Thinkingaboutme.org
9 years of Parasha articles.
THE ART OF DEFINITION AND PERSPECTIVE
click Beshalach 2023 for download THE ART OF DEFINITION AND PERSPECTIVE Different than any other language, Lashon Hakodesh is not a language of words that were just agreed upon by a group of people. Tree means tree, not for any reason, other than that the people agreed upon it. In Hebrew, the word, the root,…
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THE ART OF PHYSIOLOGY OVER PSYCHOLOGY
Click Bo 2023 for download THE ART OF PHYSIOLOGY OVER PSYCHOLOGY One of my favorite Sefarim is the Sefer Hachinuch. The Sefer Hachinuch gives a reason for each and every positive and negative commandment. There are so many Mitzvot on the night of the Seder. The mitzvoth of the night have, mostly, to do with…
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PERSONAL MIRACLE WITH R SHIMON BAADANI
Click vaera 2023 to download PERSONAL MIRACLE WITH R SHIMON BAADANI Here is a story of a personal miracle with R’ Shimon Baadani A”H. My father-in-law, David Darwich, was very close to R’ Baadani. R’ Baadani would come to visit my father-in-law on the holidays. Every Sukkot Hol Hamoed, the family members would get together…
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THE ART OF THE SLOW MESSAGE
Click SHEMOT 2023 for download THE ART OF THE SLOW MESSAGE There is a lesson from this Parasha about lessons and communicating new ideas. וַיָּבֹ֛א אֶל־הַ֥ר הָאֱלֹקים חֹרֵֽבָה And he (Moshe) came to the Mountain of G-d (Har Sinai) to Horeb. וַ֠יֵּרָא מַלְאַ֨ךְ יְקֹוָ֥ק אֵלָ֛יו בְּלַבַּת־אֵ֖שׁ מִתּ֣וֹךְ הַסְּנֶ֑ה וַיַּ֗רְא וְהִנֵּ֤ה הַסְּנֶה֙ בֹּעֵ֣ר בָּאֵ֔שׁ וְהַסְּנֶ֖ה אֵינֶ֥נּוּ…
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MY PERSONAL HANNUKA MIRACLE
Click vayechi 2023 to download MY PERSONAL HANNUKA MIRACLE A little personal story that just happened to me. I prayed at the Kotel Sunday, Rosh Hodesh, the 7th day of Hannukah, at Sunrise Minyan. The Kotel is full on Hanukah, and fuller on Rosh Hodesh. After Amidah of Shaharit, I needed the restroom badly, so…
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THE ART OF POWER
click vayigash 2022 for download THE ART OF POWER Important notice: Please read this article to yourself before reading this at the Shabbat table to the family! Power can be good, and power can be bad. It depends on how you use it, and on what you use it. One of the popular self-help books…
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THE ART OF HANUKA CHANGE
click miketz 2022 to download THE ART OF HANUKA CHANGE The beautiful song, Maoz Tzur, that we sing each Hanukka night after lighting the candles, has many beautiful insights. As it goes through the ages, the dark periods of time, that G-d saved the Jews from their oppressors, it refers to the Jews of the…
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THE ART OF TAMING THE BEAST
click toldot 2022 to download THE ART OF TAMING THE BEAST The Talmud Yerushalmi in Bikurim teaches that we learn that G-d forgives all the sins of a Hatan, a groom, from Esav. When Esav saw that his parents sent Yaakov to marry a woman who was not from the Canaanites, he wanted to show…
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THE ART OF CHOOSING FRIENDS
click chaye sara 2022 expanded to download THE ART OF CHOOSING FRIENDS Your friend is either your חבר, friend, or your חרב; the letters, switched around, spell sword. Your “friend” can take you down, can kill you spiritually, emotionally, and productively. Although you can’t always choose your children’s friends, it is your responsibility, as a…
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THE ART OF PARENTING
click vayera 2022 to download THE ART OF PARENTING Avraham Avinu was the first Mechanech, the first educator, וַיָּ֨רֶק אֶת־חֲנִיכָ֜יו. He knew that the most important part of Chinuch is not what you say, but how you behave. כִּ֣י יְדַעְתִּ֗יו לְמַעַן֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יְצַוֶּ֜ה אֶת־בָּנָ֤יו וְאֶת־בֵּיתוֹ֙ אַחֲרָ֔יו וְשָֽׁמְרוּ֙ דֶּ֣רֶךְ יְקֹוָ֔ק G-d said, I must tell Avraham,…
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THE ART OF SOCIAL CHOICE
click lech lecha 2022 final to download THE ART OF SOCIAL CHOICE Probably the most sold self-help book of late is Atomic Habits, by James Clear. Here is a small part of his book, probably my favorite part. I adapted it and made it parsha-sheet appropriate: Humans are herd animals. We want to fit in…
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THE ART OF BEING PROTECTED
