Rabbi Zeira’s 100 Fasts Daf Yomi participants recently learned an astounding report about Rabbi Zeira (Bava Metzia 85a). When this great (and colorful) Amora made

Right after Shavuos last year, I took my son on a hike called Stairway to Heaven, in Vernon, New Jersey. At the top of the

In Sefer Bamidbar, all communication between God and Moshe seems to occur in the Mishkan (see Rashbam, Ibn Ezra and Chizkuni on Bamidbar 1:1). However,

Parshat Naso This week’s haftarah relates the miraculous birth of Shimshon—Samson—who, even before his birth, was marked for exceptional accomplishments and for leadership in Israel.

דַּבֵּר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם אִישׁ אוֹ אִשָּׁה כִּי יַפְלִא לִנְדֹּר נֶדֶר נָזִיר לְהַזִּיר לַידֹוָד (במדבר ו:ב) The halachos of Nazir are written in

אָמַר רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן לֵוִי… וְהַלֻּחֹת מַעֲשֵׂה אֱלֹקים הֵמָּה וְהַמִּכְתָּב מִכְתַּב אֱלֹקים הוּא חָרוּת עַל הַלֻּחֹת (שמות לב), אַל תִּקְרָא חָרוּת אֶלָּא חֵרוּת, שֶׁאֵין לְךָ

Parshat Naso describes the option to become a nazir, prohibiting oneself from drinking wine (and even eating grapes!), cutting one’s hair and participating in the

There is nothing like buying flowers for Shabbos. And there is nothing like buying those flowers from one of our own brethren. In this particular

A primary role of the Levi’im—the one that we most readily associate with them—is that of musicians, meshorerim, who enhanced the Temple offerings with their

Our parsha contains the Birkat Kohanim. Rav Binyamin Luban notes that the first stanza which states, “May Hashem bless you and safeguard you,” refers to

Rabbi Avraham Y. Kook was the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi in the decade just prior to the establishment of the modern state of Israel. During

Rabbi Epstein was born in Belorussia, and studied in a traditional cheder. His intent was to follow in his father’s footsteps: work as a merchant