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Articles by Daniel Pinner
The essence of the Land of Israel
Rain can be a blessing, rain can be a curse. We recited תְּפִלַּת הַגֶּשֶׁם, the Prayer for Rain, on Sh’mini Atzeret, when we asked G-d to send us rain - לִבְרָכָה וְלֹא לִקְלָלָה, לְחַיִּים וְלֹא לְמָוֶת, לְשׂוֹבַע וְלֹא לְרָזוֹן. “For a blessing and not for a curse, for life and not for death, for abundance and not for scarcity".
Parashat Noach: Respect for life
The year was 1536 from Creation (2584 B.C.E.), Noach was 480 years old, humanity was in its tenth generation, and “Hashem saw that Man’s evil on the earth was great, and all he thought about was evil all day; so Hashem regretted having made Man in the world, even though this saddened Him" (Genesis 6:5-6). Despite His sadness, G-d decreed that the world would be destroyed by a flood. Only Noach and his immediate family would survive, to repopulate the earth. Why Noach?
Author of history
The Torah opens with maybe the single most famous and significant sentence ever written: בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא אֱלֹקִים אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֵת הָאָרֶץ: “In the beginning, G-d created the Heavens and the earth". The undisputed single greatest Bible commentator in all Jewish history, Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, France, 1040-1105) addresses the question of why the Torah opens by telling us that in the beginning, G-d created the Heavens and the earth.
The miracle of the Ingathering of the Exiles
We say the words on 19 days of the year, or 22 days in exile outside of Israel, in the Mussaf (the Additional Service) of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, seven days of Sukkot, Shmi’ni Atzeret/Simchat Torah (split into two days outside of Israel), seven days of Pesach (eight days outside of Israel), and the one day of Shavuot (two days outside of Israel): אָבִינוּ מַלְכֵּנוּ גַּלֵּה כְּבוֹד מַלְכוּתְךָ עָלֵינוּ מְהֵרָה, וְהוֹפַע וְהִנָּשֵׂא עָלֵינוּ לְעֵינֵי כָּל חָי; וְקָרֵב פְּזוּרֵנוּ מִבֵּין...
Sukkot - the Four Species: Be an Etrog!
One of the central Mitzvot of Sukkot is shaking the lulav-bundle: “You will take for yourselves on the first day [of Sukkot] the fruit of a citron tree, date-palm branches, twigs of a plaited tree, and willows of the stream; and you will rejoice before Hashem your G-d for seven days" (Leviticus 23:40).
The Sukkah of faith, the Sukkah of redemption
לרפואת נריה דב בן חנה בתוך כל שאר חולי ישראל In three places (Exodus 23:16, Leviticus 23:33-44, and Deuteronomy 16:13-16) the Torah commands us to celebrate the Festival of Sukkot for seven days, beginning on the fifteenth of Tishrei. The first of these calls the Festival חַג הָאָסִף, “the Festival of the Ingathering, as the year goes out, when you ingather your work from the field". The other two call it חַג הַסֻּכֹּת (the Festival of Tabernacles).
Rosh Hashanah: A happy and sweet new year
Less than two weeks ago we read the תּוֹכָחָה, tochachah (reprimand)- the frightening and sobering reprimand and warning of the curses that Hashem would inflict upon us as a punishment for transgressing His mitzvot (Deuteronomy 28:15-68). Parashat Ki Tavo, which contains the תּוֹכָחָה, is invariably read on the penultimate Shabbat of the year.
Foundation of repentance
Ever since the yearly cycle of Torah readings was standardised towards the end of the Second Temple era, and the fixed calendar as calculated by Hillel II (Hillel ben Yehudah, Nasi or head of the Sanhedrin) was adopted in 4119 (359 C.E.), we have invariably read Parashat Nitzavim on the final Shabbat of the year; usually (as this year) combined with Parashat Vayeilech, sometimes alone.
