Acharei-Kedoshim 5770 - April 23, 2010
Have You Ever Wanted To Learn Talmud?
Introducing a new online course: Talmud for Beginners. Every Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET.
The first class was last Wednesday night. What are some people saying about the course?
"Talmud study is not so scary with Rabbi Wolf." – Andre Shushan, Rio, Brazil.
"Rabbi Wolf is terrific. His presentation is so easy to follow and clear. I so thoroughly enjoyed the lesson." – Steve P, Staten Island, NY
"This daunting subject is easy to follow." – Kimberly Hangs, Houston, T
This course is designed for people of varying skill-sets, even for those with little or no Talmudic background, allowing students to learn at their own level and become familiar with Talmudic terminology and style.
In response to some of the most common questions we've been getting:
No, there is no fee, and you do not need to sign up—just come to this page every week and join the class. That's where you'll also find printable PDFs of the texts you'll need. And no, you do not need to know Hebrew. Every class is saved in archived form, so you can join no matter what your schedule is.
If you watch the first class over the next few days, you'll be ready to join thousands around the world for the second class this week.
I tune in to the woman on my left. Apparently, her husband is a work-at-home dad with a knack for blowtorching dinner, and she’s just been informed of his most recent clash with schnitzel. “Oh my G-d!” she shrills.
Frankl’s theory, developed decades ago, still rings true in our times. How, then, according to his system, does man find this elusive “meaning”? How can we define what “meaning” is? This is where Frankl seems to get stuck...
Criticizing another person is not out of the question. It's just that there are a few conditions to attend to before you start...
What does it mean to be a man? a woman? Neither Freud nor Friedan has made the slightest difference. They have simply unleashed new misconceptions, novel frustrations and social woes as men and women persist in misunderstanding themselves and each other...
Is it what we do, or why we do it? Do we enter life to play a part in a pre-established cosmic plan, or do we also have a role in defining the significance of our actions?
How can I share something I don’t have? How can I accept another if I don’t accept myself? How can I “love my fellow as myself” if I don’t love myself?
If when involved in a holy experience we feel uplifted, but only the soul makes the trip while the body remains behind, we are making the same holy error as the children of Aaron.
Of all the ancient laws and customs of the Jews, one of the most mysterious is that of the law forbidding shaatnez.
What are the implications of the Torah’s cautionary remark about sensitivity towards a blind man? Personal liability is a topic that’s already been laid out in the Torah in graphic detail, so what’s the new mitzvah that G‑d is teaching us here?
It seems there’s always so much good to say about those who have departed. But wasn’t the deceased, like all others, a human being? Did you really think that he was so perfect yesterday?
Some religious doctrines see marriage as a concession to human weakness. Nothing could be further from Jewish thought . . .
The average thief’s deed consists of straightforward dishonesty and evil. The one with the false measures, on the other hand, is professing to the world that he is honest
She had risked her life to save him during the war, and so she never wanted him to know the truth. She swore her neighbors to secrecy, and they dutifully remained silent for five decades...
Without really even noticing, Shabbat settled in and the vibe of our whole house shifted. It was a quietude that was defined by the fact that we knew it would last, even for only a day. All the pressure was gone...
The Talmud explains that smiling at someone is an even higher form of charity than giving him money, because the smile will enhance the recipient's well-being on every level of body and soul...
What can we do to prevent children – and consequently their parents – from whining? Perhaps the first step is to understand that it is not our job to ensure that our children are kept happy all the time...
If you’re in an argument, you need something or someone higher to effect healing and resolution. As Einstein said, “No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.”
Judaism recognizes that we all have the power to change. But it doesn't happen on its own. It doesn't happen simply because we grow older...
I felt completely inadequate. Me? Help the Jewish people? When I didn't even identify as a Jew?
"This was all good and well," explained the old navy diver, "when the ship had been under for a month or so. After that it would begin to rust and the hooks would bring up only huge chunks of iron, leaving the rest of the ship behind"
My hair, thank G-d, is growing back. Hair, beard, eyebrows, eyelashes, the works. My color has returned, or at least transformed from a yellow brown pallor to a more healthy tone. I'm lookin' good. At least that's what everyone says...
True peace is not a forced truce, not a homogenization of differences, not a common ground that abandons our home territories.
True peace is the oneness that sprouts from diversity, the beauty that emerges from a panorama of colors, strokes and textures, from the harmony of many instruments each playing a unique part, n...
