Before God: The Risk of Sacred Nearness A D’var Torah for Parashat Shemini By Rabbi Anat Katzir Parashat Shemini confronts us with one of the Torah’s most unsettling phrases. After Nadav and Avihu offer what the text calls אש זרה eish zarah, “strange/foreign fire,” we read: ״ ותצא אש מלפני ה׳ וימותו לפני ה׳״“Vateitzei eish milifnei Adonai… vayamutu lifnei Adonai.” Fire came forth from before God, and they died before God. (Leviticus 10:2) The phrase “lifnei Adonai” appears three times in two verses. Nadav and Avihu bring their offering “lifnei Adonai.” The fire emerges “milifnei Adonai”. They die “lifnei Adonai.” The repetition is deliberate and disquieting. The same preposition: “lifnei”, describes both their location and the origin of the consuming fire. They stand in proximity to divine Presence, and that very proximity Read More >

From Spectators to Stakeholders: The Architecture of Spiritual Freedom A D’var Torah for Pesah By Rabbi Scott “Shalom” Klein The festival of Pesah serves as the foundational narrative of our people, transitioning us from the degradation of "Avadim Hayinu" (we were slaves) to the existential responsibility of a free nation. While the Seder night focuses on the historical memory of the Exodus, the deeper theological challenge lies in the internal transformation required to sustain that freedom. By examining the Haggadah’s insistence on personal identification with the past and the Netivot Shalom’s (Rabbi Sholom Noah Berezovsky) insights on the nature of spiritual liberation, we find a timeless blueprint for leadership and communal resilience. The central command of the evening is found in the Mishnah (Pesahim 10:5): “בְּכָל דּוֹר וָדוֹר חַיָּב אָדָם Read More >

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 >