When mercy fails, can justice itself save us?

At Shalash Shudis, Rabbi Klapper brings the astonishing Gemara where Yitzchak Avinu — embodiment of din — steps forward to defend Klal Yisrael. While Avraham and Yaakov, symbols of chesed and rachamim, are silent on the day of judgment, Yitzchak uses logic and love to turn the case around: “Half their lives they can’t sin — let me bear the rest.” In that moment, din itself becomes mercy.

This is the secret of the final Shabbos meal — when the midda of restriction is soaked in Shabbos light until it too turns to compassion. Like Yitzchak, we learn to see judgment not as punishment but as Hashem’s desire to bring us home. Practical takeaway: approach the week’s first moments as Yitzchak did — with discipline that defends, structure that protects, and din transformed into rachamim.

Hosted by Rabbi Ari Klapper and produced by Eli Podcast Productions, this episode is part of the Real Judaism series, available on RealJudaism.org. Don’t forget to subscribe and share to stay connected with our daily lessons and timeless Torah insights!

What happens to all the holiness of Shabbos once the candles go out?

We step into Seudah Shlishis, the closing heartbeat of Shabbos, where its light begins to pour into the coming week. Rabbi Klapper unpacks Rav Pincus’s teaching on Z’eir Anpin — Hashem’s “small face,” the Divine mode that governs weekday reality through measured din and rachamim. On Shabbos, though, we encounter the higher Middos Elyonos — Hashem’s true will to give without limit. As Shabbos fades, those middos descend to sustain the week, like embers carried from the Mikdash into our homes.

Rabbi Klapper shows how this shift defines our mission: to take Shabbos’s patience and mercy into our weekday encounters. The transition at Mincha isn’t a goodbye but a transfer of power — Shabbos training the world to live with long sight, not short temper. Each choice of self-control in the week is a spark of Shabbos light still burning within you.

Hosted by Rabbi Ari Klapper and produced by Eli Podcast Productions, this episode is part of the Real Judaism series, available on RealJudaism.org. Don’t forget to subscribe and share to stay connected with our daily lessons and timeless Torah insights!

How do you recognize Hashem when He wears the “clothing” of the world?

Rabbi Klapper reveals that the levushim — the garments through which Hashem shows Himself — are His midos. Just as uniform defines role, Hashem’s “uniform” is compassion, patience, and giving. On Shabbos, He dresses entirely in white — pure chesed without din. That’s why it’s an eis ratzon — a time when He simply wants to give.

But that revelation demands reflection. What garments do we wear? Are our midos aligned with His? The episode turns clothing into a mirror for the soul: Shabbos asks us to “dress” in kindness, humility, and simplicity so that Hashem can be recognized through us. Practical takeaway: choose one midah this Shabbos to embody — one white garment for your neshamah.

Hosted by Rabbi Ari Klapper and produced by Eli Podcast Productions, this episode is part of the Real Judaism series, available on RealJudaism.org. Don’t forget to subscribe and share to stay connected with our daily lessons and timeless Torah insights!