Protecting the home
Parashat Ki Teitzei contains 74 mitzvot, 27 positive and 47 negative.
Preparing for Rosh Hashanah
Ever since the yearly cycle of Torah readings was standardised towards the end of the Second Temple era, and the fixed calendar as calculated by Hillel II (Hillel ben Yehudah, Nasi or head of the Sanhedrin) was adopted in 4119 (359 C.E.), Parashat Re’eh has invariably been the final Shabbat in the month of Menachem-Av. Therefore most years (like this year 5786) it is the Shabbat of Mevar’chin Chodesh Ellul (the Shabbat on which we announce the beginning of the month of Ellul, which begins on...
What do you believe in?
Parashat Eikev continues with Moshe’s second Farewell Discourse to his beloved nation of Israel - the discourse which began last week in Parashat Va-et’chanan (Deuteronomy 5:1), and will continue until Parashat Ki Tavo (Deuteronomy 26:19).
Parashat Va-et’chanan: It’s not a coincidence
Ever since the yearly cycle of Torah readings was standardised towards the end of the Second Temple era, and the fixed calendar as calculated by Hillel II (Hillel ben Yehudah, Nasi or head of the Sanhedrin) was adopted in 4119 (359 C.E.), we have always read Parashat Va'etchanan on the Shabbat immediately following the 9th of Av. This causes a curious singularity in the Torah-reading: The Torah-reading for the morning of the 9th of Av is Deuteronomy 4:25-40 - which is part of Parashat...
The Ninth of Av: A magnificent tragedy
Part 1: Seeds of tragedy It is the 8th of Av, a year-and-a-quarter after the Exodus. 40 days earlier, on the 29th of Sivan, Moshe had sent 12 spies on a reconnaissance mission to spy out the Land of Israel. Today they have returned, delivering an evil report. Ten of those 12 men would prefer to remain in the desert, safe from the hazards of living in Israel as a free nation. Better exile than sovereign independence, they argue. Liberty means responsibility, and they fear responsibility.
Zelophehad's daughters: An unquenchable thirst for the Land of Israel
Last week, Parashat Balak concluded with the débâcle of the plague in which 24,000 Jews died as a result of their debauchery with the Midianite women. Parashat Pinchas begins with Pinchas killing the Jewish tribal leader Zimri and the Moabite princess Cozbi who were cohabiting in public; and by killing them, he put an end to the plague. And immediately following this, G-d commanded Moshe and his nephew, Elazar, to take yet another census of the Children of Israel (Numbers 26.
Third of Tammuz: Fighting for Israel
The Prophet Joshua led us across the River Jordan and into the Land of Israel on the 10th of Nissan (Joshua 4:19), and in short order we captured Jericho, in the Jordan Valley, and Ai, in the Samarian Mountains, about 3 km (2 miles) east of the northern edge of the present-day of Ramallah (the Biblical Ramah).
The great rebellion of the great Tzaddikim
The Torah records several widespread sins that the Children of Israel committed during our 40-year desert sojourn. Among the first was the sin of the golden calf as recorded in Parashat Ki Tissa (Exodus Chapters 32-33).
Conversation in the desert
The mid-summer sun was beating down mercilessly on the Negev Desert. Even the lizards and scorpions sought the shade of rocks. It was even hotter than it had been forty days earlier, when the same twelve men had traversed this path on their northwards into Canaan.
Becoming a nation
On the 1st of Nisan 2449 (1311 B.C.E.), Moshe had erected the Tabernacle (Exodus 40:1), and the nation was then ready to begin the sacrificial service. The Book of Leviticus, replete with the laws of sacrifices and the Tabernacle, is the natural continuation of the Book of Exodus. The Book of Leviticus spans one month - the month of Nisan. In that month, G-d gave us 247 mitzvot, most of them concerning sacrifices.
