Rabbi David Fohrman
נמצאו 76 תוצאות חיפוש
Shmot 12: The Hidden World of Korban Pesach
Rabbi David Fohrmanתאריך פרסום: תשע"ג | | שעה ו- 18 דקות
There seems to be a disconnect between the book of Bereisheet and the book of Shemot. After reading narratives about families in Bereisheet, we begin the book of Shemot to find Bnei Yisrael enslaved. How do the two books fit together? We contend that they indeed fit together in a profound way. We explore this as we examine linguistic and literary devices in the passages detailing Korban Pesach.
Seeing Ten Commandments in the Burning Bush
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this video, Rabbi Fohrman connects the Ten Commandments to the story of Moses and the Burning Bush, arguing that the text is certainly meant to hark back - but why? Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org/
Does Our History Become Laws?
Rabbi David Fohrman |Many of the laws given to the Jewish nation were actually based on the stories of our forefathers and foremothers. In this video, Rabbi Fohrman demonstrates the foundation of the laws of murder in Parashat mishpatim in the story of Yaakov and Esav. Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org/
Angels In the Tabernacle? Part I
Rabbi David Fohrman |The keruvim appear in three different places in the Mishkan. The meaning and significance of the keruvim are explored through a comparison to the original keruvim, who guarded the Garden of Eden after the expulsion of Adam and Eve. Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org/
Angels In the Tabernacle? Part 2
Rabbi David Fohrman |The mishkan is a human house built for God; the three partitions of the mishkan are each a way of peeling back a layer of creation - so we can truly connect with God. If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.
A Closer Look at Kiddush
Rabbi David Fohrman |Rabbi Fohrman offers a deeper insight into the seemingly boring and repetitious nature of the text of our Shabbat morning kiddush. Over and over, the text discusses "keeping" shabbat, holiness, and a covenant - but why? Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org/
God In Space, God In Time
Rabbi David Fohrman |What does bringing God into this world through space and through time mean? Time and space are the two realms in which we explore our connection with God. Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org/
How Can We Relate To Sacrifices Today?
Rabbi David Fohrman |Today, sacrifices seem so alien, how can we connect to the myriad of details associated with animal sacrifice? In this video, Rabbi Fohrman goes deeper into explaining the three main categories of sacrifice and how they create three frameworks of connection with God. Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org/
What Does Aaron Teach Us About Loss?
Rabbi David Fohrman |After the sudden death of Nadav and Avihu, Aaron's two sons, Moses argues with Aaron's remaining sons regarding a sacrifice they have brought. What is the argument fundamentally about, and what does the episode teach us about overcoming loss?
Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org!Rejoining the Community
Rabbi David Fohrman |The purification of the Metzora is linked with Korban Pessah; only through these two processes can one become fully alive and part of the community. Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org/
An Epic View of Jewish Holidays
Parashat Emor
Rabbi David Fohrman |Parashat Emor outlines the holidays, with two major interruptions: the laws of the omer offering, and the agricultural laws of pe'ah and leket. Why do these two pieces invade the laws of holidays, and what does that teach us about the epic Biblical approach to holidays? Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org/
Walking With God
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, the Torah suggests to us that if we follow God's will, we will be rewarded with walking with God - with the same language as the Garden of Eden. Rabbi Fohrman speaks this week about the loving, joyful moment of togetherness with God. Want to see more videos like this? Check out https://www.alephbeta.org/
Prophet on the Run: Yonah and Yom Kippur
Rabbi David Fohrman |This class raises two major questions on the book of Yonah:
1) Why does Yonah run? Doesn't he know that running from God is futile, especially as he's a prophet?
2) What message does he learn at the end of the book (with the story of the tree)?A close examination of these questions reveals an entirely new approach to the book of Yonah: din and rachamim related to past and potential, and the meaning of true teshuva.
Kan Tzipor & Yaakov's Deception of Esav
Rabbi David Fohrmanתאריך פרסום: תשע"ו | |
Can the Torah create an immersive, three-dimensional experience? We argue that yes, it does and look at certain methodology of doing so. We will see how one verse can serve as a lens and a larger text will be the screen. The "lens" in this shiur is the mitzva about the mother bird and her nest. We will then view the story of Yaakov and Esav's meeting in Parashat VaYishlach through the lens of that verse about the mother bird. Why did Yaakov send messengers to Esav, when he had no evidence that Esav's anger had abated? Who is the "mother bird" in this story? Who "sends the mother bird away?" What role do Rivka's instructions to Yaakov play here?
