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Shabbat Shalom! I hope this finds you well. There’s this young man. One day he’s out for a drive and he spots this little corner of heaven. This plot of land has everything he’s ever wanted and dreamed of – forests, creeks, fields and streams, fauna, wildlife, views of the mountains, and heavenly sunrises and sunsets. The problem- there’s no house. No worries – he has a custom one built there. But it’s expensive – so he takes out loans and finds a better paying job. Now there’s another problem – the new job requires a lengthy commute. Well, he gets up early every morning and goes to bed late every night. Some of his friends who say they never see him any more, tell him he lives to work rather than working to live. Undaunted, he continues this routine for years and years until the loans are paid off. […]

Shabbat Shalom! I hope this finds you all well. There’s this classic Ashkenazic tale: a man who, for years, has been committing the sin of lashon hara (“the evil tongue”) i.e. gossip, realizes the error of his ways and goes to the local Rabbi to ask how to begin the process of teshuvah (“atonement and repentance”). The Rabbi tells the man to take a feather pillow, rip it open, and leave the feathers outside overnight, and then come back to him the next day. The man does this and asks his Rabbi what comes next. The Rabbi instructs the man to go and collect all the feathers. The man protests that this is impossible as strong winds have carried all the feathers away. Here comes the lesson…the Rabbi teaches the sinner that just as all the feathers cannot be recovered, so too can the damage to everyone’s reputations that were harmed […]

This D’var Torah is humbly dedicated in loving remembrance to the victims of the recent flooding in Texas.  May their memories be for a blessing, and may the Holy One, Blessed Be He, comfort their friends, relatives and communities among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem. Shabbat Shalom. I pray this finds you all well. One of the things that I appreciate most about Hebrew is how intentional and straightforward it is. It’s direct, it’s clear, concise, practical, and it says what it means and means what it says. For instance, a potato is a tapuakh adamah or “ground apple,” a wave is gal and a wheel is galgal (think of motion), and finally the Jewish New Year is Rosh Hashanah, literally, “Head of the Year.” In this vein, the use of the word “house” or beit/bayit is extremely literal. A hospital is known as beit kholim, “house of the […]

This D’var Torah is humbly and loyally dedicated in the memory of my ROTC instructor, teacher, mentor, and most importantly, friend, Colonel Jason Lafferty (U.S. Army, Retired) who sadly died on June 23, 2025 at the age of 50 and after a sustained battle with leukemia. In Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) we are told by Rabbi Yose ben Yoezer: “Let thy house be a house of meeting for the Sages and sit in the very dust of their feet, and drink in their words with thirst.” (*Pirkei Avot 1:4). Every time I spoke with COL Lafferty I learned something new from him and was a richer man for it. Zichrono Livracha- May COL Lafferty’s memory be for a blessing, and may God comfort his beloved family in this time of profound sadness and mourning. Continuity- Why America and Judaism are still here Shabbat Shalom and Happy 4th! I […]