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 Vayakhel-Pekudei

Parashat Vayakhel-Pekudei

By Julius Rabinowitz

This week’s Torah portion, Vayakhel, begins with a familiar litany that I will paraphrase: six days you may work, but on the seventh day you are forbidden to do work.

We’ve heard this many times already, and we’ll hear it many times again: it accompanied God’s giving of the manna; it resounded very loudly on Mount Sinai with booming thunder and other noises. And we’ve heard it twice again since. So, why does Torah repeat it once again in this week’s parashah? Are we so dense that we need this constant drilling? Or maybe its inclusion this week teaches us something else.

This week, Torah juxtaposes the Shabbat prohibition with the command to build the mishkan, the Tabernacle – the portable shrine erected by the Israelites in the wilderness after they left Egypt and that served as God’s “home” on earth. The Rabbis of the Talmud rely on this textual relationship Read More >

By ahsilver|2010-03-11T19:47:19-05:00March 11, 2010|

Parashat Ki Tissa

By Eliana Falk

In Parashat Ki Tissa, Moses ascends Har Sinai and comes face to face with God, so to speak. With each step, he ascends in body, mind and soul and he dwells in God’s presence.

On Sinai, Moses knew the completeness, the unity, the wholeness the love of God – and the awe of God. And he was filled with holiness. On Sinai, he was deeply involved in the act of finding. He was finding a new relationship with God. And he was finding himself in the relationship. And, he was learning how to be a teacher and a leader, and to trust God absolutely.

Meanwhile, the people were at the foot of Har Sinai, and even though they had already experienced God’s wonders and presence, they were lost. Their leader was not visible to them. Perhaps they let their fears overtake them, and so turned their focus to Read More >

By ahsilver|2010-03-03T15:47:46-05:00March 3, 2010|

Parashat Terumah

By Rabbi Katy Z. Allen

The Gifts of Our Hearts

“The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Tell the Israelites to bring Me gifts; you shall accept gifts for Me from every person whose heart so moves him… let them make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them.” (Ex. 25:1-2, 8)

Specific details for building the mishkan, the Tabernacle, in the desert follow. The sanctuary the Israelites are to make is physical, built from “gold, silver, and copper; blue, purple, and crimson yarns, fine linen, goats’ hair; tanned ram skins, dolphin skins, and acacia wood…” But it is built so that “I (G!d) may dwell” – v’shakhanti, which has the same Hebrew root as Shekhinah, the Divine Presence – “among them.”

“That I may dwell among them.”

Menachem Mendel of Kotzk taught that it says “among them” and not “in its midst” to teach that every person must build the Sanctuary in Read More >

By ahsilver|2010-02-24T16:13:12-05:00February 24, 2010|

Parashat Tetzaveh

By Jill Hackell

“And you will command B’nai Yisrael that they bring to you oil of olives, pure, beaten, to draw up a ner tamid.”

Several years ago, at the annual Purim Ball, I won a set of tallit clips in a raffle. These were beautifully hand-crafted in silver by a jeweler in our congregation in the shape of our synagogue’s ark. And in the center, just above the doors of the ark, a little red gemstone sparkled – representing the ner tamid. This week’s parashah, which we will read on Shabbat Zakhor, the Shabbat just before Purim, continues the description of the meticulous craftsmanship that went into the building of the Mishkan and the vestments of the Kohen gadol. And it opens with the commandment to raise a ner tamid – the source for the eternal lamps that burn before the ark in our synagogues today.

In the days of the Mishkan, this lamp Read More >

By Rabbi Jill Hackell M.D.|2010-02-24T16:00:52-05:00February 24, 2010|

Parashat Mishpatim

By Rabbi/Cantor Anne Heath

In Parashat Mishpatim we reach the pivot point of the Book of Exodus. Until now we have been engaged with the exciting history of our ancestors’ release from slavery in Egypt and the subsequent revelation at Mount Sinai. In the following weeks, our Exodus studies guide us through the vision and building of the Mishkan (portable Tabernacle) in the wilderness; the narrative about which is interrupted for a few chapters to recount the episode of the golden calf.

In Parashat Mishpatim Moses receives laws on worship, slavery (or serfdom, or servitude), property, moral behavior, Sabbaths and festivals. These laws immediately follow the Ten Commandments (in Parashat
Yitro from last Shabbat); enhancing and extending them into the mini-law code often called the Book of the Covenant. Parashat Mishpatim concludes with our ancestors’ affirmation of the Covenant.

Moses first brings God’s laws to our ancestors, speaking all that he, Moses, alone has heard. Read More >

By Rabbi Len Levin|2010-02-10T13:10:00-05:00February 10, 2010|

Parashat Bo

By Laurie Levy

“It’s been a long time comin’, it’s going to be a long time gone. But you know, the darkest hour, is always just before the dawn.” David Crosby (1968)

Last week’s parashah, Va’Era, leaves off right in the middle of the action where seven plagues have been visited on the Egyptians and Pharaoh’s heart is quite stiff. A teaching about why the parashah breaks here focuses on a common element of the remaining three plagues: darkness.

In the’eighth plague, when the locusts swarmed, they covered the “surface [literally ‘eye’] of all the ground, and the ground became dark.” (Ex. 10:15) Not only was the land not visible to the Egyptians, but the land itself appears to be blinded from its cover of locusts. This of course foreshadows the ninth plague which limits the sight of the Egyptians even further, with darkness so thick that it could be touched. (Ex. 10:21) And Read More >

By ahsilver|2010-02-10T12:14:10-05:00February 10, 2010|

Parashat Yitro

By Hayley Mica Siegel

To say that I come from a family of talkers is an understatement. At an early age, I was taught “It’s perfectly fine to interrupt someone else if you know his/her answer or what he/she is about to say” by my elders and witnessed irsthand that this statement was upheld to the highest degree! Dinnertime could nicely be described as a six-ring circus (there were five members of my family and a bearded collie named Bailey). There was an “unspoken” challenge laid in front of every member of my household: to get as many words or opinions interjected into the dinner conversation as possible. And with three boisterous children, two engaged parents, and a street savvy dog, it’s fair to say that people in the lobby of my building could have easily heard every idea, bark, or interjection. Even at family functions (or other people’s family functions!), we never Read More >

By ahsilver|2010-02-03T13:38:24-05:00February 3, 2010|

Parashat BeShallah

By Joan Lenowitz

“BaMayim Ro’im,” In the Water They See

It is the rainy season in Israel right now and the words of acknowledgement that we insert into the Amidah for God’s benevolence in bestowing life-preserving rains upon us during this season seem not to have not gone unheeded. It has been raining without pause for nearly a week here in Israel.

