וְיֵעָשׂוּ כֻלָּם אֲגֻדָּה אֶחָת לַעֲשׂוֹת רְצוֹנְךָ בְּלֵבָב שָׁלֵם

All shall unite to do God's will with an open heart.

וְיֵעָשׂוּ כֻלָּם אֲגֻדָּה אֶחָת לַעֲשׂוֹת רְצוֹנְךָ בְּלֵבָב שָׁלֵם

All shall unite to do God's will with an open heart.

Parashat Vayera – Seeing God

Parashat Vayera – Seeing God

By Laurie Levy

The verb reish-aleph-hey occurs three times in the first two verses of this week’s parashah. I think this points to a lesson about what it means to see – really see.

Last week we ended with Abraham circumcising himself and his household and so this week, when we read that Abraham is sitting at the entrance of his tent, we infer that he is recuperating from his recent surgery. Sitting there midday, God appears to him: “He lifted his eyes and, behold, he saw three men standing near him.” (Gen. 18:2) How is it that these strangers (who we later come to realize are angels of God)appear to him so suddenly in the middle of the desert?

The S’fat Emet, a 19th century Hasidic master, answers this question with a verse from Job, who, despite all the suffering he was experiencing in his body and on his skin, says: “In Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-11-12T09:03:46-05:00November 12, 2008|

Yom Kippur

By Rabbi Katy Z. Allen

Yom Kippur means “the Day of Atonement,” but we can also think of this day as “the Day of Truth-Telling.” Our major spiritual task in life is to access our personal truths and connect them to universal truths, and then to have the courage to speak these truths with enough faith that we speak them not with defiance or defensiveness, but with profound humility. Yom Kippur can help us on this journey.

The Torah portion for Yom Kippur contains words such as avonot, pesha’im, chata’ot, tum’ot – sins, transgressions, iniquities, uncleanness. These words speak of our fear, anger, guilt, or other spiritual blocks to a freer sense of being and a better relationship with the Holy One of Blessing. The text describes an ancient ritual that, despite its foreignness to our modern sensibilities, can be read as a metaphor that, aliyah (individual section of the Torah reading) by aliyah, Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-11-06T14:07:43-05:00November 6, 2008|

Parashat Bâ€™reishit

To Begin at the Beginning . . .
By Hazzan Marcia Lane

I have an affinity for stationery stores. I love the smell of new paper. I am constantly buying new notebooks, trying to find the perfect form of paper, lines, binding, cover that will inspire me to greater heights of insight and literary brilliance. I am delighted by the blank page, by the endless possibilities of the absence of words. What to write? What to think? What to communicate? A love letter? A thank you note? A journal page? An invoice? Blank pages are magical.

Our parashah this week, B’reishit, is the blank page on which God writes. In fact, God enjoys the blank page so much that He writes not one but two stories of creation. In the first (Ch. 1:1 to 2:4), creation is described as a kind of song, a poem, a paean of creating. The language is ritualized and Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-11-06T14:04:27-05:00November 6, 2008|

Parashat Lekh Lekha

Famine in the Land of Canaan – A Test of Abraham
By Jaron Matlow

Our Sages, of blessed memory, stated that God tested Abram ten times to ensure that Abram truly was a righteous person. According to Midrash Tanhuma (Lekh Lekha 5) one of those tests was the famine in the Land of Canaan (Bereshit 12:10). Our midrash further points out that there had never previously been such a famine in the Land.

According to that midrash Abram’s response to this famine is to go down to Egypt, where there is food, despite the fact that he is aware of the character of Egyptians. On arrival in Egypt, Abram becomes aware of his mistake, and prays to God that he not be humiliated because of his plan. Sarai, upon realizing what is happening, shrieks out to God, “Master of the Universe, I used to know nothing. But since Abram said to me that You Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-11-06T13:58:42-05:00November 6, 2008|

Parashat Noah

Seeing Our Choices More Clearly
By Rabbi Regina L. Sandler-Phillips

“In the market, the blind cry out to the one-eyed as clear-sighted.” (Genesis Rabbah 30:9)

These are the words of Rabbi Yehudah in a rabbinic dispute concerning Genesis 6:9, which declares that “Noah was a righteous man, unblemished in his generations.” Rabbi Yehudah is among those who interpret this statement as veiled condemnation – in other words, Noah could only be considered righteous and unblemished when compared with the majority of his time. In a period of utter moral blindness, the “one-eyed” Noah was the greatest hope for both humanity and the earth.

Noah’s critics often focus on his apparent silence during his extended preparations for disaster – preparations which fulfill the letter of divine command, but do not reflect any active concern for those beyond his immediate family. To pursue this line of ethical reasoning, it might be helpful to have our own Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-10-29T12:07:17-04:00October 29, 2008|

Parashat Noah

Seeing Our Choices More Clearly
By Rabbi Regina L. Sandler-Phillips

“In the market, the blind cry out to the one-eyed as clear-sighted.” (Genesis Rabbah 30:9)

These are the words of Rabbi Yehudah in a rabbinic dispute concerning Genesis 6:9, which declares that “Noah was a righteous man, unblemished in his generations.” Rabbi Yehudah is among those who interpret this statement as veiled condemnation – in other words, Noah could only be considered righteous and unblemished when compared with the majority of his time. In a period of utter moral blindness, the “one-eyed” Noah was the greatest hope for both humanity and the earth.

Noah’s critics often focus on his apparent silence during his extended preparations for disaster – preparations which fulfill the letter of divine command, but do not reflect any active concern for those beyond his immediate family. To pursue this line of ethical reasoning, it might be helpful to have our own Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-10-29T12:07:17-04:00October 29, 2008|

Sukkot

The Festival of Sukkot-Joy or Discomfort?
By Rabbi David Greenstein

The festival of Sukkot is traditionally called “Z’man Simchatenu – The Season of Our Joy.” This follows from the Biblical injunction that specifically emphasizes the mitzvah of rejoicing whenever this holiday is mentioned, whether in Leviticus – “And you shall rejoice before the Eternal One, your Almighty, for seven days.” (Lev. 23:40) or in Deuteronomy – “And you shall rejoice in your holiday (of Sukkot).” (Deut. 16:13)

The primacy of this element is so strong that it endows Sukkot with a unique rule that is not present with regard to other commandments. This rule is the exemption of “mitzta`er – being in discomfort.” According to traditional Jewish law, while one must dwell in a sukkah for seven days in fulfillment of the Torah’s command, this obligation is set aside if doing so would cause a person discomfort. Now we must appreciate how Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-10-18T19:10:58-04:00October 18, 2008|

Parashat Vayelekh

Shabbat Shuvah
By Jill Minkoff

Be Strong and Brave

Half of forty years ago this season, I sent my youngest child to her first day of school. For both of us, it was fraught with excitement and fear. She had heard about this day for much of her life, a day of great possibility, yet a day of neither parent being able to accompany her. She felt pulled to her future yet reluctant to let go of the hand that had been with her for so much of her life. She was fearful and cried. Would she be safe in this new place? Would people be nice to her? (Do you remember how you felt on your first day of school or at some other major transition in your life?) We both felt anxious. At least, it was only for a few hours that she would be in school before returning home to Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-10-03T09:41:36-04:00October 3, 2008|

Rosh HaShanah

By Sanford Olshansky

“Take your son, your only one, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I will point out to you.” And Abraham arose early in the morning and saddled his ass and took his two lads with him and Isaac, his son, and split the wood for the burnt offering and got up and went to the place [of which] God told him. (Gen 22:2,3)

I have an only son, whom I love. Until recently, he was a sports reporter, covering college hockey. His work took him, in the harshest winter, to isolated places such as Burlington, VT, Hanover, NH and Storrs, CT. After doing post-game interviews and filing his story, he drove, late at night, over icy highways, to his next destination. On many such nights I prayed silently Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-09-25T09:30:51-04:00September 25, 2008|

Parashat Nitzavim

By Steve Altarescu

At the beginning of parashat Nitzavim, Moses asks each one of the Jewish people to enter into the covenant with God. He tells them that Judaism is not just for the knowledgeable ones or the priestly classes but for each person including “the woodchopper to the water drawer.” (Deuteronomy 29:10) The oration offered is not only to those who were standing with Moses when he spoke but . . .” to those who are not here with us today.” (Deut. 29:14) Rashi says this refers to generations in the future, as every Jew living at that time was already mentioned in a prior verse.

This is a very fitting scenario for a few days before Rosh Hashanah when we will be gathered as congregations and each of us will be asked to turn back and follow what is right and good. Each person will have his or her own individual Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-09-25T08:07:41-04:00September 25, 2008|

Parashat Ki Tavo

By Rabbi Daniel Horwitz

There is a famous Jewish legend which has bothered me from the first time I heard it, when I was about 8 or 9 years old. According to this legend, the foundation for the song introducing Shabbat, Shalom Aleikhem, there are two malakhei ha-sharet, ministering angels, one good and one bad, who accompany a Jew when coming home on Shabbat eve. When the Jew arrives home, if Shabbat candles are set, the table prepared, and the house is beautiful for Shabbat, the good angel says: So may it be next Shabbat. And the bad angel, against his will, must say: Amen. And if the opposite is true, the bad angel says: so may it be the next Shabbat. And the good angel, against his will, now must also say: Amen.

I didn’t grow up keeping Shabbat, but that part wasn’t an issue for me. I understood Shabbat was a Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-09-17T13:20:15-04:00September 17, 2008|

Parashat Ki Teitzei

The Paradox of Memory
By Rabbi Allen Darnov

It is amusing how Jews curse enemies by reciting the enemy’s name and then adding the phrase in Hebrew (or Yiddish) “may his name be blotted out” We might say something like “…that evil Hitler, may his name be blotted out!…” Amusing, because one cannot rub a name out of existence by making a point of mentioning it.

It seems that the impetus in Jewish life to remember is very strong – even stronger than the mitzvah to forget something evil. The result is a paradox. And the paradox is explicit, as a matter of fact, in Ki Tetze, this week’s Torah portion. On the one hand, the book of Deuteronomy commands us to rub out the memory of Amalek (25:19) much in the way that ancient Pharaohs would rub out the hieroglyph denoting a predecessor’s name, thus extinguishing memory of a forebear. Yet, only Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-09-11T10:11:16-04:00September 11, 2008|

Parashat Shoftim

By Halina Rubinstein

The last section of this week’s parashah describes the strange ritual of the eglah `arufah, the ‘broken heifer.’ When a person is found dead in the middle of a field and the killer is not known, the elders of the closest city take a heifer that has yet to be trained to work, break its neck and pray for forgiveness in order to establish their innocence. This is a remarkable expression of communal responsibility. In light of call of the parashah to pursue justice, it is inconceivable that the community would let something like this happen. Yet they were not able to protect and provide for the individual who was killed. Therefore, they consider themselves responsible; they acknowledge their guilt and cleanse themselves of it through this ritual.

I cannot help but relate this to one of the most intense experiences of my life. This past June, my husband, three other Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-09-02T20:29:13-04:00September 2, 2008|

Parashat Re’eh

By Maralee Gordon
Shabbat Re’eh is the beginning of Labor Day Weekend this year. Often we view Labor Day as its oxymoron-a day off from labor. But of course, it is meant to call attention to the contributions of workers to our society. The U.S. Department of Labor states:

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

Many of our ancestors were involved in the nascent labor movement at the turn of the 20th century, in which they struggled to make sure that those on the edge of poverty were able to work under decent conditions rather than slave away in inhumane circumstances for less than living wages.

Re’eh can help us to understand our responsibility Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-08-28T21:36:55-04:00August 28, 2008|

Parashat Eqev

Parashat Eqev – Assembling the Menorah
By Moshe Rudin

As careful readers of the Torah text- both the text given to us at Sinai and its commentary that God reveals to each of us through the unfolding text of our lives- we have been taught to be constantly on the lookout for the unusual turn of phrase or the unexpected word. We have learned that it is from the seemingly out of place language that there emerge tilei tilim – heaps and heaps – of insight and teachings.

One such word emerges from the first pasuq (verse) of this week’s parashah: Eqev. The pasuq reads: It shall be that following upon (eqev) that you listen to these ordinances, that you keep and do them, that HaShem your God will keep for you the Covenant (Brit) and the Lovingkindness which God swore to your ancestors.

Eqev is a term related to Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-08-19T13:34:22-04:00August 19, 2008|

Parashat D’varim

By Doug Alpert

This week we commence reading the Book of Devarim (Deuteronomy). In our quest to understand Torah and apply it to our own existence we are naturally prone to see it through the lens of our own experience. Having admitted to this bias in my own interpretation as I study the text, I immediately go to a specific place in my experience, i.e., my place as a parent. At the risk of overstatement, there may not be a greater pedagogical tool than the Book of Devarim. This is particularly true for parents. If you, like me, are prone to skip to the end to see what happens, one of the great lessons for parents is embodied within the idea that arguably our greatest leader, Moshe Rabeinu, is prohibited by G-d from following his children, B’nai Yisrael into the Land of Israel. So, how much more true is it for us, Read More >

By Doug Alpert|2008-08-15T11:47:56-04:00August 15, 2008|

Parashat Vâ€™etchanan:

The Last Lecture
By Sandra Kilstein

The bittersweet stage of the Jewish calendar cycle is reflected in the overtones of Parashat V’etchanan. The feelings of having made it through the Three Weeks of mourning parallels the feeling of relief and the ability to move forward after the defeat of Og and Sichon It is the time of transition from the struggles of the desert to the forward-looking planning involved in settling The Land.

