Parshah and the Moadim with Rabbi Aryeh Shulman

Rabbi Shulman explores Rav Tzadok’s explanation of the three visitors who came to Abraham after his circumcision: they represent both three angels and the spiritual qualities of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Their missions reveal the interaction of kindness, judgment, and mercy, including the connection between Isaac’s impending birth and Sodom’s destruction. These qualities become the spiritual inheritance of the Jewish people, expressed through kindness, compassion, and a humble sense of awe before God. Outline: https://ateres-ami.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/vayeyra-three-men-20261030-033233-outline-20261030-033333.pdf

Rabbi Shulman explains that while this world is defined by *amal* (toil) and the next world by menuchah (rest), the deeper purpose of human labor is not mere survival but *tikkun ha’olam*—creating a stable, functional world in which avodat Hashem can flourish. He reframes the idea of *chasidei umot ha’olam* as earning Olam Haba specifically by facilitating the spiritual mission of *Klal Yisrael*, not simply by being “good people.” The dvar Torah culminates in Rav Tzadok’s teaching that Torah-learning is the highest form of “toil,” paralleling Hashem’s own act of creation through speech, and forming the greatest of the three pillars on which the world stands. Outline: https://ateres-ami.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/kedushas-shabbos-1b-20261023-145906-outline-20261023-145959.pdf

Rabbi Shulman explores the opening command to Avraham—“לך לך מארצך”—and explains, via Rabbi Tzadok, that the Torah is teaching not only self-transformation (“go to your true self”) but also where the כוח to change comes from: specifically, from one’s background and past rather than in spite of it. He then reframes “אל הארץ אשר אראך” as a hint that the destination is a place of deeper revelation of Hashem. Finally, Rabbi Shulman highlights Avraham’s two מזבחות as a blueprint for personal growth: Torah provides the clear revealed path, and תפילה protects and guides us through the unpredictable challenges that derail even good intentions. Outline: https://ateres-ami.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/lech-lecha-two-altars-20261023-145328-outline-20261023-145359.pdf

Rabbi Shulman introduces Rav Tzadok HaKohen’s *Sefer Kedushat Shabbat* and develops its core claim: the קדושה and ברכה of shabbat are drawn from a person’s avodah during the preceding six days, not from the formal onset of shabbat itself. He addresses an apparent textual anomaly where the Torah describes weekday work passively (“work will be done”), resolving it through the unique, divinely-assisted labor of the משכן. From there, Rabbi Shulman broadens the theme into a theology of human purpose: the world is intentionally unfinished so that human beings can be partners in creation—through mitzvot, through יראת שמים, and even (in earlier eras) through the civilizational “toil” of making the world inhabitable. Outline: https://ateres-ami.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/kedushas-shabbos-1a-20261016-040833-outline-20261016-040919.pdf

Rabbi Shulman explains that Parashat Noach really begins at the end of Bereishit: Noach is named for “comfort” because he revolutionized human life through agricultural innovation, relieving humanity from the curse of grueling labor. Yet that very liberation helped create the conditions for the דור המבול’s moral collapse—free time became indulgence rather than spiritual growth, and even Noach’s credibility could not move people to תשובה. Rabbi Shulman concludes by applying this pattern to today: as technology (especially AI) increasingly frees people from intellectual labor, the decisive question is whether society will fill that time with emptiness or with תורה—turning “waters of destruction” into “rain of blessing.” Outline: https://ateres-ami.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/noah-danger-of-freedom-20261016-040336-outline-20261016-040405.pdf

Rabbi Shulman addresses a foundational question raised by Rav Tzadok: if Adam HaRishon and Chavah did teshuvah after the sin of the Tree of Knowledge, why was the decree of death not removed? Rabbi Shulman explains that the sin did not merely add a punishable misdeed; it permanently altered humanity’s relationship to physical pleasure by introducing “attiyo shel nachash,” a gravitational pull toward the external, sensory side of life. The dvar Torah frames this struggle with desire as a defining axis of human development, suggests that only תחיית המתים can fully repair it, and closes with a practical charge to sanctify “permitted” daily actions—especially through the training ground of shabbat. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/bereishis-eating-the-fruit-20261009-154202-outline-20261009-154236.pdf