The David and Batsheva Episode
Rabbi David Fohrmanתאריך פרסום: 5777 | | 58 דקות
We will examine the David and Batsheva episode - a very difficult episode in Tanakh, and our focus will be its aftermath. The child that is conceived dies – David prays for him to survive, but the child dies. Why, though, does Shlomo live? He, too, is born in the immediate aftermath. Not only does Shlomo live, but Gid seems ecstatic about his birth. Is there another dimension to the Tanakh's emphasis on the urgency with which David prays for the first child to survive? To find answers, we look for clues through a close reading of related Tanakh texts.
In the prophet Natan's analogy of the "poor man's lamb," who is the lamb in the story, and does it hint at Uriah's childlessness? We compare the story of Yitzhak's birth to that of Shlomo. Both are "miracle children" who survive after seemingly-impossible situations whose destiny is to carry on a dynasty of sorts. Finally, we look at Shlomo's dream and the story of the two women in the court case that Shlomo solves. The court case with the two women may be the final key to explaining why Shlomo ultimately survived, if we look at it as yet another parable. Shlomo asks for wisdom, and God grants him wisdom - but perhaps not in the way Shlomo expects.
Bereishit: Does Man 'Acquire' Woman?
Rabbi David Fohrman |It seems troubling that in a Jewish marriage, a man ‘acquires’ a woman – is Judaism really so archaic? In this lecture, Rabbi David Fohrman explores this question in the context of God’s creation of Eve, the first woman, and shows that true acquisition is not about control, it’s about completeness of the self.
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Rabbi David Fohrman |Last week, we saw Jacob trick his father Isaac and stole Esau's birthright, devastating his brother and causing him to cry. Are we really meant to applaud Jacob's behavior? In this video, Rabbi Fohrman explores the scene when Jacob and Rachel first meet, in which Jacob too cries. Through a deeper understanding of this midrash, we are shown special insights into the text and can begin to understand how Jacob can be called a man of truth.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Becoming a Person of Integrity
Rabbi David Fohrman |How do we reconcile Jacob's behavior, tricking his brother and lying to his father, with our vision of Yaakov as an ish emet, a man of truth? Through an analysis of several seemingly unimportant details, we will connect two stories in which Yaakov is a central character and understand what it means to develop into a person of character.
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The Epic Confrontation Between Judah and Joseph
Rabbi David Fohrman |Judah once allowed a son of Rachel to be taken, but in this week's parsha, he offers to sacrifice himself instead of Benjamin, because Jacob's soul is bound up in the soul of Benjamin. Where do we see the same language used centuries later? In this video, Rabbi Fohrman explores a fascinating Biblical echo and helps us answer, what is heroism?
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Who is Joseph's Real Father?
Rabbi David Fohrman |When Joseph agrees to bury Jacob in Canaan, Jacob bows to him in relief - why? What was Jacob worried about? In this video, the last of the book of Genesis, Rabbi Fohrman explores Joseph's tension between his commitments to Jacob and Pharaoh, and the meaning of his choice to bury Jacob in Canaan.
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Shmot: If Midrash is Real, Why Isn't It Peshat?
Rabbi David Fohrman |Welcome the book of Exodus! In this video, we explore the strange midrash in which the arm of Pharaoh's daughter stretched through the river to fetch Moses. Why do the Sages tell us such an odd story? Rabbi Fohrman argues that we need to put ourselves into the eyes of Pharaoh's daughter, and help us see that when we want to achieve something, God will help us find a way to do it.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Can Leaders Make Mistakes?
Rabbi David Fohrman |Welcome the book of Leviticus! In this video, we explore Rashi's puzzling comment, that a nation is lucky if it has a leader who brings a sacrifice for an accidental sin. Rabbi Fohrman contrasts the Torah's perspective of power and justice to the philosophy of Richard Nixon's famous line - "When the president does it, it is not illegal."
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Beshalach: What Does It Mean to Have Faith?
Rabbi David Fohrman |After crossing the Sea of Reeds, the nation of Israel sings a song of thanksgiving - but curiously, Miriam then leads the women of the nation in a second song. Why? In this video, Rabbi Fohrman explores a famous midrash about the birth of Moses and explains what it means to truly have faith.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Terumah: Is There a Face Hiding in the Tabernacle?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In Parshat Terumah, we are given explicit details about how to build the mishkan, the Tabernacle that traveled with the nation of Israel through the wilderness. In this video, Rabbi Fohrman suggests that the mishkan might represent a hidden 'face' - and asks us to think about who we really are, our physical bodies, or the souls that lies behind them?