Kohanim and festivals
Parashat Emor opens with Leviticus Chapters 21 and 22, containing instructions to the Kohanim, concluding with the sacrifices. Following this, Chapter 23 commands the Festivals - Shabbat, Pesach, the seven-week Omer period, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Sh’mini Atzeret. And the third section, 24:1-9, returns to the Kohanim, with the mitzvot of the Menorah and the Showbread. There are two peculiarities in this narrative.
Shabbat Vehadarta: Between Yom HaAtzma’ut and Yom Herut Yerushalayim
In Israel, this Shabbat is known as Shabbat 'Vehadarta'- the Shabbat when the verse that includes the words 'vehadarta pnai zaken,' meaning to honor the elderly, is read in Parashat Kedoshim. The late MK Uri Orbach designated it a Shabbat on which an elderly person should be honored with the third aliya (which contains the verse). He also suggested that synagogues and youth groups throughout Israel conduct lectures dedicated to the topic of respecting the elderly. This Dvar Torah expands the idea.
Thoughts during the siren
…And as the siren echoes through the calm Spring air of the Samarian hills, the faces swim before my eyes.
Signs of Redemption
This year 5786, as in all non-leap years, Parashot Tazria and Metzora are combined. And this year, as in about 18% of all years, the double Parashah Tazria-Metzora coincides with Rosh Chodesh Iyyar. The Haftarah for Tazria-Metzora is the events of the four lepers who heralded Israel’s victory over the Aramæan Army (2 Kings 7:3-20). But this Shabbat we read instead the Haftarah for Rosh Chodesh, which is abstracted from Isaiah 66, the final chapter of the Book.
Parashat Shemini: Do you know the way?
It should have been the most joyous day since G-d had given us the Torah some ten months earlier.
Seder Night: The invitation
As befits a Jewish celebration, the master of the house introduces the Seder Night with an invitation: הא לחמא עניא די אכלו אבהתנא בארעא דמצרים... - “This is the bread of affliction which our fathers ate in the land of Egypt; all who are hungry - let them come and eat!". This seems appropriate enough.
A tale of three Redemptions
The Shabbat which immediately precedes Pesach is called Shabbat ha-Gadol, “the Great Sabbath". This is the Shabbat which recalls the great miracle which happened immediately before the Exodus from Egypt: Nine of the Ten Plagues had already happened, with only the Slaying of the Firstborn still to come.
Kingship
Kabbalah teaches of the ten סְפִירוֹת, sefirot (the Divine “attributes", “emanations", “manifestations"). These sefirot are: חָכְמָה, Chochmah (wisdom); בִּינָה, Binah (understanding); דַּעַת, Da’at (knowledge); חֶסֶד, Chesed (loving-kindness); גְּבוּרָה, Gevurah (might); תִּפְאֶרֶת, Tiferet (splendour); נֶצַח, Netzach (eternity or victory); הוֹד, Hod (grandeur); יְסוֹד, Yesod (foundation); מַלְכוּת, Malchut (kingship).
Parashat Ki Tissa & Shabbat Parah: While Purim is still echoing...
First Gate: Overview of this Shabbat Parashat Ki Tissa in non-leap years invariably falls on the Shabbat immediately after Shushan Purim. And this year, as in most non-leap years, Parashat Ki Tissa coincides with Shabbat Parah. Shabbat Parah is either the penultimate Shabbat or the last Shabbat of the month of Adar (in a leap year, of Adar II).
We are living the Purim miracle
Just about every Jew in the world feels instinctively that Purim this year is different. As we read the Megillah this year, we are reading not just events from more than 2,300 years ago; we are reading the prequel to the great events that are happening today. The very name מְגִלַּת אֶסְתֵּר, Megillat Esther, literally “the Scroll of Esther", connotes מְגַלֶּת הַסֵתֶר, megalleh ha-seter, “revealing the hidden".
