On the surface, at least, getting drunk on Purim is not only part of the simcha of the day but certainly enhances it as well. What would the day look like if we all remained sober?However, it doesn't take much thought to realize that drinking to the point of "Ad d'lo Yada" seems to contradict the entire intention of the Torah! Living a life of Avodas Hashem requires us to be fully mindful and maximize the cognitive powers that The Ribono Shel Olam has endowed us with.If so, how could Chazal give us a mitzvas hayom to reach a state where we are literally wasted?When we probe deeper into this mitzvah, aside from answering this question we will gain valuable insight into a unique opportunity that Purim offers unavailable to us the rest of the year! Please share your comments and insights If you seek the Torah’s timeless wisdom to assist in navigating your life's challenges, check out other helpful episodes on this podcast.

Deja Vu? Have we all been here before? Does it feel like that? For most of us, on a conscious level, probably not. But when we go beyond what we feel, and plumb the depths of our deeper collective unconscious, it is nothing less than Deja Vu; that we have been here before. What do I mean? Without any power to stop it or even slow it down, we are witnessing the world we have always known spinning out of control. Conflicts between individual countries carry within them the growing threat of world war, which could easily spill over into the nuclear dimension. The vilification of Israel has become a weekly, if not daily, occurrence that is more frequently leading to violence. Many have this foreboding sense that we are heading into perilous and explosive times. With astonishment and fear, we ask, “Where is this all leading to?” One thing is certain: as the problems continue to increase and become more severe, we have this sinking feeling that the Geula that Hashem has promised us is moving further away than ever! And yet, strangely enough, this is where the Deja Vu begins.  Through a deeper understanding of Geulas Mitzraim, we discover Hashem's path of Geula, and thereby know how to process what is happening to us now. The more we understand that path, internalize it, and live it, the more we will be able to protect ourselves from reacting to our deteriorating situation with fear and yiush. And instead, we will know that as those Chevlai Moshiach increase in frequency and intensify, we are drawing ever closer to the Geula, and our yearning for Moshiach will become the shiafa of our lives that will both define who we are and what we are living for! Please share your thoughts Email questions and suggestions for future episodes to [email protected] Visit our website at https://www.rabbigoode.org/

We are accustomed to labeling events or occurrences in our lives as either good or bad. Depending on our experience or perception, whether we had pain or pleasure, gain or loss, these are clearcut categories that we use to describe what happened to us. But from Chazal we see that this is not only superficial but incorrect. Understandably we absorb what happens in our lives through personal experience. How could we do it any differently? But, perhaps it's time to lift ourselves above our individual experiences and see things for what they are.   And on this journey, Yisro, Moshe Rabbeinu's father-in-law can be our rebbe! Please share your comments and insights If you seek the Torah’s timeless wisdom to assist in navigating your life's challenges, check out other helpful episodes on this podcast.

What could be more simple than being b'simcha on Purim? After all, it's a day filled with opportunities to be happy. Whether it's the excitement of hearing the Megillah, delivering m'shloach manos, getting drunk at the seudah, or all of the above, it's so easy! And yet, an entirely different story emerges when we look at the Rambam. The true simcha of Purim revolves around matanos l'evyonim! Why? That we want to share and help the less fortunate is certainly understandable. Why should they be left out? But to put the mitzvah of helping those in need at the center of our "freilichen Purim" doesn't make much sense! Or does it? Please share your comments and insights If you seek the Torah’s timeless wisdom to assist in navigating your life's challenges, check out other helpful episodes on this podcast.

The Ramban explains that Yitzias Mitzraim, not Brias HaOlam, is the foundation of our Emunah. Why? Because at the core of our Emunah is absorbing the experience of Hashem's Nisim and His unbridled love for us. This is why failing to bring the Korban Pesach carries such a stringent punishment.  Even generations later, Jews must continue to disconnect from the experience of living in Mitzraim and the impact that it imprinted on our souls.It is for this reason that Rosh Chodesh, the beginning of the calculation as to when to bring the Korban Pesach and Yom Tov, is so essential. There is even a presumption that the Torah should have begun with this mitzvah!However, when we think deeper into it, the aforementioned reason no longer seems sufficient. There are so many other mitzvahs such as Shabbos, Limud haTorah, Ahavas Hashem, and the list goes on, that would seem to merit the unique distinction of beginning the Torah instead of the mitzvah of Rosh Chodesh. To answer this question, perhaps we need to find out what Rosh Chodesh is really about. And when we do that, we may be surprised to discover a completely different way to understand this mitzvah, and a fundamental truth that is at the center of every Jew's life! Please share your comments and insights If you seek the Torah’s timeless wisdom to assist in navigating your life's challenges, check out other helpful episodes on this podcast.