Vayeira
True Reality appears when all else disappears.
Sometimes angels may appear human, just as humans, at times, may appear angelic. After a delectable feast, the three angels tell Sarah that, in one year’s time, she will give birth to a child. Sarah, 90 years of age, laughs. Mazal tov! It’s a boy and his name is Isaac. Try as he might, Abraham cannot find one redeeming factor in the city of Sodom. The Creator thus deletes Sodom from creation. Abraham sends Ishmael east, out of his father’s house. The binding of Isaac changes the perception of humanities relationship with G-d forever. Is it greater to live for G-d or die for G-d?
Ishmael and Isaac: A Timeless Family Feud
In this week’s Torah Portion, Vayeira, we discuss the two sons of Abraham – Ishmael and Isaac and their historic sibling rivalry; a fundamental dispute that continues to this very day.
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The Happiness Myth: Is There Anything I Can Do to Be a Happier Person?
Join Rabbi Jacobson in this illuminating workshop as he dissects the anatomy of happiness and dispels the myths surrounding its elusive search.
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How Deep Can You See?
Journey into the deepest elements of existence and discover why the vital aspects of life like ideas, feelings, love, and the soul can’t be seen or heard.
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Never Look Back
Empower yourself by focusing on what lies ahead instead of being consumed by the past. Learn the importance of forging ahead, especially in face of tragedy.
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Righteous and Just
Abraham’s mandate is as important today as ever. And his persistence teaches us the power of one individual’s choice, how much it can accomplish.
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To See the Divine
To see the Divine, you learn to savor every sight, every sound, every taste, every touch, every smell.
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Think Different
We must see current events as a unique opportunity to wake up: This is our time to affect real change, it is time to start thinking and acting differently.
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How to Treat Infidels
Faith in G-d extends to loving other people, regardless of their background and similarity to you. Faith is about extending love and compassion.
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Vayeira: How to Treat Infidels
The evolution of religion and all its manifestations and distortions can be traced back to Abraham’s passionate faith and what he taught his children, and what they did or did not do with these teachings.
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Genuine Hypocrisy
When Abraham looked at his guests he did not see pagans, idolaters & fetishists; he saw creatures of G-d who had been created in the divine image…
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Vayeira: Where is Moshiach? In Sodom
The theme, in this week’s Torah portion, the destruction of the wicked cities, Sodom and Gomorrah, a deceptively complex story…
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The Oven Stokers of Mezerich
A story of the ‘Oven Stoker’s of Mezeritch’ and how each of them described their degree of self-sacrifice attained in their service of the Almighty.
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Flying Branches
Man was empowered to live a G-dly life, to think G-dly thoughts, speak G-dly words and do G-dly deeds through the mitzvot of the Torah established by G-d.
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Yes and No
Gain insight into why G-d created the world and discover the spiritual significance behind the unique mitzvah of circumcision.
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The Oven Stokers of Mezerich
An overheard conversation of the Oven Stokers of Mezerich. Chassidic story about self-sacrifice and Divine service.
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Three Lovers of Israel
Three great Chassidic leaders were famous for their ahavat yisrael (“love of a fellow Jew”): Rabbi Zusha of Anipoli, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, and Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov.
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The Natural Jew
The example of Abraham’s circumcision demonstrates, a mitzvah extends far beyond its momentary act of fulfilling the divine will.
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The Rebbe’s Budget
Rabbi Israel of Ruzhin had a smart answer for a skeptical business man.
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The Frontier of Self
When we speak of the Akeidah, we also speak of those who trod the path this great deed blazed. Of the countless thousands who died for the creed of Abraham.
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Hide and Seek
A kind and caring word will achieve what the most profound arguments and the most glaring truths will not.
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The Binding of Isaac: Event and Edifice
It is significant that Abraham bound his son on the site of the future altar, destined to embody the human commitment in the relationship between man and G-d.
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Advertising
“You collect books to sell them to the world,’ replied the sage, ‘so all the world knows about them. My books are for myself.”
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The Years of his Youth
Not only did Abraham rush to fulfill the divine will with speed and alacrity, he also brought all the energy, passion and commitment of his youth to the deed.
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Genuine Hypocrisy
Abraham understood that no human acknowledgment of G-d can ever be “hypocritical.”
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Abraham’s Tent
Our own sukkot resemble the resting place that Abraham offered his guests. Yet there is also a primary difference between our sukkah and Abraham’s tent.
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Vayeirah : G-d’s Mysterious Ways
Our relationship with G-d is a two-way street: The more we immerse ourselves in our calling and the more dedicated we become to our mission, the more access we gain to the deeper mysteries of life.
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Vayeira: Winds Of Change
As Hurricane Sandy rages, what messages do its furious winds bring us? Will we absorb their lessons and create a spiritual storm of our own, bringing fresh winds of spirit and growth in our own lives?
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Vaeira: Haiti
Rabbi Simon Jacobson reflects on the humanitarian response to the Haiti disaster, and how it reflects a shift in global spiritual engagement.
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Vayeirah: Nurturing
We begin our lives constantly in need of support. As we grow older our parents let go and we learn to walk on our own. Sometimes even adults need a lift.
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Vayeira: The True You
This world often conveys the message that everyone is damaged at the core. Part four of Samech Vov discusses the essence of the soul and how each one is, in fact, at perfect peace.
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Vaeirah: A Changed Landscape
Are humans inherently greedy and self-absorbed? Or is it our bodies that demand this from our actually selfless souls?
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Vayeirah : The Mission Continues
The topics discussed include G-d’s plans “behind the curtain,” the power of prayer, and each individual’s mission in this world.
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Vayera: Religious Selfishness
Abraham gave us the power to challenge G-d, asking Him to shift destiny. This we must when it comes to standing next to fellow Jews in defiance against G-d.
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