Parshas Lech Lecha: What Was Avraham Thinking?

Devir Kahan
Parsha

In this week’s parsha our forefather does a seemingly unthinkable thing. Upon arriving in Egypt due to famine in his own land, Avraham tells his wife to tell the powers that be there that she is, in fact, his sister — and not his wife. As such, they will take her captive, but at the very least, they will let him live. Indeed, it could very well be that Avraham figured there were only two possible ways that the scenario could play out...

Parshas Bereishis: ‘He Shall Rule Over You’

Devir Kahan
Parsha

I know that this week’s parsha isn’t exactly Bereishis, but I haven’t had a chance to write this essay until now, and I think it is important even if it doesn’t exactly fit with the parsha. There is, of course, an infinite amount to say about Parshas Bereishis, but I’d like to share here one particular interpretation of the story of the Tree of Knowledge, though, that helps quite a bit in understanding what the Torah means when it says, in regards to women, “your urge shall be for your husband… He shall rule over you” (Bereishis 3:16). This is a statement, no doubt, that makes many of us living today uncomfortable to read...

Reasons Why Women Should Be Allowed To Wear Tefillin

Devir Kahan
Halacha, Gender

Okay, perhaps that title is a little misleading. I’m not so much advocating for it as much as I am simply playing devil’s advocate. The goal of this post is something more along the lines of: “Why it’s not prohibited for women to wear tefillin”. Indeed, far too many people reject the entire proposition out of hand because it’s “assur”. Well, I don’t think that’s fair or accurate, and when discussing the subject, the following is the cheat-sheet, so to speak, for the “it’s not that big a deal” camp. We’ll save my opinion on the matter for another time. For this post, I’m just playing one side (the side that, unfortunately, is not well represented or known)...

About That Angel Story: A Response To Rabbi Slifkin’s Latest Article

Devir Kahan
Kabbalah

Rabbi Slifkin recently published an article on his site with his perspective on a story that has been circulating. I should begin by saying that I am, generally, a very big fan of Rabbi Slifkin. I have met and chatted with him a number of times. I visited and very much enjoyed his new museum. I own, have read, and constantly recommend many of his books. His website, though, as of late, has been a little much. His constant, continued ranting about his book ban aside, his most recent article had me rolling my eyes too many times not to write something up about it. His words will be indented, with my comments beneath...

Parshas Noach: The Promise Of The Future

Devir Kahan
Parsha

Despite what most people think, the story of Noach actually begins at the end of parshas Bereishis. The last few posukim introduce him for the first time, and talk about how terrible the world had become at that time, and the level of, seemingly, sexual degradation that was rampant throughout the land. Everyone knows about the posuk within Noach itself saying that the land was full of "chamas", or petty theft as it is often translated, but there was actually quite a bit more than that wrong with the world as told to us at the end of Bereishis...

How Can The Torah Be So Evil?

Devir Kahan
God

Our Torah is not exactly a fun book. These past few weeks’ *parshios* provide ample support for such a statement, what with their curses, executions, genocide, and so forth. The fact that our Torah has so much in it that is far from politically correct is something that is pointed out with palpable glee by the likes of Dawkins, Hitchens, Harris, and so forth. Indeed, there are many, many people alive today who claim that the main reason they don’t believe in the Bible is because of what it contains.