passover meal in Egypt, one sat at the table in a state of “chipazon”—staff in hand, dressed, alert and ready to leave Egypt. What do alertness and energy have to do with the themes of Passover?

Commentary

[35:1] “And Moshe gathered the whole community of the children of Israel”.

The midrash tells us that before the sin of the golden calf, even an individual could build the mishkan (the tabernacle)—”…any person whose heart is willing…”.  However, after the sin of the golden calf, the mishkan could only be built with the power of the community–an individual was not strong enough.  As much as we value individual accomplishment, this comes to teach us how much greater is the power of a united community than the power of individuals.

–Shem mi’Shmuel– Rav Shmuel Bornstein: (1856-1926)–the Sochatchover Rebbe.

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And this study page is also dedicated to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker

(Exodus 30:11-34:35)

(Haftara: Parah: Ezekiel 36:16-38)

(Shabbat Parah)

1. [21:12]  “When you count the children of Israel… let each man give a ransom for his soul…so that there will not be a plague among them…”  Apparently, counting people (and sometimes other things) stops the flow of blessing to them. Our tradition tells us, “Blessing is not found onsomething which is counted”.  Why does counting people or some things stop them from being blessed? 

2. [30:38 ] “Whoever makes exactly like it [the incense of the Temple] in order to smell it will be cut off from his people.”    Whoever makes the incense for his own esthetic pleasure will be cut off.  We know, however, that in many ways we appreciate things that are pleasing to our senses.  Why is there such a severe punishment for someone who replicates the incense for his own use?

3. [Parshat Para]  We read Parshat Parah before the month of Passover in order to give us a feeling of purity.  In the days of the Temple, we had to be ritually pure in order to eat the Passover sacrifice.  We didn’t have to be ritually pure in order to hear the shofar or to sit in the sukkah. Why did someone have to be ritually pure in order to do the commandments of Passover properly?

4. [Haftara: Ezekiel 36:26] “I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh”.   This is a vision of the ideal time—the messianic time. Don’t we, ourselves, have to change our stone hearts into hearts of flesh? Why is heavenly help needed to bring about this transformation?

5. [Haftara: Ezekiel 36:36] “The nations will know …that I, God, have built the destroyed places, and planted that which was desolate… “   Apparently, people will rebuild everything, but the nations will know that this is a miracle from God.  If they see that people did the work and the reconstruction, how will they recognize that it is really a miracle from God?

Commentary

There is a type of person who loves to do good for others. Meeting with others brings him great joy. He greets the other with a happy face…and the greatest pain in his heart is that he may have caused pain to his friend or not been kind enough to him.

—R. A. Y. Karelitz, the Chazon Ish, 1878-1953, Belarus and Israel.

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And this study page is also dedicated to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker

(Exodus: 27:21- 30-10)

(Shmuel I, 15:1-34)

(Parshat Zachor, Fast of Esther)

1. [28:3] “…to make him holy, to serve me.”  What is holiness? What does it mean to be holy? What does this phrase in our kedushah prayer mean: “Holy, holy, holy is God. The whole world is full of His glory”?

2. [28:3 ] “…to make him holy, to serve me.”  Rav Kuk (1865-1935, Lithuania, Israel) tells us that for some people serving God is like serving people. That is, it may be a great honour, but it also feels like a burden. For others, however, serving God is an act of freedom.  What does it mean to serve God  from a mentality of  freedom?

3. [Purim] On Purim, we are commanded to hear every word of Megillat Esther. On Shabbat, we are NOT commanded to hear every word of the Torah reading. Why is the megillah  reading different from the Shabbat reading?

4. On Purim, we are told that we should give charity to every person who asks—who puts out his or her hand. During the rest of the year, we are allowed to check people to see if they deserve the charity, but on Purim we are not permitted to question people in this way. Why is Purim different from  the rest of the year in relation to charity?

5. [Megillah of Purim 10:3]  “Because Mordechai…was accepted by most of his brothers…”  Mordechai had done so much to save the Jewish people. Why is it that he was accepted by most of his brothers, and not by all of them?

  Commentary

[Esther 2:11] “And each and every day Mordechai  walked in front of the yard of the women’s house to know how Esther was doing…”

Mordechai went to check on Esther every day for 4 or 5 years. This is really an amazing thing.  Mordechai, the tzaddik, did this because Esther was an orphan, and she was in distress. And because of the merit of his kindness and his concern,  Heaven sent miracles and Haman was beaten.

— Sfat Emet,  R. Yehuda Arieh Leib Alter of Gur (1855-1905)

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And this study page is also dedicated to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker

(Numbers 25:1-27:20)

(Kings I,  5:26-6:13)

1. In the mishkan, there were things that appealed to all of our senses. The menorah: sight; the bread: taste; the incense: smell; the songs of the Levites: hearing; leaning on the sacrifice: touch. If the mishkan is supposed to be such a spiritual and elevating experience, why are the physical senses such a large part of that experience?

