Shavuot celebrates Revelation at Sinai & the giving of the Torah – but what's so joyful about laws? Is it really worth celebrating a list of things we can't do? Learn more here!

The Torah seems to speak of Shavuot as a harvest holiday, but the Rabbis conceive of it as the time to celebrate the Giving of the Torah. Which one is it? In this series, Rabbi Fohrman shows that the two actually complement each other to bring deeper, relevant meaning to Shavuot.

We don’t often talk about how the story of Lot and his daughters is a little risqué for Biblical literature. But looking back at similar illicit stories, of Yehuda and Tamar and Boaz and Ruth, a transcendent lesson emerges. Instead of sly sensuality defining the story, Rabbi Fohrman finds a redemptive love and kindness within the text, shedding new light and understanding on the concepts of kindness and recognition.

There are several holidays mentioned in the Bible, including the Three Pilgrimage Festivals: Passover, Sukkot and Shavuot. What makes these days more significant than any other holiday? The Bible seems almost elusive when describing these holy days. Join Rabbi Fohrman as he uncovers the secret theme that permeates these days, allowing a deeper understanding of the holiday cycle to emerge.

In this course, Rabbi David Fohrman examines the meaning of Ten Commandments, why they are important & explores the most fundamental principles of Judaism.

This week's discussion dealing with holidays has two major interruptions: laws of the omer offering, and the agricultural laws of pe'ah and leket. Why do these two pieces invade the laws of holidays, and what does that teach us about the epic Biblical approach to holidays?

Eishet Chayil is the ode to the feminine, written by King Solomon in the final chapter of Proverbs, and sung every week, at the Friday night Shabbat table. For generations, many of us have been singing this song every Friday night at our Shabbat table, singing to the woman of the house and extolling her praises. Rabbi Fohrman recorded this live audio in Alon Shvut, Israel, in which he aims to understand the essence of what a "woman of valor" really means. \n\n For indeed, the very notion is odd. Valor is often thought of as a masculine virtue – signifying bravery, on the battlefront, or otherwise. And yet, King Solomon uses this phrase when describing what he calls the most important of feminine traits. Why? Rabbi Fohrman argues that Solomon, in the song of Eishet Chayil, hides a theory of a vision of unique feminine power and strength.

What is the theme that ties together the seemingly disconnected stories of Lot and his daughters, Judah and Tamar, and Ruth? The obscure Biblical law of yibum, or Levirite marriage, has a lot to do with it. Rabbi Fohrman argues there is an important connection that hints at a generational saga of redemption.