chessed
Tzav and Purim – North and South
Why is the korban olah (fully burnt sacrifice) related to the north, while the shelamim (partly burned, partly eaten) is related to the south? Why are the concepts of exile, Gog and Moshiach related to the north, while redemption, Gog’s fall, and the rebuilding of the Temple related to the south? Why can’t a northerly…
Read MoreToldos – Spiritual Power
Why does the Torah preface the story of Yakov (Jacob) and Esav with the statement that Abraham birthed Isaac? What is the significance of the fact that Isaac was forty years old when he got married? What is the spiritual power of the circumcision of Ishmael at age thirteen? What is the spiritual power of…
Read MoreToldos – Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov
How do we see a reference to all three patriarchs in the first verse of the parsha? What does the midrash mean when it says that Avraham was saved from the fire in the merit of his grandson Jacob? What does the midrash mean when it says that all of the patriarchs were referred to…
Read MoreRav Elya Svei's hesped and more
A reader of this blog was at Rav Elya’s levaya, and shared with me that Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky, the Rosh Yeshiva of the Philadelphia, in his eulogy of Rav Svei, said that Rav Svei had said ten years ago that Moshiach would come in 2009. A comment on the previous post gave the following link…
Read MoreSeeds of redemption
Before Purim, someone shared a beautiful pshat with me in the name of the Chasam Sofer (I believe). If one goes back to the root of the miracle of Purim, we can trace the beginning stage to the party of Achashverosh that is described at the beginning of the story. During that party, the king…
Read MoreAz die rebbe zingt
This is a video of my father (Mr. Murray Goldwag) singing in a nursing home in Jerusalem on February 28, 2009. My mother (Mrs. Meryl Goldwag) is accompanying him on the guitar. My father shared with me that of all the experiences he has had here in Israel since living here starting in September, this…
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