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| Home » Writings, Speeches, Broadcasts » Daf Hashavua |
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| Mishpatim 5770 |
| 13/2/2010 |
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There is an ancient fable about a scorpion and a frog. The scorpion needed to cross a river, but couldn’t swim. So he found a frog and asked it to carry him across. “But what if you sting me?” said the frog. “Foolish frog,” replied the scorpion, “How could I sting you? If I did, we would both drown and die.”
So the frog took the scorpion on its back and started to swim. Halfway across, the scorpion stung the... |
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| Shemot 5770 |
| 9/1/2010 |
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One of Moses Maimonides’ greatest innovations was a little book he wrote as part of his monumental code of Jewish law, the Mishneh Torah. He called it Hilkhot Deot, a phrase best translated as “laws of ethical character.” In doing so he endowed us with an insight into Judaism we sometimes forget.
We think of halakhah as Jewish law, and law is about action, conduct: the things we may do, must do or ought not to do. Maimonides went further. Jewish law, he implied, i... |
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| Vayeshev 5770 |
| 12/12/2009 |
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The recent controversy about MP’s expenses, as well as a series of charges against political leaders in Israel, raise an important principle of ethics about which the Torah, and Jewish law, have much to say.
At the beginning of Pekudei (Ex. 38: 21-31), the Torah lists the precise amounts of gold, silver and bronze raised in the course of making the Tabernacle. Moses ordered Itamar – an independent auditor – to give an account of the sums and how ex... |
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| Chaye Sarah 5770 |
| 14/11/2009 |
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Chayei Sarah contains an extended account of what we might call the first Jewish marriage. Sarah had died. Abraham, by then old, had been “blessed with all”. Yet their son Isaac, the first child born within the covenant, remained unmarried. Abraham gave his servant the mission of finding his son a wife.
The test the servant chooses is significant. She will be one who, when asked by a stranger to give him water to drink, not only does so, but gives water to his camels ... |
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