When “I’m Sorry” Just Isn’t Good Enough

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 24, 2022 | Israel, Repentance, Shelach

We’ve all done it; despite all of our good intentions, we make a bad mistake and we hurt someone we love. Full of regret, we apologize. But sometimes, apologies aren’t enough. When a borrowed car is returned with a bent fender, a trip to the auto-repair shop...

How the Rewards of Sin Bring Us Closer to God

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 10, 2022 | Repentance

Sin is horrible. It drives us away from God, pushing us into a reality that seems devoid of life, love, and hope. This state of despair envelopes the most precious aspects of our lives. Marriage, the source of our greatest joy, can become fraught with anger if...

The Exile as a Sign of God’s Everlasting Love for Israel

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 25, 2022 | Bechukotai, Chosen Nation, Covenant, God, Holiness, Israel, Kindness and Compassion, Repentance

There are two passages in the Torah that contain a short list of promised blessings should the Children of Israel adhere to the commandments, and a longer list of curses should they not. The first is found in Leviticus chapter 26 and the second is in Deuteronomy 28....

Are We Really Required to Give an Eye for an Eye?

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 12, 2022 | Emor, Justice, Repentance

Leviticus seems to tell the Children of Israel that when someone hurts his fellow he should be punished in kind. Understood literally, the verses seem to say that we must implement reciprocal justice; paying another back measure for measure for the harm he inflicts on...

The Yom Kippur Temple Service

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 25, 2022 | Acharei Mot, Holiness, Humility, Purity, Repentance, Shabbat, Temple, Yom Kippur

The Torah portion of Acharei Mot (Leviticus 16-18) describes the Temple service on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. The Bible mandates 15 specific sacrifices and many other rituals for Yom Kippur, or Yom HaKippurim, outlined in Leviticus chapter 16. The literal...

The Ritual Bath: A Spiritual Rebirth

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 7, 2022 | Marriage and Relationships, Metzorah, Modesty, Purity, Repentance, Temple

In modern times, we rarely think of the state of our spiritual purity. We can go into a synagogue, travel where we want, handle fruits and vegetables and sit on any chair without thinking about the spiritual ramifications. But in ancient Israel, when the Temple stood,...