2. Our rabbis tell us that the mishkan is a model of man. The aron represents the, intellect and the faculty of speech; the menorah, represents the eyes and the sense of sight; the table that held the “bread,” corresponds to the sense of taste; the altar for the ketoret, is the sense of smell; and the outer altar represent the digestive system and other “functional” organs. Where are the emotions and intuitions represented?

3. [25:8]  “Make for Me a tabernacle…”  Many of our commentaries tell us symbolic meanings of the furniture and the utensils of the mikdash.  There are, in fact, many fascinating symbolic meanings to many of the commandments. If a person doesn’t think of any symbolic meaning, but just does the commandment with awareness, but in a simple way, how much is he or she losing, or how much is he or she gaining?

 4. We are told that both the broken tablets of the ten commandments and the unbroken ones were in the Ark. What is the purpose of also keeping the broken ones?

 5. [Haftara] The mishkan in the wilderness was built with voluntary contributions [Shmot 25:2]. The Temple in Jerusalem was built with a compulsory “mas” a tax—men were compelled to do the work. The Temple could also have been built through volunteers. What are the social advantages of voluntary contributions and what are the social advantages of a tax—compulsory contributions?

Commentary

[25:2] “…and they should take a contribution for me.”

This pasuk should say, “They will give a contribution to me”. Why does it say “take” in the pasuk? When a person gives to God with pure motivation, he or she is really giving to themselves. God doesn’t need anything, so the person is really giving for his or her own good. The giving to God is really a taking for oneself.

–Sfas Emes, Rebbe Yehudah Leib Alter, (1847-1905), Ger, Poland

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And this study page is also dedicated to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker

(Shabbat Shekalim)

(Exodus 21:1-24:18)

(Haftara: Melachim 2, 11:17-12:17)

1. [21:1] “These are the laws that you will put in front of them.”  The Torah should say, “These are the laws that you will teach them” or “command them”. Why does the pasuk say: “…that you will put in front of them”?

2. [21:37] “…(the thief) will pay 5 cows for stealing a cow, and 4 sheep for stealing a sheep.”  The Talmud tells us that the Torah makes the thief pay more for stealing a cow because a cow can do work and the Torah is showing us that it values work. If the Torah values physical work so much, why isn’t there a commandment telling us that we must work physically?

3. [22:30] “And people of holiness you will be for me…”.  At the beginning of the book of Vayikra, the Torah says, “Be holy ones”. What is the Torah adding here by saying, “Be holy people…”?

4. [23:5 ] “If you see the donkey of someone who hates you weighed down by its load…help him.”   Some translate “your enemy” as “someone who hates you” and some say that it makes no difference whether you hate him or he hates you, you must help him.  What is the difference between these two translations?

5. [Shabbat shekalim]  On Shabbat shekalim, we read in the Torah about how everyone must give half a shekel for the tabernacle. The rabbis see this as a commandment that shows that everyone is equal. We know however, that people are not equal. Some are more intelligent, stronger, prettier, richer than others. In what way is everyone equal?

Commentary

The goal of the people of Israel in the world is not the spreading of ideas through teaching or openly expanding their influence.  But when the people of Israel keep faithfully to their unique attributes, this itself elevates mankind.

–R. Avraham Y. H. Kuk, 1865-1935, Lithuania and Israel.

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And this study page is also dedicated to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker

(Numbers 18:1-20:23)

(Haftara: Isaiah 6:1-7:6, 9:5,6)

1. [9:13] “…when the ram’s horn sounds, they shall go up on the mountain”.  Rashi (our main commentator), quotes a midrash which says that this is the horn of the ram in the story of Yitzchak, when Avraham almost sacrificed Yitzchak. What does the revelation at Mount Sinai have in common with Yitzchak?

2. [19:17] “…and they stood under the mountain”. Rashi quotes a midrash which says that God held the mountain over the Israelites as a threat to force them to accept the Torah. This is understood to mean that the intensity of the experience forced them to accept the Torah, and this is understood to be a lower level than the free acceptance of the Torah. Why is total lack of doubt at Sinai considered a lower level?

3. [20:15] “And the entire nation saw the thunder and lightning and the sound of the horn…”  Rashi quotes a midrash that tells us that they saw that which is impossible to see. What does this fact add to the experience of Sinai?

4. [20:15] When God revealed himself at Sinai it was a very “loud” experience. When God revealed himself to Eliahu in the cave, it was a very “quiet” experience (Kings I, 19:11,12). Both seem to have been intense experiences. What is the difference between them, and which is the most effective?

5. [Haftara: Isaiah: 6:3] “Holy, holy, holy..the whole earth is full of His glory”.

How does God’s glory fill the whole earth?

Commentary

Shmot [18:5] : “…to the wilderness where he (Moshe) was camping there– to the mountain of God…”

Because he was staying there, it became the mountain of God. Through Moshe, the place became elevated until the Holy Presence of God rested there.   A person can be somewhere, and through his or her actions and attitudes, transform that location into a Godly place–a place where God is present.

