torah

5781 Yahrzeit of the Rambam This past week, כ טבת, was the Yahrzeit of the Rambam. He was born in the year 1138 and died in 1204. It’s befitting for his Yahrzeit to fall out the week of Parshas Shemos (the year he died was on the Monday of Shemos like this year) as this is the first Parsha to mention Moshe Rabbeinu. The חסיד יעב"ץ, who lived during the time of the Spanish Inquisition, in his Sefer Ohr HaChaim in the beginning of Perek ט writes אשר כבר נתפרסם על הרמב"ם ממשה עד משה לא קם כמשה....

5781 The Kiddush this Shabbos was sponsored by the Feldinger family in honor of the Bar Mitzvah of their son, Akiva Moshe. Connection of Bar Mitzvah to Parsha This Shabbos is very appropriate for celebrating his Bar Mitzvah not only because it’s actually the week where he is becoming a Bar Mitzvah, but actually because Parshas Vayechi is apropos for a Bar Mitzvah as will be discussed. (Once a Rebbe came to a village and a Jew came over to him and said Rebbe, in your on honor I’m going to make my son’s Bar Mitzvah....

5781 Approaching One’s Self ויגש אליו יהודה ויאמר בי אדני ידבר נא עבדך דבר באזני אדני (מד,יח) The Parshah begins with Yehuda bringing his case to Yosef. But what exactly was he saying new? He seems to be merely repeating the story that he and Yosef already knew and therefore what caused Yosef to now open up to the brothers? One thing that Yehuda did add was that he made himself an ערב as the Pasuk says כי עבדך ערב את הנער מעם אבי אם לא אביאנו אליך (מד,לב)....

5781 Yahrzeit of Reb Eizel Charif This Shabbos, ד' טבת, is the Yahrzeit of two great people. The first is Reb Yehoshua Isaac Shapiro, who was known as Reb Eizel Charif. He was born in 1801 in the small town of Glubki, near villna and he died in the year 1873. He was a tremendous gaon and very sharp/witty as his name indicates. He was also known for his sharp humor and until today many of his witticism are still known....

5781 Yahrzeit of the Raavad This Shabbos כ"ו כסלו is the Yahrzeit of the ראב"ד. The Raavad wrote other works but he is most known for his השגות on the Rambam. The Raavad was Reb Avraham ben Dovid. He is known as the third Raavad. In in Hilchos Lulav (8:5) regarding the Halacha of נקטם by the הדסים writes the following: כבר הופיע רוח הקודש בבית מדרשנו מכמה שנים. Similarly in Hilchos Beis Habchira (6:14) he writes כך נגלה לי מסוד ה' ליראיו....