Although the world is rife with suffering and tribulations, few are the fortunate individuals who know how to cope with indignity. King David was one of them. We all now have the opportunity to learn his secret of "The Serene… [Read more...]

In one dramatic moment, Joseph suddenly sees the events that brought him to Egypt in a new light. He realizes that his agony of slavery and incarceration was an amazing "act one" of the same drama that catapulted him to the pinnacle of power in Egypt. He sees the Divine Hand that wrote the… [Read more...]

Who do you blame when you missed your train? Don't bother looking for the seemingly guilty factor or person. This week's Torah portion shows how the apparent setbacks in our life are all for the… [Read more...]

Since Abraham, the first monotheist, the war against emuna has been never-ending. There are times in history when the vast majority of Jews succumbed to political correctness and assimilation. One such time was nearly 2300 years ago, when the Greek King Antiochus IV tried to Hellenize all of Judea.… [Read more...]

Sometimes killing is justified, as in self-defense. But, when a person becomes accustomed to killing, he or she is likely to kill when it's not at all justified. Our forefather Jacob didn't want anything to do with anger and violence. His two sons Simon and Levi think… [Read more...]

Esau and Jacob meet after years of estrangement. In this dramatic confrontation, the first thing Esau does is to stare at Jacob's wives. We learn here the huge difference between Esau's and Jacob's attitude toward women. The same difference continues today in the opposing attitudes of modern… [Read more...]

Brandon (Boruch) Rumann from Houston, Texas is a brilliant aerospace engineer. He works for NASA and is involved in a number of projects including a mission to the moon and a space-hotel prototype. More amazing than his work is his journey beyond the stars, during an NDE (near death experience)… [Read more...]

The Gemara makes a seemingly strange statement: "No one thanked Hashem until our matriarch Leah said, 'This time, I will thank Hashem' (Genesis 29:35)." Adam, Noah and Abraham all thanked Hashem way before Leah did. So what's the Gemara talking… [Read more...]

Welcome to our new "Parsha Pearls" series on the weekly Torah portion. This week, we find Isaac and Rebecca haven't yet had children and are begging in prayer to become parents. Why are they so worried? Isaac's father Abraham received a solid promise from Hashem that Isaac would father the entire… [Read more...]

The things in this world that arouse our fear are reminders that we should fear no one other than Hashem. The things in the world that arouse our love are reminders of just how much we must love Hashem. Both the seemingly good and the seemingly bad in life are messengers from… [Read more...]

Are you a calm person or a time-bomb of turbulence? How would you objectively rate yourself along a scale of total turbulence at the bottom and total inner peace at the top? Today's lesson helps you get to know… [Read more...]

When the Almighty wants to uplift a person to a higher spiritual level, He first sends them some sort of verbal abuse. Verbal abuse breaks a person's heart. Yet, in striving to overcome a broken heart, a person builds an emotionally-stronger heart. Here's a lesson in spiritual resistance… [Read more...]