Yet for Moshe, the struggle remains. V’etchanan is the heart-wrenching plea of the ever modest leader of a great nation, a man obsessed with entering The Land. V’etchanan is the language of deepest humility ‘ a beseeching, an imploring request from someone who acknowledges that he may be unworthy, but asks nevertheless. Indeed, the word v’etchanan is related to cheenam, ‘free.’ Moshe asks for a free gift, despite the fact that his deeds don’t merit this reward.

Denied, he returns to his mission Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-08-15T07:29:57-04:00August 15, 2008|

Parashat Masâ€™ei

By Dr. Ora Horn Prouser

Parashat Mas’ei concludes the Book of Bemidbar, bringing together elements of the desert period, and drawing various parts to their logical conclusions. It traces the travels and encampments of the Israelites throughout the whole period of wandering. It then looks forward, setting boundaries and borders for Israel once they enter the land, and appointing leaders to oversee that land division. There is then a focus on the cities of refuge, which is a major element in structuring society based on justice and fairness. This is all very fitting as all that stands between the Israelites and their entry into the land is Moses’ concluding speech in Deuteronomy.

All of this would work beautifully, but, this is not how Parashat Mas’ei ends. The last section of the parashah brings back the case of the daughters of Zelophehad. Earlier in the Book of Numbers, the daughters of Zelophehad came before Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-07-31T08:01:52-04:00July 31, 2008|

Parashat Mattot

By Sanford Olshansky

There is a saying that many stories in the Torah must be true, because if they were made up, our sages would have presented our ancient ancestors more favorably. But in this week’s Torah portion of Mattot there’s a story, a story about what we moderns would call genocide, a story so revolting that I would like to believe it’s not true.

In Numbers 31:2, God tells Moses to “get revenge for the children of Israel from the Midianites.” This refers back to an earlier instruction in Parashat Pinhas, to “afflict the Midianites” (Numbers 25:17-18) because they seduced the Israelite men, through prostitution, to worship the idol Baal Peor, as described at the end of Parashat Balak.

Moses recruits 12,000 armed men and sends them to battle. They kill all the adult Midianite men, take the women and children prisoner and burn their cities and homes. They bring the Read More >

By Rabbi Len Levin|2008-07-23T09:54:53-04:00July 23, 2008|

Parashat Pinhas

How Do We Settle the Holy Land?
By Jaron Matlow

Whenever a new nation settled in a land, it took great wisdom on the part of the leaders to ensure that the land was settled equitably. Parashat Pinhas provides the initial instructions for how the land is to be distributed to the nine and one half tribes who will settle in the Holy Land.(Reuven, Gad and Menasheh settled in the Trans-Jordan, as previously arranged with Moshe.) There is always an additional issue to contend with, which is how to deal with the existing land holders. God gave Moshe instructions for dealing with the Canaanites in other parashiot.

In our parashah God says that the land shall be divided by lottery. (Bamidbar 26:55) In order to prepare for this, God told Moshe and El’azar to take a census of all of the Israelites who are 20 years and older, according to their father’s houses, all those Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-07-16T08:49:27-04:00July 16, 2008|

Parashat Balak

By Diane M. Sharon, Ph.D.

Balak is a Moabite king who feels his sovereignty threatened by the numerous tribes of Israel as they wander in the wilderness towards the Land of Promise. Balak, along with a Midianite coalition, commissions a renowned Aramean prophet, Balaam son of Beor, to curse the Hebrew tribes to drive them away. What is this foreign prophet doing in the Hebrew Bible? The first words we hear out of his mouth invite the Midianite and Moabite embassy to wait overnight for his answer while he consults the God of Israel, whom he refers to by the Tetragrammaton – YHWH.

Here is the irony of a foreign prophet consulting the Hebrew God, and the further irony that God actually comes to Balaam in a dream, and forbids the prophet from cursing the people whom God has blessed. God’s universal sovereignty is affirmed in this story: God is the master Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-07-09T16:54:45-04:00July 9, 2008|

Huqqat

The Power of Foresight
By Hayley Siegel
and
The Transforming Essence
By Moshe Rudin

The Power of Foresight
In this week’s parashah, Huqqat, one of the most shocking events in the entire Torah occurs. Despite forty dedicated years of service as teacher, general, and counselor on behalf of God and the Israelites, Moses is told by God that he will not be permitted to enter the Promised Land with the tribe!

The reason? A conversation with a rock puts Moses in a hard place! When the children of Israel complain that they are thirsty, Moses turns to God for help in securing water in the dry desert. God provides Moses with an immediate solution. All Moses must do is speak softy to a rock, and this conversation will supply all of the tribe and animals with their desired water. As complaints and groans from his thirsty tribe members beat down upon him like a waterfall, Moses strikes Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-07-03T11:17:46-04:00July 3, 2008|

Parashat Shâ€™lah Lâ€™kha

By Cantor Kathy Barr

IT’S DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN!
“How long will this people continue to mutter against me?” Deja vu. How many times so far in the Torah have we read this complaint from the Eternal? We seem to be a people of kvetching, easily swayed to follow the crowd, constantly needing to be reminded of promises; to be reassured that the chosen path is the correct one.

We all know the story: Moses sends 12 spies to check out the land that they are to inhabit. What kind of food grows there? Is the soil arable? What of the people, are they strong or weak? Are the cities fortified?

The spies return with a huge cluster of grapes, and pomegranates and figs; but ten of them warn that even though it is a good land, the inhabitants are giant and formidable, and if we attempt to enter the land, we Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-06-18T14:15:58-04:00June 18, 2008|

Parashat Behukottai

By Rabbi Katy Allen

Here in New England, the trees are almost fully leafed out. The brilliant yellow marsh marigolds have come and gone. The tiny, delicate bluets blanket the meadows as if with snow. Trillium dot the woods, and the lady slippers are bursting forth.

One could think that all is right in the world.

Then you notice invasive garlic mustard, purple loosestrife, and Japanese bittersweet. Alien species such as these are pushing out native plants from woods, wetlands, and open spaces. Deer are eating every wildflower in sight. The diversity of our wild areas is declining.

All isn’t right with the world after all.

This week we read, “If you follow My laws and faithfully observe My commandments, I will grant your rains in their seasons, so that the earth shall yield its produce and the trees of the field their fruit.” (Lev. 26:3) Our Torah clearly states that Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-06-11T06:37:32-04:00June 11, 2008|

Parashat Behar

Parashat Behar
By Rabbi Aryeh Meir

As we celebrate Israel’s sixtieth anniversary, it is appropriate to reflect on the kind of society that has emerged with the advent of Israel’s great “economic miracle.” I begin by quoting several reflections on Israeli society:

The average Israeli works twelve years before his cumulative pay equals the monthly salary of the CEO of a large firm. The average wage for women is two thirds of that for men while Arabs earn, on average, 30% less than Jews. But those may not be the most alarming figures revealed in a new study conducted by the Adva Institute, researchers also report the number of high school students eligible for matriculation certificates is on a steep decline. The institute displays a frightening and gloomy portrait of the situation of Israeli society. The gaps between Israel’s rich and poor are only growing, the institute says, despite the impressive economic growth registered on Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-05-16T21:08:54-04:00May 16, 2008|

Pesach 5768

To Love Another Person Is to See the Face of God
By Laurie Levy

“To love another person is to see the face of God”
(Jean Valjean in Les Miserables)

I recently saw the show Spring Awakening on Broadway. It is the story of a group of adolescents dealing with the mystifying and consuming discovery of their sexual awakening – all the more dramatic because it is set against the backdrop of late 19th century Germany where information and education about sex was nonexistent. The show is no less relevant for today, when more than we would ever want our children to know about sex is but a website away. Even our Sages understood the need to embrace the awakening of one’s longings and desires in the springtime and so on the Shabbat that falls during Passover, we read Shir haShirim, The Song of Songs, a poem filled with images of spring and nature and about Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-04-18T11:49:34-04:00April 18, 2008|

Shabbat haGadol

The Shabbat before Pesach is referred in medieval sources as Shabbat haGadol ‘ the Great Shabbat. But there is a range of opinions about its relationship to the Exodus narrative. According to these
sources, it was on the Shabbat preceding the first Pesach that Israel was commanded to take a lamb per household in preparation for the night of liberation, a precursor to the great events that were to come. Seizing a lamb, the totem of Egypt’s divinity, required a miracle ‘ hence the name Shabbat HaGadol, the Shabbat of the Great ‘ i.e. of God (Tur).

Another etymological possibility lies in the traditional practice of reciting most of the Haggadah after Minhah and reviewing the laws of Pesach during morning services on the Shabbat preceding Pesach. Quite a lot of ground to cover . . . Shabbat HaGadol then becomes ‘that really long Shabbat’ (Shibbolei HaLeket).

Still Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-04-16T06:52:06-04:00April 16, 2008|

Parashat Metzora

By Rabbi Yehonatan Chipman

Someone once said, only half in jest (paraphrasing the well-known Rabbinic dictum in Pirkei Avot), that “Whoever manages to give a decent derashah about Tazria-Metzora brings redemption to the word.” And indeed, one is hard to imagine any section of the Torah more alien to the modern world, than these two parshiyot, devoted entirely to the detailed description of various kinds of ritual impurity issuing from the human body. Parashat Metzora, specifically, is concerned with the ritual to be performed for one healed of tzara’at (“leprosy”: i.e., certain skin effusions described in the previous parashah); tzara’at of houses; and various discharges, normal and abnormal, from the sexual organs of men and women.

What are we to make of all this? One explanation put forward in recent years (first articulated by Rachel Adler in the first volume of the Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-04-08T15:23:49-04:00April 8, 2008|

PARASHAT SHEMINI, SHABBAT PARAH

By Sanford Olshansky

Many traditional Jews believe that the entire Torah was revealed by God to Moses on Mt. Sinai. Accordingly, they have no problem with the existence of mitzvot (commandments) that appear to have no practical purpose. In fact, they delight in performing such commandments. For example, Yeshayahu Leibowitz has written, in an article in Contemporary Jewish Religious Thought, that

Every reason given for the mitzvot that bases itself on human needs . . . voids the mitzvot of all religious meaning. For if the mitzvot . . . are meant to benefit society, or . . . to maintain the Jewish people, then he who performs them serves not God but himself, his society or his people.¹

Many liberal Jews prefer to believe that there is a practical benefit in some of the Torah’s mitzvot, especially if this practical benefit is something that the Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-03-26T05:33:26-04:00March 26, 2008|

Parashat Vayikra

By Mark Getman

Vayikra (Leviticus) is the name not only of this week’s parashah, but also of the entire third book of the Torah. Though the book has much to say about the sacrificial system, it also teaches us how we should interact with our fellow Jews and other human beings. Although written thousands of years ago Vayikra lays the foundation for law and order in society, an order that can be applied to contemporary times.

In Chapter 5, verses 20-24, we read: The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: If a person will sin and commit a treachery against The Lord by lying to his comrade regarding a pledge or a loan or a robbery: or by defrauding his comrade; or he found a lost item and denied it – and he swore falsely about any of all the things that a person can do and sin thereby – so it shall be that Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-03-18T10:01:04-04:00March 18, 2008|

Parashat Tzav

By Susan Elkodsi

Parashat Tzav continues the instructions for sacrifices, and lays out the role of the kohanim (priests), in this case – Aaron and his sons. It could easily be seen as an instruction manual for the kohanim, complete with a priestly guide to “dressing for success,” offering specific instructions on what the priest must wear depending on the task he is performing. Preceding the commandments about the sacrifices themselves is a commandment regarding the fire on the altar which was required to burn perpetually, an aish tamid. The offering was to burn all night, and the priest was required to feed the fire every morning. This parashah offers explicit detail about certain tasks, but doesn’t appear to mention what happens to the fire overnight.

In order to continue burning, a fire must be fed and tended. When my husband’s boy scout troop had a Shabbat campout, the fire was arranged in such Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-03-18T09:56:30-04:00March 18, 2008|

Parashat Tetzaveh

Parashat Tetzaveh
By Rabbi Aryeh Meir

This week Qassam rockets fell on the Israeli town of Sderot, severely injuring two brothers. The rockets, fired by Palestinian militants from just across the border in Gaza, have been raining down upon Sderot and environs for months and years, terrorizing the populace and perplexing Israel’s leaders.

And this week, some of the people of Sderot and their supporters stopped traffic on the main road to Jerusalem and marched to the office of the Prime Minister to demonstrate their anger and frustration with the inability of the governments to end the rocket fire.

This coming Shabbat, in the synagogues of Sderot, as in every other synagogue in the world, Jews will be reading and discussing the Torah portion detailing the vestments of the Kohanim, the priests, in the ancient desert sanctuary.

What is the connection between Sderot and the vestments of the Kohanim? Among the garments of the Kohen Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-02-20T07:07:08-05:00February 20, 2008|

Parashat Ki Tissa

Parashat Ki Tissa
By Suri Krieger

Moses had a double! That’s right. Moses was not the only prophet to part the waters, or to experience a Revelation on Mt. Sinai, or to have a highly unusual end-of life occurrence. Granted, our first and foremost prophet earned his reputation with miracles and fireworks. But so did his double, Elijah the Prophet. Elijah is the only other prophet who comes close to facilitating miracles on the scale of grandeur associated with Moses.

Is Elijah really a double Moses? Look at the similarities:

He really did part the waters. Just before he is carried up in a chariot to the heavens, he lifts his mantel and the waters of the Jordan River part for Elisha (his successor) and himself to pass through. That mantle is to Elijah what the staff is to Moses.

