Sparks – by Rabbi David Aaron
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Passover - In the Name of Love
Passover commemorates the miraculous exodus of the Jews from Egypt. After 210 years of oppression and cruel servitude, an entire people leave in astounding record time, faster than it takes dough to leaven into bread. We celebrate this event with a festive meal and ceremony called the Seder, during which we recite the Haggadah...
Small Tastings of Torah, Judaism and Spirituality from Rav Binny
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There are moments in time one needs to forget. And yet, so often, these same moments, we really need to remember. Such a moment came into my life on August 9th (the twentieth of Av) 2001.
An innocent, beautiful afternoon in the heart of Jerusalem surrounded by the music of children's laughter. Lives full of promise captured in a mother's hug, or a young soldier's grin. The fulfillment of years of toil viewed through the contented sigh of an old man, leaning on his walking stick as he watches his grandchildren enjoying the treat of an ice cream on a hot summer's day.
All of this magic, ripped apart by the nuts and bolts, explosives and hatred of a suicide bomber in a Pizzeria. It was one of those moments you try not to think about, that you decide to put behind you. For me, it is relatively simple to let go of such moments. I...
Sparks – by Rabbi David Aaron
(click here for print version)
You are Loved!
Don...
Small Tastings of Torah, Judaism and Spirituality from Rav Binny
(click here for print version)
The Gift of the Given Moment
A Passover Thought from the Portion of Tzav
There are places in this world that are so powerful, so full of meaning that they allow us to tap in to why we are really here. Such a place is Emek HaBacha, The Valley of Tears. In this valley, deep in the Golan Heights, in the Yom Kippur War in 1973, a small group of men held off the might of the Syrian Armored Corps, and saved the State of Israel. There is a power to this place, and if you listen carefully to the wind howling through the hills, you can still hear the cries of the men who fell there.
We took a group of our students there a few years ago on Israel...
Sparks – by Rabbi David Aaron
(click here for print version)
Unmasking Nature:
G-d...
Small Tastings of Torah, Judaism and Spirituality from Rav Binny
(click here for print version)
...
Sparks – by Rabbi David Aaron
(click here for print version)
Successful People are Unaccomplished
Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you a holy day, a sabbath of solemn rest to the Lord....
Sparks – by Rabbi David Aaron
(click here for print version)
Purim: Secrets Behind the Purim Mask
Purim celebrates the salvation of the Jews from the wicked Haman's scheme to exterminate all the Jewish men, women, and children living in thePersian empirein the year 357 B.C.E., which essentially meant all the Jews in the world. Some of the commandments of Purim, such as hearing Megillat Esther, which recounts the Purim story, and enjoying a festive meal, are obvious ways to commemorate this deliverance.
Other commandments and customs have no apparent connection to what happened on Purim. Why are we required to give charity to the poor, send two food items to a friend, and get so drunk that we do not know the difference between Haman, the villain, and Mordechai, the righteous hero of the story? (This last commandment, I understand, is very rigorously kept in college dorms all year round.)
What is behind the customs to dress up in costume and to eat hamentaschen, delicious, sweet tarts named...