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We are living in extraordinary times and facing unprecedented challenges: The coronavirus is upending everyday life in a way that we have never seen in our lifetime. People are scared, people are quarantined, markets are plummeting, schools are off, shuls and yeshivos are shuttered, no one can get toilet paper or bottled water – our equilibrium is off-kilter. In this special episode, we offer a Torah perspective on plagues, epidemics, and quarantines that tries to drill down on the question of, “what does God want from us?”

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This week’s double-parsha begins with a stern warning against desecrating the Shabbos in order to build the Tabernacle. Absent the verse, I would have thought that you must even work on Shabbos to erect the Tabernacle. Why would I think so? Also, why indeed does it not override the Shabbos? In this special edition of the Parsha Podcast, we learn about the essence and redemptive powers of Shabbos.

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Justice is one of the three things that perpetuate the world. But should one strive to be a judge? In this very interesting Mishnah, the brainchild of a fascinating Sage, we discover that a person ought to be highly reticent in avoiding serving as a judge.

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The deadly coronavirus (COVID- 19) is dominating the world’s attention. Our Sages teach us that when danger strikes, we must ponder our behavior and search for lessons. We believe that this virus is a message from God. What is the message? What is He telling us? Of course, only prophets can answer that question definitively, but in this special edition of the Parsha Podcast we offer three suggestions gleaned from our parsha regarding what lessons we should take away from this pandemic.

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Purim contains arguably Judaism’s strangest custom. On the day that we celebrate our nation’s triumph over Haman and his evil plot, we are required to drink and become so drunk that we forget about Haman’s treachery. What is the meaning behind this unusual custom?

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My grandfather, Rabbi Shlomo Wolbe, was one of the 20th Century’s most important rabbis. But unlike many of his contemporaries, he had a very unusual path to becoming the transformative Torah Sage that he became. In this very special and personal podcast episode, I share several never-before-told stories about his life and I speculate several different theories to explain how he became such a great person. This is a unique podcast episode – stories, anecdotes, and lessons that can prove to be life-changing.

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Rabbi Yose was one of the most important and prolific Jewish figures of the 2nd Century. There are literally hundreds of stories and teachings of his in the Talmud and Midrash, but his tenure coincided with one of the most treacherous times in Jewish history: The Hadrianic persecutions

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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The Chazon Ish’s activism once he arrived in British Mandate Palestine were not limited to building up the religious and Torah infrastructure of the Land. His invested great efforts in establishing the political philosophy of the yeshiva community, and like his work in building the Torah infrastructure, his political efforts endure until today. Indeed, for much of the history of the state, the political parties and ideologies that he led were heralded as the kingmakers of Israeli politics. In his day, The Chazon Ish waged campaigns against government policies that he thought were unjust and harmful to the religious community. He also guided and advised religious politicians who heeded his advice. But he wasn’t just an adviser to the politicians, He was viewed by Prime Minister David Ben Gurion as the leader of the yeshiva community’s camp and in fact the PM visited and negotiated with him on matters of religion and State. The influence that the yeshiva community has on Israeli politics is stronger than ever, and as I mentioned in episode 70, it is impossible to really understand the dynamics of the Israeli political universe – in general a labyrinthine vortex of complexity – without understanding the positions staked out by the Chazon Ish during the very early days of the State

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This Jewish History Podcast is sponsored by Bill Koen in loving memory of Michael Ben Shmuel and Yehudit. May his Soul be elevated in Heaven

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Ramban, Nachmanides (1194-1269), arguably the most impactful and significant Jewish personality of the 13th Century, was a towering, titanic figure, who wrote voluminously on all Torah and Talmud subjects. Perhaps his magnum opus is his magisterial commentary on the Torah. This podcast follows his fascinating introduction that he writes to his commentary on the Torah that deals with very fundamental questions relating to the authorship, nature, and dimensions of Torah. Studying this introduction will be a fitting continuation to some of the subjects we touched upon last time, and truly deepen our understanding of what we mean when we say that the Torah is divine.

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Our parsha features the greatest bargain in human history: God instructs us to erect a Mashkan, a Tabernacle, for Him, and provided that we follow the rules to a tee, He will dwell amongst us. At Sinai, the nation became God’s Chosen People. What exactly was missing after Sinai that necessitated building the Tabernacle?