Venue: Young Israel of Oceanside Young Israel of Oceanside

Parsha:

Masei 

Collections: R' Jonathan Muskat Drashot

Description

This drasha reflects on a personal hiking experience in Glacier National Park as a lens to explore the deeper meaning of Parshat Masei. Just as the trail was long, difficult, and unexpectedly meaningful through both its challenges and conversations, so too the Torah’s detailed listing of Bnei Yisrael’s encampments teaches us that every stop in life, even the hard or seemingly aimless ones, is purposeful. Drawing from the Rambam, Seforno, Midrash, and Rav Hirsch, the drasha highlights how God sees each journey and pause as part of our growth, even if we don’t. As we enter the Nine Days, we’re reminded that discomfort and loss are not detours from meaning but essential parts of it. Like Rav Mottel Pogromansky’s “accidental” Shabbat brit, we are often exactly where we need to be, even when it doesn’t feel that way.