In the Talmud (Ta’anit 23a) there is a story about Honi hame’agel, Honi the circle-maker; God seems to be especially receptive to Honi’s prayers for rain. So when the Rabbis are distressed about the lack of rain they come to Honi and ask him to implore God for rain. When his initial prayer does not succeed, Honi decides to play “hard ball” with God. He draws a circle around himself and tells the Holy One that he will not remove himself from within this circle until God sends rain. God obliges but Read More >

By ahsilver|2010-01-26T18:39:48-05:00January 26, 2010|

Parashat Va’era

By Sanford Olshansky

This parashah forces us to ask ourselves whether we believe in a God who acts in history – a God who even if not very hands-on today, must have been very hands-on at one time. The Genesis tales about the lives of our patriarchs and matriarchs could be taken as allegories. Even the Exodus stories about Moses’ birth and rescue and God’s first revelation to Moses at the burning bush are taken by many people as allegories.

In this week’s parashah, Va-era, God responds to Pharaoh’s refusal to let the Israelites go by sending a series of plagues. We all know the sequence from reciting it at the Passover Seder: blood, frogs, vermin, insects, pestilence, boils and hail. (The locusts, darkness and slaying of the firstborn Egyptians come next week in Parashat Bo.) After each plague, Pharaoh’s heart hardens and he refuses to let the Israelites go. The plagues described in Read More >

By ahsilver|2010-01-13T11:17:41-05:00January 13, 2010|

Parashat Shemot

By Rabbi Allen Darnov

“When Moses had grown up, he went out to his kinsfolk” (Exod 2:11). This verse has generally been understood to denote that Moses, aware of his Hebrew identity, sympathetically goes out to investigate the suffering of his oppressed kinsmen in Egypt.

When might Moses have learned that he was a Hebrew? Moshe Greenberg believes that Moses remained at home with his mother beyond the period of weaning (cf. Gen 21:8), and that he was therefore old enough to acquire a Hebrew identity from his family (Understanding Exodus, p. 42). Nachmanides explains that Pharaoh’s court “told him he was Jewish (Yehudi) and he therefore desired to see them because they were his kinsmen” (Nachmanides to Exod 2:11).

However, it is also possible to read Exod 2:11 otherwise, that Moses does not have knowledge of his Hebrew roots, and so he does not know the Hebrew slaves are his kinsmen when Read More >

By ahsilver|2010-01-06T06:29:16-05:00January 6, 2010|

Parashat Vayehi

By Rabbi Michael G. Kohn

As we look at this parashah, I would like us to think about the message the Torah is giving us as parents. I have always had a difficult time with this parashah, first, because it focuses on the death of the last of our patriarchs. The description of Jacob’s “family” – in reality, his sons – gathered at his bedside is one familiar to most, if not all of us. At the death of my father of blessed memory almost 17 years ago, the scene played out almost as described in the Torah. First, my father spoke with two of his grandsons, as did Jacob, before speaking with his children. Then, he spoke with each of his children individually, though many of us were in the room together with him.

Which brings me to my second difficulty with this parashah. I am a parent and a grandparent and I Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-12-29T21:06:35-05:00December 29, 2009|

Parashat Vayhi

By Rabbi Michael G. Kohn

As we look at this parashah, I would like us to think about the message the Torah is giving us as parents. I have always had a difficult time with this parashah, first, because it focuses on the death of the last of our patriarchs. The description of Jacob’s “family” – in reality, his sons – gathered at his bedside is one familiar to most, if not all of us. At the death of my father of blessed memory almost 17 years ago, the scene played out almost as described in the Torah. First, my father spoke with two of his grandsons, as did Jacob, before speaking with his children. Then, he spoke with each of his children individually, though many of us were in the room together with him.

Which brings me to my second difficulty with this parashah. I am a parent and a grandparent and I Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-12-29T21:06:35-05:00December 29, 2009|

Parashat Vayigash

By Rabbi Jill Hammer

Parashat Vayigash, the Torah portion of this week, tells the story of the final reconciliation of Joseph with his brothers. The eleven brothers, including Benjamin, the youngest, are in the throne room of the Egyptian vizier, and the vizier demands of them that Benjamin remain in Egypt as a slave. The brothers are horrified. Judah steps forward, offering himself in place of Benjamin, for he fears the grief that his father will feel if Benjamin does not return. It is this selfless act that inspires Joseph and finally frees him to reveal himself to his brothers. The Egyptian vizier is transformed into the long-lost Joseph, and the family reunites.

This is the same Judah who sold Joseph into Egypt. What has changed? Judah’s moving speech – “let me not see the grief that will find my father!”- shows his newfound empathy. And, there are also hidden clues in Judah’s language. Read More >

By Rabbi Jill Hammer, PhD|2009-12-23T19:31:46-05:00December 23, 2009|

Parashat Miketz

By Rabbi Eric Hoffman

In preparing for this D’var Torah I read back into the archives of AJR Divrei Torah on the sedra, initially to avoid repeating themes and references already shared on these pages. Instead, I discovered a treasure of thinking that deserved to be repeated, not avoided. Last year, 5769, Hayley Siegel showed how the tortuous encounters between Joseph and his brothers led to the establishment of trust between them based upon the brothers’ confessions of truth. In 5768, Sanford Olshansky demonstrated the development of Joseph’s character in accordance with the theory of Mishnah Avot 5:21 as a factor in his reconciliation with his brothers. In 5767, Irwin Huberman drew lessons of conservation and the redirection of surplus to help the poor in our midst from Joseph’s master plan for Egypt. In 5766, Michael Rothbaum characterized Chanukah as the Rabbis’ rewriting of Maccabean Read More >

By jackielebwohl|2009-12-17T21:08:16-05:00December 17, 2009|

Parashat VaYeishev

By Rabbi Dorit Edut

The test of a person’s
character comes when we are faced with a circumstance to which we must clearly
reply. While we understand that not everything can be seen or judged so
clearly, that often there are many connected factors to consider, yet in the
end the choice we ultimately make will reflect our values.

