The 39 Acts (Jewish Sabbath Rules) Forbidden on the Sabbath

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 21, 2022 | Covenant, Holiness, Shabbat, Temple, Vayakhel

After the instructions for the Tabernacle are given and right before the actual construction of the Tabernacle begins, Moses gives an incongruous message commanding the Jews to rest on Shabbat (Exodus 35:1-3). In no fewer than 12 places, the Torah reiterates the...

Shabbat as a Sign and a Covenant

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 16, 2022 | Covenant, Shabbat

Shabbat, the Sabbath, is the seventh day of the week and the culmination of creation. Exodus (31:12-17) gives it an additional special meaning, describing it as “a sign” and “eternal covenant” between God and the Children of Israel. Not only is Shabbat one of the...

The Holy Half-Shekel

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 13, 2022 | Adar, Community, Israel, Ki Tisa, Temple

In the beginning of the Torah portion of Ki Tisa (Exodus 30:11-34:35), God commands the Children of Israel to take a census by collecting a silver half-shekel from every male over the age of 20. What is the meaning of half shekel in the Bible? The half shekel is a...

The Message of the Eternal Flame

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 11, 2022 | Chanukah, Miracles, Purity, Temple, Tetzaveh

When God instructs the Children of Israel to make the menorah, He tells them to gather oil “for kindling lamps regularly” (Exodus 27:20). Rashi explains that the light was to be lit all night, every night, though not necessarily during the day. The lights...

Why Are We Commanded to Keep the Pieces of the Broken Tablets?

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 3, 2022 | Covenant, Repentance, Seventeenth of Tammuz, Temple, Terumah

As part of building the Tabernacle, God instructed Moses to place the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments into the Ark of the Covenant. But, as we know, there were two sets of tablets; the first, inscribed by the finger of God, was cast down and shattered when Moses...

What Does it Mean to Observe Shemittah?

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 24, 2022 | Faith, Holiness, Israel, Messiah, Mishpatim, Shabbat

The Shemittah comes every seven years, making it a form of Sabbath that occurs on a yearly, rather than a weekly, cycle. Observing the Shemittah acknowledges that the land of Israel belongs to the God of Israel. We work the land for six years, and on the seventh, we...