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Tetzaveh: Where Is God In a Physical World?
Rabbi David Fohrman |Last week's parsha video outlines the mishkan as a 'face' of God, and this week, he delves into the paradox - how can God be both outside of space and time, and in our physical world? Rabbi Fohrman argues that maybe the face of the mishkan gives us the answer, and begins to explore the similarities between humankind and God.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.What Sabbath Is All About
Parshat Emor
Rabbi David Fohrman |In our Torah reading for holidays, we not only recite the laws of holidays, we include shabbat, and oddest of all, some laws about sacrificing animals. What do all these laws have to do with one another? In this video, Rabbi Fohrman makes a fascinating argument about how Shabbat works and shows that there are shabbatot in different realms.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Pekudei: A Giant Chiasm In Sefer Shmot
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's video, Rabbi Fohrman explores an incredible chiasm that encompasses more than 15 chapters, and asks, how do the pieces of this puzzle, especially the focal point at the center, come together to help us understand how the Torah builds together?
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Who Really Sold Joseph?
Rabbi David Fohrman |Although we grow up learning that the brothers sold Joseph, a closer look at the text, and at the accompanying Rashbam, complicates that understanding. In this week's parsha course, we unravel the sale of Joseph and discuss the implications of such a theory: what is blame? Where does responsibility begin? And most importantly, how do I make moral decisions?
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Why Didn't Joseph Write Home?
Rabbi David Fohrman |After Joseph was sold into slavery, why didn't he ever get in touch with his father? In this video, Rabbi Fohrman will help us attempt to look at the story through Joseph's eyes, and explore the possibility that Joseph assumed his father was in on the plot. This new perspective helps us understand Joseph, and also his unique relationship with Pharaoh, who becomes the father figure in Joseph's life.
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Did God Take Away Pharaoh's Free Will?
Rabbi David Fohrman |According to the simple meaning of the text, it seems like God took away Pharaoh's free will - how could He do such a thing? In this video, we explores the different words used by the Torah, kaved and chazek; Rabbi Fohrman argues that the precise language shows that God allows Pharaoh to pursue his vision, even if the vision is a defiance of God.
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Ki Tavo: How to Take Your Place in Jewish History
Rabbi David Fohrman |Parshat Ki Tavo introduces to the topic of bikkurim, the first fruits brought to the temple. In this video, Rabbi Fohrman brings up some oddities in the text and asks why the Torah would paint such a confusing picture, and what are these mysterious silences? Watch the next video to find out!
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Why Did God Reject Nadav and Avihu?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, we see the sudden and disturbing death of two of Aaron's sons, Nadav and Avihu. In exploring the text more closely, what earlier Biblical story shows parallel themes and language to this story, and what is the meaning behind this connection?
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Did God Really Need Ten Plagues?
Rabbi David Fohrman |Ten colorful and unique plagues...is that really so necessary? In this week's video, Rabbi Fohrman explores the 7th plague, the transitional plague, and argues that God played off of Pharaoh's ego to show the Pharaoh, the people of Egypt and the people of Israel, that only God is all-powerful.
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The Marriage of God and Israel
Rabbi David Fohrman |Parshat Yitro contains the most important piece in the narrative of the Jewish people, the giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai, when the nation and God are 'married.' Curiously, before that story, we have two short stories about Yitro, Moses's father-in-law, first when he throws a feast to celebrate the salvation, and then when he advises Moses to set up a court system.
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Female Servitude...Wait, What?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, we are given the laws of female servitude - worse, a female child, being sold by her parents! How are we, as 21st century students of the Torah, meant to understand such a difficult piece of text? In this video, Rabbi Fohrman shows us that the Torah argues that to create a better society, we must be proactive about addressing social and economic inequality.
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Ki Tavo: How to Take Your Place in Jewish History - Part 2
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this video, Rabbi Fohrman suggests that the pauses in the farmer’s speech are ways for him to show that he understands his place in the larger framework of Jewish history, and the promise that began back with our forefathers and came to fruition with him.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Matot: Why Is The End of Bamidbar So Anticlimactic?