Elijah walks 40 days and nights until he reaches Har Horev, another name for Mt. Sinai, whereupon Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-02-20T06:50:14-05:00February 20, 2008|

Parashat Mishpatim

Everything I Need, I Learned at Sinai
By Irwin Huberman

During the mid-1980’s a series of books captured the imagination of readers across America under the general theme of “All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten.”

The book’s premise was that this complex and often troubling world could somehow be tamed and explained through a series of general themes that we originally learned during a pure and relatively uncomplicated time in our lives.

Of course, in spite of this popular series of books and articles which also claimed that everything we needed to know could be gleaned from our cat, dog or reruns of Bonanza or The Nanny, in reality, the world which God created is complex, often troubling, and beyond the reach of general explanations and classifications.

We as humans possess a tendency to seek absolutes and firm directions to understand life, but indeed, Judaism through its system of debate, discussion and discourse Read More >

By Rabbi Irwin Huberman|2008-01-30T11:03:00-05:00January 30, 2008|

Parashat Beshallah

Parashat BeShalah: Shabbat Shirah 5768
The Power of Song
By Hazzan Ram’n Tasat

I remember it clearly; it was around 1970 when, for the first time, I heard the music of a Spanish group, proscribed at the time by the Franco Administration. The group was called “Aguaviva” and hardly anyone remembers them anymore. The words of their songs remain with me forever:

. . . My brother, yours is the house, the fire, the harvest. I take with me the song. Everything is yours but I leave you mute. And how are you going to light the fire and harvest the crops if I take away the song from you . . .

Standing at the sea was a time of rebellion, a time to leave behind the known slavery, to submerge ourselves in the unfamiliar, the unknown. Not all agreed, some were not even consulted and yet they trusted their leader. Moshe was Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-01-22T16:20:11-05:00January 22, 2008|

Parashat Yitro

The Makings of a Great Leader
Hayley Siegel

In Pirke Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) 1:10, our teachers Shemayah and Avtalyon teach, ‘Do not become overly familiar with the government.’ Indeed, our rabbis probably could never have imagined an election season quite like this one!

With groundbreaking candidates, including an African-American, a female, a Mormon, and a Jewish candidate (possibly) running in the 2008 Presidential election, who wouldn’t want to pay attention to this year’s primaries and campaigns?! With the myriad ads, speeches, and publicity events flashing before our overwhelmed eyes, it can be difficult to separate the truth from the hype. Luckily for us, Moses’ creation of the first Israelite government in Parashat Yitro gives us the perfect opportunity to gain insight into the qualities we should take into account when we elect leaders for our government.

In last week’s parashah, B’Shalah, we read of the tribe’s dramatic escape from Egypt. The Israelites Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-01-22T16:12:21-05:00January 22, 2008|

Parashat Vaera

By Heidi Hoover

This week’s Torah portion, Va‘era, continues a saga that many Jews have lived with all their lives and that we tell every year at our Passover tables: the exodus from Egypt. Last week Moses and Aaron had their first confrontations with Pharaoh, to no avail. Now the narrative takes us through the first seven plagues: blood, frogs, lice, swarms of insects (some say wild beasts), livestock disease, boils, and hail. We’re good at listing the plagues. We give prizes to religious school kids who can recite them. I’ve recently noticed a trend of frog-themed Passover toys and other products. Apparently frogs were the cute plague.

In our familiarity with this story, it seems we don’t notice the fear and pain in it anymore. Those experiencing the plagues must have thought it was the end of the world. The plague of blood meant the water was contaminated, undrinkable. Fish died. Later plagues Read More >

By Rabbi Heidi Hoover|2008-01-10T09:58:22-05:00January 10, 2008|

Parashat Bo

By Boaz Marmon

At first glance, we probably think of Parashat Bo, as a “middle.” It tells the middle of the Exodus story, beginning in the middle of the ten plagues and ending in the middle of the escape from Egypt. Perhaps, on second thought, it’s a tale of “ends”: the end of the plagues, the end of bondage. What’s easy to miss is how much Parashat Bo is about beginnings.

According to the sage Rabbi Yitzchak, as quoted by the Yalkut Shim’oni and famously cited by Rashi as his first comment on the Torah, the Torah need not have begun until the verse “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first of the months of the year for you,” (Ex. 12:2) which appears around the middle of the middle aliyah of Bo. This is the first command given by God not Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-01-10T09:41:20-05:00January 10, 2008|

Parashat Shâ€™mot

By Linda Shriner-Cahn

In memory of my father, whose yarhzeit is the 24th of Tevet.

In this week’s Torah portion, Sh’mot, we once more are given all of the names of the sons of Israel, linking this second book of the Torah to the first. Their names are brimming with meaning.

Sh’mot means ‘names.’ Names are critical in understanding who we are and how we relate to the world. It is Adam who names the animals, giving him a sense of dominion over his surroundings. The process of naming something is empowering. For a brief moment we are granted insight into the power of a name. When we name our children we invest the future of that child into their name.

Every week as we make Kiddush (the blessing of sanctification of the Shabbat, recited over a cup of wine) on Friday night we recount the separation of the Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-12-27T09:11:01-05:00December 27, 2007|

Parashat Vayigash

By Susan Elkodsi

In Parashat Vayigash we witness the emotional reunion of Joseph and his brothers, and ultimately Joseph’s reunion with his father. Initially, it appears that the parashah’s focus is on Joseph, the man who saves his family during the time of great famine. But I believe that Judah is the ‘hero’ of the story, and with the benefit of hindsight, that history supports this. In time, Judah becomes one of the promised land’s mighty nations. We, the Jewish people, get our name from him as well. What makes Judah deserving of this honor and ultimate legacy? After all, Judah was the brother responsible for selling Joseph to the Ishmaelite traders, and presumably he who showed Jacob the blood-stained tunic, allowing him to jump to the conclusion that his favorite son had been eaten by a beast.

As we see, a lot can happen in 22 years. Consider that for all this Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-12-10T06:50:20-05:00December 10, 2007|

Parashat Miketz

By Sanford Olshansky

And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, but no one can interpret it. Now I have heard it said of you that for you to hear a dream is to tell its meaning.” Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “Not I! God will see to Pharaoh’s welfare.” (Gen 41:15, 16)

“Accordingly, let Pharaoh find a man of discernment and wisdom, and set him over the land of Egypt.” . . . And Pharaoh said to his courtiers, “Could we find another man like him, a man in whom is the spirit of God?” (Gen 41:33, 38)

These verses bracket the central dramatic moment of this parashah and one of the two great dramatic moments in the story of Joseph. (The other is his reconciliation with his brothers, which occurs in the next parashah, Vayigash.) Among other things, the scene in which he interprets Pharaoh’s dream Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-12-04T13:04:16-05:00December 4, 2007|

Parashat VaYeshev

Divine and Human ‘Nudging’ on the Path of One’s Destiny
By Jill Minkoff

Va-Yeshev is primarily the story of Joseph’s descent into Egypt. It is a necessary precursor to the birth of the Jewish people and the subsequent story of redemption and journey to freedom. It is a story of seemingly bad luck that eventually turns out for the best.

We are introduced to Joseph at age seventeen. He is his father Jacob’s favorite son. He reports to his father the wrongdoings of his brothers. And, he tells his family of dreams he has had, in which they become subservient to him. It is no wonder that Joseph’s brothers are jealous and angry. Although Jacob is keenly aware of this matter, he chooses to send Joseph on an errand to observe the brothers in the pasture and report back on how they and the flocks are doing. As Joseph journeys to find his brothers, a Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-11-27T06:47:34-05:00November 27, 2007|

Parashat Vayishlach

By Halina Rubinstein

25 Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the break of dawn.
26 When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he wrenched Jacob’s hip at its socket, so that the socket of his hip was strained as he wrestled with him.
27 Then he said, “Let me go, for dawn is breaking.” But he answered, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me.”
28 Said the other, “What is your name?” He replied, “Jacob.”
29 Said he, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with beings divine and human,and have prevailed.” [. . .]
32 The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping on his hip.
Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-11-20T15:14:37-05:00November 20, 2007|

Parashat Vayetze

Mountain, Field and House
By Rabbi Yehonatan Chipman

“How awesome is this place! This is naught but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven . . .” (Gen 28:17

This week’s parashah describes Yaakov’s unexpected and numinous encounter with God, en route from his home to the unknown land of his ancestors ‘ a meeting that was to be both a turning point in his own life, and a paradigm for future generations. “Indeed, there is God in this place, and I did not know it” (28:16). In several Talmudic passages, the Sages discuss this passage in relation to events in the lives of the other two patriarchs. One (Berakhot 26b) portrays the fathers introducing each of the three daily prayers. (See my discussion at: http://hitzeiyehonatan.blogspot.com/, under the heading: Hayyei Sarah). Another (Pesahim 88a) speaks of the three patriarchs relating to God Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-11-13T15:04:57-05:00November 13, 2007|

Parashat Toldot

By Tad Campbell

In honor of my teacher and chaver, Rabbi Joel S. Wasser.

Travel the world, or simply look at the foreign coins mixed up with your regular change and the most obvious thing about any, whether large or small, is that each has two sides. These opposite sides feature images of the national flower or bird, musical instruments, historical events and monarchs and national leaders. These small monetary tokens can in many ways, resemble tiny, fascinating, priceless works of art.

This week’s parashah, Toldot, calls upon this idea to explain how this section of the Torah unfolds. Esau and Jacob, though twins, are not identical. Each has his own personality and mindset as well as obvious talents and abilities. Esau is far more than simply the oldest; he is the son who, in a way, resembles his father Isaac in terms of being drawn to the fields and caring for the flocks. Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-11-07T07:02:39-05:00November 7, 2007|

Parashat Hayyei Sarah

By Rabbi David Greenstein

Our Torah reading begins with the death of our matriarch, Sarah. Abraham comes ‘to eulogize Sarah and to cry over her.’ (Gen. 23:2) The order of the verbs in this verse is noteworthy. One might have expected that Abraham’s first reaction would be to cry, while only afterwards would he go about the public act of eulogizing his life partner. Indeed, the next verse says that Abraham ‘arose from before his corpse’ in order to deal with the practical matters of burial, including finding a burial plot that would serve for Sarah and for the family.

The working out of our personal and public roles as mourners and as bereaved family and community is thus an important theme of this story. There is an undeniable private dimension to the experience of loss. But Abraham also understood that by further engaging in the public act of eulogizing Sarah he would Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-10-30T11:51:11-04:00October 30, 2007|

Parashat Vayera

By Jaron Matlow

Water is a very simple chemical molecule. It contains one Oxygen atom and two Hydrogen atoms, and it appears in the shape of the letter V. Despite its simplicity, or perhaps because of it, water has tremendous powers in the world of chemistry. These powers are the very reason life can exist on our planet.

Interestingly enough, water has a molecular weight of 18. The number 18 is, of course, very significant in the world of gematria, the study of the numerical value of Hebrew words. Gematria is based on values assigned to each Hebrew letter in their sequence in the Aleph-Bet. Aleph is one, bet is two, and so on. The number 18, is of course the value of the Hebrew word, Hai, (Yu’d, 10; He’t, 8) – meaning, to be alive. Thus in both the worlds of chemistry and the spiritual, water has a very significant meaning Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-10-23T14:32:53-04:00October 23, 2007|

Parashat Lekh L’kha

By Helene Santo

This week’s parashah, Lekh L’kha, opens with God saying to Avram:”Lekh l’kha (Go), me’artz’kha (from your land), mimolad’t’kha (from where you were born or according to other translations: from your family), umibeit avikha (and from your father’s house), el ha-aretz asher ar’eka (to a land that I will show you).” (Gen. 12:1)

Three years ago on this parashah, my daughter celebrated her bat mitzvah. She wondered whether how and even if God wrote the Torah. When she read that opening line, she asked what Avram heard. Did he hear a big booming voice? Did he hear a voice inside his head? Or did he hear something so supernatural it could be nothing but God? Most importantly, does it matter?

Many people believe that God literally dictated the Torah-the Five Books of Moses-to Moses on Mt. Sinai. But there are many parts of the Torah itself that suggest that Moses did not Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-10-16T12:46:24-04:00October 16, 2007|

Parashat Noah

By Michael Kohn

Two years ago, as the flood waters from Hurricane Katrina raged in New Orleans, some thought it necessary to remark that the devastation wrought by the storm was divine retribution for the sins of the people living in that area. According to press reports, some prominent Rabbis described Hurricane Katrina as America’s punishment for supporting Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and/or condemned its mainly African-American victims for failing to study Torah. And another noted an article he had written in which he suggested that the sinfulness of New Orleans residents, rather than the Gaza withdrawal, might explain the destruction and death Katrina visited on their city in particular.

These comments, coming from those who believe in the literal truth of the Torah, raise a troubling theological question: “Does G-d keep a promise?” For if mankind’s sins can result in a divine act of retribution large enough to ravage a city, can those Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-10-10T10:28:24-04:00October 10, 2007|

Parashat Noah

By Michael Kohn

Two years ago, as the flood waters from Hurricane Katrina raged in New Orleans, some thought it necessary to remark that the devastation wrought by the storm was divine retribution for the sins of the people living in that area. According to press reports, some prominent Rabbis described Hurricane Katrina as America’s punishment for supporting Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and/or condemned its mainly African-American victims for failing to study Torah. And another noted an article he had written in which he suggested that the sinfulness of New Orleans residents, rather than the Gaza withdrawal, might explain the destruction and death Katrina visited on their city in particular.

