Behar/Bechukosai – Tilling and Toiling

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Sanctification or Vacuum (4:5)

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If our life’s mission would be distilled down to one idea it would be Kiddush Hashem (Sanctification of God’s Name). The opposite of Kiddush Hashem is Chilul Hashem (Desecration of God’s Name). Due to the gravity of these concepts, they are treated differently.

This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on Dec 17, 2019

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Behar Bechukosai – Hostage Letter (5783)

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Our Parsha contains some of the most difficult portions in the Torah, the Admonition. Our nation is told of the consequences of failing to adhere to the rules of God. The consequences are fierce and harsh. When this section is read in the synagogue, it is done quickly and in an undertone to prevent the congregation from lapsing into depression. But the Admonition ends on a comforting note: God promises to remember the covenant that He forged with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Notwithstanding our intransigent behavior and our betrayal of God, He pledges to ensure that we endure come what may. This podcast orients around a fascinating peculiarity in this comforting note. We discover the unique role that Jacob plays in our history, the difference between his Jacob and Israel personas, and his connection with Elijah, the heralder of redemption.

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Extreme Measures (4:4)

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My wise grandmother, of blessed memory, used to quip, “Everything in moderation.” That sagacious advice is, in fact, the backbone of Rambam’s understanding of proper character. In every trait, there are two polar extremes, and both are not ideal. The balanced approach, the golden medium, the moderate middle, the midpoint between both extremes – that is the sweet spot to strive for. But there is one exception. There is one character trait that is so harmful and dangerous, that extreme measures are necessary.

This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on Nov 26, 2019

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DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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Modern Day Heresy

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Heresies and idolatries come and go. The idolatry that titillated the ancients no longer excites modern men. The heresies that revolutionized the world a century ago no longer resonate. Any heresy is a repudiation of God, and thus is bound to vaporize like a puff of smoke. Falsehood cannot endure for long, and eventually all heresies dissipate. But a fixture of our world is the balance required to facilitate free will. When one heresy dies, another must take its place. Our sages tell us that the last heresy preceding the Messianic redemption is the repudiation of Free Will. In the third and final installment of my grandfather’s chapter on Free Will, we study the nature of this heresy and the mechanism by which the good and evil inclinations are balanced.

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DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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Parshas Behar & Bechukosai (Rebroadcast)

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This week’s double-Parsha closes out the Book of Leviticus. Parshas Behar begins at Mount Sinai, where the Almighty instructed Moshe to convey a series of laws to the Jewish people. The first is the mitzvah of Shemittah, the prohibition of engaging in any agricultural work every seven years. In two chapters in the Torah (Leviticus 26, Deuteronomy 28) we read about the positive consequences of obeying the Torah and heeding its laws; and the terrible, painful consequences of disobeying the Law. Though reading Parshas Bechukosai is scary and a tad depressing, the truth is that this framework is the secret to our nation enduring such long and painful exiles.

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DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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The Critical Hour (4:3)

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How valuable is an hour of time? How much of a person’s life can be changed in one hour? In this mishna, Ben Azzai teaches us the power of a single hour.

This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on Nov 18, 2019

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DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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Emor – Lopside Down

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Passover marks the Exodus from Egypt. But leaving Egypt was only the beginning of the radical transformation that the Almighty brought about. 50 days after the Exodus, the nation coalesced around Mount Sinai and experienced theophany – national prophecy, national Revelation – at the mountain. The whole nation heard the word of God and lived. This cemented the transformation of the Exodus. This permanently ensured that the nation will be servants of God, not servants of pharaoh. Passover and Shavuot are effectively two bookends of one mega festival of freedom from bondage. The days that link the two are known as the Omer days. What we do during these days will determine how much we benefit from the power of this festival.

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DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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Mechanisms of Free Will

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Is free will limited or unlimited? What is the scope of free will? How much of our decisions must filter through that system of choice? How much can we actually accomplish if we set our mind to it? What is the mechanisms of ascending a free will ladder? In part 2 of our study of free will, we continue our exploration of fundamental concepts in free will, and learn about the transformative insight of the point of free will conflict.

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DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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Miracle Drugs and Superfoods (4:2)

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Something dramatic happens when the Soul is fed. It is empowered and its place in a person’s identity is augmented, and concurrently the Yetzer Hara’s influence is weakened. A virtuous cycle results wherein one Mitzvah makes the second Mitzvah more likely. Initially, the Mitzvos need to be force-fed like feeding a patient who refuses food. The earlier Mitzvos create a medicine-like transformation because by feeding the Soul, it captures a larger share of his identity and its needs become a bit more instinctual leading man to naturally desire more Mitzvos, and be drawn to them with magnetic attraction.

This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on Sep 19, 2019

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DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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#95: Venues of Reward and Punishment

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Spiritual pleasure is vastly, infinitely greater than physical pleasures, and are completely imperceivable by bodies. Only if you work assiduously to develop a sensory connection with your soul, can you begin to taste it. The ultimate venue of spiritual pleasure is known as Olam Haba, the world to come. What about other venues of reward? What about Paradise, Resurrection, and the days of Messiah? How do those rewards featured in the Literature fit into the system of reward and pleasure of Jewish eschatology? In the third and final installment of Rambam’s magisterial essay, we explore the other venues of reward and punishment.

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DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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Emor – Snowball’s Chance in Heaven (5783)

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The story of the first person to ever be executed in a Jewish court of law is featured at the end of this week’s Parsha. An unnamed man, the son of an Israelite woman and an Egyptian man, blasphemed and was executed. When we ponder the story we discover all sorts of interesting tidbits. The blasphemer has a fascinating back story and his motivation to blaspheme is quite surprising. In this podcast we study the episode of the blasphemer and emerge with a powerful lesson that can make a big impact on our lives.

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DONATE to TORCH: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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