Rabbi David Fohrman |The Torah is a book of great drama, why does the narrative ends with a seemingly-unnecessary story about a random conquest of some towns? In this week and next week, Rabbi Fohrman paints a picture of epic connections to the stories of Jacob, Joseph and Judah.
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Masei: Why Is The End of Bamidbar So Anticlimactic? II
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this video, we still ask, why does the Torah end the narrative sections with the story of Yair ben Menashe conquering some towns? In finding the answer, Rabbi Fohrman teaches us about true reconciliation: brothers taking care of brothers.
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Ki Tisa: Moshe's Benevolent Chutzpah
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, the Jewish people commit the worst sin possible - worshiping a false god - right after God gives them the Torah on Mt. Sinai. In this video, Rabbi Fohrman asks us about a bizarre question that Moshe asks God, "Why, God, should you be angry at your people?" and reminds us that God and the nation of Israel are attached by destiny.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.What Does It Mean To Survive?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's video, we explores the verse and a section of Talmud that teaches about the four individuals who would bring a Thanksgiving sacrifice - but one of these four doesn't belong? Rabbi Fohrman examines this question, and helps us gain a deeper level of empathy for those who are ill.
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Nitzavim-Vayeilech: Where's the Happy Ending?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this video, the first of a three-part series, we ask about God's odd prophecy to Moses at the end of the Torah. As Moses is about to die, why does God tell him about how the Israelites will ruin everything? Rabbi Fohrman hints that Moses has the power to help us get out of a vicious cycle, which we will explore in next week's video.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Ha'azinu: A Unique Nation
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's video, the second of a three-part series, we delve into the beautiful and mysterious song of Ha'azinu. Rabbi Fohrman notes some fascinating language in the song and asks, once we recognize that our separation from God is our fault, how do we repair it?
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.V'Zot Habracha: Looking Towards the Future
Rabbi David Fohrman |With this week's video, Rabbi Fohrman finishes the series of parsha videos by giving us a look at the Torah's vision of what happens after the text of the Torah officially ends, and reminds us that we today are a critical part of the timeline in Jewish history.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.The Bizarre Purification of the Metzora
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, we are introduced to a strange set of laws related to the metzora, one afflicted with tzara'at. How do we relate to such laws? In this video, Rabbi Fohrman begins to assemble clues, including the midrashic cause of tzara'at, the connection between a corpse and tzara'at, and echoes of this purification process earlier in the Torah.
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Bamidbar: Who Cares About Genealogy?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In Parshat Bamidbar, we read a genealogy of the families of the nation of Israel - but isn't that kind of boring? In this video, we get a closer insight into some strange verses about Aaron's family, and Rabbi Fohrman gives us insight into what it truly means to be a teacher.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Beha'alotecha: The Torah's Guide To Parental Love
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha video, Rabbi Fohrman delves deeper into the Priestly Blessing and its relevant lessons, challenging us to see the path of parental love laid out in the Torah.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Noach: Why Did God Destroy the World?
Rabbi David Fohrman |When Noach is named, his father Lamech claims that he will provide relief for humankind - and less than 10 verses later, God decides to destroy the world. By comparing textual parallels of the two events, Rabbi Fohrman helps us understand Lamech's mistake, and how to better relate to God today.
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Lech Lecha: Covenant With God
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, God and Abraham make a hugely important covenant, where God promises Abraham children and land, leading to the start of the Jewish nation. In this video, Rabbi Fohrman helps us understand what can we learn from a fascinating literary chiasm in the text surrounding this covenant.
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Vayeira: Abraham's Struggle With Loyalty
Rabbi David Fohrman |What was Abraham thinking as he walked up the mountain to slaughter his long-awaited son? How could Abraham be disloyal to his own paternal responsibilities and betray Isaac? In this video, we explore Abraham’s struggle during the Binding of Isaac through his brief but rich conversation with his son. In so doing, we expose an added element of the test in the command to slaughter his son and uncover a new perspective of Abraham’s greatness.
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Chayei Sarah: What Makes For A Successful Life?
Rabbi David Fohrman |The Torah eulogizes Sarah by dividing up her age into 100 years, 20 years, and 7 years. In this video, Rabbi Fohrman delves into Rashi's famous explanation, and shows us that Sarah's integrated of experiences into her later life, we are given a model for how to best embrace life.
