Parshat Pekudei
The mitzvot that dominant nations are most fervently against automatically require extra valor and self-sacrifice to fulfill. Observing these precepts takes on higher meaning as an expression of emuna.
Parshat Vayaq’hel
The melekh does not actually rule over Israel but rather embodies the mission and aspirations of his nation to the extent that he becomes a microcosm of the entire Jewish people and his personal identity is absorbed into Israel’s collective national identity.
Parshat Ki Tisa
Through a heightened awareness of Israel’s true inner essence, we can see past the sharp ideological divisions and appreciate the intrinsic unity beneath and beyond our surface disputes.
Parshat Tetzave
Upon a surface reading of the text, Aharon appears to have lacked the readiness for ultimate sacrifice.
Parshat T’ruma
The notion of giving everything to HaShem illustrates the difference between the mentality of redemption and that of the exile.
Parshat Mishpatim
Israel being a “kingdom of priests and a holy nation” necessitates the sanctification of individual, interpersonal and national life so as to give earthly expression to the Torah’s lofty spiritual values.
Parshat Yitro
The Torah is not a “religion” relegated to the houses of study or prayer. Nor is it a set of rules meant to coercively modify human behavior.
Parshat Beshalaḥ
At various historic points, a “low soul” has prevented the Children of Israel from successfully advancing our national aspirations and collective mission.
Parshat Bo
The more we define ourselves as the actors rather than as the characters we play, the more our characters can actually succeed at fulfilling their unique roles in the story.
Parshat Va’eira
It is through the story of Israel, as it unfolds throughout time, that humanity sees history as possessing Divine meaning and purpose.