In this week’s Parshah, [Parshas Balak], the King of Moav, [whose name is] Balak, seeks to employ the services of a sorcerer and prophet named Bilaam in order to curse the Jews. Though given several ...

Halacha prohibits causing pain to animals. There is a Talmudic discussion as to whether this prohibition stems from Torah or is Rabbinic in origin. (B.M. 32) The consensus of Poskim is צער בעלי חיים ...

There is a clear parallel between Balak and events in the Book of Exodus. In both narratives, kings (Pharaoh of Egypt and Balak of Moab), alarmed about the success of the Jewish People, conspire to ...

Balak is a doozy of a parsha. There are curses and blessings, yet another anti-Semitic ruler and … a talking donkey (not voiced by Eddie Murphy, but by God). This parsha is the perfect example of what ...

Rabbi Jonathan Freirich is the rabbi of Temple Beth Zion in Buffalo. Rabbi Freirich received rabbinic ordination from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 1999. Since becoming a rabbi, he has ...

In this week’s Torah portion, “Balak,” we read about the prophet Balaam, who was hired Balak, the king of Moab, to curse the Jewish people as they approached the Land of Israel. But instead, God ...

In this week’s parsha, Balak, the king of Moab, having heard about Israel’s overwhelming military successes, is concerned for his people and his land. He hires a local prophet, Balaam, to curse the ...

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Parashat Pinchas begins with a continuation of the narrative of Israel’s immoral behavior found at the conclusion of Parashat Balak. That behavior was induced by Balaam, the heathen prophet hired by ...