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Toldot: A Conversation For the Ages
Rabbi David Fohrman |In Parshat Toldot, we are shown a conversation between father and son in which the father's spiritual heritage is passed down. We had seen this conversation between Abraham and Isaac; however, now, we see similar textual and thematic parallels in conversations between Isaac and both Esau and Jacob. In this video, we will explore these parallels and ask, what do they teach us about the nature of heritage?
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Shelach: Optimism vs. Pessimism
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha video, we ask, are pessimists just rationalists, and is hope just naivete? Rabbi Fohrman points out an intriguing language parallel and argues that hope always exists, but we must direct it towards the future, not the past.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Re'eh: The Strange Laws Of Jewish Slavery
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, we are given the commandments relating to a Jew having a Jewish slave. The laws here seem strange: we give gifts to the slave? If he wants to stay, we must pierce his ear? Rabbi Fohrman goes through these oddities to show us that the Torah is reminding us of our own national slavery in Egypt.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Korach: Can We Change God's Mind?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha video, Rabbi Fohrman points to two fascinating stories which seem to have contradictory lessons about the way we interact with God. These stories force us to ask a theological question: what impact, if any, can we have on God? Is it possible for us to influence God?
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Chukat: Was Hitting the Rock So Horrible?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, we are introduced to the strange episode of Moses hitting the rock. Because of this small infraction, we are told, Moses will not be entering the land with the people of Israel. Why? What was the small act of Moses talking to the rock meant to teach the people of Israel?
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Eikev: What Does It Mean To Be A Good Person? Part I
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, Moshe tells the nation exactly what God wants of us, but the prophet Micah makes a similar speech many generations later and exhorts the people very differently. Why? Rabbi Fohrman takes us into Micah's speech and explains the critical building blocks to being a good person.
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Eikev: What Does It Mean To Be A Good Person?- Part 2/2
Rabbi David Fohrman |Are Micha and Moses arguing? Find out in this epilogue to Parshat Eikev.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Devarim: What Does It Mean To Have Faith?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, Moses accuses the nation of Israel of not having faith. What? The people know firsthand about all the miracles God has done for them, how could they not have faith? Drawing on the Maharal, Rabbi Fohrman gives us a novel approach to faith, and challenges us to rise to this level of intimacy with God and with each other.
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Va'etchanan: Seeing Layers in the Ten Commandments
Rabbi David Fohrman |We've seen the text of the Ten Commandments so many times, but how does the Torah pack so much meaning into so few words? In this parsha video, Rabbi Fohrman shows us how the Torah layers meaning into the Ten Commandments, giving us a sample of the subtleties of the Torah.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Ki Teitzei: The Hated Wife
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this video, we discuss the Torah's laws about a man with two wives, one who he loves, and one who he hates. Rabbi Fohrman suggests that this legal section of text is a hint to the story of Jacob and his wives. Watch the next video to learn more!
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Ki Teitzei: The Hated Wife - Part 2/2
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this video, Rabbi Fohrman goes into detail about the man who hates one of his wives, and its parallels to Jacob, Leah, Rachel and their children, and suggests that the Torah is offering us a different path that can bring peace to our families and our homes.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Shoftim: The Line Between Murder And Apathy
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, we are introduced to cities of refuge, a safe haven for one who kills accidentally. Interestingly, we've heard many of the same circumstances before in the narrative section of the Torah, but why? In this video, Rabbi Fohrman gives us a context to understand what lies beyond accidental murder, and how to become more sensitive individuals.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Shoftim: The Line Between Murder And Apathy - Epilogue 1
Rabbi David Fohrman |Shoftim: Epilogue 1
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Shoftim: The Line Between Murder And Apathy - Epilogue 2
Rabbi David Fohrman |Shoftim: Epilogue 2
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Balak: Balaam, Prophet For Hire?
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's video, Rabbi Fohrman explores a mysterious mishnah, in which our Sages compare Abraham and his students, to Balaam, the prophet of this week's parsha, and his students. Where do they get this odd comparison, and what is the meaning we are meant to learn from it?
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Pinchas: What Does It Mean To Be Zealous For God?
Rabbi David Fohrman |The midrash tells us that Pinchas, the title character of this parsha, and Eliyahu, the prophet of Kings, are one and the same. In this week's parsha video, Rabbi Fohrman compares these two characters and asks, what does it mean to be zealous for God?
