Shechem

Vayishlach – Distorted Reflections

Why are the three locations that the midrash says clearly belong to the Jewish people all currently being claimed by the Arabs? When we do not understand a word in Hebrew, why do we turn to other languages to understand that word? What is the significance of the city of Shechem? Why is it given…

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Kever Yosef

I merited to be one of many visiting Kever Yosef tonight. Here are two pictures from my trip. (The shine is a reflective jacket.) I found it interesting that the jpost writes about the murder in Shechem during Pesach and talks about tonight’s visit. It seems clear to me that the death on the sixth…

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Dina and Shechem revisited (again)

I have had some interesting responses to the podcast/post on Dina and Shechem, and I wanted to share some of my further thoughts on the matter. Much of the following thoughts came as a result of discussions I had with my wife as well as my sister. I also thank TQ for bringing up this…

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Vayishlach – Dina and Yosef (revisited)

Why was Yakov expected to know that Dina could have brought Esav to do Teshuva? Why would she succeed where Rivka and Yitzchak had failed? What is the meaning of the mysterious connection between Dina and Yosef? Why is Yosef connected to the city of Shechem? Find out in this week’s Parsha Podcast. You can…

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Yosef and Shechem II

Listening to Mordechai ben David’s song “את אחי אנכי מבקש” I was struck with the following thought, which is an extension of the previous discussion of Yosef and Shechem. Yosef asked Gavriel where his brothers had gone, and where they were shepherding. First, it is significant that he was speaking to Gavriel, because we find…

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Shechem, Yosef and Dina

Some wild and interesting thoughts occurred to me last week, and I hope you will indulge me for a few moments. I do not have a source for any of my conclusions, but the basis is information you will recognize, and the implications will be quite intriguing. When the Torah describes Dina’s birth, the commentaries…

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