Rabbi Shulman explains that rain during sukkot heightens our awareness of dependence on Hashem and can intensify the lived experience of גלות—sometimes even “גלות שבגלות,” being exiled from the sukkah itself. He develops a framework (rooted in Rav Tzadok and other sources) in which sukkot functions as **מגן**—not merely “salvation” like Yom Kippur, but protection against slipping back into old patterns. Finally, Rabbi Shulman proposes that Yom Kippur and Hoshana Rabbah represent two distinct “sealings”: one establishing inner identity (who we truly are), and one serving as an external tamper-proof verification that the transformation is real and enduring. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/sukkos-two-seals-20261002-040435-outline-20261002-040516.pdf

Rabbi Shulman addresses a spiritual question at the heart of Sukkot: after the כתיבה וחתימה טובה of Rosh Hashanah, Aseret Yemei Teshuvah, and Yom Kippur, why do we immediately begin saying “הושענא” (“save us”)? He answers with a vivid משל from his backyard: uprooting a deeply entrenched vine is like the intense עבודה of the Yamim Nora’im—but lasting change requires ongoing, small “walkthroughs” to remove new shoots before they reestablish themselves. Sukkot, Rabbi Shulman explains, becomes a training ground for sustaining growth throughout the year through consistent spiritual maintenance. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/sukkos-keeping-weed-free-20260925-030334-outline-20260925-030354.pdf

Rabbi Shulman examines the Mishnah in Sukkah that describes the mitzvah of lulav as “six and seven” days, and uses it to explore why Chazal sometimes suspend even a Torah-level mitzvah when it coincides with shabbat. He explains the role of ספקא דיומא in חוץ לארץ and how that uncertainty ends up shaping practice even in ארץ ישראל. Moving beyond the technical concern of carrying, Rabbi Shulman argues that certain mitzvot (שופר, לולב, מגילה) can pull a person out of a shabbat state of מנוחה, and he frames shabbat as possessing inner spiritual capacities that can “do the job” those mitzvot would otherwise do. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/no-lulav-on-shabbos-20260924-050436-outline-20260924-050516.pdf

Rabbi Shulman, drawing on the Maharal and Sifrei, develops how Moshe Rabbeinu models profound awe before uttering Shem Hashem, learning from the angels’ “קדוש קדוש קדוש” and expanding it with a 21-word preface before “כי שם ה' אקרא.” He then traces a progression of halachic and ethical demands: not placing Hashem’s Name “in midair,” responding with added praise when hearing His Name (e.g., in Barchu), and appreciating the spiritual advantage of the one who answers “אמן.” Finally, Rabbi Shulman applies a Gemara in Shevuot to Yom Kippur, explaining why certain sins undermine the very relationship that Yom Kippur is meant to restore—and warns that casual mention of Hashem’s Name can fall into that category. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/yk-pronouncing-the-name-20260918-030333-outline-20260918-030412.pdf

Rabbi Shulman analyzes a well-known but difficult Gemara (Rosh Hashanah 16b) about three “books” opened on Rosh Hashanah—of צדיקים, רשעים, and בינוניים—and challenges the common assumption that it refers simply to who will physically live or die that year. Following Rashi, he reframes the books as “books of remembrance” of one’s deeds, and—using the Maharal—redefines “life” as connection to Hashem and “death” as disconnection. The dvar Torah culminates in a practical roadmap: how mundane, “in-between” actions can be elevated through כוונה and rededication during עשרת ימי תשובה so that they too are “written for life.” Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/books-of-deeds-20260917-030649-outline-20260917-030732.pdf

Rabbi Shulman explains the Gemara’s practice of eating symbolic foods on Rosh Hashanah and addresses the obvious concern: isn’t this superstition and therefore a form of **דרכי האמורי**? He develops two approaches—first, that the effectiveness of **simanim** depends on **תשובה** and inner intention expressed through **יהי רצון**; second, that physical symbols can serve as an “anchor” for spiritual ideas, following the Ramban’s principle seen throughout prophetic actions. Rabbi Shulman then presents the Maharal’s deeper framing: the simanim are meant to awaken **זכות אבות**, and each food corresponds to a distinct quality associated with Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/rosh-hashanah-simanim-leavos-20260911-030331-outline-20260911-030358.pdf