Parashat Tetzave and Shabbat Zachor: The hidden and the revealed
In memory of Albertje (Bertie) Bracha Halff-Geiman, born in Holland under Nazi occupation, a dedicated mother and educator, who passed away in Israel on 7th Adar, Moshe Rabbeinu's Yahrzeit. יהי זכרה ברוך Last week, in Parashat Terumah, we read G-d’s instructions to Moshe, atop Mount Sinai, how to build the Mishkan (Tabernacle).
The Mishkan - a new era
Parashat Teruma opens with G-d instructing Moshe to tell the Children of Israel to begin collecting the materials to build the Mishkan (Tabernacle) and its accoutrements: דַּבֵּר אֶל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְיִקְחוּ־לִי תְּרוּמָה מֵאֵת כָּל־אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יִדְּבֶנּוּ לִבּוֹ...
Defeating Iran
The U.S. has awesome power, both military and economic. When confronting Iran, President Donald Trump, the Commander-in-Chief of the world’s mightiest superpower, no doubt feels confident of a swift and successful outcome of any diplomatic negotiations or military conflict. That the U.S. has the technical ability to defeat Iran economically, diplomatically, and militarily is beyond dispute.
Prelude to Pesach
The Shabbat which either coincides with or immediately precedes Rosh Chodesh Adar (or Adar 2 in a leap year) is Shabbat Shekalim (Mishnah, Megillah 3:4; Rambam, Laws of Prayer and Priestly Blessing 13:20; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 685:1 and 5). “Parashat Shekalim is in memory of the mitzvah of the half-shekel…which they were obligated to give to the Temple treasury for the continual offering each year" (Mishnah Berurah, 685:1).
Does it matter why?
Parashat Yitro opens by telling us that “Yitro [Jethro], the Minister of Midian, Moshe’s father-in-law, heard everything that G-d had done to Moshe and to Israel His nation, that Hashem had taken Israel out of Egypt" (Exodus 18:1).
The destruction of the wicked
Parashat Bo opens with G-d telling Moshe to warn Pharaoh of the impending Plague of Locusts. There are still three plagues to come: Locusts, Darkness, and the Slaying of the Firstborn.
Sanctifying G-d’s Name through justice
When Moshe and Aaron approached Pharaoh time after time, demanding in the Name of “Hashem, G-d of Israel" that he free his Jewish slaves, they were obeying G-d’s instructions in Exodus 3:18 precisely. But Moshe and Aaron’s approach to Pharaoh was foredoomed to failure. Was it not obvious that Pharaoh would refuse a demand made in the name of the G-d of the Hebrews?
Breaking point
As Parashat Shemot, and therefore the Book of Exodus, opens, the Hebrew family have been in Egypt for well over a century. This exile, long-since promised to their ancestor Abraham (Genesis 15:13), had begun very auspiciously with Joseph inviting his father and brothers to come down to Egypt to live in royal splendour and luxury (Genesis Chapters 45-46).
The Kingship in Israel
Parashat Vayechi records, inter alia, the prophecies which Ya’akov Avinu (Jacob our Father) pronounced concerning his twelve sons, the founders of the twelve Tribes of Israel: “Ya’akov called to his sons, saying: Gather round, and I’ll tell you what will happen to you at the end of days” (Genesis 49:1). Now there is disagreement among our commentators if these are prophecies of the times of the mashiach, or if they refer to other events.
A Psalm for Hanukkah
I had originally composed a somewhat light-hearted D’var Torah for Hanukkah, presenting a humorously anachronistic debate if the Seleucid Empire was anti-Semitic or merely anti-Zionist. But in the shadow of the tragedy hurled against us in Bondi Beach, Australia, on the first night of the Festival - even before Hanukkah had begun in most of the world - I shelved my words. The attack gave yet another definitive answer to the question of whether anti-Zionism is inherently anti-Semitic.
