Rabbi Levin's Blog

Hashem gave the Jewish people the Torah.  We are taught that He chose us to receive the Torah.  In the blessings we say every morning and upon being called to the Torah, we say “Who chose us from all the nations and gave us the Torah.”  It seems as if the Torah was an exclusive gift that Hashem chose to give specifically to us as opposed to the other nations. Slight problem:  Our Sages teach that Hashem offered the Torah to every nation!  When Moshe blessed the people before he passed, he said the following Devarim 33:2):  “G-d’s presence came from Mount Sinai to meet them. He shone forth to them after coming from Mount Se’ir. He appeared after coming from Mount Paran.  What was He doing on Mount Se’ir and Mount Paran?  This is the Biblical source for the teaching that Hashem first offered the Torah to all the nations.  The nations didn’t want the Torah because it interfered with their lifestyles.  The nation of Eisav said they live by t...

The Torah seems to be giving good advice to farmers:  Sow your field for six years and let it lie fallow on the seventh.  On a superficial level, it seems like a good idea, to let the field rest and regain its nutrients.  And over the years I have had this discussion with many people, intimating that the Torah was written by scholars in an agricultural society and that it makes a lot of sense for the physical needs of the land. There are a few problems with this approach however.  First of all, the verse states: The earth shall rest “a Shabbat for Hashem.”  This is not about the benefit of the earth, this is about doing something for Hashem.  There are several other issues that come up.  In addition to not sowing the field, the Torah says not to prune the vineyard during the Sabbatical year.  Is there some physical benefit to the field from that?   I am not a farmer, a biologist or a botanist, so I did a little research.  It seems t...

Tonight and tomorrow (Friday) is Lag Ba’omer.  What exactly is Lag Ba’Omer? The word “lag” is not actually a Hebrew word.  It is a composite of two letters, lamed and gimel, and is used for the numerical value.  Lamed is 30, gimel is 3, so “lag” is 33. Ba’omer means “of the Omer.”  So Lag Ba’Omer is the 33rd day of the Omer counting.  One of the questions I wan tto address is why we mark the day as the 33rd of the Omer and not by the date on the calendar, 18 Iyar. During the period between Pesach and Shavuot, we “count the Omer”, counting each of the 49 days leading from the Exodus until the Receiving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.  It is called “Counting the Omer" because it begins on the second day of Pesach when the Omer offering - a measure of barley flour, was offered on the Altar.   Chassidus explains in depth the connection between the sacrifice, the counting, and the two holidays.  In a nutshell, when the Jewish people left Egypt they w...

I am Hashem.”  This is a statement that is found many times in Parshat Kedoshim relating to various laws.  Respect your parents, keep Shabbat, I am Hashem.  Don’t make graven images. I am Hashem.  Leave the corner of your field for the poor, I am Hashem your G-d.  Don’t swear falsely by My name, I am Hashem.  Don’t curse a person, don’t place a stumbling block before the blind, fear your G-d, I am Hashem.  Don’t pay revenge. Love your fellow as yourself, I am Hashem. Respect the elderly, revere Torah scholars, fear your G-d, I am Hashem. Don’t gossip or slander, I am Hashem.  Do not tattoo your flesh, I am Hashem, do not cheat the convert, I am Hashem, do not use false weights and measures, I am Hashem.  And more. What is striking here is the range of mitzvot where Hashem exhorts us to recognize that they are from Him. From spiritual laws like Shabbat observance, to interpersonal behaviors, to honest business practices, they are all from Hash...

A person gets a white blotch on their skin. They are ritually Tamei (loosely translated as impure).  They need to go out of town and be alone until it clears up. It is called Tzaraat, and is mistranslated as “leprosy.”  Leprosy is a contagious physical disease that affects the skin, and “lepers” were for many generations shunned from society. Perhaps because of the association with Tzaraat. Is Tzaraat really an infectious human skin disease? Well, there is also Tzaraat of clothing. If a garment has a certain deep green or red discoloration, it could be Tzaraat. Then there is Tzaraat of the house, when in some cases the affected stones are removed and in some cases the house may even be destroyed.  In all three types, human, clothing and building, the decision of whether or not it is actual Tzaraat and therefore Tamei is made by a Kohen - a priest. In fact it is his pronouncement of “Tamei” that places the person, garment or home in the status of having Tzaraat.  The ...

  One of the subjects I get asked about most frequently is the origin of the Oral Torah and its relationship to the Written Torah. Isn’t the Oral Torah made up later by men?  How can you say it’s Hashem’s will when it was not written by Moshe and has no source in the Five Books? My answer is that it is all from Hashem. The Torah was written by Moshe as dictated by Hashem and contains layers upon layers of meaning all written in code. Moshe then transmitted orally what the code is and how to understand it. The Sages didn’t make anything up. They carefully followed the code we received from Moshe and that is how they figured out what Hashem is really saying in the often obscure words of the Torah.  I want to share an example from this week’s Parsha. I encourage you to put on your “Talmudic thinking cap” and come with me on a little intellectual journey.  The Torah recounts the story of Aharon’s two sons who shockingly died at a moment of intense joy and holiness. The M...