These comments, coming from those who believe in the literal truth of the Torah, raise a troubling theological question: “Does G-d keep a promise?” For if mankind’s sins can result in a divine act of retribution large enough to ravage a city, can those Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-10-10T10:28:24-04:00October 10, 2007|

Rosh HaShanah

By Rabbi Leslie Schotz

“In the criminal justice system, the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups-the police who investigate crime and the district attorneys who prosecute the offenders. These are their stories.”

You may recognize that opening from a show called “Law and Order” which follows crime from two separate vantage points. The first half generally concentrates on the investigation of a crime by the police; the second half follows the prosecution of the crime in court.

Rosh Hashanah is also called Yom Ha-Din, the Day of Judgment. The liturgy calls upon the analogy of a great trial. On this day, the world is judged. In Franz Kafka’s book The Trial, the helpless victim doesn’t even know what his crime is. Just before the hero is killed, he wonders where was the judge whom he had never seen? But our trial on Rosh Hashanah is not cruel or by an unknown Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-09-25T07:52:18-04:00September 25, 2007|

Yom Kippur

Rabbi Margaret Frisch Klein

The new year we began just last week stretches before us like an empty canvas and we pause to reflect before it. What are we going to paint on it this year? What will we write upon it? How do we make a difference with our lives? What really matters? It is a fresh start, a new beginning and, like the school kids’ brand-new, blank notebooks, for me it comes with excitement and enthusiasm. How can I fill it, and fill it well?

This year I am concerned about the tenor of our conversations. In an age of 24/7 communication, we often don’t stop to think about the impact of our words in the political world, in our work world, in our congregations or in our families. We forget to take time to think before we speak. We have grown too accustomed Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-09-25T07:30:51-04:00September 25, 2007|

Shemini Atzeret-Yizkor

Nostalgia – is it enough?
By Rabbi Robert Waxman

In Webster’s contemporary formulation, nostalgia is “longing for something far away or long ago.”

As we gather for Yizkor a wave of nostalgia fills the room. We are looking back, remembering. For some, we are looking back at a safe distance. For others, memories of loss and disappointments are as close as this past year.

Nostalgia is a big part of religious thought, for we can’t rely upon fate or biological ancestry to cultivate Jewish loyalty. Yet, we can’t return to shtetl nostalgia to assure Jewish continuity either: Tevya’s cry of “tradition” is no answer for his children’s questions. In fact, Tevya failed with his children. “Fiddler on the Roof” is musical entertainment, not reality. The shift has turned from external to internal, from fate to choice. Our children ask “what for?” They must be persuaded morally, spiritually, intellectually of the meaning and merits of Jewish Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-09-25T06:52:21-04:00September 25, 2007|

Sukkot

By Rabbi Jill Hammer

The quintessential image of harvest-time is the bundle: the sheaf of wheat, the bushel of apples, the cluster of grapes. The arba’ah minim, the four species of the lulav (- palm branch, etrog – citron, willow and myrtle), is the Jewish harvest-bundle, bringing together four different kinds of plant into a beautiful, fragrant bouquet. We wave this bouquet in the six directions, tethering ourselves to the Divine Presence dwelling in every corner of the earth. Symbolically, we show how different elements come together to make holiness. Sukkot, in many sensory and spiritual ways, allows us to experience the unity and multiplicity of our world. It is the festival of the web of life.

This theme of the bundle, of bringing together multiple aspects into a whole, abounds throughout Sukkot. The Temple sacrifices of Sukkot, which we read about in Read More >

By Rabbi Jill Hammer, PhD|2007-09-25T06:50:15-04:00September 25, 2007|

Rosh HaShanah

By Dr. Ora Horn Prouser

As we finish preparing for Rosh Hashanah, I would like to offer a few words of Torah. The traditional Torah reading for the first day of Rosh Hashanah includes the expulsion of Hagar and Ishmael from Abraham and Sarah’s home. As they wander out in the desert, Hagar, unable to watch the agony and anticipated death of her son, places him under a bush and sits down at a distance in tears. When the angel approaches Hagar explaining that she needn’t fear and that they would not die, she is directed to pick up her son, and ‘hold him by the hand.’ She then is able to see a nearby well; they drink, and survive the horrific experience. It is significant that God did not need to tell Hagar to drink or to provide water for her son; she knew to do that. Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-08-02T13:30:26-04:00August 2, 2007|

Parashat Mattot-Massei

By Rabbi Jeff Hoffman

I’m a guitarist. Have been for many years. On the guitar case of one of my guitars, I have affixed a bumper sticker that reads ‘What would Jerry say?’ The ‘Jerry’ referred to is Jerry Garcia, the late lead guitarist for the greatest rock ‘n roll band the world has known, The Grateful Dead. The bumper sticker is, of course, a knock-off of a contemporary Christian saying which substitutes another name that begins with a ‘J’ for the ‘Jerry’ in this sticker. I’m thinking about the sticker on my guitar case because it applies, in a way, to the Haftarah for this Shabbat. The point of the Haftarah can be seen as ‘What would Jeremiah say?’

The haftarah for this Shabbat is the second of the T’lata DePur`anuta, ‘the three (haftarot of) (Warning of) Punishment.’ These three haftarot are always read on the three Shabbatot that precede Tisha B’Av, and Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-07-10T12:12:23-04:00July 10, 2007|

Parashat Pinhas

By Bruce Alpert

Our parashah this week begins in a curious place. The affair of Baal-Peor is related in Chapter 25 of Bemidbar – a brief 18 verses. Yet the story is broken in half by the division of the parashiot ‘ nine verses last week in Balak and the final nine in this week’s parashah, Pinhas. Certainly it would seem more logical to read this story in its entirety, within a single parashah.

Pinhas, of course, is a problematic character ‘ one who has troubled us at least since Talmudic times. His rash act in killing Zimri and Cozbi seems to define religious zealotry at its very worst. Yet that act ends a plague that took the lives of 24,000 Israelites and, we learn this week, earns him and his family God’s eternal favor. How are we to reconcile our own natural abhorrence at Pinhas’s actions with all the good and favor Read More >

By Bruce Alpert|2007-07-03T08:18:15-04:00July 3, 2007|

Parashat Balak

By Joan Lenowitz

Every morning in our daily liturgy we recite the words spoken by the gentile prophet Balaam who acts as Balak’s agent and is the main protagonist in the narrative of Parashat Balak, ‘Mah tovu ohalekha Ya’akov mishk’notekha Yisrael,’ traditionally rendered, ‘How goodly are your tents, Jacob, your dwelling places, Israel.’ (Num. 24:5) The Talmud teaches (Bava Batra 60a) that Balaam, noticing the way the Israelite tents are laid out, is commenting here on how respectful the Israelite people are of family privacy, which also implies a fortification against proscribed sexual activity.

We may feel a flush of pride at this distinction of our people in this blessing. We may also feel the pangs of our own failings and those of our ancestors, to live up to this laudation. In fact, no sooner has this blessing been pronounced upon Israel in Numbers 24:3-9, but the honor of the people is impugned. In Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-06-27T08:13:35-04:00June 27, 2007|

Parashat Hukkat

Parashat Hukkat
By Michael G. Kohn

This week’s parashah is noteworthy for a number of reasons, but what caught my eye are the deaths of Moses’ two siblings ‘ Miriam and Aaron. The account of Aaron’s death, not surprisingly, is more elaborate, with its description of Moses’ transfer of the vestments of the kohein gadol (High Priest) from Aaron to his son, Elazar. Yet Miriam’s role, though not formalized in the manner of her brother and nephew, was, and remains today, just as important, if not more so, to the Jewish people.

The role of the kohanim (priests) in general and the kohein gadol in particular, was a very public one. In their work in the Temple, they acted on behalf of the populace in preparing and offering the various sacrifices ordained by Torah. Even today, in those congregations that maintain the practice of dukhanen ‘ where the kohanim pronounce the Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-06-21T13:08:17-04:00June 21, 2007|

Parashat Korah

Korah
By Rabbi Yehonatan Chipman

‘The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity.’ ~ William Butler Yeats, The Second Coming

Traditionally, Korah‘s revolt is interpreted as a conflict revolving around issues of religious power and authority. What qualifies a person to be a leader, and who, or what determines whether his leadership is to be seen as legitimate or otherwise? The midrashim describing the objections raised by Korah to Moses’ leadership suggest several different facets of this rebellion, and of his approach generally.

At the outset (and here I quote the plain meaning of the biblical text) he challenges Moshe and Aaron with a democratic argument: ‘For all the congregation are holy and God is in their midst; why then do you lord it over the people of God’ [Num 16:3]. Korah cultivated a populist, pseudo-democratic, egalitarian style. Perhaps Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-06-14T06:38:53-04:00June 14, 2007|

Parashat Shlah Lekha

Looking Without Seeing
By Paul Hoffman

The Lord said to Moses saying: Speak to the Israelite people and instruct them to make for themselves fringes on the corners of the garments throughout the ages; let them attach a cord of blue to the fringe on each corner. That shall be your fringe;look at it and recall all the commandments of the Lord and observe them, so that you do not follow your heart and eyes in your lustful urge. Thus shall you be reminded to observe all my commandments and be holy to your God. I the Lord am your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God: I the Lord your God.(Numbers 15:37-41)

So what does the command to wear tzitzit have to do with this week’s story of the twelve spies ‘ Come and learn:

Our parashah this week is well known and quite straight forward. As Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-06-07T12:24:28-04:00June 7, 2007|

Parashat Bâ€™haâ€™alotekha

Parashat B’ha’alotekha
By Rabbi Aryeh Meir

In his translation of the Five Books of Moses, Everett Fox introduces this section of Sefer Bamidbar (the Book of Numbers) with the title, ‘The Rebellion Narratives.’ The nation, exhausted, hungry (for meat) and thirsty, hurl a series of complaints against their leaders, most harshly against Moses. When the people complain about the quality of the food (since leaving Egypt they had been on a steady diet of Manna in the wilderness), Moses loses it:

Where should I get meat to give to this entire people . . . I am not able, myself alone, to carry this entire people, for it is too heavy for me!

God then tells Moses to gather seventy elders and bring them to the Tent of Appointment and there God will ‘extend from the rushing spirit (ruah) that is upon you and place it upon them; then they will carry along with Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-05-30T07:00:36-04:00May 30, 2007|

Shavuot 5767

Shavuot
By Rabbi S. Robert Waxman, AJR ’79

During these weeks since the Festival of Passover we have been moving toward Shavuot ‘ Pentecost, the Festival of Weeks, the time of the giving and receiving of Torah.

What is Torah? That is a basic question. As we look into possible answers to this question we will have to begin by asking additional basic questions.

What is our goal in life as modern Americans? It is to have a life in community and a life of meaning. As we pause in our journey at Mount Sinai, let us consider how the Torah may be understood in terms of community and meaning.

Let us consider where each of us is with regard to our own personal religious life. The first question is not what each of us believes. No, our beliefs are likely to change with time. It is where we stand in relation to our tradition, what Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-05-21T08:37:21-04:00May 21, 2007|

Parashat Bemidbar

Israel’s ‘New’ Tribes
By Irwin Huberman

This week, as we begin reading Bemidbar, the fourth book of the Torah ‘ Numbers ‘ God commands Moses to conduct a count of males 20 years of age and older.

The parashah (the weekly Torah portion) goes into painstaking detail describing who the leaders of each tribe were, and ultimately how many men were counted in each.

The Torah tells us that, excluding the Levites whose role it was to tend to the Mishkan, Israel’s primary place of worship, there were 603,550 males over 20 years old. The figure inspires us to ‘do the math’ to estimate shortly after the exodus from Egypt, how many children of Israel, including women and children were part of the initial journey from Egypt to the land of Canaan.

The Torah reminds us through the account of the census the importance of our tribes and affiliations. Our tradition tells us that each Read More >

By Rabbi Irwin Huberman|2007-05-16T06:05:44-04:00May 16, 2007|

Parashat Aharei Mot/ K’doshim

Parashat Aharei Mot/ K’doshim: Two Aspects of Holiness
Rabbi David Greenstein

Our double Torah portion occupies the central core of our Torah, called by modern Bible scholars “The Holiness Code.” It is an extended working out of the concept of holiness and how it might be experienced by Israel – her priests and common folk, collectively and individually.

The first portion begins by detailing the elaborate service of atonement of the High Priest on Yom Kippur. But the very first words of the portion set up a frightening warning. These instructions are given to Aaron, the priest, “Aharei Mot” – after the death of his two sons, “as they drew near to God’s Presence and then died.” (Lev. 16:1) Thus, warns God, approaching the Holy cannot be done in a casual manner. “He shall not enter the Holy any time [he desires] . . . so that he shall not die.” (Lev. V. 2) This Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-05-14T06:52:45-04:00May 14, 2007|

Parashat B’har/B’huqotai

By Rabbi Yechiel Buchband

In this week of Jubilee celebrations in our AJR community, it feels good to be so in tune with the rhythm of the Torah reading cycle: our first portion, Parshat Behar, includes the Torah’s teachings concerning the Yovel, the fiftieth year, made special by its unique observances (Lev. 25:8-13): the return of all land to its original owners and the return of slaves to their only true master, the Holy One. We build up to this climactic moment in the cycle by counting off seven sets of seven years, each set culminating in its own Shabbaton of rest for both land and people. Finally, when seven ‘weeks of Years’ each with its own Sabbath, are complete, we welcome the coming of the Jubilee year with a mighty shofar blast, bringing news of freedom and equality to every corner of the land: ‘You shall have the shofar sounded throughout your Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-05-09T13:10:57-04:00May 9, 2007|

Parashat Emor

Parashat Emor
By Doug Alpert

Chapter 23 of Vayikra commences with God directing Moshe Rabeinu to ‘Speak to the Children of Israel – b’nai Yisrael – and say to them: These are the appointed [fixed] times of HaShem which you shall designate as callings of holiness – these are My appointed festivals.’ The parashah goes on to elucidate the calendar of festivals that were celebrated during biblical times. For these festivals (unlike Shabbat, which is set in terms of the days of the week, and which was put into effect by G-d at creation) the court is imbued with the responsibility for fixing the calendar in accordance with its declaration of a new moon. This is to say that it is the human who sanctifies these appointed times as holy.

