Minute Rice - Chabad of Marin

Toldot: The Wicked Child

Friday, November 21, 2025 - 4:05 PM

Toldot: The Wicked Child

I recall studying this week’s Torah portion, Toldot, as a child. And I recall the most baffling verse. The Torah relates the sterling qualities of Jacob; and the outdoorsman qualities of Esau. Esau's character is further fleshed out in Midrash to include such lovely features as idol worship, murder and trickery. But yet the Torah relates: “And Isaac loved Esau.” (Genesis 25:28) Why would our saintly patriarch, Isaac, love this wayward child (seemingly more than Jacob – the perfect son).

This past Sunday, I was fortunate enough to join 6,000 colleagues at the yearly Shluchim Convention. There was a very popular session on AI, and how to use this tool in our work. The chairman of the conference shared a one line insight about how our work cannot be replaced by AI. And this insight can answer our question. “Our work is not in information, but transformation.”

We often look at life through the lens of information, achievement, and productivity. These are all very important. The more profound lens is that of transformation. What did this person overcome to get to this point? This is, of course, the fuel of every inspiring story. It’s not about what this person did; it’s about what he or she had to overcome to do what they did.

When Isaac looked at his errant son, sure he saw lots of issues, lots of problem, and many obstacles. But he saw deeper. All of these superficial impediments were the cover for a very deep spiritual potential.

When we look at another person, let us adjust our lens to the “potential transformation mode.” Then we will see an entirely different person before us. And even as we look at our own self, to realize that each obstacle and impediment in our life is only there for us to uncover the deeper, as of yet dormant, Divine light.

Chayei Sarah: Requiem of a Penny

Friday, November 14, 2025 - 1:24 PM

Goodbye, my friend, the penny. Our smallest coin is going the way of our smallest planet, Pluto. The US Mint is no longer producing the penny; it just doesn’t make any cents. There's something that tugs at your heart when you think about the demise of the penny. A nickel for your thoughts just doesn't sound right. And you're certainly not going to throw a nickel or a dime into a wishing well! This smallest piece of currency is usually our first relationship with money. We teach our children about the very best place for a penny (A Pushka, charity box, of course!).

The penny allows us to exchange the precise amount of money. No rounding up or down. There is something so satisfying about this precision. More importantly, one cent is the smallest piece of currency; it represents our smallest effort that somehow still has value. Indeed, our sages share: “Each and every Perutah (the smallest coin of old) combines to create a large sum.” (Baba Batra 9b)

How are we to comfort ourselves for this cupreous casualty?

The Talmud has very good news about this loss. There is a list of events that will occur right before the coming of the Messiah; one of them is directly connected to the penny. “The son of David (the Messiah) will not come until the Perutah (penny) has ceased from the purse.”

The penny represents our smallest effort. Perhaps this Talmudic portent is relating that each of us has to make sure that we are doing every last positive deed to transform the world. Do not hold back even the smallest Mitzvah. Maimonides teaches that we should envision that our next action will change the entire world! (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Teshuvah 3:4)

Our smallest effort is thus not lost; it is invested in the glorious future we are about to behold.

PS By no coincidence (you can read that word two ways), this week’s Torah portion speaks about currency, with the purchase of the Machpelah Cave for the burial of Sarah, and the cent is mentioned as not being 1/100^th, but rather 100. The Talmud relates: “And Abraham listened to Ephron; and Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver…four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant” (Genesis 23:16), i.e., shekels that could be used in any location. This teaches that not only did Ephron take shekels from Abraham, he took from him only centenaria, i.e., superior coins, as there is a place where they call a shekel a centenarius. (Baba Metzia 87a)

Vayeira: Eye Opening

Wednesday, November 12, 2025 - 11:23 PM

Have you ever looked for something, such as your keys, and not been able to find them? And after looking for them for several minutes or perhaps several hours, you find them right in front of your nose! How could we have missed it? This problem is aggravated when you look for a solution to a problem or seek direction and purpose in life, and you just can’t seem to find it.

What if it’s right in front of your eyes? Your keys, the solution to your problem, your life purpose. It’s all right there. But how does it help us if we can’t see it?

In this week’s Torah Portion, Vayeira, we have a similar story. Hagar wanders through the desert with her son, Ishmael. “And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs…she lifted up her voice, and wept…And G-d opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad to drink.” (Genesis 21:15-19)

The Midrash relates the following eye-opening insight: “Rabbi Binyamin says that all people are assumed to be blind until G-d illuminates their eyes.”

Each morning we recite a blessing, “Blessed are You, L-rd our G-d, king of the universe, who opens the eyes of the blind.” Certainly, regular physical vision is something for which we can express gratitude. Thank you G-d, that I can see! But there is a deeper dimension. This is a blessing and a request that, now that we can see, may we be granted effective vision.

The first step in corrective vision is to think about what it is that we desire to see. We can elevate and improve our life by seeing the positive in our life, the blessings that are in front of our eyes, and the amazing opportunities that are put before us. When you see an obstacle, when you see a problem that seems insurmountable, you can actually see something else. What you could envision is that G-d realizes that you have so much more to you than you realize. This will empower you to open your eyes and find the blessed path forward.