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ב"ה

Vayeitzei 5764 - December 5, 2003

Climbing the Ladder

According to the ancient mystics, all actions of man -- indeed all workings of creation -- derive from two general forces: love and awe. More specifically, there is "lower awe", "lower love", "higher love", and "higher awe" -- in that order
Parshah
Vayetze in a Nutshell
Jacob rests on his way to Charan and dreams of a ladder with angels ascending and descending. Laban tricks Jacob into marrying his daughter Leah. A week later, Jacob also marries Rachel. He works for Laban for 14 years, then escapes with his wives and children.
Women in the Synagogue

The issue is even more baffling than you think. Most of the guidelines for prayer, we learned from a lady named Chana who lived about 3000 years ago. Yet all the dominant roles in communal prayer are given to men!
Story
A Prerequisite for a Blessing

He was perched on a white steed, accompanied by an entourage of soldiers. He wore a flashy uniform, and a glossy medallion, indicating his high rank, hung from his neck...
Living
How to Apologize

"If you are lost in a forest," a chassidic master once asked his disciples, "are you better off being lost while walking or while riding on a horse?"
"A ladder stood on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven" (Genesis 28:12) -- This is prayer.
— Zohar