Category: Dvar Torah
Shammai’s Gems to Live By
:שַׁמַּאי אוֹמֵר, עֲשֵׂה תוֹרָתְךָ קֶבַע. אֱמֹר מְעַט וַעֲשֵׂה הַרְבֵּה, וֶהֱוֵי מְקַבֵּל אֶת כָּל הָאָדָם […]
Self Advocacy and Empathy
הוּא הָיָה אוֹמֵר, אִם אֵין אֲנִי לִי, מִי לִי. וּכְשֶׁאֲנִי לְעַצְמִי, מָה אֲנִי. וְאִם […]
D’var Torah: Loving and Pursuing Peace – and Loving Humankind
Pirkei Avot 1:12 teaches: “Hillel and Shammai received [the oral tradition] from them. Hillel […]
Mentors, Friends and Giving Each Other the Benefit of The Doubt
יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן פְּרַחְיָה וְנִתַּאי הָאַרְבֵּלִי קִבְּלוּ מֵהֶם. יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן פְּרַחְיָה אוֹמֵר, עֲשֵׂה לְךָ רַב, […]
The Three Pillars of the World
Pirkei Avot 1:2 teaches: “Shimon the Righteous was one of the last of the […]
Ahavat HaAdamah/Love of the Earth
Being a rabbi is a second career for me. I received a master’s degree […]
Shmitah and Yovel: Working with God to Perfect our World
Parshat Behar introduces the concepts of Shmitah (letting the land lay fallow one year […]
Freeing Ourselves by Assuming the Best in Others
Passover is about freedom. There are so many ways to view freedom, from the […]
D’var Torah: Loving Leviticus is as Easy as 1, 2, 3….
When I worked at the JCC in Houston, our adult education program had a […]
D’var Torah: When Moshe Looked into Their Faces
There are some wonderful commentaries on this week’s Torah portion, Ki Tissa, that promote […]