click sukkot 2022 to download THE ART OF BEING PROTECTED On Yom Kippur, I felt I needed a sign, a.s.a.p. from G-d, to tell me what I should be working on for the year. I opened the Sefer in front of me, a Sefer that has in it four Sifrei Mussar: Messilat Yesharim, Orhot Tzaddikim,…
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THE ART OF LIVING LIFE
click yom kippur 2022 to download THE ART OF LIVING LIFE You have a choice to make at any given moment. Kill time, or, give time a life. No matter if you choose it actively or passively, consciously or subconsciously, the choice will be made. How do you kill time? By deciding that time is…
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THE ART OF ACCEPTING JUDGEMENT
click rosh hashana 2022 to download THE ART OF ACCEPTING JUDGEMENT The opening of the Heichal, the Ark, before taking out the Sifrei Torah, is considered a powerful time to pray, an עת רצון. It is then that Hashem loves us most, as it is a time of a great Mitzvah. Just like for a…
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THE ART OF BEING GRATEFUL
CLICK ki tavo 2022 TO DOWNLOAD THE ART OF BEING GRATEFUL Being a husband means you are required to be emotionally intelligent. וכן צוו חכמים שיהיה אדם מכבד את אשתו יתר מגופו ואוהבה כגופו, ואם יש לו ממון מרבה בטובתה כפי הממון, ולא יטיל עליה אימה יתירה ויהיה דיבורו עמה בנחת ולא יהיה עצב…
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THE ART OF DIRECTION
click ki tetze 2022 to download THE ART OF DIRECTION For most of us, life can be split into two. The first part of our life, we form habits. The rest of life, we are on autopilot. How we eat, how we think, how we respond, what we value. It’s almost as if we have…
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THE ART OF GETTING INTO THE ELUL VIBE
Click shoftim 2022 for download THE ART OF GETTING INTO THE ELUL VIBE Elul is the month of many acronyms, and the most known acronym is, אני לדודי ודודי לי , I am to my Beloved and my Beloved is to me. Elul is relationship time. There are three types of relationships, only three. Between…
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THE ART OF HUMBLE STEPS
click ekev 2022 for download THE ART OF HUMBLE STEPS Humility is the only way to get close to G-d, the only path, the one ladder. כִּי֩ כֹ֨ה אָמַ֜ר רָ֣ם וְנִשָּׂ֗א שֹׁכֵ֥ן עַד֙ וְקָד֣וֹשׁ שְׁמ֔וֹ מָר֥וֹם וְקָד֖וֹשׁ אֶשְׁכּ֑וֹן וְאֶת־דַּכָּא֙ וּשְׁפַל־ר֔וּחַ לְהַחֲיוֹת֙ ר֣וּחַ שְׁפָלִ֔ים וּֽלְהַחֲי֖וֹת לֵ֥ב נִדְכָּאִֽים: (Yeshayahu 57;15) As holy as G-d is, He is…
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THE ART OF ACCEPTING PEOPLE
click pinhas 2022 to download THE ART OF ACCEPTING PEOPLE At least ten people took advantage of my offer last week, that I analyze their handwriting, by sending me their signatures. The analysis has been on an over-90-percent average of accuracy. The same person who taught me graphology taught me how to read people’s personality…
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THE ART OF GRAPHOLOGY
click balak 2022 to download THE ART OF GRAPHOLOGY I know this article is long, so if you stick to the end, I have a treat for you. Living in Bayit Vegan, Jerusalem, I have gotten to know some pretty interesting people. The Kollel guy across the street convinced me to try out his courses…
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THE ART OF LIVING
click hukat 2022 to download THE ART OF LIVING This Tuesday, I was asked by my family to speak at the Shloshim of my cousin’s son. Yaakov Yisrael Farhi, A”H, was run over by a car, and after his body had fought for months to stay alive, he passed away 30 days ago. The parents,…
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THE ART OF PUBLIC PERSUASION
click korah 2022 expanded for download THE ART OF PUBLIC PERSUASION One of the things that always boggled my mind, and the mind of every historian, is how Adolf Hitler, yemah shmo, a man who was no more than a high school dropout, a homeless, an unsuccessful artist, was capable of capturing the intelligent German…
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THE ART OF NOT BEING AFRAID
click shlach 2022 final for download THE ART OF NOT BEING AFRAID A person can bring himself miracles, save himself, and protect himself by meditating on the concept of אין עוד מלבדו: there is no power or will in the world, other than the power and will of a One G-d. (Nefesh Hachaim 3;12) No…
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THE ART OF STAYING SANE
