How does "Numbers" make sense as a title for the Bible's fourth book? How is that name connected to what the book is about? Join Rabbi Fohrman and his daughter, Ariella, as they explore the titles of the Bible's books and stitch together the powerful story they tell.

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Why does the Book of Leviticus end with scary curses, and why does the Torah link these curses to the mitzvah of Shemittah? Join Adina Blaustein and Ari Levisohn as the journey through this week’s double parsha and its haftorah to find an inspiring understanding of Behar-Bechukotai and the entire Book of Leviticus. 

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During the time between Passover and Shavuot, we “count the Omer,” marking the number of days since the Omer offering would have been brought. Why is this Omer offering so important that we have to mention it 49 consecutive nights, and how is it still relevant if we haven’t even had the Temple for 2000 years? 

Join Rabbi Fohrman and Rivky Stern as they explore a tantalizing intertextual triangle which reveals just how significant the Omer is to our contemporary lives.

Check out Rabbi Fohrman’s course “Why do we celebrate Shavuot” to trace the thread of these ideas even further back, to even before the original Passover. 

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The developments surrounding the return to the Land of Israel and the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 seem to be prophetically predicted in the verses of Psalm 107. That’s why Israel’s Chief Rabbinate selected this salvation-themed chapter to be recited on Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israel’s independence day. But there is one verse that seems completely out of place.

In this week’s episode, Ari Levisohn and Daniel Loewenstein explore this strange verse and uncover its deep message of hope, strength, and perseverance in the face of adversity. 

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What does Tzara'at have to do with the revalation at Sinai? Why did Miriam get tzara'at? In this week's episode Tikva Hecht untangles a web of intertextual parallels, that all revolve around the transformative power of speech.

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In last week’s episode, Imu and Rivky pointed out that the only two places where chametz (leavened bread) is forbidden are our homes on Passover and all year round in the Mishkan (Tabernacle). In this week’s episode, Ari Levisohn, notices that this isn’t the only connection between the Mishkan and the Israelites’ homes on that original Passover. These connections lead to a fascinating exploration of the monumental impact of that original Passover and what we and our families can gain from this Passover.

Watch Ari’s favorite Passover video: How to Read the Haggadah, and for more amazing Passover content, check out https://www.alephbeta.org/passover. 

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Passover is a week away, and as we stock up on matzah and kiss goodbye to bagels, you’ve got to wonder: What’s the big deal about leavened bread, anyway? Why don't we eat it on Passover? Easy question, right? Because of the matzah we ate when God took us out of Egypt. But if you think about it, this prohibition is pretty strange.

The commandment could just have been to eat matzah in commemoration of the Exodus. Why are we also commanded to remove any trace of leavening, of chametz? 

This week, Imu Shalev and Rivky Stern look at what Parshat Tzav says about chametz in its description of the daily offerings in the Tabernacle. All year round, the flour in the meal-offering has to be baked as matzah; it can never be chametz. The question is, why? Imu and Rivky dive into the Torah’s other clues to the deeper symbolic meaning of chametz, and those clues bring them to a new understanding of why Parshat Tzav forbids chametz with the offerings… and why we abstain from it on Passover. 

Check out our amazing library of Passover videos!

We’re starting Sefer Vayikra this week! But if we’re honest, Leviticus isn’t the easiest book to be excited about. Genesis and Exodus have so much drama: the family stories of our patriarchs and matriarchs, the liberation from Egypt, the great encounter with God at Mount Sinai. Whereas Vayikra... so much of it is about animal offerings, or how the priests need to do their jobs in the mishkan, the tabernacle. It’s got a lot of laws that don't even apply to us any more. So how do we find meaning in this central book of the Five Books of Moses?

In this episode, Imu Shalev brings that exact question to Rabbi Fohrman, along with a suggestion about how Vayikra is actually a connected, embedded part of the Torah’s overall story. And their conversation shows that this isn’t actually an isolated book of laws. Instead, it’s a key part of our national mission statement. Vayikra is about learning to live a life of closeness with God.

Observing the Sabbath involves rules about a long list of actions, from cleaning to writing to making things with our hands, and more! Right before the start of construction on the mishkan, the Tabernacle, Parshat Vayakhel reminds us to observe Shabbat. Building the mishkan was a huge project, one that required all kinds of creative activities. So keeping Shabbat must require us to refrain from those activities. That’s a logical explanation, but it also sounds pretty technical. Are the blueprints for the mishkan really a spiritually satisfying reason for having so many laws? We’re talking about Shabbat, one of the most central, most precious parts of Judaism! Shouldn’t these rules lead us straight to some deep knowledge of God?

This week’s episode is something special, a two-part format that we haven’t tried before. First, Rabbi Fohrman shows why Shabbat laws are linked to the mishkan, what that connection teaches us about God’s creating the world, and how we fulfill our human destiny as “little creators.” In the second half, Ari Levisohn and Beth Lesch dig deeper into Rabbi Fohrman’s ideas. They consider what Shabbat teaches us about God’s plan for humanity, and what we can learn from that about being parents… one way in which we emulate God’s role as Creator.

Parshat Ki Tisa has one of the all-time low points in the Torah. The Israelites just received the Torah back in Parshat Yitro. All they need to do now is wait for Moses to finish up a bit of paperwork with God. But when he doesn't come back right away, they go to Aaron and ask him to...  make them a golden calf.

It's a disaster. God sends Moses back down the mountain and punishes the people for worshipping this idol. But there are some big questions we can ask about this story. Such as: What do the Israelites want an idol for? They just heard God giving them the Ten Commandments, speaking directly to them! But also... why would anyone take a golden idol seriously? It seems so obvious that if you made it, then it's not a god. So how are we supposed to understand what's really happening in this story? How can we know what message to take away for our own lives?

This week, Rabbi Fohrman and Imu Shalev tackle the tough questions about the sin of the golden calf. As it turns out, this story has a lot to say about our human struggles with responsibility. And about why it can be so hard to feel close to God.