by Danielle Altonaga | Apr 21, 2023 | Danielle Altonaga, Weekly Parsha
Psst…did you hear?! This week’s Torah portion talks about Tzaras, a skin disease. Tzaras is often mistranslated as leprosy. Rabbi Shraga Simmons explains that, in fact, Tzaras is “a physical manifestation of a spiritual deficiency”. Which spiritual deficiency?...
by Danielle Altonaga | Mar 31, 2023 | Danielle Altonaga, Passover
In the weeks leading up to Passover, (and sometimes starting right after Purim) my groups on Facebook and WhatsApp are full of jokes, memes, and tales bemoaning the task of cleaning for the holiday. There are a few reasons for this. Some have to do with feeling...
by Danielle Altonaga | Feb 3, 2023 | Danielle Altonaga, Weekly Parsha
“Egypt pursued them [the Israelites] and overtook them…all the horse[s] and chariots of Pharaoh”. Exodus 14:9 What an intense moment! The Israelites were seemingly trapped – caught between Pharaoh’s army and a vast sea! This was no minor army either; it was the...
by Danielle Altonaga | Jan 4, 2023 | Danielle Altonaga, Weekly Parsha
“So he [Jacob] blessed them that day, saying, “By you shall Israel bless saying ‘May G-d make you like Ephraim and Menashe…” Bereishis 48:20 Before Jacob passes away, he gives blessings to all of his children. To his grandchildren, Ephraim and Menashe, he...
by Danielle Altonaga | Dec 9, 2022 | Danielle Altonaga, Weekly Parsha
“And Jacob was left alone, and a man (angel) wrestled with him all night”. Genesis 32:25 In this week’s parsha, we discover the famous “wrestling match” between Jacob and the angel (in the form of a man). What type of conflict was this? On the...
by Danielle Altonaga | Nov 10, 2022 | Danielle Altonaga, Weekly Parsha
Nearly everyone struggles with anxiety or worry sometimes (some more than others…) Rebbetzin Lori Palatnik suggests that there are two types of worriers – those who tend to fret about the past, and those who tend to worry about the future. Examples of fretting...