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Ki Tisa: Epilogue
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this audio epilogue to Ki Tisa: Moses's Benevolent Chutzpah, we explore the story of Noach and the flood, the other instance of God threatening to destroy the world. Rabbi Fohrman compares the two stories and the two protagonists, Moshe and Noach, and asks us what it truly means to be a man of God.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Living Within the Community
Rabbi David Fohrman |Last week, we had connected the laws relating to the purification of a metzora to the laws of the korban Pesach. Why would that be? In this week's video, Rabbi Fohrman puts the pieces together and reminds us that both teach us about 'radical separateness' - and while each of us is an individual, we are also part of a larger unit.
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How Can I Achieve True Love?
Parshat Kedoshim
Rabbi David Fohrman |We all know the maxim from this week's parsha, "Love your neighbor as yourself." But how do I do that? As it turns out, the Torah points a way. In this week's video, Rabbi Fohrman gives us the context for this directive, and helps us find the building blocks for true love.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Why Does Land Have To Rest?
Parshat Behar
Rabbi David Fohrman |We talked last week about seeing shabbat in different worlds. But how do we understand, conceptually, what this means? In this week's video, we look at Pesach, Shmita and Yovel and ask, where do we see Shabbat, and why does it matter?
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.Why Would God Curse His People?
Parshat Bechukotai
Rabbi David Fohrman |In this week's parsha, the Torah presents a stark choice: follow God and live, or abandon Him and die. Does this just reinforce God as a terrifying deity, or is there something more here? Through an analysis of language and a comparison to the Garden of Eden, Rabbi Fohrman shows us how we "choosing life" will show us the way to cling to God.
If you enjoyed this video, please visit AlephBeta.org to watch more.The Secret of the Keruvim: Creation and the Mishkan
Rabbi David Fohrman | שעה ו- 3 דקותHow do we read the story of creation of the world from the perspective of scientific advancements? How do we, as people living in the modern world, read the story of the six days of creation? How do we answer the questions that arise from the first chapter of Bereshit? The text describing the construction of the Mishkan can shed light on the text of creation and through a close examination of both texts we can gain a deeper understanding of the story of creation.
How Tefilat Shabbat Illuminates the Meaning of Vayechulu and Veshamru
Rabbi David Fohrman | שעה ו- 16 דקותTwo of the best known pieces of Biblical text that deal with the idea of Shabbat are the “Vayechulu” passage in Breishit, and the “Veshamru” passage in Exodus. We say them every week as part of the texts of Kiddush Friday night and Shabbat day. And yet a great many puzzles haunt us about these texts. Why would an all powerful God need to rest? If God finished creating everything at the end of the Sixth Day, why does Vayechulu also tell us that He ‘finished’ on the Seventh Day? ~~In this talk, Rabbi David Fohrman makes the case that the amidah of the Sabbath prayers contains text that is designed as a commentary on these two crucial texts - and that this ‘prayer-commentary’ opens up our understanding of both Shabbat, and the Biblical texts that describe it, in profound ways.
What Could The Obscure Procedure of Taharat HaMetzora Possibly Mean?
Rabbi David Fohrman | שעה ו- 3 דקותIn this fascinating lecture , we will explore the strange and obscure process of Taharat HaMetzora, and we will try to explain the various odd rituals that the Metzora undergoes on his path to purity.
לעילוי נשמת מאיר וליבע פרידמן, ודוד אליהו ורחל לאה פלדמן
Haman Min HaTorah Minayin: The Tree of Knowledge and Megillat Esther
Rabbi David Fohrmanתאריך פרסום: 2023 | | שעה ו- 10 דקות
By examining the stories of the Garden of Eden and Megilat Esther, we discover multiple parallels between them, and if we compare the two, we can understand the character of Haman and the role of the Tree of Knowledge on a deeper level.
Split the Baby: The Mystery of King Solomon's Wisdom
Rabbi David Fohrmanתאריך פרסום: 2022 | | שעה ו- 10 דקות
The story of Solomon and the two babies is one of the most famous and iconic in the entire Tanach. But it is also one of the most mysterious. The text seems to present the story as a great test of Solomon’s marvelous wisdom. And yet, is it really? In this lecture, Rabbi Fohrman argues that the story of Solomon and the two babies isn’t meant as a proof of his wisdom, but something far more profound: a mechanism by which he achieves that wisdom. Hidden in the depths of the court case facing the king, is everything he will need to know to achieve true understanding in his life.