On this Shabbat, our Torah
portion brings us the contrasting positions of Judah and Joseph each who
respond to a sexual challenge in opposite ways. On the one hand there is Judah,
who, upon seeing the ‘harlot’ (who is really Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-12-11T09:06:05-05:00December 11, 2009|

Parashat Vayishlah

Wrestling
By Jill Minkoff

The day after Thanksgiving, my daughter and I were deciding what to do with leftovers. While in her kitchen, I shared with her my assignment to write a D’var Torah about Parashat Vayishlah.

“Wow!” she said, “I was just studying that with a student I am tutoring. The student really connected with the part about Jacob wrestling the angel and then realizing it was God [or, as NJPS translates Elohim, ‘beings divine’]. Afterward, we read the story of Abraham arguing with God over the destruction of Sodom and Gemorah. She said that exploring both of these stories helped her to understand what her father has been trying to teach her about choosing one’s battles – One needs to be selective.”

“Hmmm…” I found myself thinking, “What does being selective in picking battles have to do with Jacob’s wrestling match? Did he have a choice? This is not where I would Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-12-02T07:42:17-05:00December 2, 2009|

Parashat VaYeitzei

By Jill G. Hackell

In Parashat VaYeitzei we read, “When Rachel saw that she had borne Jacob no children, she became envious of her sister; and Rachel said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!” Jacob was incensed at Rachel, and said, “Can I take the place of God, who has denied you fruit of the womb?” Rachel cries out from the depths of her anguish, and her husband, who loves her, is angry, and hurtful to her. What is going on here, and what can we learn from this interaction?

Some commentators, over the centuries, have sought to exonerate Jacob for his reaction, placing blame on Rachel; others, more in keeping with our modern sensibilities, have rebuked Jacob for his insensitivity.

Rashi tells us Rachel wasn’t literally asking Jacob to give her a child – she was asking him to pray Read More >

By Rabbi Jill Hackell M.D.|2009-11-24T11:41:00-05:00November 24, 2009|

Parshat Toledot

‘A New Look at Esav’
(Page references to Chumash Etz Chaim)
Rabbi David Mark

In this parashah, we meet Esav and Jacob for the first time’they are twins, but unalike. Esav is ‘red, like a hairy mantle’ (Gen 25:25, p.147), while Jacob is a ‘smooth man.’ Esav becomes ‘a skillful hunter,’ while Jacob is ‘a tent-dweller.’ (Gen 25:27)

Most rabbinic commentary on Esav has been prejudiced against him, considering him a foolish country bumpkin or an idolatrous villain. He is a fool because he sold his birthright to clever Jacob for a bowl of red-bean chili, thereby losing the better blessing. Other rabbis consider him dangerous because he is a hunter, unlike civilized Jacob, a shepherd. Finally, he is an idolater, because he marries two pagan Hittite women, who become ‘a source of bitterness to Isaac and Rebekah.’ (Gen 26:35) They consider even his red hair to be evil(!), because, during the chili incident, he Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-11-17T13:49:49-05:00November 17, 2009|

Parashat Hayyei Sarah

By Rabbi Henry Glazer

Last Sunday I turned seventy. Since then I have found myself contemplating my mortality and vulnerability. I have experienced an array of feelings touching on sadness, fear and uncertainty. There was more in my life that was behind rather than ahead of me; my cup was no longer full, but mostly empty.

This is a depressing thought, one that confronts us with a spiritual challenge not only when we age, but whenever we feel that life’s fullness is somehow out of reach for us, whether as a result of loss, illness, grief or some other personal experience of failure. How do we cope? How do we go ahead with our lives in a joyful and meaningful way?

One answer is found, I believe, in a striking passage of Hayyei Sarah. Sarah has died, Abraham has acquired a burial place for her, and we are told: “Abraham was old, advanced Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-11-12T16:24:05-05:00November 12, 2009|

Parashat Vayera

Every year we read the same parashiyot, in the same order, always finding something new. This year, my discovery came last Rosh HaShanah, when I reviewed this week’s parashah, Vayera.

We all know Parashat Vayera. Angels visit Abraham, Abraham argues with God, God destroys Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and his daughters have interesting, incestuous relationships, Sarah has her long-awaited son, Sarah expels Hagar and Ishmael from the camp, and, well, let’s stop there.

As we all know, there are no vowels in the Torah. For the pronunciation of the words, we depend on the Masoretes, those people who about 1,000 years ago punctuated the Torah, set it to music, and told us how the words should be pronounced. Because there are no vowels in the Torah, and because Hebrew is a phonetic language, any cluster of consonants can be pronounced in many ways, some of which will make sense and some of which will Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-11-05T12:51:46-05:00November 5, 2009|

Parashat Vayera

Every year we read the same parashiyot, in the same order, always finding something new. This year, my discovery came last Rosh HaShanah, when I reviewed this week’s parashah, Vayera.

We all know Parashat Vayera. Angels visit Abraham, Abraham argues with God, God destroys Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and his daughters have interesting, incestuous relationships, Sarah has her long-awaited son, Sarah expels Hagar and Ishmael from the camp, and, well, let’s stop there.

As we all know, there are no vowels in the Torah. For the pronunciation of the words, we depend on the Masoretes, those people who about 1,000 years ago punctuated the Torah, set it to music, and told us how the words should be pronounced. Because there are no vowels in the Torah, and because Hebrew is a phonetic language, any cluster of consonants can be pronounced in many ways, some of which will make sense and some of which will Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-11-05T12:51:46-05:00November 5, 2009|

Parashat Lekh L’kah

At a recent teacher enhancement seminar at the Seattle Jewish Federation, the host asked us to consider this text from Parashat Lekh L’kha (Gen. 12:1-3):

Vayomer Hashem el Avram, lekh l’kha mei’artzekha umimolad’t’kha umibeit avikha el Ha’Aretz asher ar’eka. V’e’es’kha l’goi gadol va’avarekh’kha v’agad’lah sh’mekha, veh’yei b’rakhah. Va’avar’kha m’varakhekha um’kalelkha a’or, v’nivr’khu v’kha kol mish’p’hot ha’adamah.

