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The Verse that Says It All A fascinating Midrash credits an isolated verse in this week's Torah portion, Pinchas, with encapsulating the quintessence of Judaism[1]. The Midrash quotes four opinions as to which biblical verse best sums up the ultimate message of Torah. One sage, by the name of Ben Azzai, believed it was the verse in Genesis[2]: "This is the book of the chronicles of man; on the day that G-d created man He created him in the image of G-d." Another sage, by the name of Ben Zoma, holds a different verse to be more central to Jewish...

Yitro is one of the most enigmatic figures in the entire Torah. He is introduced to us as an adviser to Pharaoh (Sotah 11a) who was told about a plan to enslave and kill members of the Hebrew nation living in Egypt. In that meeting, Yitro counseled the Egyptian monarch not to harm the Hebrews. His first appearance in the lines of the written Torah occurs in parashat Shemos, as the father of Tziporah, who would marry Moshe Rabbeinu. In this week's parshah, Yitro comes with his daughter and grandsons and meets up with Moshe in the wilderness. Though warmly...

The story you are about to read is true. Some names have been changed to protect the guilty. Some names have been omitted to protect us from the grumpy. The story first started thousands of years ago, when the world was young... An angel descended heaven to sell the Torah to the world and his first drop was high in the Tibetan mountains. "It's a Torah," he told the Master as the llamas looked on. "We appreciate new teachings," intoned Master. "Tell us your wisdom." "I am L-rd Your G-d. Have none before me." The master smiled sympathetically; the llamas...