click behaalotcha 2022 for download THE ART OF STAYING SANE According to Judaism, making money to support your family is as hard as you believe it is. The amount you earn is predetermined, even before you were born, and then predetermined again, each year on Rosh Hashana. Of course, you need to serve your clients,…
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THE ART OF BEING A UNIFIED NATION
click shavuoth 2022 expanded for download THE ART OF BEING A UNIFIED NATION Torah and Chessed are one and the same. On the passuk, פִּ֭יהָ פָּתְחָ֣ה בְחָכְמָ֑ה וְתֽוֹרַת־חֶ֝֗סֶד עַל־לְשׁוֹנָֽהּ ,the Talmud asks, is there such a thing as Torah that is not Torah of Chessed?!? (Succah 49b) The Torah itself begins with Chessed, how G-d…
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THE ART OF BEING A 24/7 JEW
click bamidbar 2022 for download THE ART OF BEING A 24/7 JEW In the days of King Achav, Queen Izevel killed all the prophets, except Eliyahu Hanavi. There were only 7000 Jews in the whole of Israel who did not bow to the Avoda Zara of the day, the Ba’al. Eliyahu decreed that there be…
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THE ART OF CONNECTING TO R’ AKIVA
click behukotay 2022 for download THE ART OF CONNECTING TO R’ AKIVA A popular parasha sheet in Israel wrote something that got me thinking. People go to R’ Shimon Bar Yochai to pray for miracles, borrowing an unrelated terminology from the Talmud, כדאי הוא ר”ש לסמוך עליו בשעת הדחק. (Gittin 19a) It is true. People…
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THE ART OF CREATING ANGELS
click Lag Baomer 2022 for download THE ART OF CREATING ANGELS Orthodox Jews believe, that there is nothing more powerful in the world, than learning Gemarah in a way, that will bring clarity to the actual Halacha. The back and forth, the questions and the answers, the give and take of the commentators and how…
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THE ART OF BEING RESPONSIBLE FOR THE WORLD
click Emor and Pirkei Avot 2022 to download THE ART OF BEING RESPONSIBLE FOR THE WORLD One of the biggest questions the gentiles have about Judaism is why bad things happen to good people, to Tzaddikim, and good things happen to bad people, to the Reshaim. This question will last only until the days of…
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THE ART OF BUILDING SPIRITUAL SAND CASTLES
Click acherei mot kedoshim 2022 for download THE ART OF BUILDING SPIRITUAL SAND CASTLES After Pesach break, it’s hard to get back into learning and onto the spiritual Sefirah-sail to Shavuot, to the upcoming Matan Torah. Especially when I have to go back to juggling being a husband, father and breadwinner, not to mention my…
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THE ART OF EXPERIENCING SHABBAT HAGADOL
THE ART OF EXPERIENCING SHABBAT HAGADOL Click shabbat hagadol for expanded download The Shulhan Aruch (430 O”H) rules that this week is called Shabbat Hagadol, probably hinting that when we bless each other Shabbat Shalom this week, we should be saying Shabbat Hagadol Shalom. There are a number of reasons why this Shabbat is called…
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THE ART OF BEING READY FOR MASHIACH
click pekudei 2022 for download THE ART OF BEING READY FOR MASHIACH So, as it seems, Mashiach is around the corner. We have all the signs, again, and from the greatest Rabbis. Are you ready for Eliyahu Hanavi? He is going to ask you, What questions bothered you so long in your Torah learning that…
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THE ART OF MANAGING BEAUTY
click vayakhel 2022 for download THE ART OF MANAGING BEAUTY The Eshet Chayil is not a woman of strength, but of valor. Valor is strength of the mind, the ability to face danger and adversity with firmness, bravery and courage. A woman needs valor and courage to dress nicely but modestly, and that courage comes…
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THE ART OF BEING A SQUARE
Click terumah 2022 for download THE ART OF BEING A SQUARE G-d created a breathtaking world of patterns, symmetry, colors and shapes. Crown shapes can be found in a water splash, and stunning symmetry can be found in zebras, tigers, starfish and a zoomed-in image of a snowflake. The Nile is so snakelike; sand dunes…
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THE ART OF SENSITIVITY
Click mishpatim 2022 to download THE ART OF SENSITIVITY I can never forget how, when I learnt a year in Mikdash Melech, we visited Hacham Ovadia Yosef zt”l before Pesach. A lot of the boys in the yeshiva were on a spiritual high from a winter of learning, and many looked at themselves as fanatical,…
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