Hashem said to Avram, go for yourself, from your land, and your birthplace, and your father’s house; to the Land which I will show you. I will make of you a great people, I will bless you and make your name great; and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, I will curse the one who curses you; and all the families of the land will bless themselves through you.

The host asked us to work with hevrutah (study partners) and explore this text for Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-10-29T07:41:36-04:00October 29, 2009|

Parashat Noah

Parashat Noah
By Ellen Bernstein

This coming Shabbat, October 24, hundreds of thousands of people in 158 countries around the globe will be participating in the International Day of Climate Action. They will try to convince world leaders to craft policies to help bring atmospheric concentrations of CO2 down to 350 parts per million-the figure that scientists say is the safe upper limit for CO2 in the atmosphere, the amount that will enable life to continue to thrive on the planet.

While the folks at 350.org, the organizers for the event, did not have a Jewish calendar in front of them when they determined the date for what will be the largest ecological event in the world’s history, it is an uncanny coincidence that they chose the moment that we Jews read in our annual Torah cycle, Parashat Noah. The Noahstory, more than any other in the Torah, proclaims a profound ecological message Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-10-20T19:06:44-04:00October 20, 2009|

Parashat Bereshit

By Miriam Herscher

One Jewish year and Torah reading cycle closes and one Jewish year and Torah cycle begins…

In synagogues this coming Shabbat we read together the very first parashah of the very first book of our beloved Torah: our guide and charter for our human mission in the Universe.

The chapter opens with the familiar and commanding words: Bereshit bara Elohim et hashamayim ve’et ha’aretz, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” “Time has not diminished the power or the majesty of the familiar biblical account of the creation of the world, nor has familiarity dulled its impact.” (Etz Hayim) These words are awesome, magical, riveting.

And so begins the reading…

My favorite verses in this parashah are 1:3-4: “Let there be light, and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness” each one to reign in the Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-10-13T20:44:10-04:00October 13, 2009|

Shemini Atzeret

A Meaning in the 21st Century
By Julius Rabinowitz

This coming Shabbat we celebrate the holiday of Shemini Atzeret, a one day holiday that seems to be lacking an identity to most American Jews. Biblically, a holiday in which we are to hold a “solemn gathering”, accompanied by the annual celebration of the “prayer for rain”-albeit intended for the desert land of Israel and not for the temperate climes and year-round rainfall experienced in the Northern Hemisphere where most Diaspora Jews live. And its main “drawing” power seems to be the inclusion of a Yizkor service, less than two weeks after we gathered in synagogue for the very same commemoration. Indeed, when one looks at the Biblical origins and rabbinic modifications of the holiday, its identity appears to be bound up in the previous Sukkot holiday and its seven day joyous observance, and a respite before yet another joyous celebration the next day for Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-10-07T15:34:34-04:00October 7, 2009|

Shabbat Sukkot

By Doug Alpert

We tend to apprehend the present Hag HaSukkot by placing it within the context of the annual agricultural cycle. The notion of “dwelling in booths” (Vayikra 23:42-43) was compelled at least in part by the need to not stray to far from the fields during harvest. We also tend to understand Sukkot within its role as one of the Shalosh
Regalim, the three pilgrimage festivals. While these two approaches to garnering greater understanding of the Hag still resonate in an appropriate way, I would suggest another means by which we can place Hag HaSukkot within our annual cycle of Jewish life.

As with much of life, we understand how we arrive at Sukkot by understanding from whence we came. Specifically, Sukkot serves as a vital jumping off point from Yom Kippur, Read More >

By Doug Alpert|2009-10-01T21:06:25-04:00October 1, 2009|

Parashat Ha-azinu/Shabbat Shuva

Parashat Ha’azinu/Shabbat Shuva
Susan Elkodsi

Shabbat Shuva carries with it an air of redemption, for ourselves as individuals, and for the Jewish people as a whole. Parashat Ha’azinu, which we read on Shabbat Shuva this year, carries that message from God, through Moses, to the Israelites perched on the banks of the Jordan ready to cross into the Promised Land. Ha’azinu is Moses’ final discourse, his instructions to the people, but it isn’t a “rah rah go get ’em” commencement type of speech. Yes, it’s a message of hope for the future, but before we get there, we have to listen to a lot of scolding and admonition regarding the sins of the previous generations.

This could explain why the parashah begins, Ha’azinu hashamayim v’adabeira, v’tishma ha-aretz imrei-fi. “Give ear, heavens, and I will speak, the earth will hear my speech.” (Deut. 32:1) If this is a message for the people, why is Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-09-22T18:35:58-04:00September 22, 2009|

Rosh HaShanah

By Rabbi Dorit Edut

“Zokhreinu Lehayyim Melekh Hafetz Behayyim-Remember us that we may live, O Ruler Who delights in Life – V’Khotveynu B’Sefer Hahayyim Lema’ankha Elohim Hayim – Inscribe us in the Book of Life, for Your Sake, O Living God.”

These are the words of a special insertion in the High Holy Day Amidah. It probably dates from the post-Talmudic period and seems to have become part of our liturgy only after much debate. And yet there was such affinity for
these verses, especially during times when our lives were very threatened that this plea for life was sustained.

There was also another thread that was being preserved here, which refers to asking God to inscribe us for life in God’s Book of Life. The very first reference in the Torah to any such book comes in Exodus 32:32 when Moses asks God to forgive the Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-09-15T15:15:03-04:00September 15, 2009|

Parshat Nitzavim/VaYelekh

By Sanford Olshansky

When I was 22 years old, I had stopped practicing Judaism. My attendance at Shabbat services had dwindled to zero. Not so unusual – lots of Jews attend synagogue only on the High Holidays plus an occasional bar/bat mitzvah or wedding. But that year, I didn’t even attend High Holiday services – I worked – and it didn’t feel right.