While it is the court alone that has this responsibility, God has instructed Moshe to speak to the entirety of b’nai Yisrael. This is Read More >

By Doug Alpert|2007-04-25T08:25:34-04:00April 25, 2007|

Parashat Tazri`a-M’tzora

Parashat Tazri`a-M’tzora
By Simon Rosenbach

So, we had 48 hours of rain some years ago and our sump pump failed. Well, we had tons of stuff in the basement, although nothing really good, and we were leaving for Florida in four days, and we naturally went into a panic. How will we ever clean up? How will we save stuff? And, most of all, how will we avoid mold?

We’ve all heard the stories. Killer mold. It grows two feet thick behind the walls of the house. Million-dollar houses in Texas that have to be razed. Oh, man, what are we going to do?

Well, we called some outfit, and a representative came, and surveyed the damage, and said, clean up, let it dry, I’ll wash the rug for you, and don’t worry about it. I’ve been doing this for 39 years, and you will not have a mold problem.

Now, if this had happened 2900 Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-04-18T09:00:45-04:00April 18, 2007|

Parashat Shemini

Parashat Shemini
Heidi Hoover

In recent years, soy has become popular among American vegetarians and others trying to eat a more healthy diet. It is a great source of protein without the fat and cholesterol of meat. The presence of soy in Asian diets has been associated with the low level of heart disease in that part of the world. Tofu, which is made from soy, is good in stir-fried dishes, in soup, even with pasta. What could be bad? More recently, however, there have been studies showing that there can be negative health effects from eating soy products. These include possible thyroid problems, some cancers, fertility issues, and more. So what is going on here? Apparently, what many of these studies are showing is what happens when soy makes up too much of one’s diet.

We are not a society of moderation. We believe that if some is good, more must be better. If Read More >

By Rabbi Heidi Hoover|2007-04-12T09:26:14-04:00April 12, 2007|

Passover 2007

Appreciating Freedom
By Neal L. Spevack

How can one fully appreciate freedom?

The abstention from eating hametz (leavened bread products) is a symbolic activity designed to help us appreciate our freedom. And the absence and presence of hametz in the house can be thought of as a symbol of the morally right and wrong choices acted upon in our life. In the Passover holiday we imagine ourselves as slaves. `Avadim hayinu, “we were slaves,” is the first response in the Haggadah to the Four Questions that the youngest family member recites at the Seder table.

In the home the seder observance of Passover is filled with symbols such as the four cups of wine, the four questions, the four sons, karpas (vegetables), the shank bone, the roasted egg, salt water, matzah, maror (bitter herbs) and so on. One symbol, the salt water, reminds us of the tears of our ancestors as they experienced Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-03-29T07:54:29-04:00March 29, 2007|

Parashat Va-yiqra

Parashat Va-yiqra
Paul Hoffman

“And Abel he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord inclined towards Abel and his offering.” (Genesis 4:3) From this passage in Genesis we understand that the institution of sacrifice is as old as the human race itself. Religious instinct is an element of man’s nature implanted in him by the Creator and sacrificial offerings were the earliest expression of that instinct. Here in Genesis, Scripture records the first act of worship in the form of a “minhah to God,” a present offered to the Holy One, blessed be He.

This gift offering represented Abel’s acknowledgment of, and submission to, God as the purveyor of all bounty. By presenting God with his firstlings, the finest that he possessed, Abel would then be worthy to receive his portion as a Divine favor. So noble was this sentiment that it warranted Abel’s acceptance by Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-03-29T07:24:11-04:00March 29, 2007|

Parshat Tzav

Parshat Tzav: Through the Lens of Healing
by Margaret Frisch Klein

At first glance this week’s portion, parashat Tzav would appear to be dry ‘ perhaps appropriate for wandering in the desert ‘ but, in reality, there is much to glean from it about healing.

My teacher, Rabbi Nehemia Polen, talks about the importance of the sacrificial ritual. He explains that the stability of the routine, one in the evening and one in the morning, in fact brings healing, just by doing them ‘ routinely. The evening offering was left burning all night until the new one was added in the morning. That constancy was a reminder of the Divine Presence, all the time from evening until morning and back to evening again. God was always present and available. He tells the story of how important this daily ritual was ‘ both then and now. Then, the whole sacrificial system was about reconnecting with the Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-03-29T06:41:20-04:00March 29, 2007|

Parashat Ki Tissa

By Michael G. Kohn

Jews speak often and passionately about ‘community.’ Whether it is ‘the Jewish community,’ or ‘our community,’ the word conjures up something special, something important. But ‘community’ is more than a word; it is a living, breathing, organic entity that we Jews have tried to build and perfect for millennia. For all the drama in Ki Tissa ‘ this week’s parashah ‘ the Torah teaches us about ‘community,’ its triumphs and its failures.

Ki Tissa describes enough high points and low points for the Israelites to comprise a modern day roller coaster. Yet, each of these constitute a paradigm for the struggles of an emerging community seeking to find its way.

At the outset, the Torah portrays G-d, like any concerned parent, cautiously molding the children into a family; directing the Israelites into a true community dedicated to one another and to G-d’s commandments. Moses is told Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-03-18T20:10:12-04:00March 18, 2007|

Parashat Vayakhel-Pekudei

By Julius Rabinowitz

As we go through our daily routines, the concept of ‘giving’ enters our thoughts and, it is hoped, our actions. Often times this concept manifests itself through obligatory or routine giving. Perhaps it arises in the course of providing for our family or other household members, for example, putting breakfast on the table or running errands. Alternatively, at some point in a weekday synagogue service, someone puts a Tzedakah box on the table or marches around with it, and we reach into our pocket and put some amount in, the usual amount or whatever loose change may be available. Or, we are sitting on a crowded bus and, confronted with a mother with young children, we unconsciously give up our seat without missing a beat on our iPod or a line from the New York Times.

Yet as rewarding as these acts may be, in the overall Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-03-18T19:57:15-04:00March 18, 2007|

Parashat Tetzaveh

By Halina Rubinstein

This week’s Torah portion, Tetzaveh (Ex.27:20-30:10), is also Shabbat Zakhor, the Shabbat before Purim. We will read this portion as well as the verses that command us to remember the encounter of Israel in the wilderness with Amalek (Deut. 25:17-19), who sought to destroy them cruelly and gratuitously. Generations later, Saul’s failure to kill Agag the Amalekite king ‘ a failure that will ultimately cost him his reign– is the theme of the Haftarah reading (I Sam.15:2-34).

One of the distinct features of this Torah portion is the minute description of the priestly vestments, particularly those of the High Priest. Clothing has great significance in the Bible. The first act of hesed (kindness) was performed by God when He made garments to cover Adam and Eve after they ate the forbidden fruit that made them aware and ashamed of their nakedness. Ever since, one of the things that distinguishes us Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-03-01T08:00:27-05:00March 1, 2007|

Parashat Terumah

By David Ian Cavill

I think that when most of us look at Exodus 25:8 “And let them make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them.” (New JPS) it reads as a commandment from God. We see instruction and a promise from God to be present among the people if the mikdash (sanctuary) is constructed in a certain way. I’d like to suggest that this is not a commandment but rather a question. Moreover, I’d like to propose that it is in fact Moses, who speaks these words, and not God.

The first nine verses of the parashah form their own discreet unit of text. In my opinion, these verses summarize the rest of the reading. Furthermore, every verse in this section has a parallel later on in the text. Each of the gifts that God deems acceptable in verses 3-7 is revisited later on in the Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-02-15T09:13:35-05:00February 15, 2007|

Parashat Mishpatim

What God Wants of Us
By Irwin Huberman

For thousands of years, rabbis, scholars, and commentators have parsed, dissected, and analyzed the laws of the Torah to help better understand one thing:

What does God want of us?

Tradition tells us that we are created B’tzelem Elohim – in the image of God. If only we could grasp the true meaning of Torah, perhaps we could better understand how to be true partners with God in creating a perfect and complete world.

Throughout the generations, rabbis and commentators have debated how to properly follow the 613 Mitzvot (Commandments) contained in the Torah.

Some rabbis and commentators have guided us towards the meticulous observance of each mitzvah, while others have suggested that capturing the essence of the commandments is most important.

This week’s Torah portion, Parashat Mishpatim, provides fodder for this ongoing discussion. No fewer than 51 mitzvot are contained in the parashah, covering everything Read More >

By Rabbi Irwin Huberman|2007-02-14T20:07:15-05:00February 14, 2007|

Parashat Yitro

Reason & Revelation
By Suri Krieger

A riddle:
5 scrolls, ancient word
Direct dictate of God heard
Moses writes it all down
On top Mt Sinai, holy ground . . . What am I?

Have you got the answer? OK
Hold that thought, and let’s try another:

5 scrolls, a few thousand years
Words of poets, priests and seers
Reworked by the hands of so many scribes
Until finally edited and codified . . . What am I?

Parashat Yitro, stands out as one of the quintessential parshiot ‘ portions – in our whole Torah cycle. It contains both the moment of Revelation at Sinai, and the giving of the Ten Commandments, aseret ha-dibrot. Based on this parashah, a debate between Revelation and Reason has been raging for centuries. (I use this dichotomy to stand for the problem of whether the traditional claims for how the Torah was given to Israel ‘ Revelation – are Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-02-06T12:26:00-05:00February 6, 2007|

Parashat Bâ€™shalah

By Steve Alatarescu

As we know, the God of the Torah can be seen as protective but also capable of unspeakable cruelty. The God of liberation portrayed in the plagues in this week’s parashah, B’shalah, needs a makeover in order for us to have a God Who helps in our present-day liberation, personal and communal.

The Israelites in our parashah are portrayed as needing the protection and the direction of a tough God. God sees us as scared and soft. The Israelites experienced the plagues, including the killing of the first-born, and, in this parashah, the drowning of Pharaoh and the Egyptians in the sea. They follow Moses, perhaps shocked by the course of events, and faithfully go through the Red Sea. They can’t help but know that this God is serious about their liberation and they are about to learn about God’s plan for becoming a holy people. Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-01-22T10:23:38-05:00January 22, 2007|

Parashat Va-era

By Arnold Saltzman

In parashat Va-era we learn that God is not only the Creator, but the preserver of existence. God has established His covenant and therefore He cannot forget B’nei Yisrael ‘ the Children of Israel – in our ordeal of slavery. God tells Moses that He has heard our groaning and remembered His covenant (Exodus 6:5). This portrait of God, Who is compassionate, feeling, caring, and loyal, stands in opposition to the perplexing portrayal of God Who, as the Bible reports many times, ‘hardens the heart’ of Pharaoh.

The midrash discusses these instances. In Midrash Rabbah, Exodus VII, 3, we learn that God said to Moses and Aaron, ‘Although I really set out to punish him [Pharaoh], I want you to show him the respect due to his regal position.’

We also learn in another midrash that Pharaoh’s heart is stubborn (kaved), even without God’s additional action of hardening it: ‘God said Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-01-18T09:07:51-05:00January 18, 2007|

Parashat Shemot

By Charles R. Lightner

‘. . . but the bush was not consumed’

Perhaps no single phrase in our history has been so influential as that included by Moses in his formulation of the Shema: ‘Adonai Echad.’ We can trace the development of the basic monotheistic idea in our texts over time in a fairly straightforward way. That there exists only one God, however, does not express the full range of meaning our sages have found in the phrase ‘Adonai Echad.’

The phrase can also be read as describing an attribute of God i.e. oneness or unity. Read alongside Exodus 3:14 ‘And God said to Moses, ‘I Am that I Am’. . .’ it can convey the idea of pure existence or beingness. It also anticipates Isaiah 6:3 ‘The whole earth is filled with His glory.’ That God is both immanent and transcendent is a fundamental concept of our tradition, especially our mystical tradition. Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-01-08T07:41:06-05:00January 8, 2007|

Parashat Bo

By Barbara Wortman

This D’var Torah is written in memory of my father, Herbert Press (z”l) on the 2nd anniversary of his Yahrtzeit

In this week’s Torah portion, Parashat Bo, we are instructed to observe the festival of Passover, and to tell our children: ‘God did this for me when I went out of Egypt on account of this.’ (Exodus 13:8) In fact, children are mentioned 3 times in connection with the Exodus from Egypt: 12:26-27; 13:8; 13:14. The special connection with children in this parashah emphasizes the things that we do on the night of Passover in order to arouse the inquisitiveness of children. Curiously, the questions asked by the children are set in the future tense, even though the answers refer to the past.

