ב"ה
Balak 5767 - June 29, 2007
Chassidic Thought
Why Do We Believe?
I know that there are many logical proofs for the truth of Judaism. But at the end of the day, how do you know that yours is the right way? What makes you so sure?
I know that there are many logical proofs for the truth of Judaism. But at the end of the day, how do you know that yours is the right way? What makes you so sure?
Why Is Expecting Moshiach Integral to Judaism?
Why is the belief in Moshiach and the Redemption so central to Judaism? What makes it one of the “thirteen principles” of the Jewish faith upon which its entire edifice rests?
Why is the belief in Moshiach and the Redemption so central to Judaism? What makes it one of the “thirteen principles” of the Jewish faith upon which its entire edifice rests?
Parshah
The Parshah in a Nutshell
Balak sends Balaam to curse the Jews. His talking donkey tries to stop him, to no avail. Each time he opens his mouth, Balaam ends up blessing the nation instead.
Balak sends Balaam to curse the Jews. His talking donkey tries to stop him, to no avail. Each time he opens his mouth, Balaam ends up blessing the nation instead.
The Showdown
On one side stood Moses, the greatest prophet of all time. On the other side was Balaam, the far-famed soothsayer. At stake was the most critical question in all creation: Does G‑d care about good and evil?
On one side stood Moses, the greatest prophet of all time. On the other side was Balaam, the far-famed soothsayer. At stake was the most critical question in all creation: Does G‑d care about good and evil?
The Fragile Veneer of Evil
On the one hand, he’s declared to be nothing less than the equal of Abraham (in passion) and Moses (in prophecy); on the other, he’s described as the most perverse, greedy and corrupt human being ever to walk the face of the earth!
On the one hand, he’s declared to be nothing less than the equal of Abraham (in passion) and Moses (in prophecy); on the other, he’s described as the most perverse, greedy and corrupt human being ever to walk the face of the earth!
Close Your Blinds
We live in an age of revelation; privacy is passé. All the more reason to recall Balaam's vision of the goodly tents of the Israelite camp...
We live in an age of revelation; privacy is passé. All the more reason to recall Balaam's vision of the goodly tents of the Israelite camp...
Living
Stones and Pebbles
In our busy lives today, there is only one way to make the time for things that are important to us and that is by employing the "Jar Parable"
In our busy lives today, there is only one way to make the time for things that are important to us and that is by employing the "Jar Parable"
The Man Who Changed his Life after Reading his Obituary
It's not very often that a person gets to see, printed in a newspaper, how he will be remembered after his death. One man did, and what he saw horrified him...
It's not very often that a person gets to see, printed in a newspaper, how he will be remembered after his death. One man did, and what he saw horrified him...
I see it, but not now; I behold it, but it is not near. There shall shoot forth a star out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and rule all the children of Seth
— Balaam, prophesying on Moshiach, Numbers 24:17
Print Magazine
Blind faith cannot grasp Truth, because it does not grasp anything at all.
Intellect cannot grasp Truth, because intellect is finite and Truth is infinite.
Only the eye of the soul, its inner wisdom, can grasp Truth and know it as she knows her own self.
For she is Truth.
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