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ב"ה

Vayakhel 5765 - March 4, 5765

A Brief History of Shabbat

The creation of rest . . . Sarah’s miraculous Shabbat lamp . . . Bread from heaven . . . “Work” defined . . . The invention of cholent . . . Sacrifice and martyrdom . . . Candle-lighting campaign . . . The World to Come . . .
Parshah
Vayakhel in a Nutshell
The Jewish nation donates the necessary materials to the Tabernacle, and Moses has to tell them to stop giving. Moses reiterates the laws of Sabbath observance. The Tabernacle and its vessels are built by a team of artisans.
On the Essence of Pleasure

The world, the sages tell us, is made of pleasure. Pleasure condenses and contracts and becomes Wisdom. Wisdom condenses further and becomes Understanding...
Story
Hospitality, 1939

The Jewish refugees slept in the train stations, exposed to the elements, awaiting deportation to Siberia. It was strictly forbidden for any Russian citizen to communicate with these “foreign spies” . . .
Parenting
How to Make Time for Your Family

“I can’t work any harder than I’m working now!” one busy father asserted. But maybe the trick is not to work harder but to work smarter.
I Feel Like a Hypocrite!

How can I exclaim, “love G-d with all your heart” when I don’t really feel that way?
As long as Sarah lived, there was a blessing on her dough, and the lamp used to burn from the eve of the Sabbath until the eve of the following Sabbath; when she died, these ceased; but when Rebecca came, they returned
— Midrash Rabbah, Bereishit 60