One of the great themes of the holiday of Purim is the concept of "Vinahafoch Hu," and it is completely reversed.  This concept appears throughout the Purim story and alludes to the fact that all of the parts of the story that appeared initially as gloomy, difficult and mournful in the end were reversed and not only were we saved from them, but those very same things were the source of our joy and happiness. Join me as we explore a few examples of this from the Purim story and end with a...

Every Friday night, we begin the Shabbos meal with sanctifying the Shabbos over a cup of wine (making Kiddush).  It seems like such a simple action, but the Talmud teaches that through saying this Kiddush, we are actually becoming partners with God in the creation of the world! What does that mean?  How does saying a few verses and blessings turn us into God's partners?  Join me as we begin with the source of Kiddush in the Torah, then understand the basic text and finally uncover the...

SPECIAL MATCHING CAMPAIGN LINK! FOR THE NEXT WEEK HAVE YOUR TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION DOUBLED: bit.ly/thethinkingjewpodcast In many places throughout the Torah and Rabbinic writing we find an emphasis on clothing. There are mitzvahs surrounding the clothing we wear, and there's even an entire Torah portion on the materials and style of the priests' clothing while serving in the tabernacle and temple. The question is, why does God care about our clothing? Doesn't God care more about who we...

The Jewish calendar is a lunisolar calendar, meaning it aligns with the cycles of both the sun and the moon.  Since the solar year is 11 days longer than the lunar year, every few years (occurring 7 times in every 19 years) we add an extra month to the year, to align these two calendars.  This year is a leap year, and we recently began the Jewish month of Adar Aleph, the first Adar. Join me in this fascinating episode as we explore a deeper perspective on the Jewish leap year.  What does the...

One of the most recognizable Jewish dishes is the gefilte fish.  Often served with a cooked carrot and a side of beets and horseradish sauce, known as chrein, it's probably the most classic appetizer at any Ashkenazi shabbos table. In this episode, we begin with the history of the gefilte and actually discover it wasn't originally a Jewish creation!  We then continue to learn why it nonetheless became an essential part of the Shabbos meals.  In the process, we uncover the deep Kabbalistic...

The Mishna (Rosh HaShanah 2a) teaches us that the 15th day of the Jewish month of Shevat is the "New Years for the Trees."  In the practical sense this impacts multiple laws of agriculture as explained in the Torah. But is that all it is?  Is it merely a birthday for the trees or is there a stronger more personal connection to us? We find multiple examples in the Torah comparing trees and people and in this episode we'll explore that connection and discover one special connection that people...

Anyone who has read the Bible knows that G-d famously decimated the Egyptian nation with 10 plagues, enabling the Jews to leave and gain their freedom.  But why did G-d need 10 plagues?  G-d is all-powerful!  He could've just marched the Jews right out!  What was the purpose of these ten plagues? Join me as we discover a fascinating connection between three groups of ten; the ten utterances through which G-d created the physical world, the 10 plagues in which G-d destroyed Egypt and freed...

Many have the custom to give their children a blessing before they sit down to the Friday night Shabbos meal.  We place our hands on our children's head and wish our daughters to be like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah and our sons to be like Ephraim and Menashe and conclude with the Priestly blessings. Why do we give this blessing on Friday night?  Why do we compare compare our daughters to the Mothers of the Jewish nation but our sons to Ephraim and Menashe (Joseph's sons) and not to the...

When people think of their relationship with God, they sometimes feel unworthy.  God is so great, is it possible that he really cares about me individually?  Does he really want to hear my prayer?  Does he really care if I get stuck in traffic?   Or perhaps, God did a personal miracle for them and they wonder why did God spare me from a potential tragedy?  What did I do to deserve this?  I'm not really so great! What's the Jewish perspective on this?  Don't we believe that God IS the...

There are 6 public fast days on the Jewish calendar: Yom Kippur, Tisha B'Av (the 9th of Av), Tzom Gedalia (the 3rd of Tishrei), Asarah Biteves (the 10th of Teves), Taanis Esther (the 13th of Adar) and Shiva Asar Bi'Tammuz (the 17th of Tammuz).   And while Yom Kippur and the fast of Esther each have their own independent reason for fasting, the remaining four are much more interconnected.   In this episode, you'll discover the historical connection between the fateful days of 10 Teves, 17...

Chanukah is often viewed as the holiday of lights in which we light the Menorah, eat oily foods and get presents, but is that all there is to Chanukah? In this episode, we uncover the ideological underpinning of the Maccabean revolt against the great Greek army.  What did Ancient Greece stand for? What was the Jewish response?  How did the Maccabees win the spiritual war?  Join me as we take a Kabbalistic perspective to discover the deeper meaning behind Chanukah! Thank you to David and...

In this episode, we go through the basic laws and customs of Chanukah.  We discuss the menorah, the fuel, time of lighting, placement of the menorah, the game of dreidel, Chanukah gifts and much more. If you want a quick 15 minute primer to either learn for the first time or remind yourself from last year of all the various laws and customs, you won't want to miss this episode. Happy Listening! Rabbi Moshe To sponsor a podcast or make a tax-deductible donation to support this podcast...

