Rabbi Levin's Blog

  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...

  Happy Chol Hamoed (the intermediate days of Pesach.) There is an age-old custom that was originally secret and known only to great Kabbalists.  The Baal Shem Tov revealed it to the community, and over the years it has become increasingly popular.  This custom gradually spread throughout the Chassidic world over the generations, and has now been accepted amongst a broad range of Jewish communities. I am referring to the Feast of Moshiach, celebrated at the end of Pesach, this year on the coming Sunday in the early evening.  I can't think of a more moving and inspiring way to end this beautiful holiday.  We eat Matzah and drink four cups of wine, similar to the Seder at the very beginning of the holiday.  What is the meaning of this celebration and why are we having a meal for Moshiach who has not yet been revealed? As we know Pesach is the holiday of liberation, when Hashem sent Moshe to us and took us out of the bitter Egyptian exile.  This was follo...

With Pesach a couple of days away I will discuss a few practical things relating to the next few days.  This year we have the rare occurrence of Pesach beginning on Saturday night.  (The next time this will happen will be in 2045.)  This adds a layer of complication to the pre-Pesach preparations.  Typically we check the house for Chametz on the night before Pesach, then in the morning we eat a Chametz breakfast and then burn the leftover Chametz, and begin to observe the Kosher for Pesach rules.  This year, however, we can’t burn the Chametz at the time the Pesach laws take effect because it is Shabbat.  At the same time, we need to have our Shabbat meal with bread, and we are not permitted to eat Matzah on the day before Pesach.  So let’s review the things that we should be doing between now and the Seder.  (This is by no means a comprehensive list, but some of the major highlights of things not to forget.) Cleaning and inspecting the house:...

I think it’s safe to say that Pesach is on all our minds.  Whether it is starting to clean the house, ordering supplies for the Holiday, creating a Seder guest list or deciding where to go for the Seder, planning menus or preparing interesting insights into the Haggadah, Pesach is now in the air. So let’s take a look at an interesting, often questioned and discussed phenomenon in the Haggadah.  This issue relates to the Seder itself, but also has relevance to the time leading up to Pesach.  The first section of the Haggadah that we say after Kiddush, the vegetable and breaking the Matzah is Hei Lachma Anya (some say Ha Lachma Anya) - “this is the bread of affliction...”  The opening section of the Haggadah, even before the Four Questions, includes two lines that seem to be completely out of place: “Anyone who is hungry come and eat, anyone who is needy come and participate in the Passover service.”   What is the purpose of saying this passage now that we ar...