Rabbi Shulman explains why Chazal suspended shofar-blowing on Rosh Hashanah that falls on shabbat, even though shofar is not a מלאכה דאורייתא. He develops the idea that shofar normally serves to “pull” lofty spiritual truths into the embodied, emotional self—an inner process the קדמונים call **נסירה**, modeled on the separation and reorientation of אדם וחוה. When Rosh Hashanah is on shabbat, however, shabbat itself elevates the body into a “מעין עולם הבא,” making **“שבתון זכרון תרועה”** not a compromise but a higher pathway to the same goal. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/shabbos-in-place-of-shofar-20260910-030540-outline-20260910-030635.pdf

Rabbi Shulman analyzes the Ramchal’s organization in *Derech Hashem* (Chelek 4, Perek 8) to highlight a fundamental distinction between the שלוש רגלים (Pesach, Shavuot, Sukkot) and Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur. The רגלים primarily reconnect us to past revelations, while Rosh Hashanah is a present, annual reality: a renewed judgment in which Hashem “restarts” the year and reassigns the world’s status. Rabbi Shulman then explains how the heavenly court system is structured as a merciful, relatable framework for human teshuvah—and how תקיעת שופר both draws down רחמים and “confounds the prosecutor,” operating within דין rather than negating it. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/derech-hashem-on-rosh-hashanah-20260908-030431-outline-20260908-030514.pdf

Rabbi Shulman analyzes the Gemara’s warning that a year in which “we do not blow at its beginning” may end “with teru’ah,” focusing on the purpose of shofar as “מְעַרְבֵּב את השטן” and how that interacts with shofar’s absence on shabbat. He contrasts the Ritva and the בה״ג on whether the Gemara refers to intentional neglect of extra blasts or an אונס that prevented shofar entirely. From there, Rabbi Shulman opens the larger sugya: why shofar is not blown on shabbat, how Rava reframes earlier Amoraic readings, and how later Acharonim (notably the מרום שדה) understand the “פסוקים” as אסמכתא rather than a true דאורייתא exclusion. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/no-blowing-shofar-on-shabbos-20260907-180434-outline-20260907-180519.pdf

Rabbi Shulman explains that Parashat Nitzavim’s national “standing” is not a ceremonial moment but a spiritual mechanism for transition—whether from one leader to the next or from one year to the next. Each new stage in עבודת ה׳ demands a fresh approach, yet it can only succeed when it is built upon the gains (and lessons) of the previous stage. The proximity of Nitzavim to Rosh Hashanah highlights that the “new world order” of the coming year requires us to arrive upright, repaired, and strengthened by what the past year taught us. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/netzavim-last-parsha-standing-20260904-030334-outline-20260904-030405.pdf

Rabbi Shulman frames the mitzvah of ביכורים as the “pinnacle” of coming home to Eretz Yisrael: a spiritual return to the inner root of things. He addresses why the Torah emphasizes going specifically to “the kohen in those days” and why the declaration is phrased “לה׳ אלוקיך” (as if Hashem is the kohen’s God). Drawing on רבי צדוק, Rabbi Shulman explains that the kohen represents the “kohen-dimension” within every Jew—accessing פנימיות and the shoresh—and he connects this to תפילה and ברכות as post-Temple pathways of the same root-reconnection, especially relevant as Rosh Hashanah approaches. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/ki-savo-bikurim-20260828-110331-outline-20260828-110406.pdf

Rabbi Shulman reframes Rosh Hashanah and the entire concept of יום הדין through a striking Midrash: Hashem “gifts” משפט to His beloved people the way a king gives a treasured orchard to his favorite son. He explains that justice is not merely frightening accountability, but the mechanism that allows our relationship with Hashem—and our reward—to be truly “ours” rather than a handout. From there, Rabbi Shulman shows how embracing דין elevates Hashem as מלך המשפט, enables Hashem’s shift from strict judgment to צדקה, and ultimately brings קדושה and גאולה. Outline: https://danielggordon.github.io/ateresami/20260827-030536-outline-20260827-030613.pdf