Later that year I read The Source, by James Michener. As I became engrossed in it, I realized that it was speaking to me about a miracle – the miracle of Jewish survival. It reminded me that for over 3,000 years our continuous chain of tradition and belief has survived conquest, exile and dispersion, the rise and fall of empires and persecution which is unparalleled
in human history. It helped me to realize that I’m an heir to a unique spiritual heritage. If I hadn’t read Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-09-08T16:22:43-04:00September 8, 2009|

Parashat Ki Tavo

By Rabbi Halina Rubenstein

One of the most rewarding experiences of my rabbinical career has been teaching conversion classes. It is exhilarating seeing the students learning Judaism step by step and then witnessing their evolving Jewish identity when everything you have been teaching congeals and becomes love and acceptance. The close relationship that the students and I develop through many months of weekly sessions is essential for this transformation to happen. Working through their struggles, their strengths and weaknesses, their joys and tribulations, together, creates a strong connection and gives them the support to go through the last stage of the conversion process -which is usually charged with anxiety – the meeting with the Bet Din and the mikvah ceremony. This rite of passage which marks their ‘official’ acceptance is a powerful ritual usually accompanied by a dialogue between the Bet Din and the convert in which Read More >

By Rabbi Isaac Mann|2009-09-03T09:50:15-04:00September 3, 2009|

Parashat Shoftim

By Simon Rosenbach

If you are of a certain age, you remember Superman, the television show with George Reeves, Noel Neill, Jack Larson, and, among others, Phillips Tead as the delightful Professor Pepperwinkle . . . but I digress. Of course you remember the end of the introduction: “fighting a never ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way.” Well, if you are of a certain age, you had fun with that ending. It became, “fighting a never ending battle for truth, justice, and something completely different, the American way.” After all, if truth and justice are not the American way, then what is?

This week’s parashah poses a similar puzzle. Moses directs the people to appoint judges who will judge impartially, who will not accept bribes that blind their eyes. Then, as though he were mentioning something completely different, Moses utters those famous words, Tzedek, tzedek tirdof. “Justice, justice you shall pursue.” Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-08-18T13:00:47-04:00August 18, 2009|

Parashat Re’eh

August: the lazy days of summer. Our senses are filled with the beauty of late sunsets, the taste of fresh produce, the feeling of grass on bare feet. My family and I will be setting out on vacation shortly, a road trip that will include visits to college campuses, as we embark on the ritual of “The College Selection Process”. I’m comforted by the thought that our daughter still has two more years at home with us, before she heads off to college…

“SEE THIS DAY I SET BEFORE YOU BLESSING AND CURSE”! Like a prelude to the daily shofar blast which takes place during the upcoming month of Elul, the first words of Parashat Re’eh shake us out of our summertime complacency. Wake up, choose blessing, and be ready for what lies ahead, “For you are about to cross the Jordan and possess the land that the Lord your God is assigning Read More >

By Cantor Sandy Horowitz|2009-08-12T19:38:45-04:00August 12, 2009|

Parashat Ekev

By Rabbi Dorit Edut

There is a juxtaposition of two verses in this week’s Torah portion, Ekev, which relate very well to a modern-day phenomenon. Moses, just prior to his death, exhorts the People of Israel to stop blocking themselves from belief in and loyalty to God (Deuteronomy 10:16):

Cut away, therefore, the thickening about your hearts and stiffen your necks no more.

Three verses later, Moses emphasizes that we are to emulate the greatness of God through our actions, specifically (Deuteronomy 10:19):

You too must befriend the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.

The Hebrew word for “stranger” is “ger” which has also been used to mean “convert.”

In other words, we are being asked to look at our own practices and open ourselves us up to developing a deep and abiding relationship with our Creator, the One Who is concerned about all those created. And then, Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-08-04T08:35:07-04:00August 4, 2009|

Parashat VaEtchanan

Comfort, Oh Comfort!
By Hazzan Marcia Lane

I just got back from Israel. A friend, who has never been there, asked me, “Were you okay? Did you feel comfortable everywhere?” The nature of the question is similar to one that was posed to me right here in my home-town of Long Branch, NJ: “I parked my car in that block. Am I going to feel comfortable going back after dark?” The implication, of course, is that there is danger in certain places or in certain times of day. We should be on our guard in these places or at these times. We should find no comfort there.

Leaving aside the widespread – and unfounded – feeling among some people that the whole of Israel (or parts of Long Branch!) is a danger zone, there are certainly times and places that fill us with feelings
of discomfort. This period of economic uncertainty is probably one Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-07-30T09:54:48-04:00July 30, 2009|

Parashat Devarim

Shabbat Hazon – Sabbath of Vision
By Jill Minkoff

Vision – This week’s Sabbath is Shabbat Hazon, the Sabbath of Vision. We read Isaiah 1:1-27. The selection of this Haftarah sets the stage for our observance and memories of Tisha B’Av (rather than for its connection to the Parashat HaShavuah). It begins with the word: Hazon, Vision. It includes three visions of inequities and sin that are the basis for God’s request that we come and mediate an understanding in order to be saved through judgment.

Vision – The Parashat HaShavuah is Devarim 1:1-3:22. Moses commences his final words to the community that has traveled from Egypt toward Israel. A friend recently shared with me how he was struck by the vision of the numerous places Moses recalls and names. They are the multitude of locations along the path from Egypt Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-07-23T08:57:27-04:00July 23, 2009|

Parashat Mattot/Mas’ei

By Jill Hackell

After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, the Israelites are poised to cross the Jordan River, and to enter the Promised Land. In the previous parashah, Pinhas, a census of all individuals is taken, and Moses begins the transfer of authority to Joshua, who will lead the people in this next part of their history, the settlement of the Land, the grand finale to the Exodus from Egypt.

But, in our parashah, Mattot, the descendents of Reuben, and Gad look around, and see that the land east of the Jordan is perfect for their needs. They ask Moses, “Is it okay if we stay here to raise our cattle, rather than crossing the Jordan and being assigned land on the other side?” As Nehama Leibowitz points out, the ensuing interchange speaks volumes about the Read More >

By Rabbi Jill Hackell M.D.|2009-07-14T20:30:23-04:00July 14, 2009|

Parashat Pinhas

By Julius Rabinowitz

Pinhas, the son of Elazar the son of Aaron, got up and took a spear in his hand and ran it through Zimri, the son of a chieftain from the tribe of Simon, and Cozbi, the daughter of a leader of the Midianites. What was their heinous crime that deserved such punishment: a public sexual act of undefined nature?

