Shoftim | 5785 | Appointing a King, by Rav Tzvi Chaim Kaye

Is it an option or a commandment? 

Ramban on the Torah | 5785 | 37 | Shoftim, by Rav Eli Weber

What is the role of the magistrate in the Torah? 

Rav Soloveitchik on Teshuva (7): Appreciating the Different Motivations for Repentance, by Rav Dovid Gottlieb

Seventh in a series of mini-shiurim on R Soloveitchik's approach to Teshuva based on his famous and incredible sefer Al HaTeshuva. 

Sometimes we're moved emotionally to change direction, and other times our motivations are more intellectual - does it matter why we chose to change? In what sense can sin be compared to illness or disease?

Sefer Devarim | Ekev | 5785 | The Ark of War, by Rav Alex Israel

Rashi suggests that there is not one Aron but two - one Ark is in the Mikdash and the second Aron is for the war-front. Why is there a necessity for a special war Aron? What does it contain? What does it symbolize? 

Devarim | Birkat HaMazon: Sources and Development (2), by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom

Following up from our last shiur, we investigate several observations and proposals made by the Rishonim to discover how Birkat haMazon may have evolved over time. One key question that we address is how all 3 ברכות (at least!) are דאורייתא, if, as some Rishonim suggest, they weren't said at all for a significant period.

Source sheet >>

Devarim | Birkat HaMazon (1), by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom

A ubiquitous prayer, one of the few commanded in the Torah, is sourced in this week's parasha. Devarim 8:10 - "When you eat and are satisfied you shall bless Hashem, your God, for the good Land which he has given you." - this is known as Birkat haMazon. In this shiur, we explore the textual sources for the three (or four, or five) Berakhot that are mandated by the Torah as part of Birkat haMazon and examine some core Talmudic passages which interpret these verses, in various fashion, to establish the core of this prayer-sequence. In part 2, we will look at the development of the text of Birkat haMazon.

Souce sheet >>

Sefer Devarim | Vaetchanan | 5785 | Children, Identity, and Hope, by Rav Alex Israel

What does it mean to care for your parents? Why is it so important? Rav Alex Israel '85 is an author, Tanakh teacher and international lecturer. He is a teacher at Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi and at Midreshet Lindenbaum, and records a daily 929 podcast - The Tanakh Podcast. 

Sefer Devarim | Devarim |  5785 | Lessons of Empowerment, by Rav Alex Israel

How are we to view the way that Moshe retells episodes of the past in new ways with fresh details, different from accounts earlier in the Torah?  We shall discover a common message in Moshe's opening stories in Devarim ch.1. Rav Alex Israel '85 is an author, Tanakh teacher and international lecturer. He is a teacher at Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi and at Midreshet Lindenbaum, and records a daily 929 podcast - The Tanakh Podcast. 

Ramban on the Torah | 5785 | 36 | Matot-Masei, by Rav Eli Weber

What is the meaning of living in Eretz Israel?

Sefer Bamidbar | Matot - Masei | 5785 | War of Midian, War of Vengeance, by Rav Ezra Bick

What is the difference between the vengeance of Israel and the vengeance of God? What does it actually mean to avenge the Midianites? Why did the people go out to do this in the name of Moses?