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And this study page is also dedicated to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker

(Exodus 13:17-17:16)

(Haftara: Shoftim 4:4-5:31)

)Shabbat Shira)

1. [14:15] “…why are you crying to me…travel.”  The Talmud tells us that God desires the prayers of righteous people. If so, then why does God tell Moshe not to pray here? When are prayers desirable to God and when are they not appropriate?

2. [14:21] “…God sent a strong east wind the whole night…”  God could have split the sea in one instant. Why did God want to do it in this more natural way?

 3. [15:1] “I will sing to God, because He is exalted…”  The Kabbalistic thinkers tell us that God does not really need our praises. So why do we praise God so often in our prayers and in our lives?

4. [16:4] “…a day’s portion every day…” This pasuk seems to say that being able to live each day, without worrying about tomorrow, is a major principle in serving God. What is so important about this quality?

5. [17:16] “…God makes war with Amalek in every generation”.  Amalek came especially from far away to make war, and they attacked the weakest of the Israelites. What does Amalek represent to us that would make God “make war with Amalek in every generation”?

Commentary

The fact that people are far from God and don’t get close to God is only because people don’t have presence of mind and don’t relax themselves. The main thing is to try to relax oneself and to ask, “What is the purpose of all the physical pleasures and all the physical pursuits of this world—whether they  have to do with the body or with matters outside the body, like being honoured by others.

If one thinks in this way, one will certainly return to God.

–R. Nachman of Breslov, 1772-1810, Ukraine.

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker

(Numbers 10:1-13:16)

(Haftara:  Jeremiah 46:13-28)

1. [10:1] : “And God said to Moshe ‘Come to Pharaoh’…” Why does God say “Come to Pharaoh” instead of “Go to Pharaoh”?

2. [12:9] “Don’t eat it raw or boiled…”  The last thing that the Israelites were supposed to do in Egypt was to have a meal and eat the Passover lamb quickly, with one’s shoes on and a staff in one’s hand. A number of detailed instructions were involved in this meal. What effect would all of these detailed commandments have on the Israelites? Why is this a good introduction to leaving Egypt?

3. [12:19] “…anyone who eats leavened products, that soul shall be cut off from             the community of Israel…” The punishment that the Torah gives for eating bread or other leavened products on Passover is much more severe than the punishment for eating pig or eating a mixture of milk and meat. Why is this sin so much more serious?

4. [12:38]  “And a mixed multitude also went up with them…” The “mixed multitude” were a bad influence on the Israelites later. Why did Moshe allow non-Israelites to also leave with the Israelites?

5. [12:46] “…and don’t break the bone.”  Why was it forbidden to break any of the bones of the Passover sacrifice while eating it?

Commentary

Whoever thinks that he can repair the world with his actions, but does not know the value of his own soul or the value of spirituality—he has deluded himself.  But whoever knows that every ethical act, every good personal quality, every worthwhile learning…and even a pleasant conversation elevates the spirituality in his soul…his mind expands and he constantly gets closer to the truth.

–R. Avraham Y. H. Kuk, 1865-1935, Lithuania and Israel.

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker

(Numbers 6:2-9:35)

(Haftara: Ezekiel 28:25-29:21)

1. [6:3] “I appeared to Avraham, Yitzchak and Ya’akov as “El Shadai, but my name…”  The different names of God are different revelations of the one God.  What does it mean that there are different revelations of God? Do people also show different revelations of themselves to other people?

2. [6:4] “I set up my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan…”  The land of Canaan (Israel) is on a trading route between Africa, Europe and Asia. It is a crossroads of different cultures. Why is this crossroads a suitable place for a development of God’s society of Torah?

4. [7:5] “…and I took the children of Israel out…” The Chassidic texts tell us that there were sparks of Godliness trapped in Egypt and Israel went down to Egypt in order to raise up the sparks. The sparks are the potential for Godliness which is hidden and trapped. What everyday acts of ours bring Godly potential into expression.

1. [7:17] “…and the water will turn to blood.”    Blood is a recurring image in the Torah. We may not drink blood. We may not have sexual relations after a woman’s period. We sprinkle blood of sacrifices etc. What does blood represent to us?

2. [Haftara: Yechezkel 29:3] “Pharoah…the big dragon that lies in the middle of his rivers, who said to me, ‘ I made it for myself’.”  This is how God describes Pharoah.  Pharoah is self-centered and selfish. In Pirkay Avot, it says, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me…? (Pirkay Avot 1:14)  What is so bad about being selfish and self-centered?

Commentary

The Messiah will judge each person in such a favourable light, that the light of goodness in that person will awake…The most successful way to bring a person back to God is through encouragement and praise. 

–R. Ya’akov M. Shechter, born 1932, Jerusalem.

This study page is dedicated to the memory of Rivkah Rochel bat Ya’akov haLevi and Chaya Kornberg, and Yechiel Eliezer ben Yitzchok Meir and Rochel Laya Kornberg

And to the memory of Gad Eliahu ben David and Kochava–Eli Zucker