This week’s Torah portion is called “Pinhas” and you would be excused if you couldn’t find this gory depiction in the reading. Because it was in last week’s reading. This week we only read about God’s rewarding Pinhas with the “covenant of peace” for eternity – the only person to receive this reward from God. But if you didn’t read last week’s Torah portion you wouldn’t have a clue as to what he did to deserve the unique reward as the only indication we have this Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-07-07T07:55:21-04:00July 7, 2009|

Parashat Huqqat-Balaq

Judaism’s Prime Directive

By Irwin Huberman

There have been many attempts in our tradition to boil down the
entire Torah into one clear directive.

Over the generations, Jews and those from other faiths have wrestled with the difficult question, “what exactly does God want from me?”

The Talmud (Shabbat 31a) tells the story of three persons who wished to convert to Judaism. In each case, they were initially rejected by the scholar Shammai, known for his strictness, but they were later accepted and converted by the more lenient Hillel who, when asked to describe the essence of the Torah “on one foot” responds, “What you dislike, do not do to your friend. That is the basis of the Torah. The rest is commentary; go and learn!” Read More >

By Rabbi Irwin Huberman|2009-06-30T07:55:35-04:00June 30, 2009|

Parashat Korah

By Boaz Marmon

“Can you hear them? They talk about
us, telling lies – well, that’s no surprise.”

This is the first verse, not of
Parashat Korah, but of the Go-Go’s’ 1982 hit “Our lips are
sealed” (you may be familiar with a recent cover by Hilary and Haylie
Duff). I doubt that Belinda and the girls had Moshe Rabbeinu
– Moses Our Teacher – and Aharon Ha-Kohen – Aaron the Priest
– in mind when they wrote the song, but not only do I think Moshe
would sympathize with the sentiments of the song, he also seems to have
internalized the strategy advocated by the Go-Go’s in response: “There’s
a weapon / which we must use / in our defense: / silent lips!”

Our Sages anachronistically applied
the title, “Rabbenu – Our Rabbi” to Moses. Those of us
serving in leadership roles Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-06-24T20:57:12-04:00June 24, 2009|

Parashat Shâ€™lah Lâ€™kha

Perception vs. Reality
By Rabbi Sharon Ballan

One of my favorite television shows when I was
growing up was “All in the Family.” I distinctly remember sneaking out of bed
and watching secretly from the top of the stairway, because it was shown past
my bedtime. Later, my parents let me watch with them and it became a weekly
family ritual. One episode in particular stands out in my mind. Edith, Archie,
Mike, and Gloria are at a restaurant, discussing the events of the day. Their
refrigerator had broken, and a repairman and his helper (who happened to be
black) had come to repair it. Mike and Archie had radically different memories
of what happened. Archie insisted the young black man, large and menacing,
threatened him with a knife. Mike, on the other hand described the man as
gentle and polite, and maintained that there was no knife at all. Finally Edith
tells the real story: the repairman had Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-06-17T13:44:24-04:00June 17, 2009|

Parashat Bâ€™Halotekha

Be Careful What You Ask For
By Gary A. Kabler

In this week’s portion the people complain to Moses that the manna
that G-d has provided so abundantly for them to eat no longer satisfies them. Like
petulant children, the people whine, “If we only had meat to eat! We remember
the fish that we used to eat free in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons,
the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. Now our gullets are shriveled. There is
nothing at all! Nothing but this manna to look to!” (Num. 11:1-6)

Obviously the people have forgotten that to get the foods that they
were whining and complaining about they had to do back-breaking slave labor in Egypt, but
apparently that was seen as a triviality when compared to actually having the
food. Apparently it was far easier to recall the meager struggle of walking
freely towards a place that Moses has assured the people was, and would
eventually be, again their Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-06-09T13:56:57-04:00June 9, 2009|

Parashat Naso

By Molly Karp

Parashat
Naso begins with the continuation of the counting of the Gershonites and the
Merarites, the Levites who are responsible for transporting the hangings, poles,
planks and hardware of the Tent of Meeting. Just as the Tabernacle would not be
complete without all of its parts, so too, the Levitical family would not be
complete without all of its members.

Envisioning
the wilderness camp as a nest of concentric circles: the Torah places the space
for holiness, God’s presence, at the center, surrounded by the precincts of the
Mishkan, surrounded by the Levites, who are surrounded by the Israelites.

The parashah

continues with a number of apparently unrelated cases. We learn that anyone who
has become tamei, (unfit to approach the Holy space) is to be removed
from the camp, so as not to render the entire camp tamei
– unfit for God’s presence within it. We learn that any Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-06-02T20:08:54-04:00June 2, 2009|

Shavuot

Standing at Sinai
By Rabbi Michael G. Kohn

For me, the festival of Shavuot is a riddle shrouded in mystery, wrapped in an enigma. Although it is fixed in our modern calendars as the sixth day of Sivan, no such date appears anywhere in the Torah. In parashat Pinhas, where the additional sacrifices for each of the special days – Shabbat, the Yamin Nora’im (Days of Awe) and the Shalosh Regalim (Three Pilgrimage Festivals) – are specified (Num. 28-29), it is the only one of the holidays and festivals which does not begin with (or even mention) the date of its observance.

In parashat Emor, where each of the special days of the calendar is described (Lev. 23), there is no similar description for Shavuot as we have come to know it. On Pesa Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-05-27T09:11:14-04:00May 27, 2009|

Parashat Bemidbar

By Kaya Stern-Kaufman

Chapter
two of B ‘midbar describes the arrangement and organization of the Israelite
camp in the wilderness. The mishkan, God’s tabernacle, is to reside in the
center of the camp. It is surrounded by the tribe of Levites to guard and
protect it. In the east, with the rising sun, the tribes of Yehudah, Yissachar
and Zevulun are to encamp. To the south, in full sun and heat, will settle the
tribes of Reuven, Shimon and Gad. To the west in the setting sun, the tribes of
Efraim, Menasheh and Binyamin reside. And to the north, in a darker place, the
tribes of Dan, Asher and Naftali shall camp. The Torah speaks to us here in the
language of geography and orientation. Like a blossoming flower or the image of
the planets revolving around the sun, the Israelite camp expresses a truth in
spatial form. It is perhaps a model of community that offers lessons to us
today. Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-05-21T20:19:41-04:00May 21, 2009|

