Emuna Beams

"Beholden" is a synonym for "grateful". The Oxford Dictionary defines beholden as, "Owing thanks or having a duty to someone in return for help or a service." The sample sentence the dictionary uses is, "I don't like to be beholden to anybody." An attitude like that in a relationship is devastating, whether it's a relationship with the Almighty or with your spouse. Grateful people are never bitter but bitter people are never grateful.

Who do you blame when you missed your train? Don't bother looking for the seemingly guilty factor or person. This week's Torah portion shows how the apparent setbacks in our life are all for the best.

Since Abraham, the first monotheist, the war against emuna has been never-ending. There are times in history when the vast majority of Jews succumbed to political correctness and assimilation at the expense of their faith. One such time was nearly 2300 years ago, when the Seleucid monarch Antiochus IV tried to Hellenize all of Judea. He nearly succeeded, but the Maccabees foiled his plan. Today's Emuna Hour scans the War of Emuna and tells the story of Chanukah. This story continues to this day.

Violence begins with anger and escalates to physical harm, even killing. Sometimes killing is justified, as in self-defense. But, when a person becomes accustomed to killing, he or she is likely to kill when it's not at all justified. Our forefather Jacob didn't want anything to do with anger and violence. His two sons Simon and Levi think otherwise...

True love is a bond of emuna, an unbreakable lasting connection between two souls. Whereas infatuation is bodily and physical, true love and friendship are spiritual. We learn all about building a successful marital relationship from the dove...

In one of the Torah's most dramatic scenes, Esau and Jacob meet after years of estrangement. In this confrontation, the first thing Esau does is to stare at Jacob's wives. We learn here the huge difference between Esau's and Jacob's attitude toward women. The same difference continues today in the opposing attitudes of modern society and the Torah in regard to women.

Brandon (Boruch) Rumann from Houston, Texas is a brilliant aerospace engineer. He works for NASA and is involved in the VIPER Rover project, which is scheduled for a mission to the moon in 2025. He simultaneously works for the "Blue Origin" company on the "Orbital Reef" project, that plans to launch a space hotel prototype in 2027. More amazing than his work is his experience beyond the stars, during an NDE (near death experience) that he shares with us in today's podcast.

A lasting marital relationship, what we call a "bond of emuna", depends on the merger of two souls. A true partner in life is therefore one's soulmate, that special person who will share a lifelong mutual commitment. One cannot find a soulmate if he or she is interested solely in a "bodymate". Physical attributes are short-lived...

The Gemara makes a seemingly strange statement: "No one thanked Hashem until our matriarch Leah said, 'This time, I will thank Hashem' (Genesis 29:35)." Adam, Noah and Abraham all thanked Hashem way before Leah did. So what's the Gemara talking about?

Welcome to our new "Parsha Pearls" series on the weekly Torah portion. This week, we find Isaac and Rebecca haven't yet had children and are begging in prayer to the Almighty to become parents. Why are they so worried? Isaac's father Abraham received a solid promise from Hashem that Isaac would father the entire Jewish People (Genesis 21:12). Isn't Hashem's promise enough?

With so many divorces, something is sorely wrong with western society's concept of marriage. There's a much better game plan, which we learn in today's lesson.

The Torah teaches us the best way to build a lasting marital relationship - first be friends, then be lovers. It's not just a rosy saying but an absolute commandment of Torah...