A Legacy of Leadership
In Numbers 27:12-14 of this week's portion, Parashat Pinchas, Moses climbs the heights of Abarim and experiences the greatest disappointment of his life. For almost his entire adult life, Moses has led the Israelites on their journey through the wilderness.
On the Brink of Transformation
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to transform yourself from a player to a manager, from a student to a teacher, or from a child to a parent? I can remember when our first child was born and how the responsibility of caring for a newborn was suddenly mine.
Beyond Despair
One of the most touching moments in Parashat Pinchas occurs when God says to Moses: "Ascend these heights of Abarim and view the land that I have given to the Israelite people.
What is the Promised Land?
One of the best known and most perplexing passages in the Torah occurs in Parashat Chukat. In Numbers 20:12, Adonai informs Moses and Aaron that they will not enter the Promised Land because they did not place enough trust in Adonai.
Holding on to the Vision
The shadow of death hovers over Parashat Chukat. (Numbers 19:1-22:1) The parashah begins with the instructions for the ritual slaughter of a heifer and the necessity for purgation after contact with a dead body.
Thinking before Speaking
People should think before they speak. This is common sense, you might say, but judging from the number of miscommunications and painful verbal exchanges that occur each day, this sense is not so common-even for Mosheh and Aharon in this week's parashah, Chukat.
Fear Itself
Focal Point
They marched on and went up the road to Bashan, and Og king of Bashan, with all his people, came out to Edrei to engage them in battle. But Adonai said to Moses, “Do not fear him. . . .” (Numbers 21:33–34)
The Death of Miriam, the Death of Aaron, the Death of Moses, the Death of Me
Death flows like a stream throughout Parashat Chukat —from the laws about repurification after contact with a corpse, to the death of Moses’s sister Miriam, to the death of his brother, Aaron.