…and why is he mentioned along with the big shots of the story? Charvonah is a seemingly insignificant character in the Purim story. He is one of the king’s attendants who appears at the beginning with those who convey the kings fateful summons to Vashti and then again at Haman’s demise. It is here, in this second mention, that he delivers his single line: וַיֹּאמֶר חַרְבוֹנָה אֶחָד מִן-הַסָּרִיסִים לִפְנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ גַּם הִנֵּה-הָעֵץ אֲשֶׁר-עָשָֹה הָמָן לְמָרְדֳּכַי אֲשֶׁ

Pesach 2021 / 5781by Sarah Yehudit Schneider Matzah on Pesach is a powerful remedy that penetrates to the soul’s depths and heals ancient wounds. The 613 mitzvot correspond to the 613 organs of body and soul. A mitzvah is an exceptionally powerful act that brings light, fixing, and healing to some part of ourselves (which is often the area active in performing that mitzvah). Rav Tzadok notes that the first sin was an act of unrectified eating (from the Tree of Knowledge). Bec

A Shavuot Teaching (2021 / 5781) Sarah Yehudit Schneider …וברא את עולמו בשלשה ספרים בספר ספר וספור: (ספר יצירה א:א) [HaShem] created His universe with three ספרים (sefarim):סִפרָה (symbol) – the Torah of Bereshitסֵפֶר (scroll) – the Torah of Sinai, andסִּפוּר (story) – the Torah of souls. [SY 1:1] The Torah, says Sefer Yetzira, is really three in one. There’s the Torah of Bereshit, the Torah of Sinai, and the Torah of souls. Our job, says the Baal Shem Tov, is to unify these

This first video is Sarah Yehudit’s teaching, itself. The second video is the discussion that followed. Below that is an audio file (no video) of the talk.

This is a video of Sarah Yehudit’s teaching on Tisha B’Av evening after Chana Yaffe’s beautiful Eicha reading. Below that is an audio file (no video) of the talk.

Chanukka 5782 / 2021Sarah Yehudit SchneiderBased on R. Tsadok HaKohen, Resisei Layla, 57 ועל ידי כח זה שבכנסת ישראל שרוצים להחזיר גם כוחות העמים לקדושה על ידי כח זה (דאת זה לעומת זה עשה ﭏהים) נתעורר באומות הכח והרצון לגזור שמד חס ושלום על ישראל להחזיר אדרבה כנסת ישראל חס ושלום להם Through this power vested in Israel—their will to influence the world for good, to sanctify the nations [to be a light unto the nations]—this very force itself (via the principle of “this opposite t