by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Seder means order. And order is important. Take Pesach preparations for example. Did you ever try to Kosher the kitchen before cleaning it? Or, buy all your Pesach products before making place to put them? Doing things in order is truly the theme of the holiday. This is especially true at more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine The great moment had finally arrived. The Jewish people were ready to enter the Promised Land. As they prepared themselves to enter, they had a simple request. “Let us send spies to report on the land.” Although the men chosen for this historic mission were of great caliber, surprisingly, they came more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Our teacher Moshe, was unique. Known to us as “the father of prophecy” he is the only prophet to have communicated so directly with Hashem. “Like a man speaks with his friend,” so was the communication of Hashem with Moshe. At the conclusion of the Revelation at Sinai, Hashem told Moshe more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine In this week’s parsha we read the story of the Sotah, the woman who is suspected of being unfaithful. Her husband accuses her of improper behavior. She denies wrongdoing. The Torah provides a system to break the deadlock. “Write this portion of Torah [with ink] then dissolve it into water.” Miraculously, more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine The Book of Bamidbar, or “Numbers” as it is known, begins with a mitzvah to obtain the count of the Jewish people. What is interesting is that the total is exactly the same as the count that took place just a few months earlier when the Jews built the Mishkan/ Sanctuary more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Moshe was instructed to take a tally of the Jewish families according to their tribes. Various reasons are given for this counting. Among them: To make the Jewish people realize how much they had been blessed. Just three hundred years earlier they had been a family of 70 people. Since that more »
by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Of the many commandments that were given to us, a significant number were taught to segments of the Jewish people, one group at a time. In this week’s portion, however, Hashem directs Moshe to “tell the entire congregation: You shall be holy.” Why was it necessary to make this statement to more »
Tazriya- Connections of Holiness by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine This week’s Parsha describes the laws of Metzorah, a person afflicted with a skin ailment resulting from a spiritual shortcoming. His purification process includes immersing in a mikvah to achieve spiritual elevation. In its simplest sense, a mikvah consists of rain water that was gathered naturally. What more »
The Perfect Mitzvah by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine Mazal Tov! A woman had just given birth. The Torah describes the laws if the baby is a boy or if a girl. Then the Torah proceeds to describe the karbanos that the woman should bring when she comes to the Beis Hamikdash. Says the Talmud: Why does more »
Mining the Blessing by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine This week’s Torah portion discusses a skin condition that afflicted a person who had a spiritual shortcoming. Tzoraas, as it is called, could affect a person who spoke Lashon Horah. Such a person, after maligning others, might find himself afflicted. He would have to be seen by a more »