Parashat Bâ€™midbar

By Kaya Stern-Kaufman

Chapter
two of B ‘midbar describes the arrangement and organization of the Israelite
camp in the wilderness. The mishkan, God’s tabernacle, is to reside in the
center of the camp. It is surrounded by the tribe of Levites to guard and
protect it. In the east, with the rising sun, the tribes of Yehudah, Yissachar
and Zevulun are to encamp. To the south, in full sun and heat, will settle the
tribes of Reuven, Shimon and Gad. To the west in the setting sun, the tribes of
Efraim, Menasheh and Binyamin reside. And to the north, in a darker place, the
tribes of Dan, Asher and Naftali shall camp. The Torah speaks to us here in the
language of geography and orientation. Like a blossoming flower or the image of
the planets revolving around the sun, the Israelite camp expresses a truth in
spatial form. It is perhaps a model of community that offers lessons to us
today. Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-05-21T20:19:41-04:00May 21, 2009|

Parashat Behar-Behukotai

By Simon Rosenbach

This week we sort of read, as we sort of read every year, the first version of the Tokhehah, a list of threats that God has Moses deliver to the children of Israel. These threats are so dire (“you will eat the flesh of your children” – Lev. 26:29) that they are read as softly and fast as possible, so that t

After telling us that if we heed the commandments, we’ll have an undefeated season, the Torah warns us that if we violate the commandments, we won’t win a game, we won’t even take the field, we won’t even be able to find the city where the stadium is located, and we’ll probably get torn to shreds by wild beasts as we wander aimlessly.

Now, does anybody actually believe today that your crops won’t grow if you write on Shabbat? That you’ll eat your children if you drive to shul? Is Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-05-13T19:35:50-04:00May 13, 2009|

Parashat Bâ€™har-Bâ€™huqotai

By Simon Rosenbach

This week we sort of read, as we sort of read every year, the first version of the Tokhehah, a list of threats that God has Moses deliver to the children of Israel. These threats are so dire (“you will eat the flesh of your children” – Lev. 26:29) that they are read as softly and fast as possible, so that t

After telling us that if we heed the commandments, we’ll have an undefeated season, the Torah warns us that if we violate the commandments, we won’t win a game, we won’t even take the field, we won’t even be able to find the city where the stadium is located, and we’ll probably get torn to shreds by wild beasts as we wander aimlessly.

Now, does anybody actually believe today that your crops won’t grow if you write on Shabbat? That you’ll eat your children if you drive to shul? Is Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-05-13T19:35:50-04:00May 13, 2009|

Parashat Kedoshim

By Sanford Olshansky

In the summer of 1970, when I was 20 years old, I rear-ended another car on one of the freeways in Detroit, where I grew up. There were no injuries and the police officer who came to the scene said there was no need for an accident report. A few weeks later my father, who owned the car, was sued for much more than the amount of his insurance coverage by the driver of the car that I hit, who now claimed to have sustained serious injuries. I was required to give a deposition at the office of the other driver’s lawyer.

The driver of the other car was a middle-aged Jewish man and the partners of his law firm had obviously Jewish last names. I will never forget the huge marble fa’ade of the law office, with the partners’ names carved in letters filled with gold paint. I was Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-05-06T19:04:23-04:00May 6, 2009|

Parashat Emor

By Margaret Frisch Klein

“What, you didn’t call, you didn’t write.” We’ve all heard the stereotypical Jewish mother jokes. There is some truth in them. Mothers like to be called. I know. I am one. This year as we celebrate Mother’s Day, I wish that I still had a mother to call. You may not think that Mother’s Day is a Jewish holiday. However, the principles come directly from our Jewish tradition – right from this week’s Torah portion.

This week’s parashah tells us how the priests should behave, about the holiness of Shabbat and the holidays, and about just punishments. What is the connection between these topics? All of them are about creating kedushah, a life of holiness, and showing kavod, honor.

We are not like the ancient Israelites. We no longer have a priestly class or the Temple in which to sacrifice. Since the destruction of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-05-06T19:03:33-04:00May 6, 2009|

Parashat Tazri`a-Mâ€™tzora

By Rabbi David Greenstein

This
Shabbat is Rosh Hodesh, the beginning of a new month. This is a time
which the overwhelmingly male-centered tradition assigned for celebration of
the place of Jewish women in the community. In the old days women would observe
Rosh Hodesh as a quasi-festival, refraining from unnecessary work and
household chores. In modern times the feminist renewal of Judaism has enhanced
this traditional association of Rosh Hodesh and feminism in many
creative and meaningful ways.

It is in
this context that we read the beginning of this week’s Torah portion, Tazri`a-M’tzora.
While the bulk of this double portion deals with the phenomenon of tzara`at,
a surface affliction, commonly but incorrectly translated as leprosy, the start
of the reading deals with childbirth and its purity and ritual effects on the
mother.

The Torah
(Lev. 12) states that if a woman Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-04-23T10:55:48-04:00April 23, 2009|

Parashat Vayikra

Towards a MacroCosmic View of Leviticus
By Molly Karp

“God called to Moshe and spoke to
him from the Tent of Meeting, saying: Speak to the Children of Israel
and say to them “When a person from among them would bring near (yakriv) an
offering (korban) to Adonoi from the cattle, from the herd and from the flocks you
shall bring near (takrivu) your offering. (korbanchem) ” Leviticus 1:1-2

These
opening verses of Vayikra contain the Hebrew root k-r-v four times, referring to both the person who approaches God,
and the offering that s/he brings near to God in order to approach the Holy Presence. What we generally translate as “sacrifice” is
literally the thing that we bring near to God in order to come near to God’s
presence.

Vayikra is the central book of the Torah. It is a catalogue of instructions Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-03-25T10:11:23-04:00March 25, 2009|

Shabbat Ha-Hodesh

By Rabbi Robert Waxman

The additional Torah reading for this Shabbat of Ha-Hodesh – “This month…” (Ex. 12:1-20), falls on Rosh Hodesh Nisan or the Shabbat preceding. The Shabbat has awesome responsibilities. It announces the new moon and the new month of Nisan which is the first of the months. Ha-Hodesh tells us to get ready for Passover, which falls in the middle of Nisan. Spring is here. Now is the time to get ready to plant the spring crops.

