This parsha is like the Israelites getting married to G-d, with Moses creating and reading the pre-nuptial agreement aloud for everyone. The honeymoon will be their entry into the Promised Land. It’s the roadmap for the Israelites to achieve and live with joy, gratitude, and abundance by maintaining their fidelity to a covenant with G-d […]
In this Torah portion, Moses continues his speech to the Israelites. He tells them they will have to annihilate people who are not believers in God. Moses reminds them not to forget God’s commandments even after they enter the land of Israel, and that they must continue to fear God. The Torah portion also mentions […]
By Michael Carr
After 40 years of journeying through the desert, the people of Israel arrive in the wilderness of Zin. After Miriam dies, there is no more water and the people become thirsty. God tells Moses to speak to a rock and command it to give water. Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly of people […]
In this week’s parasha, Sh’lach, which means “send,” God commands Moses to send 12 men to “spy out” the Promised Land before the Israelites enter into battle for its possession.As explained in the parasha, the results of this expedition were less than remarkable for at least ten of the spies. Those spies saw only the […]
In today’s parasha Moses asks G-d to give the Israelites divinity, vision, and insight into the future. Moses was given a ‘gift’ that made it easier for the Israelites to understand the message of Torah. In turn this provided more time to live Torah rather than learning how to read.
G-d intended for all Israelites to […]
Ki Tisa- Cracks of Light Michael Carr 03/11/2023
It’s been said that we don’t see things as ‘they are’; we see things as ‘we are’ because we see reality through our emotional history.
Each of us experiences emotional sensory situations differently when we read, listen, or taste. These sensations may evoke pleasure, pain, distaste- well you […]
This week’s Parsha includes the final three plagues that G-D created for the benefit of the Israelites and imposed upon Pharaoh to let the Israelite Slaves go. As we know Pharaoh was opposed to any meaningful changes in the kingdom.
In fact we read year after year in the Torah and during Pesach about the terrible […]
Parsha Vaera brings to mind the idea of FUD. It’s the acronym for fear, uncertainty and doubt. This idea was probably more pervasive than ‘hope’ for getting the Israelite slaves out of Egypt. Fear of a autocratic and stubborn pharaoh who imposed his autocratic rule daily created uncertainty and doubt about a meaningful life for Israelite […]
If we zoom out for a moment on Genesis there are any number of injustices that highlight the first book of Torah. For example: Cain kills Abel and walks; Lots daughters rape their father; Abraham lies about his wife twice, attempts to sacrifice his son, and becomes a patriarch; Jacob deceives his own family members […]
One of the many stories in Bereshit is that of Adam and Eve. In particular it is the shame that Adam and Eve experience upon eating the forbidden fruit. Rabbi Manis Friedman, co-author of “Living a Life that Matters” relates Adam and Eve’s emotional response to these three aspects of shame: 1) humility, embarrassment and […]
