Sefirah

Chodesh Iyar: Love from a Distance

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This video is class of 58 in the series Greatest of Gifts: Sefirat HaOmer and Shavuot.

In this shiur (Torah class), Rabbi Hershel Reichman discusses the unique spiritual characteristics of the month of Iyar. As the month in between Pesach and Shavuot, Iyar represents a more distant relationship with G-d. Yet, despite this distance, Rabbi Reichman explains the strong connection that bonds the Jewish people with the Almighty.

The Three Weeks, Tisha B'av

Overview of Megillat Eicha

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This video is class of 41 in the series Jerusalem, Echoes of Lament: Tisha B'Av and the Three Weeks.

In this class on the Three Weeks and Tisha B’Av, Rabbi Avishai David discusses the background, content, purpose, and structure of Megillat Eicha. Rabbi David discusses the Tannaic disagreement over whether the Megilla is written as a rebuke or as a lament, and if it was written before or after the actual destruction of Yerushalayim. Rabbi David then reviews the content of each perek of the Megilla, and contrasts Perek Bet, which focuses on the Beit Hamikdash, with Perek Daled, which speaks about the fate of Klal Yisrael. Rabbi David ends this overview with an examination of the hopeful element found throughout the Megilla.