Perhaps, the key to this is found in the Song of Ha-azinu (Deut. 32:7): ‘Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations; ask your Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-01-08T07:27:45-05:00January 8, 2007|

Parashat Vayâ€™hi

Fidelity and Imagination
By Rabbi David Greenstein

The last verses of this last portion of the book of Genesis have Joseph, on his deathbed, making his brothers swear that, ‘As the Almighty will surely remember you, you must take my bones up with you from this place.’ The narrator then reports that Joseph died and was embalmed. The book closes with a dark image of closure: ‘And he was placed into a coffin chest in Egypt.’ (Gen. 50:25-26)

But, of course, this is only an apparent image of closure, since we are meant to wonder whether Joseph’s brothers or their descendants will remember Joseph’s bones and retrieve them when redemption arrives.

The empty lines in the Torah scroll that separate these verses from the start of the next book, Exodus, give us space to ponder and imagine what the other brothers were thinking and feeling as they watched their brother – their victim and Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-01-03T05:45:05-05:00January 3, 2007|

Parashat Vayehi

Fidelity and Imagination
By Rabbi David Greenstein

The last verses of this last portion of the book of Genesis have Joseph, on his deathbed, making his brothers swear that, ‘As the Almighty will surely remember you, you must take my bones up with you from this place.’ The narrator then reports that Joseph died and was embalmed. The book closes with a dark image of closure: ‘And he was placed into a coffin chest in Egypt.’ (Gen. 50:25-26)

But, of course, this is only an apparent image of closure, since we are meant to wonder whether Joseph’s brothers or their descendants will remember Joseph’s bones and retrieve them when redemption arrives.

The empty lines in the Torah scroll that separate these verses from the start of the next book, Exodus, give us space to ponder and imagine what the other brothers were thinking and feeling as they watched their brother – their victim and Read More >

By ahsilver|2007-01-03T05:45:05-05:00January 3, 2007|

Parsashat Vayigash

By Tamara Silberman

As Bereshit begins to draw to a close, the 11 sons of Jacob are reunited with their long lost brother. The leader of the brothers, Judah, the one who sets the moral code for his brothers, has to contend with the second most powerful man in Egypt, not realizing that this it is Joseph. Judah entreats Joseph to act justly concerning his younger brother Benjamin.

Parashat Vayigash offers Joseph that moment to manipulate his brothers and to be in charge of the nuclear family that sold him into slavery. In last week’s parashah, Joseph’s guards put the goblet in Benjamin’s sack. This puts the brothers completely at Joseph’s mercy, not just for the food they sought, but for their very lives. The brothers return to the palace silently. Knowing full well that the goblet was planted, not stolen, they do not know what Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-12-13T08:56:39-05:00December 13, 2006|

Hannukah

Learning from Latkes
By Hayley Mica Siegel

A flurry of spinning dreidels, the subtle jingle of chocolate gelt bags, the prominent displays of sufganiot (jelly donuts) in bakery windows, and the radio’s blasting of Adam Sandler’s ‘The Hannukah Song’ signify that Hannukah is around the corner. Although Hannukah is found in the Apocrypha and not in the Tanakh, the Jewish communities’ celebration of the Hasmoneans’ (Maccabees’) victory over the Greeks in 161 BC has become one of the most beloved and well-known holidays in the Jewish calendar. Although the Hasmoneans’ struggle for religious sovereignty and autonomy handily provide topics such as assimilation, the freedom to practice Judaism, and the Menorah’s origins in the Torah for stimulating discussion, these important subjects commonly get swept under the rug in the midst of giving, receiving and buying Hannukah gifts and presents for the eight nights of the hag.

However, while the desires for ‘material’ accoutrements burn brighter Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-12-13T08:47:12-05:00December 13, 2006|

Parashat Miketz

Joseph, Hannukah and Conservation
By Irwin Huberman

Tradition tells us that it is the responsibility of the Children of Israel to act as a ‘light unto other nations’ (Isaiah 49:6). This week’s Torah portion, Miketz, read on the second Shabbat of Hannukah, provides us with two sparkling examples of how to use that light.

How lucky we are to live in America where few of us worry about lack of food, or fuel to warm our homes. With winter upon us, there is a tendency to take these precious things for granted.

But this week’s Torah portion provides us with a reminder of how fragile our good fortune is. Joseph is brought out of captivity to interpret two of Pharaoh’s dreams. In the first dream, (Genesis 41-17) Pharaoh describes how seven scrawny cows consume seven plump cows, but in the end the first cows remain thin.

Pharaoh slides back into sleep and dreams a Read More >

By Rabbi Irwin Huberman|2006-12-13T08:31:04-05:00December 13, 2006|

Parashat Vayishlah

By Michael G. Kohn

What is deceit? Is it ever acceptable to deceive another? And is it ever proper to hold a community responsible for the act of a single person? These questions practically jump from the pages of this week’s parashah, where we read the tragic episode of the rape of Dinah, Leah’s daughter.

She is taken by Sh’khem, son of Hamor, a prince of the land. Upon learning that Dinah had been defiled by Sh’khem, her brothers and Jacob, her father, met with Hamor, who entreated them to allow his son to take Dinah as his wife. Jacob’s sons responded to this request that they could not give their sister as a wife to an uncircumcised man. Then, they floated an option ‘ that if all the men of the city were to be circumcised, they would give their daughters to them and take their daughters Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-12-06T08:24:22-05:00December 6, 2006|

Parashat Vayetze

Escaping What You’ve Embraced
Peg Kershenbaum

What does it take for us to see ourselves as we really are? How do we become aware of the impact we have on the lives and well-being of others?

Jacob’s meeting with Laban was probably the incident that had the most impact on him, up to that moment. Up to that time, Jacob’s character had developed almost unchecked. From before birth he had wrestled with his brother in utero; his emergence grabbing his twin’s heel had given him his name, ‘supplanter.’ In his youth he had tricked his hungry brother by means of some food, gaining the birthright he had coveted. And as a young man he had deceived his blind father regarding what they both thought might be the father’s final blessing. Both to avoid the murderous rage of his brother and to find a suitable wife, Jacob had fled back to his mother’s family in Haran. Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-11-29T12:40:26-05:00November 29, 2006|

Parashat Toldot

Parashat Toldot: Fathers and Sons
By Rabbi David Greenstein

Parashat Toldot is the only Torah portion devoted to the life of Isaac. Abraham merits a much more extended treatment by the Torah (as does Jacob, later). Isaac seems to exist in the shadow of his illustrious father. This is borne out by the very first sentence of this Torah portion, which begins: ‘And these are the offspring of Isaac, son of Abraham; Abraham begat Isaac.’ (Gen. 25:19) The second part of the verse is jarring. Not only is it redundant – for Isaac has just a second ago been referred to as ‘son of Abraham” ‘ it is also completely contrary to the first part of the verse, for it tells us of Abraham’s offspring instead of telling us of Isaac’s. It is as if, just as the Torah is about to start talking about Isaac, she cannot refrain from returning to talking about Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-11-16T21:20:20-05:00November 16, 2006|

Hayei Sarah

By Kathy Novick

This week we read Parashat Hayei Sarah ‘ The Life of Sarah. Many think of the irony of this title since the parashah begins with the death of Sarah and its impact upon Avraham. We read of Avraham mourning then rising and ACTING. We learned from social workers, chaplains and clergy who worked after 9-11 at Ground Zero that giving people tasks, no matter how insignificant, helped them to move from a state of numbness to reconnecting with life, however painful that might have been. Avraham’s action was very significant to him and to us. Avraham was very careful in choosing the field and the cave at Machpelah. He was also very insistent about his choice. It was to be a place to remember his Sarah. Permanency was key in their long relationship. Throughout the difficulties of their lives from moving away Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-11-08T09:51:10-05:00November 8, 2006|

Parashat Vayera

By Jaron Matlow

In this week’s parashah, we find myriad fascinating events which are very difficult to understand. One example is the story of Sarah, Abraham, Hagar, Ishmael and Isaac (21:9-13). The peak of this event (21:10) is that Sarah tells Abraham to drive out the slave woman (Hagar) and her son (Ishmael), because the son of this slave woman will not inherit with my son, with Isaac. This results in the very common thread in Sefer Bereishit (Genesis) – that the younger son is selected to carry on the line and the older son is somehow set aside. It is also important to remember that in Sefer Bereishit, it is often the wives who take the actions that ensure the younger son is selected.
The text tells (21:9) us that Ishmael did something to Isaac (metzaheik) which could mean various things from teasing or mocking to much worse actions. Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-10-30T07:20:50-05:00October 30, 2006|

Parashat Lekh L’kha

By Eleanor B. Pearlman

What motivates a person to go on a journey? I think of the push/pull theory of immigration: one leaves to escape intolerable discomfort and anticipates a better life somewhere else. Such departures involve pain in the present and hope for the future. At a certain point in life one may leave the familiar to seek adventure or knowledge. One may leave to learn about one’s self and one’s place in the universe. One may leave to establish one’s identity. Is it the timing, the task, or the divine directive that motivated Abram’s journey in Parashat Lekh L’kha, our weekly parashah? There seem to be both covert and overt reasons for his departure.

The placement of Parashat Lekh L’kha after Parshiyot B’reshit and Noah permits one interpretation. On one level, Abram’s journey seems to reflect the stage of individuation in human development. Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-10-18T15:39:27-04:00October 18, 2006|

Parashat Noah

By Enid C. Lader

This past September marked the fifth year of remembering the tragic events of 9/11 and the thousands who lost their lives. As the television cameras panned the site of the World Trade Center and politicians pledged renewed effort to build towers even taller to replace the ones lost and pundits decried the amount of time that has passed without our rebuilding, I could not help but be reminded of the story of the Tower of Babel.

In this week’s Torah portion we read that:
‘Everyone on earth had the same language and the same words’ They said to one another, ‘Come, let us make bricks and burn them hard.” And they said, ‘Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the sky, to make a name for ourselves”’ (Gen. 11:1, 3, 4)

God becomes very angry with these people, destroys their tower, Read More >

By Rabbi Enid C. Lader|2006-10-18T15:35:29-04:00October 18, 2006|

Parashat B’reishit

By Linda Shriner-Cahn

The holidays have come and gone, and we begin anew, back at the beginning, with an opportunity to come to the Torah with fresh eyes, ready to wrestle new meaning and deeper understandings from the text.

Rabbi Marc Gellman wrote a midrash for children that provides us with the opportunity to do just that. . . .

This midrash on creation begins with God, the Angels, and rocks and waters. Out of this stuff, this mess ‘ this tohu vavohu ‘ creation begins.

As creation begins, the separation of waters, the Angels ask, ‘Is it finished?’ and God responds, ‘Not yet.’

Throughout the process, step-by-step, the Angels ask, ‘Is it finished,’ and God responds, ‘Not yet.’

Finally, yes, finally, God creates man and woman, God is ready to rest and asks man and woman to finish the process of creation. However, man and woman find this process daunting. After all, they do not Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-10-18T14:44:35-04:00October 18, 2006|

Shmini Atzeret

Shemini Atzeret/Simhat Torah
Neal L. Spevack

Shemini Atzeret is observed on the 22nd of Tishrei or the eighth day of Sukkot but is considered a separate holiday. Outside of Israel, Simhat Torah is on the subsequent, ninth day. Shemini Atzeret has its initial source in Lev. 23:36 ‘Seven days you shall bring offerings by fire to the Lord. On the eighth day you shall observe a sacred occasion and bring an offering by fire to the Lord; it is a solemn gathering you shall not work at your occupations.’ It is also stated in Num. 29:35, ‘On the eighth day you shall hold a solemn gathering you shall not work at your occupations.’

Shemini Atzeret is an agriculturally based holiday. Israel had no rivers like the Nile or the Tigris and Euphrates. Israel’s rainfall only came in the winter. Ancient Israel completed its harvest on Sukkot, and the rain followed to renew the ground Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-10-09T08:05:58-04:00October 9, 2006|

Sukkot 5767

Sukkkot: Stepping Outside of Our Comfort Zones
By Hayley Mica Siegel

Almost as much as the Jew looks forward to Shabbat after a busy week, it is certain that the entire Jewish community lets out a collective sigh of relief during the celebration of Sukkot. After ten days of praying, fasting, repenting, and reflecting, we shift our gears into celebration mode. Immediately following the intense periods of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, we are instructed to prepare for Sukkot, a joyous ‘hag‘ (holiday). Required to abstain from labor during the first and last days of the festival, we learn about the specifics of the celebration in Vayikra. (Leviticus 23:40-42) In the Torah, we read that Hashem commands the Israelites to, ‘take for yourselves on the first day the fruit of a citron tree, the branches of a date palm, twigs of a plated tree, and brook willows . . . you shall Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-10-03T08:19:59-04:00October 3, 2006|

Sukkot

Stepping Outside of Our Comfort Zones
By Hayley Mica Siegel

Almost as much as the Jew looks forward to Shabbat after a busy week, it is certain that the entire Jewish community lets out a collective sigh of relief during the celebration of Sukkot. After ten days of praying, fasting, repenting, and reflecting, we shift our gears into celebration mode. Immediately following the intense periods of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, we are instructed to prepare for Sukkot, a joyous ‘hag‘ (holiday). Required to abstain from labor during the first and last days of the festival, we learn about the specifics of the celebration in Vayikra. (Leviticus 23:40-42) In the Torah, we read that Hashem commands the Israelites to, ‘take for yourselves on the first day the fruit of a citron tree, the branches of a date palm, twigs of a plated tree, and brook willows’you shall dwell in booths for a Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-10-01T07:47:19-04:00October 1, 2006|

Parashat Ha’azinu

By Rabbi Malka Drucker

We wander through life searching for bridges to move us closer to each other and nearer to God. Parashat Ha’azinu shows us how to build bridges between heaven and earth while being, itself, as the last portion of the year, a bridge between the end and the beginning. Its very form, a song, opens the heart to receive its urgent message of hope and direction; as we reach the inevitable end of the
book, its passion inspires and propels us to begin the study
again.

