Here is a recording of a shiur I delivered at the OU Center in Jerusalem on ‘Shehecheyanu on having a baby’: For the handout, click here.

Here is a recording of a shiur I delivered at the OU Center in Jerusalem on ‘Shehecheyanu on getting married’: For the handout, click here.

Here is a recording of a shiur I delivered at the OU Center in Jerusalem on ‘Shehecheyanu on Purchasing New Clothes’: For the handout, click here.  

Here is a recording of a shiur that I delivered at for the Eden Center on ‘Yom Kippur & Mikveh’:  

Here is a recording of a shiur that I delivered at Matan on ‘Moshe, Yona and Rabbi Twerski zt’l on finding ourselves’. To download a transcript of my talk see https://bit.ly/390VriW, and for my handout see https://bit.ly/3nmEA2s.

A shul is meant to be a place where we are in communion with God and where we nurture our awareness of standing in the presence of God. Given this, R’ Binyamin Ze’ev Marta (1475-1545), basing himself on Sefer Aguda and the Kol Bo, states that a person should not kiss their children in a…

דרשה לכל נדרי – שערי תשובה שלום וכתיבה וחתימה טובה לכולכם, המשנה בסוף מסכת יומא מתארת ​​את יום כיפור כמקווה, והלילה אנחנו מתחילים את הטבילה הארוכה שלנו לעשרים וחמש שעות של יום כיפור. כציבור וכיחידים תוך התפילות שנתפלל, החרטה שנתחרט והחמשה עינויים שנתקיים, אנו מקווים לטהר את עצמנו ולהשיג חתימה חיובית לשנה החדשה. עם זאת,…

Below is a collection of insights for the Kriat HaTorah and Musaf prayers on Rosh Hashanah which I delivered at Machon Ma’ayan on Rosh Hashanah 5777. While the insights originate from a variety of sources, the core theme of the ideas shared on the First Day of Rosh Hashanah was ‘Self-Change’, while those which I…

Over the years I have collected hundreds of inspirational quotes from a variety of Jewish and general sources. Here are 40 of those quotes which I hope you find both helpful and inspirational as we begin our 40 day spiritual journey from the 1st of Ellul to Yom Kippur: ASPIRATION: “If a person doesn’t constantly…

This Motzei Shabbat is the first of Ellul, and from Sunday morning onwards until Yom Kippur, with the exception of Shabbatot and Erev Rosh Hashanah, a Shofar will be blown in Jewish schools and shuls each morning across the world and sefardim will start reciting selichot. For many people, the sound of the Shofar at…

Tonight, Jews throughout the world are celebrating Tu Bishvat, often referred to as the ‘birthday for trees’. The source for Tu Bishvat is the Mishna Rosh Hashanah 1:1 in which we are told of 4 New Years: 1) The New Year for kings and for bringing gifts to the Temple during festivals (1st Nissan), 2) the…

INTRODUCTION We’ve just started the hebrew month of Ellul, which means that we will be celebrating Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, in just under a month. One of the greatest lessons in Judaism is that we begin the year by planning for the future and by trying to identify how we can be our…

“Mirror, signal, manouvre”. These three words, which are the mantra of all driving instructors, succinctly express the idea that before travelling forward in a vehicle you need to look back and indicate that you are about to move. In a similar vein, I have always understood Rosh Hashanah as the start of a new spiritual…

Life can be stressful. While there are moments in life when things go well, there are also situations that we encounter when things do not go to plan; as Shlomo Hamelech famously wrote עֵת לִבְכּוֹת וְעֵת לִשְׂחוֹק עֵת סְפוֹד וְעֵת רְקוֹד – [there is] a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time…

Embedded in the legal discussions regarding the methods of prayer and the shape of the shofar is a fascinating theological debate regarding our priorities in life. Simply put, should we focus on the physical aspects of our lives and the impact we can have on this world, or should we focus on the spiritual aspects…

There are a number of reasons given as to why Megillat Rut is read on Shavuot.  For example, the Yalkut Shimoni explains that we read Megillat Ruth on Shavuot to teach us that the only way that Torah can become a meaningful part of our lives is through suffering as experienced by Ruth. Others such…

Shabbat shalom, Chodesh Tov, and thank you so much for having me. Today I’d like to speak about an important topic that gets to the roots of the Torah: EVOLUTION.  Now before you start thinking that I am planning to talk about Darwin’s evolution of the species I should explain that I have no intention…

Chag Sameach! Thanks to Rabbi Davis and thanks to you all for your warm welcome. As we know, Shavuot is a festival of customs. For example, we have a custom of staying up late to study, and a custom of eating dairy food. Today I would like to discuss one of the many Shavuot customs…

Today, I would like to tell you a story about Jewish unity – or at least, the attempt to create a sense of unity – by one of the most fascinating Jewish scholars and leaders of the past century. It is a story that is known by some in part, but to my mind, has…

Shalom, Chag Sameach, and thank you so much for your generous welcome! Today, as we celebrate Shavuot, I would like to discuss a value that is so inextricably linked to the festival of Shavuot that – at least according to the Rabbis of the Midrash – it is the reason why Mount Sinai was chosen…

Today we celebrate Shavuot and commemorate the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. This was and remains a momentous event in our history and in the history of the civilized world, and it is referred to by our Rabbis as מעמד הר סיני. But, if we take a moment, we will come to realise…

In this talk I want to address a tough and important question about Jewish belief in the Modern Orthodox world. It is a talk that I think is timely and essential. Yet notwithstanding its importance, it explores a question that I believe most Rabbis, and specifically most Modern Orthodox Rabbis, are afraid to address. To…

Parshat Bemidbar contains a detailed census of Bnei Yisrael, as well as instructions about how the Mishkan (Tabernacle) should be transported as Bnei Yisrael journey through the desert. However, even though the tribe of the Kehati family was responsible for transporting each part of the Mishkan, we are told that they were prohibited from observing…

Tonight we will be sitting round a Seder table and reading through the Haggadah with family and/or friends. However, while it is certainly praiseworthy to read the Haggadah and to eat the Matzah and Marror, I believe that the objective of Seder night goes far beyond reading the Haggadah and eating symbolic foods. Instead, it…