- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Chukat
21
mysterious ritual of the Para Aduma. Because the
ashes of the red heifer can simultaneously render
one person tahor & another person tamei, it is
considered the Chok – a law for which the reason
is not readily apparent – par excellence,
exceeding even Shlomo HaMelech’s understanding.
But it can also refer to laws which are
unchanging throughout history, such as Pesach’s
rules being "Chukat Olam," eternal decrees. There
is a third application as well: some laws are
eminently logical for some people, or at one
specific time & place, yet inexplicable for
others or at a different time & place. These laws
are called "Chok u’Mishpat," statute & law.
Sounding the Shofar, for example, is both
mystically imponderable, yet also logical when it
announces a king. Honoring parents is another
"Chok u’Mishpat;" it makes sense because they
care for us, yet when it was given in the desert,
our parents neither fed, taught nor protected us.
The Cup of Life is Overflowing
Rabbi Haggai Lundin | 5 Tammuz 5784
The Obvious and the Hidden
Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu | Tamuz 2 5782
Engagement with the Enemy
Parshat Chukat
Rabbi Shalom Z. Berger | 5763
The Message of the Inexplicable Red Heifer
Rabbi Avichai Katzin | 6 Tammuz 5784
15. Working on Purim
Chapter 15: Purim and Reading the Megilla
Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | Tevet 5 5782
Some Kitniyos Curiosities
Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff | Nissan 5768
Joseph and the Four Cups of Wine
Rabbi Howard Joseph | Nisan 5763
15. Working on Purim
Chapter 15: Purim and Reading the Megilla
Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | Tevet 5 5782
Daf Yomi Sanhedrin Daf 108
R' Eli Stefansky | 6 Nisan 5785
Example of Shifting Gears to Build a Jewish Nation
Erev Pesach which Falls on Shabbat
Rabbi Ari Shvat | Nisan 5785
