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Torah

G-d, where are you? Give me a sign!

By obormottel
Have you been searching for G-d? As we all know, the "hero" of this Parasha earns the distinct honor of having the Parasha named after him. Of course, we are talking about Pinchas. (In fact, out of all the fifty-four Parashiot in the Torah, only six of them are named af...
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Teshuvah - Instant Acceptance

By obormottel
The Midrash gives a mashal to a hunter who was pursuing a bird and the bird flew off and landed on a statue of the king. if he shoots an arrow it may damage the statue. if he throws a stone he would be guilty of stoning an image of the king and forfeit his life. So to, B...
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What a Fool I Was!

By obormottel
ויחל העם לזנות אל בנות מואב “And the people began to commit harlotry with the daughters of Moab..” How did we FALL? We were so HOLY! Parashas Balak tells the story of Balaam, the Greatest Prophet of the Gentile Nations who was hired by King Balak of Moab. Balak w...
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But I just don’t understand the "G-d of our understanding"!

By obormottel
זאת חקת התורה “This is THE DECREE of the Torah..” Will we ever know the answer? Parasha Chukas has been declared The Quintessential limit of Man’s understanding of G-d’s Ways. Sages have grappled for all of time to find some common sense logical way of explaining how ...
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What Tachanun?!

By obormottel
Here's a milsa debidichusah. Today I was discussing with some friends about how many Chassidim don't say Tachnun on a Yartzeit of a "Tzadik Mefursam", and many times Chassidim will find the Yartzeit of a "Tzadik Mefursam" on every single day of the year. So I thought that...
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Don’t be like Korach - ולא יהיה כקרח

By obormottel
Rabbi Eliyahu Dessler zt”l (Michtav Me’Eliyahu vol. 4) explains how it happened that a smart man like Korach acted so foolishly. What he says, applies to each of us as well - so listen carefully! He quotes Rav Hai Gaon (in his responsa), who brings the following story: A ...
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Words create

By obormottel
Have you ever said something that you later regretted? Were you angry or jealous and felt like to had to yell or scream? It's like we just can't help ourselves. And so we open our Big Mouth and we let it all out. Never mind how the other person is going to feel after...
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40 Crazy Years! Why should I Change NOW???

By obormottel
Parshas Shelach describes a Jew's inability of breaking out from victim - aka Egyptian (*1) Slave Mentality - into survivor - aka Freedom Mentality - when they accepted the report of the spies negatively. This sealed their fate in the desert. In contrast, the Haftara rela...
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Nesivos Sholom on Parshas Shelach

By obormottel
Lo Sasuru Acharei Eineichem is a Lo Sa'aseh on Hirhur Halev. How could there be a Lo Sa'aseh if Chazal say that a negative Machshava H' doesn't consider a Ma'aseh Aveira? R' Chaim Vital explains that a Chet is a combination of 4 things - Thought in the Brain, thought in t...
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Shelach: Ha'oros Yosef HaTzadik

By obormottel
V'anancho omeid aleihem u'v'amut anan atta holeich lifneihem.When we just see a cloud over us, we should remember that Hashem is using THIS cloud to guide us! `````` U'kvod Hashem nire'eh b'ohel.Rashi: Ha'anan yarad sham.Some see The Kovod of Hashem & Others just see ...
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Chinuch's endorsement of AA

By obormottel
מצוה שפ״ז שלא נתור אחר מחשבת הלב The chinuch compares one who pursues lust to an alcoholic: כי התאוה תמשוך הבשר כמשוך היין אל שותים. How's that for an endorsement of AA. The chinuch also writes that there is no malkus for one who violated this lav since its impossible ...
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A Lesson from the Meraglim

By obormottel
Picture what the scene must have looked like. Moshe tells the Bnei Yisroel everyone that is twenty years old and up should bring a machtzis hashekel to be counted. These coins are going to be used for the foundation of the mishkan. Do we have a concept of what it means...
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A Lesson from the Mapilim

By obormottel
It happens all the time we have a nasty fall and we finally get back up and all of the sudden we act like big tzaddikim. In a way, we are acting no different than the maplim. The cheit of the meraglim a tremendous yeridah that we are still paying the price for today. Y...
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Grasshoppers and Giants

Grasshoppers and Giants

By obormottel
We are are continuing our new weekly Series – “How this Parasha relates to the Struggler” Have you ever faced a new opportunity or a big challenge? Did you ever really want to change but something always seemed to get in the way? You may be asking, what is keeping me fr...
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Complaint l'shem Shomayim

By obormottel
"Good, I'm patur! But how can I miss out on a mitzvah?" Their attitude was that missing a mitzvah is a deprivation. It is something that I am going to miss, and I do not want that to happen. It is not a question of punishment and it is not a question of blame. It is a se...
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The Ever New in the Never Old

By obormottel
HASHEM said to Moshe saying, “Speak to Aaron and say to him: When you “light-up” the lamps, toward the face of the Menorah shall the seven lamps cast light.” Aaron did so- (Bamidbar 8:1-2)Aaron did so: To teach you the praise of Aaron that he did not change. (Rashi)What’s...
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Day by Day

By obormottel
Beha'aloscha starts with the commandment to Aharon to light the Menorah. We all know the famous Rashi that why is this Parsha of Menora near the Parsha of the Nesi'im. Aharon was saddened that Shevet Levi was not part of the grand pageantry that was the Chanuchas Hamizbea...
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Count your blessings

By obormottel
"The rabble that was among them cultivated a craving, and the Children of Israel also wept once more, and said, "Who will feed us meat? We remember the fish that we ate in Egypt free of charge; the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic. But now, our life is parched...
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