Collected Archive of Shoemaker Reports
The Shoemaker Report is Rav Hoshea’s weekly Torah publication. Its focus is on internalizing and living Torah from the heart, not only from the head. The divrei Torah often take the parashah of the week as their point of entry and address central questions of inner avodah — including teshuvah, prayer (tefillah), emunah, bitachon, and related areas of spiritual and personal refinement.
The writing assumes seriousness from the reader and speaks from within Torah life, with meaning emerging organically from honest analysis of our holy Torah and the words of Chazal, rather than from short-lived inspiration or simplified conclusions.
Likutei Moharan 9 and the Light of Chanukah In last week’s issue of The Shoemaker Report, we learned about the halachah of placing the Chanukah light within ten tefachim of the ground. Since we are still basking in the light of the days of Chanukah, let’s take the time to
A Teaching on Likutei Halachot Orach Chaim Chanukah 2 Many laws exist pertaining to the lighting of the menorah during Chanukah. Let’s focus on just one halachah (Shabbat 21b): אָמַר רָבִינָא מִשּׁוּם דְּרַבָּה: זֹאת אוֹמֶרֶת נֵר חֲנוּכָּה מִצְוָה לְהַנִּיחָהּ בְּתוֹךְ עֲשָׂרָה (Ravina said in the name of Rabbah, ‘This is
It is written in the Gemara (Eruvin 13b): כׇּל הַמְחַזֵּר עַל הַגְּדוּלָּה גְּדוּלָּה בּוֹרַחַת מִמֶּנּוּ וְכׇל הַבּוֹרֵחַ מִן הַגְּדוּלָּה גְּדוּלָּה מְחַזֶּרֶת אַחֲרָיו (Anyone who pursues gedulah, gedulah will flee from him, and anyone who flees from gedulah, gedulah will pursue him). What exactly is gedulah? It is honor [כבוד, kavod],
In the final words of Sefer Zecharyah, prophesying about a time in the future when the Holy Temple will be rebuilt in its place in the holy city of Yerushalayim, we read something most peculiar (Zecharyah 14:21): וְלֹא־יִהְיֶה כְנַעֲנִי עוֹד בְּבֵית־יְיָ צְבָקוֹת בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא (And in that day, there will
