3-Vayikrah Archives - Fleetwood Synagogue

May 20, 2024

Published by Rabbi Yosef A. Cohen, MD at May 20, 2024

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Complex Emotions During Sefirat HaOmer

There is a way of understanding the mourning of Sefirat HaOmer that resonates with me. Rabbi Akiva’s students died from the end of Pesach until Lag BaOmer, and on Lag BaOmer, they stopped dying, which is why we celebrate. This is based on the Derashot of Ri Ibn Shuib, who […]

May 20, 2024

Published by Rabbi Yosef A. Cohen, MD at May 20, 2024

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Maintaining Enthusiasm

I feel compelled to start with a brief digression. I missed you all last week, and my children especially missed being in shul the past few weeks. Nowhere else have we found a place where kids gather around the Bimah during Kiryat HaTorah or come up together to sing. Where […]

March 25, 2024

Published by Rabbi Yosef A. Cohen, MD at March 25, 2024

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Moshe the Individual; Esther the Leader

No where else is a four and a half letter word asked to accomplish so much. The first word of the third sefer of Chummush is ויקרא, with a small א. Midrashim followed by the Rishonim offer a number of insights into both the reasoning for the little א and […]

May 9, 2023

Published by Rabbi Yosef A. Cohen, MD at May 9, 2023

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Kedoshim: The Ibn Ezra and Kelaim

קדושים תהיו, you should be holy, is understood by many ראשונים to highlight the value of a life not engaged in inappropriate relationships. It follows the prohibitions at the end of פרשת אחרי מות which list forbidden relationships and so it is logical that קדושים תהיו is a continuation of […]

May 9, 2023

Published by Rabbi Yosef A. Cohen, MD at May 9, 2023

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Emor: The Sin of the Mekalel

Twice we read about an individual that is sentenced to death during the Jew’s chronicles in the desert. Both times they are first placed in some sort of solitary confinement before their sentence is carried out. Today, we focused on the story of the בן מצרי who deemed it appropriate […]

April 25, 2023

Published by Rabbi Yosef A. Cohen, MD at April 25, 2023

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Vayakel Pekudi

Few times throughout the Jews’ journeys in the desert does Moshe Rabbenu gather the people to speak with them. We must therefore consider the purpose of such events each time they occur. Rav Aharon Lichtenstein proposes that each time such a gathering occurred it a momentous occasion where Moshe gathered […]

April 24, 2023

Published by Rabbi Yosef A. Cohen, MD at April 24, 2023

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The Physical Informs the Spiritual (Tazria-Metzora)

In today’s פרשיות, we encounter intricate instructions regarding the procedure for identifying a מצורע. Various verses elaborate on the specific criteria, such as changes in color, size, and hair, that must be met to diagnose someone as a מצורע. However, the practical applications of these regulations are not explicitly mentioned. […]