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Mattos-Masei 5770Volume 6 · Issue 34
Fear of Heaven
According to our customs, we repeat the preceding verse to end on a good note, but Yirmiyahu who authored the Book of Lamentations (Bava Basra 15a) only said it beforehand as a prayer; in his view, our current state is that the Creator only repulsed us utterly and raged against us exceedingly, nothing more. This follows his opinion of omitting the praise, “The Fearsome One.” Without this attribute, our predicament is truly hopeless
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Vayeira 5770Volume 6 · Issue 7
The Eshel of Avraham
This derives from the word vayikra, which is read as vayakri, he caused to call. Onkelos, however, defines the word vayikra as prayer, and translates the verse, “He planted an Eshel in Be’er Sheva and prayed there in the Name of God, Lord of the World.”
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Vayechi 5771Volume 7 · Issue 14
Siege of the Mind
translate the Torah into Greek is the one whom the Hasmoneans conquered. They drove him—along with his kingdom—out of the Land of Israel, and they purified the Holy Temple, as we say in the Al HaNissim prayer. Ever since then, this exists as an option. But they did this with self-sacrifice; it did not descend to the world as a natural phenomenon.
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Emor 5771Volume 7 · Issue 27
From Coincidence to Providence
What did he do? He wrapped himself in his prayer shawl and stood in prayer before the Holy Blessed One, and his disciples were sitting and studying.
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Behar 5771Volume 7 · Issue 28
From Abundance to Completeness
…world’s interrelationship and coalescence. From our aspect, when we stand in prayer before the Creator of the World, we address Him with words and we speak with Him, and He hears us and listens. And when we merit and He…
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Behaaloscha 5771Volume 7 · Issue 32
Bound for Eternity
It is well known, as the sages assert and as stated in our prayer books, that the Sabbath is a semblance of the World to Come (Berachos 57b; Friday Evening Melodies). It is called the destination of the work of heaven and earth, and its commandments and all our obligations, such as delighting
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Lech Lecha 5771Volume 7 · Issue 7
Nimrod: The Voice of Rebellion
appreciation of the Creator’s great kindness in giving us the power to enthrone Him. By allowing us to be the ones through whom His Kingship exists, He gave us true existence. Of this, we say in our Morning Prayer, “The Good One formed glory for His Name,” meaning in His infinite goodness and kindness, He based His Kingship on us.
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Vayeira 5771Volume 7 · Issue 8
Charitable Faith
The Talmud states (Berachos 40b) that every blessing requires the phrase, “King of the world,” and without it, the blessing is invalid. Tosafos asks from the Shemoneh Esrei Prayer, which does not contain this phrase. Tosafos explains that when we say in the Blessing of the Fathers, “Lord of Avraham,” we have essentially said, “King of the world.” Avraham Avinu was the one who enthroned God as King
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Vaeira 5772Volume 8 · Issue 16
Living the Exodus
The Hebrew spelling of this Name is Shinn Dalet Yud, but pronounced outside of prayer as Shakai. The Ramban and many other earlier commentators associate it with the word shidud, reorganization. As the Name of the Creator, it refers to His ability to reorganize the systems of nature. Certainly, this suffices to fulfill His promise
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Acharei-Kedoshim 5772Volume 8 · Issue 25
Unified Course of Life
In the prayer of VaYevarech David that we recite each day in our Morning Prayer, we explain the Attributes and state (Divrei HaYamim I 29:11), “Yours, God, is greatness (Chesed), and might (Gevurah), and beauty (Tiferes), and triumph (Netzach), and magnificence (Hode), also all that
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Korach 5772Volume 8 · Issue 32
Acceptance of the Land
This day is a new existence, as we say in our Morning Prayer, “He originates in His goodness each day… the work of the beginning.” Therefore, we must recite the blessings once again for this new day.
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Chukas 5772Volume 8 · Issue 33
Creation of Faith
Of this, the sages state in a well-known passage (Zohar 135a), which also appears in some prayer books prior to the Friday Night Prayers, “This is the mystery of the Sabbath—it is the Sabbath that is unified in the mystery of Oneness…. Once the Sabbath arrives, it becomes unified,” meaning it unifies all parts of creation
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Pinchas 5772Volume 8 · Issue 35
Roots of Destruction
Of this, we say in the Shemoneh Esrei Prayer, “Sound the great shofar for our freedom,” to eliminate our enslavement. “And raise a banner to gather our exiles,” to eliminate our dispersion. “And gather us together from the four corners of the earth,” and Nusach Sefard adds, “unto
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Nitzavim-Vayelech 5771Volume 8 · Issue 4
Tilting the Scales
And the judgment is exceedingly harsh. It can even be called fearsome and terrifying. Indeed, this is what is stated in the prayer of Unesaneh Tokef: “Let us relate the intensity of the day’s holiness, for it is fearsome and terrifying.” The judgment concerns every detail of life, whether regarding existence itself or the form of existence. Who is destined for live
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Miketz Chanukah 5773Volume 9 · Issue 13
In Those Days In This Time
that the Greeks reigned in Israel; Yossi ben Yoezer Leader of Tzereidah was killed by them—they took him out to be executed on the Sabbath (Bereshis Rabbah 64:22). Part of the decree that we describe in the prayer of Al HaNissim, “When the wicked Greek Empire arose against Your people Israel to make them forget Your Torah…,” was the execution of Israel’s leader.
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Vayigash 5773Volume 9 · Issue 14
Altered Course
The concept of blessing is increase, abundance, profusion, blessedness. This is the primary meaning of the word. The Nefesh HaChaim (2:2) concludes that every blessing to God is not praise but prayer—prayer that His revelation, His glory, all that is included in the Name, be increasingly revealed.
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Vaeira 5773Volume 9 · Issue 17
Infinite Existence
Simply, though, we know that the perception and level of Moshe Rabbeinu transcended the Fathers. In the terminology of our prayer books, “I rely with absolute reliance on the fact that the prophecy of Moshe Rabbeinu, peace upon him, was true, and that he was the father of the prophets—of those who preceded him and of those who succeeded
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Ki Sisa-Parah 5773Volume 9 · Issue 23
Juxtaposed Redemptions
Thus, the Name of Existence has twelve permutations; each radiates during one of the twelve months of the year. Today, this is well known as it is printed in many prayer books prior to the Musaf Prayer of Rosh Chodesh. For example, the permutation of Nisan is the straight combination of letters, as the Name of Existence appears throughout the Torah. It emerges from the acrostic formed by the first letters
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Tazri'a Metzora 5773Volume 9 · Issue 25
Radiance of the World
Essentially, we say this in the Musaf Prayer of Rosh Chodesh: “Heads of months to Your people You have given, the time of atonement for all their consequences, when they would bring before You sacrifices of favor and goats of sin offering to atone for them, which would
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Chukas 5773Volume 9 · Issue 33
Revitalizing the Torah
On a practical level, I am extremely astonished that no one has aroused the public to establish Friday prior to the reading of the portion of Chukas as a fast day, at least until the Afternoon Prayer. It was established by the earlier commentators as a fast day and it is recorded in the Code of Jewish Law. It is a fast for the decrees against the Torah, and today, harsh and severe decrees withhold the Torah
