Hal Miller

Rosh Hashanah - 5787 Tashlich Rabbi Hal Miller One should go to the river to say the verse v'tashlich b'mitzulot yam kol chatoteinu, you will cast into the depths of the sea all our sins. [Rama to Orach Chaim 583:2] This verse, from Micah 7:19 that Rama is citing actually reads chatotam, "all their sins" as opposed to chatoteinu, "all our sins", but the purpose of the Rama is the same. There is a very widespread custom on or shortly after Rosh Hashanah to go to a body of

Rosh Hashanah - 5787 Rabbi Hal Miller We have all witnessed people in the congregation on Rosh Hashanah crying all but hysterically, loud enough to interrupt the concentration of everyone else. They make the excuse that this is somehow a more powerful form of prayer of repentance. Is this allowed? We begin by asking, what is prayer? It is a personal connection between an individual and God. In order to reinforce that connection, Shulchan Aruch [101:2] states the halacha that:

Shabbat Parashat Nitzavim-Vayeilech - 5786 Rabbi Hal Miller Not with you alone do I forge this covenant and this oath but with whoever is here, ​ standing with us today, before Hashem our God, and with​ whoever is not here with ​ us today. [​Devarim 29:​13-14] ​How can someone bind others in a covenant? In particular here, each person is binding his wife, his existing children and his future descendants for all generations. None of them are participating in this decision.

Shabbat Parashat Ki Tavo - 5786 Rabbi Hal Miller These shall stand to bless the people on Mount Gerizim, when you have crossed the Jordan: Shimon and Levi and Yehudah and Yissachar and Yosef and Binyamin. [Devarim 27:12] And these shall stand for the curse on Mount Eival: Reuven, Gad and Asher and Zevulun, Dan and Naphtali. [Devarim 27:13] It might seem that tribes would prefer to be assigned to Mount Gerizim, location of blessings, rather than Mount Eival, location o

Shabbat Parashat Ki Teitzei - 5786 Rabbi Hal Miller There shall not be a kli-gever on a woman nor shall a man wear a simlat-ishah for anyone who does so is an abomination to Hashem your God. [Devarim 22:5] What are kli-gever and simlat-ishah, and why should cross-dressing be an abomination? Gever means man, mighty, hero or overpower. Kli means vessel, tool or instrument. As a combined word, kli-milchamah means an instrument of war, or weapon, and kli-gever can mean somet

Shabbat Parashat Shoftim - 5786 Rabbi Hal Miller According to all that you asked of Hashem your God in Choreiv on the day of the assembly saying, I can no longer listen to the voice of Hashem my God, and this great fire I can no longer see, so that I shall not die. [Devarim 18:16] What did the people ask of God for which Moshe is now presenting them the results? And what are those results? Onkelos begins by translating it "as you asked before Hashem", leaving out the wo

Shabbat Parashat Re'eh - 5786 Rabbi Hal Miller However there shall be no destitute among you for blessing God will bless you in the land that Hashem your God will give you as an inheritance to take possession of it. [Devarim 15:4] For destitute people will not cease to exist within the land, because of this I command you saying, you shall surely open your hand to your brother, to your poor one, and to your destitute in your land. [Devarim 15:11] These two verses s

Shabbat Parashat Eikev - 5786 Rabbi Hal Miller You will eat and you will be satisfied and you will bless Hashem your God for the good land that He gave you. [Devarim 8:10] This verse is the commandment we observe after a meal, known in Hebrew as "birchat hamazon", in Yiddish as "bentching" and in English as "grace". There is a separate commandment to say a blessing before we partake of anything of benefit, but the main blessing on a meal is our verse, and comes after be

Shabbat Parashat Vaetchanan - 5786 Rabbi Hal Miller Only beware for yourself and greatly beware for your soul, lest you forget the things that your eyes have beheld and lest you remove them from your heart all the days of your life. [Devarim 4:9] Moshe tells us repeatedly in our portion that we are to beware for ourselves, such as in our verse and also 4:15 and 4:23. Why did he need to say this many times? The importance of Moshe's point seems to be reinforced by the "l

Shabbat Parashat Devarim - 5786 Rabbi Hal Miller These are the words that Moshe spoke to all Israel, across the Jordan, in the wilderness, in the Plain, opposite the [Sea of] Reeds, between Paran and Tophel and Lavan, and Chatzerot and Di-Zahav. [Devarim 1:1] What are "the words", why does it tell us "that Moshe spoke to all Israel", and why does it list all these places? Rav Hirsch addresses our first question, "these are the words refers to the whole of the contents o