January 9, 2018 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, God brings the first seven plagues upon the Egyptians through Moshe and Aharon, but Pharaoh repeatedly refuses to allow the Bnei Yisrael to leave. Were the plagues miracles, or did nature behave serendipitously at this time leading up to the Exodus? According to the Malbim (Meir Leibush ben Yehiel Michel Weiser), a […]

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January 3, 2018 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, Bnei Yisrael become slaves to Pharaoh; Hashem instructs Moshe to liberate the people; Moshe and Aharon approach Pharaoh, who refuses their request for liberation. We can all list the cast of characters involved in the Exodus: Moshe, Aharon, Miriam, Amram (Moshe’s father), Yocheved (Moshe’s mother), Yitro (Moshe’s father-in-law), Tziporah (Moshe’s wife), Yehoshua […]

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December 27, 2017 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, Yaakov blesses his sons on his deathbed and asks them to bury him in Cana’an. This is the last parasha in the book of Bereshit. As we finish the first of the five books of Moshe, there is a note of hope, as indeed there is at the end of each of […]

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December 19, 2017 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, Yosef reveals his identity to his brothers, prompting the entire family to move to Egypt, where Yosef reunites with his father, Yaakov. There is a story in the Torah about a person who is banished from the Land of Yisrael and winds up living in a nearby country. The person’s innate beauty […]

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December 12, 2017 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, Yosef interprets Pharaoh’s dreams and is appointed to implement Egypt’s anti-famine plan. This brings him into contact with his brothers again, as they come to Egypt to buy food. Towards the end of the book of Bereshit, we encounter many tears. Interestingly enough, this crying is done exclusively by men. Read more […]

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December 5, 2017 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, Yosef’s dreams anger his brothers, and they sell him into slavery in Egypt, where he eventually ends up in prison, still interpreting others’ dreams. Most of us recognize the names of the most famous twins in the Torah: Yaakov and Esav. In chapter 38, we encounter a second set of twins, which many […]

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November 28, 2017 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, Yaakov confronts Esav, wrestles with a “man” who blesses him by changing his name to Yisrael, loses his wife Rachel in childbirth, and experiences the trauma of the incident with his daughter Deena. There is an event in this week’s parasha that often goes overlooked. In Chapter 35, verse 8 we read, “Devorah, Rivka’s nurse, […]

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November 20, 2017 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, Yaakov flees to his uncle Lavan’s household and lives there for several years, marrying Lavan’s daughters, Leah and Rachel, and establishing a large family. One of the challenges of living in the modern era is grappling with ethical questions and challenges generated by new technologies. One area of particular concern is medical […]

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November 14, 2017 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, Rivka gives birth to twins, Esav and Yaakov, who struggle with each other, and Yaakov engages in bargaining and deception to obtain the birthright and Yitzchak’s blessing. Each of the brothers has an interesting name, or rather, two interesting names. Esav is also referred to as Edom, and Yaakov is renamed Yisrael after […]

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November 7, 2017 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

In this parasha, following the death of Sarah, Avraham purchases a burial plot and sends his servant, Eliezer, to find a wife for Yitzchak. Eliezer finds Rivka and brings her to Yitzchak to become his wife. As we know, Eliezer creates a test for determining the future wife for Yitzchak (24:12-14), which involves waiting by […]

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