The portion opens with Moses declaring, ‘Listen heaven! I will speak! Earth! Hear the words of my mouth! (Deut. 32:1). Like a dying father who warns his children that he no longer will guide, scold, or defend them, Moses calls upon heaven and earth to be witnesses: Human beings are inclined to do better when we know we Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-09-21T13:08:13-04:00September 21, 2006|

Rosh HaShanah

What Will You Be Wearing?
By Peg Kershenbaum

I remember how my brother and I used to get new clothes for the holidays: something new for Rosh Ha-Shanah and something else new for Pesah (by which time we would have grown). It was difficult for my mother to pick out clothes that would fit us and fit the family budget. Even though I would get school clothes during the same outing, I would save three dresses for Rosh Ha-Shanah and Yom Kippur. (Yes, believe it or not, there was a time when we had to wear dresses or skirts to school and to shul!)

I was never much of a ‘fashion plate’, but seeing the new clothes in my closet always made me anticipate the holidays eagerly. I wanted to look my best. Yom Tov was a time when I felt pretty and special and accepted and a little proud, all at Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-09-08T13:44:57-04:00September 8, 2006|

Parshat Nitzavim/VaYelekh

By Bruce Alpert

A number of years ago, I was part of a synagogue committee that evaluated the then new, gender-neutral edition of the Reform movement’s Gates of Prayer. The new siddur offered revised versions of several of the older book’s Kabbalat Shabbat services. One change ‘ having nothing to do with gender issues ‘ occured on the first page of the first service. Where the older version read ‘May God bless us with Shabbat joy, May God bless us with Shabbat holiness, May God bless us with Shabbat peace,’ the new version read ‘May we be blessed with Shabbat joy, May we be blessed with Shabbat peace, May we be blessed with Shabbat light.’

So focused was I on the siddur’s many other linguistic innovations that, at the time, I barely did more than note this change. Since then, however, I have come to think of this as Read More >

By Bruce Alpert|2006-09-08T13:25:44-04:00September 8, 2006|

Parashat Ki Tavo

By Rabbi Emily Korzenik

Very early in the portion, Ki Tavo presents the
Torah as familiar and beloved.

My father was wandering Aramean and he went down to Egypt and sojourned there, few in number; and he became there a nation, great,
mighty, and populous. And the Egyptians dealt ill with us, and afflicted us . . . And we cried unto the Lord, and He heard our voice and saw our affliction. And the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders. (Deut. 26: 5-8)

Immediately we are in the Haggadah, famously rejoicing at a Passover Seder. Reading this well known passage from the Torah scroll, we are reminded of how integral The Five Books of Moses are to Jewish life Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-09-05T18:16:38-04:00September 5, 2006|

Parashat Ki Tetzei

By Rabbi David Greenstein

According to traditional enumerations of the mitzvoth (commandments) in the Torah, our portion includes 74 ordinances, more than any other portion. These mitzvoth encompass the full range of the Torah’s concerns for how we are to meet the challenge of our paradoxical beings, made up, as we are, of both physical and spiritual natures. A particularly telling instance of this concern is found in the Torah’s warning regarding the proper treatment of executed criminals:

Should there be a person guilty of a capital crime, and he is executed, you shall hang him from a tree. But do not let his corpse hang on the tree over night. Rather, make sure to bury him that very day, for it is a Divine curse to be hung. Thus you will not defile your land that God Your Almighty gives you as an estate. (Deut. 21:22-23)

These verses embrace a series of paradoxes Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-08-23T10:45:20-04:00August 23, 2006|

Parashat Miketz

By Yechiel Buchband

I have long loved the saga of Yosef in Sefer B’reshit. For me, the most beloved person in the story is Yehuda. I love his story of personal development, growth and redemption, which serves as a beautiful counterpoint to the story of Yosef. Early on he took a leading role in the sale of Yosef and denied Tamar the right of Yibbum to which she was entitled. By the end of the story, he is clearly the leader of the brothers, another late-born yet preeminent son (like Yitzhak and Ya’akov).

To my mind, Yehudah’s defining moment is not the famed address before Yosef (which is certainly moving and memorable), which opens Parshat VaYigash, but rather the earlier, far shorter text (Gen. 43:8-9) in which he convinces his father Yisrael to allow him and his brothers to take Binyamin with them in order Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-08-17T20:10:51-04:00August 17, 2006|

Parashat Shoftim

By Eleanor Pearlman

The first verse of Parashat Shoftim
(Deut. 16:18) sets a tone of much of what
follows in the parashah:

‘Shoftim v’shotrim teiten l’kha
b’khol sh`arekha
Asheir Adonai Elohekha notein
l’kha-lish‘vatekha
V’shaftu et ha-`am mishpat
tzedeq’
‘Judges and officers shall you appoint
in all your cities-
Which HaShem your God, gives you-for
your tribes;
And they shall judge the people with
righteous judgment.’ (Artscroll, Stone
Ed.)
Reading this verse out loud, one is struck by the
gentleness and softness of the verse. The ‘sh’
sounds of the verse permeate throughout giving the
verse a feeling of calm, quiet, and security-the
sound that would encourage a disturbed child to
sleep in peace. There are seven sounds (‘sh’) that
are utterances of quiet peace. Without even
translating or understanding the words, the reader
is lulled by the sweet surrender, as this
parashah begins. Also, the number seven has
many other positive associations in the
Tanakh: rest on the seventh day, rest on the
seventh year, freeing of Jewish slaves after the
49th (7×7) year. Although Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-08-17T09:49:02-04:00August 17, 2006|

Parashat Eqev

By Rabbi Eric Hoffman

Someone was leading worship in the presence of the
Talmudic sage Rabbi Chanina. In the Avot
benediction he extended the string of adjectives for
Ha-Eyl: ‘the God, the great, the heroic, the
awesome, the mighty, the strong, the fearless . . .’
and on he went. Rabbi Chanina waited until he had
finished. Then he said, ‘Have you exhausted all the
praises of your Master? We couldn’t even say the
first three, ‘the great, heroic and awesome God,’ if
Moses had not said them (in this week’s sedra,
Ekev, Deut. 10:17) and the Men of the Great
Assembly had not ordained them in the Avot
benediction!’ (Neh. 9:32) Once we start
describing God, we ought never to be able to stop,
so instead of imposing our own arbitrary limits on
God’s limitless goodness, we accept the formulation
of Torah and tradition. [BTBerakhot 33b]

These Men of the Great Assembly are actually seen
as restoring the fullness of Moses’s spare Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-08-03T11:56:02-04:00August 3, 2006|

Parashat Re’eh

By Irwin Huberman

During periods of war and conflict, it is difficult to get
up every day with a feeling of hope and optimism. On
a daily basis, the Biblical commandment to ‘love your
neighbour as yourself’ (Lev. 19:18) is put to
the ultimate test.

Rather than lean on values of compassion and loving
kindness which form the basis of Judaism, we are
pulled towards suspicion, fear and
trepidation.

This week’s Torah portion, Parashat Re’eh,
recognizes this natural conflict, and wastes no time
outlining the dilemma. God speaking through Moses
states in the beginning, ‘See, this day I set before
you blessing and curse.’ (Deut. 11:26) The
Torah clearly lays out the choices and ultimately
teaches us that in order to survive we must actively
choose life over death, and blessings over curses.

It is not easy. Every day, we are pulled by forces of
pessimism which encourage us to give up hope, Read More >

By Rabbi Irwin Huberman|2006-08-03T11:50:13-04:00August 3, 2006|

Parashat Vaâ€™Etchanan

by Joan Lenowitz

In this week’s parashah Moses continues to
relate the history of the peoples’ journey toward
the Promised Land. Whereas the first chapters of the
Book of Deuteronomy deal primarily with how the
nearby nations were to be approached in both war and
peace, Parashat Va’etchannan is more
concerned with elucidating the importance and
incentives for keeping God’s law once the people
arrive in the land, with a particular emphasis on
communicating the law to the next generations. It
includes the ‘Sh’ma.‘ and a reiteration of
the Ten Commandments.

But Moses begins by recounting his own fervent plea
to God (Va’etchannan) to allow him to
‘Cross and see the good land that is
on the other side of the Jordan, this good mountain,
and the Lebanon.’ (Deuteronomy 3:25) These
three descriptive terms suggest a panoramic view of
what is beyond the Jordan River, the land, the
mountains directly on the other side, and the
Lebanon mountains of the northern part of Israel,
with their white appearance. The land is just Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-07-31T16:18:56-04:00July 31, 2006|

Parashat D’varim

Parashat Devarim/Shabbat Hazon
by Rabbi Aryeh Meir

‘These are the words that Moses addressed to all
Israel on the other side of the Jordan – . . . in
the land of Moab, Moses undertook to expound this
Teaching (Torah). He said: The Lord our God spoke
to us at Horeb, saying: You have stayed long enough
at this mountain. Start out and make your way to
the hill country . . . Go, take possession of the
land that the Lord swore to your fathers. . .’

With these words, Moses sets the stage for the rest
of the history of Israel. In these culminating
speeches that are the content of this last of the
five books of the Torah, Moses urges a reluctant
nation to realize its destiny. They have been
wandering in the Sinai wilderness for almost forty
years, going round and round the mountain called
Sinai, unable to move forward and inherit the
promised land. They encountered obstacles Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-07-28T16:22:20-04:00July 28, 2006|

Mattot-Massei

By Michael Kohn

The double parashah, Mattot-Massei, concludes
the Book of Numbers. The narrative predominantly
describes the final preparations for the Israelites
to enter the land covenanted by God to their
ancestors. Among these preparations is the
allocation of land to the various tribes. But
before that can occur, something remarkable happens
‘ representatives of the tribes of Gad and Reuben
approach Moses, Elazar and the leaders of the
Israelite community and tell them that they do not
want to cross the Jordan and take up their
inheritance in the covenanted land. Instead, they
wanted to remain on the east side of the river and
be granted their inheritance in those lands. As
stated by the tribal representative, the expressed
purpose for their request is because they had found
the lands of Jazer and Gilead to be choice lands for
their livestock, of which they had an abundance.

Moses tries to shame them: ‘Should your brothers go
to war, while you settle here?’ And then asks Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-07-20T11:56:40-04:00July 20, 2006|

Parashat Pinchas

by Cantor Marcia Lane

(In honor of my birthday and in memory of my father, Gerald Rabinowitz, z’l.)

There are five basic sections of this week’s
parashah: The brief conclusion of Pinchas’
slaughter of those who were deemed sexually
immoral, a census and geneology of all the tribes, the
plight of the daughters of Zelophehad, the
designation of Joshua as new leader of the people,
and the long recitation of sacrifices and offerings to
be made at each of the holidays.

I’ve had trouble writing something coherent about
this parashah, mostly because there’s too
much. Too many names, too many events that don’t
seem to go together into a unified whole, too much.
But, given the need to make sense out of it (and,
frankly, not wishing to talk about the violence of
Pinchas and the brit shalom ‘ the covenant
of ‘peace’ which was bestowed to him!), I remain
intrigued by names, and Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-07-12T06:51:59-04:00July 12, 2006|

Parashat Korach

by Laurie Gold

In a few days from now, many people in the United
States will be celebrating Independence Day.
Barbecues, baking at the beach, and watching fireworks are just some of the activities we may enjoy. While relaxing (or catching up on our work), few of us will think about the origins of this secular holiday: the victory of rebels against a ruling power.

We probably won’t consider that one of the leaders
of this rebellion went on to become our nation’s first
president, and that some of his fellow rebels became
presidents as well. They were honored and respected. Many complimentary books have been written about them. These men who played an important role in the colonial revolution fared a lot better than did Korach and his supporters, the rebels featured in this week’s Torah portion.

Approximately ten years ago, when I was wrote my first dvar Torah, it was also on this Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-06-30T16:39:44-04:00June 30, 2006|

Sukkot

Sukkot
By Margaret Frisch Klein

The words of Qohelet that we read during Sukkot are haunting, ‘To everything there is a season and a purpose under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die . . . A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing.’ It became the popular hit ‘Turn, Turn, Turn,’ in the sixties when the Birds set it to music, which you can still hear on the radio, mostly on oldies stations.

There is a beautiful niggun, part of our daily evening service, ‘Ufros Alenu Sukkat Shlomecha’”Spread over us the shelter, the sukkah of Your Divine peace,’ that is also haunting and appropriate for Sukkot. That prayer recognizes the fragility of peace and of shelter. This Sukkot more than ever, in the wake of Katrina, Rita and the even more recent devastating earthquakes, we need to make this connection from the spiritual realm Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-06-27T00:33:42-04:00June 27, 2006|

Emor

The Sacred Calendar and the Cycle of Time

By Michael Kohn

To everything’turn, turn, turn
There is a season’turn, turn, turn
And a time for every purpose under heaven¹

In his book The Sabbath, Abraham Joshua Heschel writes that ‘Judaism is a religion of time, aiming at the sanctification of time. . . . Jewish ritual may be characterized as the art of significant forms in time, as architecture of time. Most of its observances’the Sabbath, the New Moon, the festivals, the Sabbatical and the Jubilee year’depend on a certain hour of the day or season of the year.’ And these observances recur year after year after year.

