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In this week’s parsha, Hashem tells us of the building materials that were required to create the beautiful Mishkan, the tabernacle – opening with gold, silver,...
Living in South Africa, we see how bribery and corruption result in the decay of our social institutions and unless checked, can lead to the breakdown...
This week we read the portion of Yisro, which contains one the most famous passages of the Torah – the Ten Commandments. We read of the...
They say adapt or die. But must we jettison the old to embrace the new? Is the choice limited to modern or antiquated, or can one...
I’m writing this only hours after watching the online kindling of the Menorah at the Kotel on the second night of Chanukah, which was dedicated in...
This month can certainly use some light. Our community has experienced the emotional toll of terrible losses in the past days and weeks. It almost feels...
The shocking incident of Dinah’s abduction by Shechem and his father, Chamor, is one of the themes of this week’s parsha. They thought they could take...
In Vayeitzei, we once again experience Yaakov’s wonderful dream of the ladder reaching up to heaven, on which angels ascend and descend whilst Hashem promises protection...
Theories abound about the Tembisa 10. Something seems not quite kosher about the birth of those decuplets. And, there was something not so kosher about the...
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks said, “The name of our parsha seems to embody a paradox. It’s called ‘Chayei Sarah’ [The Life of Sarah], but it begins...
Our sages teach of the obligation of every Jew to ask, “When will my actions reach those of our illustrious patriarchs and matriarchs?” We see the...
In this week’s Torah portion, Lech Lecha, we read about the first Jew, Avraham, who resisted the tide of paganism, idolatry, and immorality. Society had moved...
The world loves a hero. Every season, Hollywood invents new superheroes to fill the box-office coffers. Today, we even have a Jewish girl as the latest...
“As an eagle that stirs up its nest, hovering over its young” Rashi, one of our greatest commentators, explains that Hashem is compared to an eagle...
This week’s fundraising campaign for Community Security Organisation Medical in Cape Town and Hatzolah in Johannesburg beautifully replaces our obsession with daily infection statistics, hospital occupancies,...
There is a three-word phrase in our formal prayers that conveys the essence of Judaism. Being such a powerful phrase, it features appropriately in every formal...
An easy, albeit shallow, approach to understanding suffering in this world is to suggest that Hashem is just letting things happen, that it’s just nature taking...
The great historian, Paul Johnson, in his introduction to A History of the Jews, lists several key concepts and institutions which originated completely within the Torah...
“You shall observe the festival of Sukkot seven days after you have gathered in your grain and your wine; and you shall rejoice in your festival,...
“If you do obey these rules…” This is the opening line of the Torah portion this week. More accurately, the Torah states, “If you eikev obey...
And Charlton Heston came down from Mount Sinai and gave us the ten commandments. Oops! Sorry, make that Moses. And he was carrying the tablets with...
Devarim is the parsha associated with Tisha B’Av, the Jewish national day of mourning. After Shabbos, we will recall the destruction of our holy temple nearly...
In parshas Massei, the Torah traces our journey in the desert by listing all 42 camps that we passed through. This is a forerunner for Jewish...
The saddest period of our year known as the “three weeks” has just commenced, and culminates with Tisha B’Av on 18 July. We remember the violent...
There was once a noted Torah scholar who prided himself in his acute ability to correct other people’s mistakes. He had an eagle-eye for errors, and...
This week’s parsha introduces us to the detrimental spiritual effects of tumat met, the impurity that comes from being in contact with the dead and the...
I remember once being peripherally involved in a community dispute (a rare occurrence in Jewish life to be sure) some years ago. Discontent had been bubbling...
Do you want to preserve your eyesight? Mishna Berura (24,7) quotes an ancient custom that will prevent blindness. Passing the tzitzit over our eyes when reciting...
How many times have you heard this sentence (and be honest): “He/she is lovely, smart … but he/she doesn’t look Jewish.” Our weekly portion, B’haalotecha, teaches...
Shavuot begins this Sunday night, and the highlight of the festival – apart from cheesecake – is the reading of the ten commandments in synagogues on...
Tragedy struck in Meron, Israel, last week. Dozens of deaths and injuries in a horrific collapse as thousands were celebrating the joyous day of Lag B’Omer....
“Twelve thousand pairs of students were under Rebbi Akiva, and they all died in one chapter for they did not act respectfully to each other. It...
As the Jewish nation camps in the wilderness linking the land of the Pharaohs and the promised land, they are warned not to emulate the behaviour...
We are in the midst of counting the Omer – a commandment to count the days and weeks from the second day of Pesach until Shavuot....
This week’s parsha details the laws of kashrus. The Torah makes a brave statement by enumerating the one and only animal that has split hooves but...
Pesach is again here. Another yom tov under the confines of the pandemic, though this time, baruch Hashem, the end is in sight. We are on...
In the month of Nissan, in which the redemption from Egypt took place, there is a Talmudic discussion about the time of the future redemption. Rabbi...
Transparency and accountability are the buzzwords for 21st century corporate governance. No doubt all upright, honourable people welcome every effort to stop corruption and dishonesty in...
Some time ago, a friend shared a personal anecdote that has stayed with me because of the simple yet powerful message it conveys. Beggars are, sadly,...
When would Hashem ever want us not to daven? In Parshat Beshalach, as the Jewish people were standing between the sea, the Egyptian army, and the...
