Text message Shoftim

Parashat Shoftim (Judges)

The Torah tells us: You shall not move your boundary which marked the early ones.

Clearly the torah is warning us from stealing property, any kind of property, including intellectual ones.

The main reason for this verse is to keep people refrained from abusing power and the tribes and families conserving their lands.

But I'd like to read it in a different way, too. You shall not cross the barrier that your ancestors established. In our lives, there are many barriers that should not be crossed in order to respect and honor those who came before us.

Each person, each family has their own rules, limits and systems. Preserving them is a way to honor those who are no longer able to change them anymore.

In memory of my beloved mother and teacher Miriam Rachel bat Israel Itzchak

Parashat Ree

Parashat Re'eh (see)

It is in front of you, says Moses. You can choose. You have the possibility to choose between a blessing and a curse.

Most of us most of the time will choose the blessing. But what happens when things do not work out the way we want?

What happens when the outcome is not what we expected ? Or when there is a tragedy?

It is difficult to see the blessing in the darkness.

When you lose someone you love, our tradition teaches that we must say Hashem has given and Hashem has taken, praised be the name of Hashem.

We need to see the blessing in our loss, too. It is difficult but not impossible.

In memory of my beloved mother and teacher Miriam Rachel bat Israel Itzchak Z"L