Devarim: Looking Backward and Forward
Dear Friend,
Summer is here! Camping trips, barbecues at the beach, long warm days in the sun—what more could we want? But with Tisha B’Av right around the corner, now is the time to reflect on the fact that we are still in exile. This is not where we want to be. The bliss of poolside margaritas has nothing on the bliss of G‑dly revelation in messianic times.
The Rebbe reminds us that summer—when school is out, the kids are home, and warmer days beg for lighter clothing—is not the time to relax our commitment to Torah values. If anything, the extended daylight hours give us more time to study Torah. Having the kids home from school gives us the opportunity to spend more time with them—no, not pulling our hair out—imparting Jewish values.
So by all means, go lounge on the deck. But bring a book of Torah with you. And then, please G‑d, we won’t have to mourn on Tisha B’Av. Because that extra mitzvah may tip the scales in the direction of global redemption.
Sasha Friedman,
on behalf of the Chabad.org Editorial Team
Perhaps Moses spent his last days on earth repeating lessons he had already taught to underscore the necessity of education.
While rebuking the people, Moses dropped subtle suggestions of extenuating circumstances for each sin . . .
The Talmud teaches that G‑d uttered the Ten Commandments in all 70 languages, though only the Hebrew version was heard. What was the point of speaking in languages that no one understood, let alone heard?
For thirty-seven days Moses talks: recalling, reminding, rebuking, warning, promising; about the revelation at Sinai and their journeys through the desert, about spies and wars and victories and the Land, and what it’s like to serve as a leader of G‑d’s chosen people.
A fundamental Jewish belief is that we will live in our bodies a second time around. But after experiencing life in heaven, why would any soul want to return to this earth?
The name of the tenth month on the Jewish calendar Av, literally means "father." Yet, Av is the month that both Holy Temples were destroyed and many other tragedies occurred in Jewish history.
After years of trying and seeking help from specialists, Anya and Sol confronted the reality of their situation. “Would you want to adopt?” Anya asked one day in a tentative voice.
My mother’s behavior was not unique. To be a child of a survivor means being hyper-vigilant, as though this act of vigilance could keep the wolves from their prey . . .
For these nine days we relive the force of the fall of Jerusalem and our subsequent exile. Learn what we do, why we do it, where we can find the good in it all, and so much more.
On the Shabbat before the Ninth of Av, we are granted a vision of the third Temple. But what is the point of this vision, if we do not experience it consciously? And what exactly is it that we see?
It’s obvious that a soldier must be fully protected, and wearing all his military protective gear, in order to remain unharmed. What about his spiritual protection?
What makes salt kosher? What’s the difference between “kosher salt” and regular table salt?
What have we gained from guilt-tripping a guy into tefillin? It’s just a one off, with no guarantee of any followup.
More than 800 men, women and children gathered at the Chabad on Campus International Shluchim Conference for an annual “family reunion” that included inspiration, support, and plans for accelerated growth.
Rabbi Hershel (Yehudah Tzvi) Fogelman, the beloved rabbi and trailblazing educator who led the growth of Jewish life in central Massachusetts for more than 70 years, passed away last month at the age of 91.
Rabbi Yossi Eber is a hard person to miss in Trinity, Florida. Typically, people come to a new place and try to blend in. But being a Chabad-Lubavitch emissary, he must maintain a certain look, and has a definite purpose—an appearance and goals that are far from the norm in this part of Florida.
My poetic depiction of how Israel might feel includes a bold Magen David (Star of David) displayed with great pride.
For a mitzvah is a candle and Torah is light. (Proverbs 6:23)
Every mitzvah shines its particular light into our world. And there will come a time when you will see that light with your eyes.
Except the candles that are lit for Shabbat before sunset. They shine a light you can see right now.
It may seem an ordinary li...
