The Chain of Command A D’var Torah for Parashat Tzav By Cantor Sandy Horowitz Sometimes we think about Torah on a macro level as the story of our people, our system of laws, the foundation of our heritage.  Other times, we explore a particular theme or individual or delve into the weekly parashah.  With this week’s Torah portion a single verse from Parashat Tzav stood out for me - in particular, a single word. At this point in our narrative Moses is undergoing the rituals, as commanded by God, of formally consecrating his brother Aaron and Aaron’s sons as priests.  We read of three sacrificial offerings: First, Moses brings forth a bull for the sin offering and we read: וַיִּשְׁחָ֗ט וַיִּקַּ֨ח מֹשֶׁ֤ה אֶת־הַדָּם֙ “And it Read More >

A D’var Torah for Parshiyot Vayakhel-Pekudei By Rabbi Dr. Matthew Goldstone Parashat Vayakhel begins with a discussion of Shabbat that barely adds new information. Of the two verses that appear here about Shabbat, one of them (Exod. 35:2) reiterates information that we learned just a few chapters ago (i.e., Exod. 31:15) and the other seems to only provide a single example of what constitutes work – i.e., lighting fire. So why this emphasis on something that largely appears to repeat what we already know? Starting with the verse that provides new information (Exod. 35:3), we can ask what is so special about kindling fire that the Torah singles this out as a key prohibition for Shabbat? In some ways fire is the quintessential catalyst for Read More >

Found in Translation A D’var Torah for Parashat Ki Tissa Rabbi Wendy Love Anderson The seven standard Shabbat morning aliyot of Parashat Ki Tissa are always unbalanced: the first and second aliyah are disproportionately long so that the second aliyah – traditionally assigned to a Levite – can encompass all 47 embarrassing verses of the Golden Calf incident, Israel’s greatest mistake at that point in its history, and a story in which only the Levites come out looking good. But the Golden Calf story was creating problems for Torah readers long before the standardization of an annual Torah-reading cycle. Mishnah Megillah 4:10 includes it in a list of shameful or confusing Biblical passages, some of which are read aloud in Hebrew and translated into Aramaic Read More >

Gemstones and Judgements A D’var Torah for Parashat Tetzaveh By Rabbi Dorit Edut Although the expression “Carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders” is attributed to the Greek god Atlas, I want to propose that it has a much earlier source: the wearing of the gemstone-studded breastplate by the Kohen Gadol, the High Priest, in the biblical Temple and Tabernacle.   It was a physically weighty garment, but that was intentional since the High Priest wore this when turning to God in prayer for the whole Israelite community – a weighty responsibility indeed. It was made also to hold the Urim and Thummim, the special rods which would be used to receive a Divine answer to difficult problems or situations where human decision-making was Read More >