At least half of Parashat Emor speaks of these observances’the mo’adim, those appointed times fixed by God, as mikra’ei kodesh, holy convocations. The first described is Shabbat. Thereafter, the Torah describes in order: Pesah, Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-06-26T23:37:31-04:00June 26, 2006|

Terumah

The Giving of Gifts

By Katy Allen

The Glory of the Lord dwelt upon Mount Sinai, hidden within a cloud’and God called to Moses from the midst of the cloud. Then the Glory of the Lord appeared’as a consuming fire on top of the mountain. Moses went inside the cloud and ascended the mountain; and Moses remained on the mountain forty days and forty nights. (Ex. 24.16’18)

While Moses is in this cloud, God speaks to him. The first thing God tells Moses is that he should tell the people ‘ those whose hearts so move them’to bring gifts. God then lists the gifts they should bring: among them are gold and silver, copper, yarn, linen, ram skins, and acacia wood.

How will all these gifts be used? God describes it all in intricate detail. They are Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-06-26T15:23:37-04:00June 26, 2006|

Shlah Lekha

by Halina Rubinstein

In this week’s Torah portion, Moses decides to send
scouts on a reconnaisance mission to Canaan. Twelve
men, one from each tribe, are chosen and given
specific instructions on what they have to observe.
They come back with a sample of the land’s
indigenous fruits and a mixed review. They all
report that the land flows with ‘milk and honey’ but
their agreement ends here; of the twelve scouts, ten
give a frightening report of a land that eats up its
inhabitants and is populated by powerful giants.
Upon hearing this, the people start crying in sheer
terror, and they not only complain but rebel and
contemplate going back to Egypt. Only Joshua and
Caleb encourage the people to continue with the plan
of entering the land. They reassure the Israelites
that they will prevail; but these words only provoke
the mutinous people even more and the people are
ready to stone Joshua and Caleb to death.

The result of this act of disbelief incenses God. He
will Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-06-21T08:30:27-04:00June 21, 2006|

Yitro

Parshat Yitro-Mishpatim

By Steven Saks

Often the original movie or book is better that the sequel. Last year I caught the end of Beverly Hills Cop, staring Eddie Murphy on TV. I had not seen it in years, and I had forgotten how funny a movie it was. It was genuinely a good comedy. However, not to many people will say the same of Beverly Hills Cop Two. And Beverly Hills Cop Three bombed.

Does the Torah follow the same pattern as the movies? Parshat Yitro, which precedes Parshat Mishpatim, is certainly an exciting Parsha. Yitro, the Midianite priest and father-in-law of Moses joined the Hebrews after he heard that God had saved the Hebrews. Yitro brings his daughter Zipporah and grandchildren, thus reuniting Moses with his wife and children.

The excitement continues with the revelation at Sinai. After three days Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-06-20T09:45:43-04:00June 20, 2006|

Parashat Bâ€™haâ€™alotâ€™cha

By Cantor Jaclyn Chernett

The troubled Moses cries to God in his loneliness.
How can he continue to cope with the constant
complaining and irresponsible behaviour of his people!
He is worn down by his burden, but at no time does
he seek to relinquish leadership. For Moses, the
leader, the prophet, the only alternative would be
death.

The calling of the prophet is indeed a lonely one.
Prophecy has been described in many ways during
the long years of our literary tradition. The prophecy
of Moses is a paradigm of the most intense
relationship with God ‘ nobody else ever experienced
it this way: With him I speak mouth to mouth,
plainly and not in riddles, and he beholds the likeness
of the Lord. (Num. 12:8)

Miriam and Aaron, in the same text-breath, are, too,
accredited with the prophetic relationship with God
but not in the same Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-06-14T09:38:19-04:00June 14, 2006|

Parashat Naso

By Cantor Arnold Saltzman

In Parashat Naso the Priestly Benediction,
also known as Birkat Kohanim is set apart in a
very important manner, punctuated with spaces not
unlike the text for Shirat Hayam ‘ the Song at
the Red Sea – and the Ten Commandments.

The kohanim, the priests, have the power to
bless the people, and this power comes from God and
is channeled through the kohanim, going back
through Aaron and Moses, the Patriarchs, Noah, and
Adam and Chava to whom God gave the
blessing ‘Multiply on Earth.’ (Gen. 1:28) The power to
bless originates in God.

The Priestly Blessing is a three-fold blessing. Some
explain that there are three phrases in order to
remember the patriarchs Avraham, Yitzchak and
Ya’akov, and that God blesses us because of their
merit.

The first blessing begins with ‘Y’varekhekha –
may God bless you’ ‘ understood by one tradition to
refer to one’s possessions. If a Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-06-08T12:45:29-04:00June 8, 2006|

Shavuot

By Jonathan Zimet

On Shavuot we recall, and re-enact, the revelation
event of our history. There, in the desert, we see a
large group of ex-slaves, traveling by foot. Then,
on just three days notice, they experience something
so awesome that it had to transcend our usual
physical senses. Dark clouds, blinding flashes of
light; deafening voices and silent voices.

The account relates: “V’khol ha-`am ro-im et ha-
kolot v?et ha-lapidim“, the entire people saw the
thunder (and fires) (Ex. 20:14). Such an experience
is so overwhelming and transcendent that we cannot
make complete sense of it or translate it with our
usual senses. Similar descriptions have been
reported in prophetic visions and in near-death
experiences, where activity in our physical organs is
largely suspended.

Clearly, our people directly encountered God in what
became the transcendent and defining experience in
our history. God engraved a covenant Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-06-01T07:24:50-04:00June 1, 2006|

Parashat Bemidbar

Counting the Models of Religious Leadership in The Book of Numbers
By Rabbi Rena Kieval

I would like to dedicate this dvar Torah about
religious leadership to my fellow graduates, my
teachers, and all the students at AJR, where
individuals are embarked on this path in so many
different ways and bringing a multiplicity of talents
and roles to the holy work.

What makes a religious leader? In Sefer Va-yikra
(Leviticus) we learned in exhaustive detail about
the roles of the kohanim – priests, whom the
Torah refers to as meshuchim – anointed ones
(Num. 3:3). They are God’s elite religious
functionaries who live apart from the people, who
must meet strict standards of taharah ‘ purity – and who strive for, or symbolize, perfection.

In Sefer Bamidbar (Numbers), which
we begin reading this week, God announces the
selection of another group of religious leaders, the
levi’im – levites. The Torah calls Read More >

By Rabbi Rena Kieval|2006-05-26T14:34:24-04:00May 26, 2006|

Emor

By Rabbi Isaac Mann

The opening verse of the parashah – “Say (emor) to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and you shall say (v’amarta) to them ‘do not defile yourself to someone who died amongst his people,'” (Lev. 21:1)is a major source in the Midrash and Talmud for an important rabbinic teaching. From the redundancy of “emor” “v’amarta” the Rabbis derive that the adult priests must teach their young to follow in their ways, and just as the former are forbidden to be defiled by contact with a corpse so too the young must be instructed to follow this law. Thus the phrase of “and you shall say to them – v’amarta aleihem – applies to the offspring, so as to say, “You shall teach them what I am teaching you.”

By extension, the Rabbis teach us that every adult Jew must teach his children to follow the laws of the Torah. We Read More >

By Rabbi Isaac Mann|2006-05-18T16:19:57-04:00May 18, 2006|

Behar-Behukotai

By Yechiel Buchband

As we open our portions, we may expect to find the
common phrase ‘Adonai spoke to Moses, saying . . .’
But we get a new addition to that phrase:
‘VaY’daber Adonai el-Moshe b’Har-Sinai
Laymor’ (Lev. 25:1). We might well wonder,
weren’t all these many mitzvot in Sefer
VaYikra spoken on/at/near Mt. Sinai? Why add
these words here?

Rashi frames the question a bit differently,
anticipating the first topic dealt with in the portion,
the Sabbatical or sh’mitah year. He asks – in
words so apt that they’ve become a saying in
Hebrew ‘ Mah inyan Sh’mitah eytzel Har-Sinai?!
(What’s the issue of Sh’mitah doing next
to Mt. Sinai; or, what does one thing have to do with
another?) Quoting the midrash in Sifra, Rashi
answers that the words b’Har Sinai come here
to inform us that just as this mitzvah of
Sh’mitah was taught at Sinai along with all its
rules and detailed regulations (here in the Written
Torah, in the next verses), so all the other
mitzvot (which Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-05-18T16:16:19-04:00May 18, 2006|

Bâ€™har-Bâ€™hukotai

By Yechiel Buchband

As we open our portions, we may expect to find the
common phrase ‘Adonai spoke to Moses, saying . . .’
But we get a new addition to that phrase:
‘VaY’daber Adonai el-Moshe b’Har-Sinai
Laymor’ (Lev. 25:1). We might well wonder,
weren’t all these many mitzvot in Sefer
VaYikra spoken on/at/near Mt. Sinai? Why add
these words here?

Rashi frames the question a bit differently,
anticipating the first topic dealt with in the portion,
the Sabbatical or sh’mitah year. He asks – in
words so apt that they’ve become a saying in
Hebrew ‘ Mah inyan Sh’mitah eytzel Har-Sinai?!
(What’s the issue of Sh’mitah doing next
to Mt. Sinai; or, what does one thing have to do with
another?) Quoting the midrash in Sifra, Rashi
answers that the words b’Har Sinai come here
to inform us that just as this mitzvah of
Sh’mitah was taught at Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-05-18T16:16:19-04:00May 18, 2006|

Passover 2006

You! Open Up for Them!
By Rabbi David Greenstein

One of the famous sections of the traditional Haggadah’the Passover discussion of the Exodus that takes place at the seder’is the description of the questions of the Four Children and the suggested responses to them. Roughly translated, the four children are: the wise one, the wicked one, the simple one and the one who does not know how to ask.

This section has had much attention devoted to it in the
voluminous literature that has developed around the themes of the Haggadah. Especially today, with our concerns for Jewish continuity and the multiplicity of ways that people have adopted as their own expressions of Jewish identity, there has been a lot of discussion around ways of understanding these ‘types.’ One problem has been to fruitfully use these constructs without falling into the trap of stereotyping people.

But even more particularly problematic is the image of the Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-05-04T11:29:52-04:00May 4, 2006|

Shemini

By Joan Lenowitz

The completion and certification of Seven World Trade Center, the building that stands in the place of the tower that was destroyed on 9/11, signals a new era in energy and environmental design. The building achieves preeminence as the first to receive ‘gold’ certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, an industry coalition which grades buildings on such features as energy and water consumption, indoor air quality and use of renewable materials. (New York Times, April 16, 2006)

Scientists, who have studied the effects of the kinds of changes being made in such buildings in the U.S., have concluded that in addition to the potential savings from reduced consumption of energy and raw materials in the construction and operation of the buildings, and the external conservational effects on the environment, there are also categories of expected savings from effects on the humans who occupy those buildings.

They estimate savings Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-05-04T10:01:16-04:00May 4, 2006|

Tzav

Making Your Guilty Conscience Holy

By Hayley Mica Einhorn

In this week’s parashah, Tzav, the Kohanim are commanded to make a burnt offering, a meal offering, a sin offering, a guilt offering, and a sacrifice of well-being to HaShem (God). The Torah tells us that, ‘The guilt offering is like the sin-offering. The same rule applies to both: it shall belong to the priest who makes expiation thereby.’ (VaYikra/Leviticus 7:7) Despite this, the Torah describes the guilt offering in a different way than the sin offering. While the parashah describes the various procedures that are performed by the priest during the sin offering, the Torah initially describes the guilt offering as kodesh kodashim or ‘most holy’ (Vayikra 7:2) and then goes on to elaborate the specific procedure of the priests.

This distinction immediately caused me to wonder, Why does the Torah describe the guilt korban (sacrificial offering) as ‘holier’ than a sin offering? Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-05-04T09:57:26-04:00May 4, 2006|

VaYikra

Saying I’m Sorry
By Michael G. Kohn

Spring has arrived in New York. Alfred Lord Tennyson once wrote: ‘In the spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.’ And the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote: ‘How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.’ How do we show our love of God? Well, while the Temple stood in Jerusalem, we showed our love through voluntary offerings at the Temple. And in this week’s portion, parashat Vayikra, the Torah enumerates five, the first three of which are the olah, or burnt offering, the minhah, or meal offering, and the zevah-sh’lamim, or peace offering.

Now, Erich Segal once wrote: ‘Love means never having to say you’re sorry.’ However, for those who love God, but have transgressed one of God’s commandments, the Torah commands that they say they’re sorry. The final two offerings enumerated in Vayikra’hatat, or sin offering, and asham, or guilt Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-05-04T09:44:44-04:00May 4, 2006|

Va-yahkel-Pekudei

By Suri Krieger

So, it seems that God has appointed me, Betzalel, to be master craftsman of the Mishkan, the holy sanctuary! Oh my God, how daunting! May I be worthy of the task.

The Task’let’s see here, what specs do we have on the list: a Tent of meeting, cherub’embroidered curtains, a number of gold plated furniture items including an ark, an altar for sacrifice, an altar for incense, a wash basin, a menorah, designer clothing for Aaron and sons, anointing oil, exclusive incense; rings, rolls, skins and poles’everything from practical to cerebral!

Why, this kind of work presumes a pretty high level of skills’skills in everything from sewing to carpentry, not to mention metal work, gemology and tanning! Oholiav and I will have to do some major research to get this thing underway!

Curious that these sanctuary details come up over and over! Moses told me he was given this information Read More >

By ahsilver|2006-05-04T09:42:47-04:00May 4, 2006|

Previous 678 Next