The AJR Center for Judaism and Science has an annual competition for the best student D’var Torah infused with science. Click here to view the entries that have won our לדעת חכמה (Lada’at Hokhmah) Award.
Parshiyot Tazria-Metzorah – 5786
April 14, 2026
Rabbi Rachel Posner
Protecting Our Garment of Light A D’var Torah for Parshiyot Tazria-Metzorah By Rabbi Dr. Rachel Posner Our skin is the largest organ of our body – and a remarkable one. The average adult’s skin covers about two square meters, hosts roughly 1,000 species of bacteria, and contains millions of receptors that sense touch, pressure, temperature, and pain, constantly sending signals to the brain about our environment. Our skin regulates body temperature, protects us from pathogens, and repairs itself with quiet efficiency: within minutes of injury, platelets begin clotting; within days, new skin cells migrate to cover the wound. We sometimes think of our skin as a boundary, a wall separating inside from outside. But like the walls of a home, it is both a border and an integral part of us. As someone who suffered from chronic hives, I know that skin disease cannot be hidden. When our skin erupts,...
Parashat Shemini – 5786
April 5, 2026
Rabbi Anat Katzir
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 becomes lethal. The text offers no psychological exposition, no extended moral explanation or intention. It gives us instead a linguistic pattern: before God, from before...
D’var Torah Pesah – 5786
March 30, 2026
Rabbi Scott “Shalom” Klein
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 לִרְאוֹת אֶת עַצְמוֹ כְאִלּוּ הוּא יָצָא מִמִּצְרַיִם” ”—”In every generation, one is obligated to see oneself as if he personally went out from Egypt.” This is...
Parashat Tzav – 5786
March 25, 2026
Cantor Sandy Horowitz
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 was slaughtered. Moses took the blood…” (Lev. 8:15) Moses then brings a ram for the burnt offering: וַיִּשְׁחָ֑ט וַיִּזְרֹ֨ק מֹשֶׁ֧ה אֶת־הַדָּ֛ם “And it was slaughtered....
Parshiyot Vayakhel-Pekudei 5786
March 9, 2026
Rabbi Matthew Goldstone
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 transformative work. Fire cooks food, tempers metal, and allows for a plethora of technologies. The modern equivalent is perhaps electricity (understood by some traditional posekim...