The name we generally identify with as a religion and a nation is the "Jew".  We consider ourselves Jewish and practice Judaism, but have you ever wondered where this name comes from?  In the Torah, God refers to the nation as the "sons of Israel" or the "Israelites" but no mention of Jews or Judaism, so where did that come from? Join me as we take both a historical and philosophical deep dive into the history of our national name uncovering a deeper meaning of what it really means to be...

The Torah is a legal guide to help us maximize our time in this world.  The word Torah itself means instruction or teachings.  Why would a book of laws begin with stories?  Imagine if the constitution began with stories of George Washington, Paul Revere and Samuel Adams, it'd be ridiculous!  The place for stories is in the history books, not the law books.  So why did God include the stories of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the 12 tribes in a legal script?  Join me as we discover...

Often when one thinks of a deep spiritual experience, they think of a transcendent meditation, or maybe about accessing deeper levels of consciousness or the like.  They don't generally think of hanging a parchment outside their front door (mezuzah) or sitting in a wooden hut (Sukka), separating a piece of bread for the priest (Challah), yet when we look at the Torah, we find that almost all the mitzvahs (biblical commandments) are physical actions.  How can that be?  How can a physical...

The Mikvah is one of the most powerful tools in Judaism.  The Mikvah has the ability to transform a ritually impure (tamei) person into a pure one (tahor), as well as to transform a gentile into Jew.  How does entering a pool of water accomplish such a magnificent transformation?  Where does the Mikvah draw this amazing power from? This episode begins with the basics of what a mikvah is and how its used, and then continues to develop that to uncover the deeper Kabbalistic meaning behind the...

Marriage is one of the most important values in Judaism, and as such the marriage process is filled with meaningful rituals and processes, reflecting the magnitude of the moment.  Often many people aren't aware of the meaning behind much of what's being done, so in this episode, we go through the entire wedding process from the time one enters the wedding hall until they leave.  In addition to explaining the legal process, we add in the psychological and spiritual meanings behind many of...

The Havdala ritual is comprised of making a blessing on a cup of wine, a candle and nice smelling spices.  When we make the blessing over the havdala candle, the code of Jewish Law teaches us that we should fold our fingers down over our palms and look at our fingernails and palms.  What is the meaning of this custom?  Why do we look at them? Join me as we begin with an explanation from the Mishna and continue going deeper uncovering the source of fire in the Torah, the kabbalistic meaning...

The incredible holiday season, beginning with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, continuing to Yom Kippur, the day of atonement, and then Sukkos, finally comes to a climax with the holiday of Shemini Atzeres. And while all the other holidays have unique commandments associated with them (shofar, fasting, lulav and esrog, sitting in a sukkah etc.) there are no special commandments for this final day.  Why is that?  Why doesn't Shemini Atzeres have any unique mitzvahs? In this episode, we...

Yom Kippur is the holiest day on the Jewish calendar and carries along with that many unique laws and customs.  What are all the laws of Yom Kippur?  When do they apply?  What's the deeper meaning of them?  Is there a common theme that goes across all these laws? Join me as we uncover the unique element of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and we'll discover the elevated status we are able to attain on this holiest day. Happy Listening! Rabbi Moshe To sponsor a podcast or make a...

What if we feel like we haven't accomplished as much repentance as we would've liked over the past month?  What if we are embarrassed to show our faces in synagogue on the High Holidays after another year of failed accomplishments?  What's the advice? Join me as I relay a few parables revealing the key to gaining God's assistance in the repentance process.  Activate God's help in making us repentant! May we all be written in the book of life for a year of health, success and amazing...

The only mitzvah unique to Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, is the obligation to hear the Shofar blasts.  These Shofar blasts are so powerful that they actually get God to move from his throne of judgement to his throne of mercy. What is so special about the Shofar?  How does it produce this heavenly transformation of Godly perspective? And, why is it the only mitzvah of Rosh Hashana? Join me as we go very deep into different Kabbalistic understandings of what judgement really is, what...

Many view the day of Rosh Hashana as the Day of Judgement; when God looks at our past year's actions and determines what the next year will look like. But if that's all Rosh Hashana is, why don't the Rabbis primarily refer to it as Yom Hadin, the Day of Judgement.  Why call it Rosh Hashana, the beginning of the year?  And why does the service on Rosh Hashana completely ignore the judgement?  It doesn't seem to focus on repentance or repairing ourselves on a personal level at all! Join me as...

Our Rabbis teach us that during the month of Elul, God makes Himself more accessible than at any other time of the year.  During this period of introspection and self improvement, God is standing there with us in the fields, helping us along. Join me as we discover why this is?  What is special about this time period that God makes Himself more available?  In the course of the discussion, we'll also discover a Talmudic debate as to when the world was created, why the day of judgement is on...

When you take of G-d's children, you're partnering with G-d and you can be confident that he'll assist you in your efforts.  If you want to see the hand of G-d in your life, get involved in communal efforts and you're sure to see how things come together in ways that are oozing with providence.   In this episode, I veer off my classic style of working through a concept from its biblical roots and through its kabbalistic meaning and instead share a bunch of stories of providence that I...