By: K.J. Kruger Tisha B’Av is a day of memorial and remembrance. It falls on the 9th of Av in the Jewish calendar (August 11th, this year), and is commemorated by fasting, the reading of the … Read More
Devotion Over Ritual
Parashat D’varim (Words) D’varim (Deuteronomy) 1:1-3:22 Haftarah: Isaiah 1:1–27 Shabbat Hazon (Vision) This week’s Haftarah reading is particularly significant as it concludes the three weeks leading up to Tisha b’Av, a day of profound mourning … Read More
Mercy Triumphs Over Judgment
Parashat Mattot (Tribes) & Masei (Tribes and Journeys) Bamidbar (Numbers) 30:2-32:42 & 33:1-36:13 Haftarah: Jeremiah 2:4-28, 3:4, 4:1-2 In this week’s Parasha, we witness the culmination of the Israelites’ journey from Egypt to the brink … Read More
Reflecting on Faith and Obedience
Parashat Pinchas Weekly Torah Portion (Parashah): Bamidbar (Numbers) 25:10-30:1 Haftarah: Jeremiah 1:1-2:3 In this week’s Torah portion, Parashat Pinchas, we read about the division of the Promised Land among the Israelites: Then the LORD spoke … Read More
Witnessing God’s Sovereignty and Faithfulness
Parashat Balak Numbers 22:2-25:9 Haftarah: Micah 5:6-6:8 This week, we delve into Parashat Balak, found in Bamidbar (Numbers) 22:2-25:9, with the Haftarah reading from Micah 5:6-6:8. Named after Balak, the king of Moab, this portion … Read More
The Danger of a Rebellious Heart
Parashat Korach Bamidbar (Numbers) 16:1-18:32 Haftarah: Isaiah 66:1-24 Shabbat Rosh Chodesh This week we have a special reading from Isaiah to mark the beginning of the Hebrew month, Tammuz. As I was reading the scripture … Read More
Facing the Giants in the Land
Parashat Shelach (Send Forth) Bamidbar (Numbers) 13:1-15:41 Haftarah: Joshua 2:1-24 I often find myself connecting the truth of God’s Word to the reality of life today. Afterall, His Word is living and breathing, and is … Read More
A Reminder of His Presence
PARASHAT BEHAALOT’HA (WHEN YOU KINDLE) BAMIDBAR (NUMBERS) 8:1–12:6 HAFTARAH: ZECHARIAH 2:10-4:7 (2:14 IN THE HEBREW BIBLE) A very wise man once told me that “we are in the ministry of reminders”; I believe this is … Read More
Vowing to be Set Apart
Parashat Nasso (Lift Up) Bamidbar (Numbers) 4:21-7:89 Haftarah: Judges 13:2-25 In this week’s Parashah, we read of a very special vow that a person could take upon themselves, which is the vow of the Nazirite: … Read More
Freedom & Holiness in Shavuot
On sundown Tuesday, June 11th, Shavuot, also known as the “Feast of Weeks” will begin. This holiday marks the conclusion of the seven weeks in which we count the Omer, as God instructed the children … Read More