The Weekly Mission- Torah Portion by Isaiah Rothstein

Parshat Vayetzei In today’s day and age, Jews come in all different “shapes and sizes.” In this week’s parsha, we learn about the holy conception of the twelve sons of Jacob, later called the 12 tribes. The children of Rachael, Leah and the two maidservants were all born with different attributes, different opinions, different outlooks and different ways to be a Jew, but they were still united as the twelve tribes, different, but very much the same. As the story progresses, we learn more about our matriarchs and patriarchs. For example, we see one of Yaakov’s (Jacob’s) very important attributes, that permeates his relationship with G-d, Rachael and Leah, and his uncle Lavan, and his self-understanding as well. Like I always say, we must try to understand who these great people were in order to know why must follow in their footsteps. Yaakov was a very strong-willed person who took action when necessary. He fled from his father’s house to escape Eisav’s murderous hand. He left his comf...

My first question is how come turkey and stuffing go so well together? In this weeks parsha we learn about the famous Kinyan (transaction) between Jacob and Esav for the status of first born. We learn about the sibling rivalry of the brothers that eventually led to Jacob fleeing for his life. Above all, there is one specific thing that we are constantly learning in the Book of Berieshis that keeps me thinking: "I am the God of your father Abraham, fear not, for I am with you, I will bless you and increase your offspring because of Abraham my servant" We are incessantly reminded by HaShem that we are going to forever inherit Aaretz Yisroel (Israel) and that we will always be in existent. HaShem constantly blesses our forefathers but then the obvious question is why? I mean don't you think Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov could get the hint after hearing it once? A life lesson… We are constantly confronted with hardships and struggles in our lives… sometimes things don't ad...

Weekly Mission: Parshat Chayie Sarah I remember when I was in Israel I was more concerned with the girls I met then the friends I had. If a met someone new, I always asked myself “could this be it? Is she the one?” It began to get to a point where it was emotional torture for me. Rabbi Yehoshua Paltiel from Lev HaTorah already specialized in Love and Marriage, so I figured he would be the right man to talk to. Upon telling him my situation, he quickly responded with an analogy. Imagine an intersection with stop signs at all four corners. You are going east and your soul mate is going south. The goal is for both of you to meet at exactly the right moment at that stop sign. My Rabbi continued with saying, if one is going to continuously pull over to the side of the road, he loses momentum and speed, he is not focusing on himself or what he needs, but what he thinks he needs. When the moment comes that you reach the stop sign, your soul mate has already been and gone. If one were to focus...

Weekly Mission: Parshat Vayeira Rebbetzin Esther Jungries speaks about the many ways in which one can give charity. We commonly associate the word “charity” with money. We assume that, in order to give charity, we must give it through monetary actions. Rebbetzin Jungreis says, however, that charity comes in all forms. Helping someone cross the street, holding the door for someone and picking up your father from the bus stop, are all acts of kindness and charity. Charity is an act that gives people something that they are lacking. One of the most beautiful acts of charity and kindness is the warmest gesture of all, a smile. When one smiles to another, they are gracefully saying, “you exist.” In this week's parsha (Torah portion), we learn more about our forefather Avraham. Avraham’s entire life was devoted to bringing G-d into the world. He woke up every morning to serve G-d, he wondered about the constellations and searched for the meaning behind everything. Sodom was a place tha...