The Land of Israel – 5781

The counting of the Omer is intimately connected to the Land of Israel, declaring the first crops of the land as belonging to God, and acknowledging His gift to our people of the land of Israel. The first commandment God gave to the first Jew was to go to the Land of Israel God spoke to Abraham, and said, ““Go for yourself, from your land, from your relatives and from ...

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The Best of Times; The Worst of Times

For the Jewish people who came out of Egypt, the period between the Exodus and the Revelation at Mt. Sinai was one of continuous spiritual awakening. Their relationship with God grew stronger and closer. Miraculous events occurred daily. For the Jewish people in subsequent generations, this period continues to be one of the greatest of times of the year, in which we prepare ourselves for a renewal of our commitment ...

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Exile of the Body, Exile of the Soul

As we are no preparing for Passover, of course, we begin to think about the exile in Egypt and about exile in general. When one becomes familiar with the Torah and with Judaism, one will observe that exile features frequently in the Torah. Adam and Eve are exiled from the Garden of Eden, Cain is exiled, Abraham has to go into exile in Egypt and Jacob and his sons also ...

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