Hi, Hope you’re having a great day! Here’s one of the most fascinating stories in the Torah.  (Genesis,18) … Abraham is sitting in front of his tent, recuperating from his circumcision. And G-d appears to him.  Has something to tell him. Prophecy. But Abraham looks up and sees three strangers approaching. And he does something […]

Hope you’re having a great day! … One more thought about circumcision. Many times in Jewish history, our enemies have tried to outlaw circumcision. The Greeks (Chanukah story) made it a capital offense. Circumcision really upset them. Why? Part of it was their obsession with physical beauty and perfection. They admired the “perfect body.” And […]

Hi, Hope you’re having a great day! The Jewish People have been around for a very long time. And when we do things like Shabbat or Jewish holidays? We should feel part of a chain going back to Mount Sinai. Over 3300 years ago. And we should be inspired! … But there’s is a Jewish […]

Hope you’re having a great day! It’s easy to remember the Jewish date of Abraham’s birth. 1948! (Around 1800 B.C.E.) … G-d appears to Abraham and gives him a mission. (Genesis 12:1) “Leave your birthplace.  I’ll make you into a great nation. You’ll be a source of blessing for the entire world.” And one more […]

Hi, Hope you had a great Passover. It’s great to be back! I thought I would discuss something that may remind us of the holiday. Food! … Noah survives the great flood. The work of rebuilding the world begins. And G-d tells Noah some very fundamental moral and spiritual ideas. But among them, we find […]

Hope you’re having a great day. … The story of Cain and Abel.  One of the most famous “Bible Stories.” Adam and Eve have two sons.  Cain and Abel. They each bring an offering to G-d. Abel’s offering is accepted.  And Cain’s is rejected. Evidently there was something lacking in Cain’s offering. And in the […]

Hope you’re having a great day! Adam and Eve are sent out of the Garden of Eden. And we’re about to finish the story too. But before we do, there’s one very important point. One very Jewish point. You may have heard of the concept of “Original Sin.” That as a result of the sin […]

Hope you’re having a great day! Here’s a little quiz. What’s the first thing G-d says to Adam, the first human being? And no peeking! Many people would say, “I know that one!” “Don’t eat the apple.”  (Actually, since Jewish tradition does not identify the forbidden fruit as an apple, we should probably say that […]

Hope you’re having a great day. We’ve been discussing how the Torah’s account of Creation is not designed to tell us how G-d created the world.  But that He did.  And that in the space of only 31 verses, the Torah makes other important points that we should know. We are told that G-d created […]