[Note: We no longer can identify who the biological decedents of the ancient Egyptians are and therefore the commandment in this verse below no longer applies. Nonetheless, its underlying lessons are as applicable as ever.] …Do not despise the Egyptian, for you were a stranger in his land.(Deuteronomy 23:8) The Egyptians had enslaved Jews for […]
Do not plant an idolatrous tree – any tree – near G-d’s altar… (Deut. 16:21) Sacrifices occupy an outsize position in the Torah and are easily misunderstood. We reject the notion that these offerings give G-d anything. How could they? A perfect G-d cannot be made more perfect. We cannot “feed” or “sustain” Him. The Hebrew […]
You are children of the Almighty, your G-d. You shall neither cut yourselves nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead. For you are a holy people to the Almighty, your G-d …(14:1, 2) There is a Torah prohibition to against cutting oneself or tearing out one’s hair when grieving over the loss […]