No community start suggestion yet.
What transforms initial attraction into lasting love? The Ba'al HaTurim's insight on Yitzchok and Rivka reveals that true love only develops through genuine commitment and obligation. Without real investment of time, effort, and resources, relationships remain fundamentally narcissistic rather than transcendent.
Rabbi Zweig examines a Ba'al HaTurim on Parshas Toldos regarding Yitzchok's marriage to Rivka, focusing on the verse 'vaye'ehaveha' (and he loved her). The Ba'al HaTurim contrasts this love with Amnon's love for Tamar, connecting it to the Mishnaic teaching about love that depends on external factors versus love that transcends such dependencies. The key insight is that the same word 'vaye'ehav' describes both types of love, but the context reveals their fundamental difference. The shiur's central thesis is that true love (ahavah she'einah tluyah bedavar) can only develop when there are real obligations and commitments in the relationship. Rabbi Zweig explains that before Yitzchok took Rivka as his wife with full marital obligations ('vayikach lo le'ishah'), any feelings would have been self-centered. Only through commitment, financial responsibility, and genuine obligation does love transcend its initial reasons and become truly selfless.
Looking for the full summary?
Full access is available to members of the TUF Alumni Association or the Yam Hagadol Foundation.
Already a member? Let the admin know!
Dedicate a Shiur in Parsha
L'ilui nishmas a loved one. In honor of a simcha or yahrzeit. As a zechus for a refuah sheleimah. Your dedication helps carry Rabbi Zweig's Torah to learners around the world.
Up Next in this Series
How can Pirkei Avos teach both to honor your friend as yourself and to honor your friend as your teacher? The Rambam's three levels of friendship resolve this: relationships based on mutual benefit and acceptance follow "love your neighbor as yourself," while learning partnerships require honoring friends as teachers who foster growth.
Why does the Midrash connect Pharaoh's expulsion of the Jews to the mitzvah of shiluach hakan? The shiur develops a chiddush that Pharaoh's sin wasn't only drowning the children, but the insensitivity of expelling the parents afterward. The deeper analysis reveals that Pharaoh may have valued the Jews greatly and wanted to control them—making his expulsion an act of tremendous cruelty, not liberation.
Why does Moshe respond to the splitting of the sea with shirah rather than praise or thanksgiving? Rashi's use of "al libo" reveals that shirah is an emotional expression—a response of love to love. When Hashem shows personal care, the only adequate response is "I love You too," not mere gratitude or praise, and this principle applies to all relationships.
Parshas Toldos - Yitzchak's marriage to Rivka
Looking for the full transcript?
Full access is available to members of the TUF Alumni Association or the Yam Hagadol Foundation.
Already a member? Let the admin know!
Why do two mishnahs in Avos give conflicting guidance on honoring friends - one saying treat them like yourself, the other like your teacher? The shiur distinguishes between general relationships (ki'shel'cha) and learning partnerships (k'morah ravcha), then applies this to reinterpret Rabbi Akiva's students' failure as specifically mishandling chavrusa dynamics rather than general interpersonal sins.