Redemption garbed in 'klipot'
Our Parashah begins with Jacob finally settling down to what he surely hoped would be a peaceful life in Canaan: “Jacob dwelt in the Land wherein his father dwelt, in the Land of Canaan” (Genesis 37:1). He had already endured a stormy childhood, having to guard himself constantly from his devious brother twin Esau and his murderous hatred, a 20-year exile with his even more devious uncle Laban, and the rape of his daughter Dinah when he finally returned home.
In those days at this time
The 19th of Kislev is often called the "New Year for Hassidism," but it is also a landmark for Religious Zionism in the State of Israel. A story in three parts. The history is inspiring and depressing in equal parts. And inescapably relevant for our times. As we will say on Hanukkah next week: בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם בַּזְּמַן הַזֶּה - in those days, at this time.
Esau, our brother?
A look at recent Torah readings gives us perspective on our relationship with Eisav. Last week, Parashat Vayeitzei opened with Ya’akov fleeing from his twin brother Eisav’s murderous vindictive wrath.
The first time G-d spoke to the Patriarchs
The first time that G-d ever spoke to our father Avraham - before he was yet Avraham, when he was still Avram - was in the opening words of Parashat Lech Lecha: “Get yourself away from your country and your birthplace and your father’s house, to the Land that I will show you; and I will make you a great nation…” (Genesis 12:1-2).
Water
“There is no water other than Torah” said our Sages in several places (Bava Kama 17a, Avodah Zara 5b, et al.). And since water is the metaphor for Torah, it is no idle coincidence that so many of the pivotal events in the history of our people involved water. -G-d’s first judgement ever against humanity in its entirety (except for Noah and his immediate family) was executed by water in the global Flood.
Sodom and human shields
The Torah introduces us to G-d’s judgement on the great metropolis of Sodom and Gomorrah by recording His informing Abraham of His intentions. “Hashem said: Shall I conceal from Abraham what I’m doing, when Abraham is going to become a great and mighty nation, in whom all the peoples of the world will be blessed?... And Hashem said: The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah - because it is great; and their sin - because it is terribly heavy; I will descend now and see.
The ultimate consolation
Parashat Lech Lecha opens with G-d’s first call to Avram, when he was 75 years old, telling him to leave Haran, his familiar surroundings, and his family home, and to make Aliyah. It concludes with the 99-year-old Avraham (no longer Avram) and his wife 89-year-old wife Sarah (no longer Sarai), beginning to found a family: though Sarah was still childless, her handmaid Hagar had already borne Avraham a son, Ishmael.
Praying for rain: The essence of the Land of Israel
We recited תְּפִלַּת הַגֶּשֶׁם, the Prayer for Rain, the day after Sukkot, on Shmini Atzeret. Simultaneously, we began adding the phrase מַשִּׁיב הָרוּחַ וּמוֹרִיד הַגֶּשֶׁם, “He causes the wind to blow and the rain to fall”, in every Amidah (which we will continue to do until Pesach). However, this phrase is not actually a request for rain; it is no more than recognition that G-d provides us with the wind and the rain which are necessary for our survival.
The Sukkah: Nofelet or Nofalet?
The addition to Birkat ha-Mazzon for Sukkot alludes both to the Sukkah and to the future redemption: הָרַחֲמָן - הוּא יָקִים לָנוּ אֶת סֻכַּת דָּוִיד הַנֹּפֶלֶת “The Merciful One - may He erect for us David’s fallen Sukkah!”. Some Siddurim vowelize the final word הַנֹּפֶלֶת, ha-nofelet; others הַנֹּפָלֶת, ha-nofalet. It seems like a minor grammatical detail, barely worthy of attention, let alone the subject for an entire D’var Torah. הַנֹּפֶלֶת or הַנֹּפָלֶת - does it really matter?
Jewish history and how to survive it
The bulk of Parashat Ha’azinu is Moshe’s swan-song, the final Song that he sang and taught to all Israel in his final day in this world: “Listen, O Heavens, and I will speak, and hear, O Earth, the words of my mouth…”.
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