Parshat Shavua

The Talmud begins with a discussion of night (regarding Kri’at Shema). Creation started at night (Bereishit 1:5). Night precedes day. There are two philosophies in this matter: the Jewish and the non-Jewish. Whatever includes more complexity requires more preparatory time. Whoever is preparing for a more important position must work longer for it. We find, in terms of different periods, that the world we live in is like the night (Pesachim 2b), in which we prepare for the world to come, which is like the day. “It is for us to do [the mitzvot] today and receive their reward tomorrow (in the next world)” (Eiruvin 22a).

One must be clear eyed and realistic about the painful waywardness and misbehavior of enemies of Yaakov, be they from within or without our immediate family and milieu

We face the worst enemies on the planet, generation after generation, & yet we are never knocked out. What is holding us up?!

A Background Discussion of the Halachic Issues Involved in the Use of Indian Hair for Sheitels