This can be a spiritual time for us. Spring is associated with new buds on trees, new plants, full of green, popping up and seeking the warmth of the rays of sunlight after resting during the winter months. As we walk around slowly, we have the opportunity to marvel how the organisms of the earth know that it is time for re-birth. Last month, on February 12, we marked the 200th birthday of Charles Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-03-17T16:41:45-04:00March 17, 2009|

Parashat Terumah

Doug Alpert

This week’s parashah, Terumah,is arguably one of the less enthralling parashot in the Torah. God instructs Moshe Rabeinu, Moses Our Teacher, regarding the building of the Mishkan-the Holy Tabernacle. The ensuing instructions are provided in exhaustive detail challenging the reader, as well as many of our great Biblical exegetes to derive meaning and purpose from the mere form of the text-i.e., that it is so detailed, much less as to the content of the instructions. For me form does matter, and it says much about who we are as a people. (And besides, as this is the parashah of my Bar Mitzvah I do confess to a special affinity for Terumah. Probably a good early lesson for me on why there is no parcel of Torah that is devoid of great meaning, purpose and wealth.)

One of many areas in which this level of detailed instruction plays out is in the Read More >

By Doug Alpert|2009-02-25T19:46:00-05:00February 25, 2009|

Parashat Mishpatim

Enid C. Lader

In last week’s Torah portion, we were commanded to “Honor your father and your mother…” [Ex. 20:12] As we recall the mitzvah, we usually stop with these six (in English; five in Hebrew) words. But, wait; there’s more! The verse continues: “… that you may prolong your days on the land that the Lord your God is giving to you.” This appears to be teaching us that respecting our parents is connected to long life. It is even more importantly teaching us that obligations toward our parents are directly related to our relationship with God. Rabbi Dayle A. Friedman, writing in That You May Live Long: Caring for Our Aging Parents, Caring for Ourselves, suggests that “… clearly the connection to God underscores the importance of the mitzvah. Perhaps the text draws an analogy between our obligations to parents and our obligations to God… That the promised reward is Read More >

By Rabbi Enid C. Lader|2009-02-18T13:49:14-05:00February 18, 2009|

Parashat Yitro

Moses learns a lesson in management
Irwin Huberman

There once was a CEO of a major corporation whose dedication to his work and to his employees was legendary.

He would arrive at his desk at sunrise, and would not return home until well past nightfall. For the entire day he would not only attend to his own responsibilities, but would also assist his employees to navigate the pathways of their own lives.

People would come to him with not only with their own work issues, but also with their interpersonal problems. The CEO was wise and revered, and the lineup outside his office door was constant and never ending.

One day, his father’in-law, Yitro, a person of wisdom and experience, came to visit and noticed not only the long lineup, but also the physical toll it was taking on his son-in-law.

And he uttered the words, which would be forever inscribed in the corporate tradition. Yitro Read More >

By Rabbi Irwin Huberman|2009-02-11T20:19:00-05:00February 11, 2009|

Parashat Bâ€™shalah

Parashat B’shalah
By Bruce Alpert

Twenty-eight years ago – like today – the US watched a new administration come to power. Perhaps Ronald Reagan’s most controversial appointee was his designated Secretary of State, Alexander Haig who, as a retired general, was feared to have the same militaristic instincts as his new boss. During his confirmation hearing, he was questioned about the dangers of war in those unsettled times. “There are worse things; there are more important things,” he said. “This Republic was spawned by armed conflict . . . we fought and died to prevent dictatorship and genocide, in the Second World War, from becoming the rule of the land. There are things worth fighting for.”

The sentiments that gave rise to General Haig’s comments are reflected in the opening verse of our Torah portion this week. There we are told that God did not lead the newly escaped Israelites by the nearer path Read More >

By Bruce Alpert|2009-02-03T10:28:37-05:00February 3, 2009|

Parashat Bo

By Jill Hackell

Parashat Bo is the climax of the story of the Exodus from Egypt. Pharaoh seems on the verge of letting the people go; indeed his courtiers are already convinced that Egypt is lost. Yet, heart-hardened, he refuses permission again, and three more plagues are unleashed – locusts, darkness, and the most terrible plague of all, the death of all the firstborn of Egypt. The remainder of the parashah recounts the events of that night, when the Israelites prepared for their departure from Egypt, and ensures that this pivotal moment of our history will be recorded forever in the collective memory of the Jewish people.

How do we remember? Through signs and symbols, through conscious action, and through retelling. In my family, there is a ring that belonged to my grandfather’s sister, marked with the numbers 1913 (This is a sign). My mother received it when she graduated high school, gave it Read More >

By Rabbi Jill Hackell M.D.|2009-01-28T14:43:52-05:00January 28, 2009|

Parashat Vaera

By Paul Hoffman

This week has been one of history-in-the-making as the first man of color was the people’s overwhelming favorite to step into the White House and assume the Presidency of the USA. As with every new administration, it is only normal for Americans to hope that a significant level of change for the better will ensue, and today is certainly no different. Currently our country is divided on two levels as we are not only at war in Iraq and Afghanistan, but our economy is in such dire straits that it has been likened to that of the Great Depression. I can’t imagine what pressure Barack Obama is experiencing. So far he has displayed intelligence and articulation and has done a masterful job in choosing a diverse and qualified cabinet. However, if I were he, I’d also be searching for a mentor, one who has experience in leading a nation in Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-01-20T10:48:52-05:00January 20, 2009|

Parashat Vayehi

By Molly Karp

Our parashah this week, Vayehi, records the deaths of both Jacob and Joseph, and allows us to see that both of these two well-flawed individuals seem to grow significantly in character. They are able to look back at their mistakes and do some things differently at the end.

Adopting Joseph’s sons Ephraim and Menasheh as his own, Jacob reverses their birth order while blessing them. Although it is not explicitly clear whether Isaac knew he was blessing Jacob and not Esau with the blessing of the first-born, the text makes it clear that it was God’s will for the younger to receive the blessing of the elder; indeed, in Toldot we read God’s words to Rebecca:

Two nations are in your womb,
Two separate peoples shall issue from your body;
One people shall be mightier than the other,
Read More >

By ahsilver|2009-01-06T15:57:46-05:00January 6, 2009|

Parashat Vayigash

By Mark H. Getman

Forgiveness comes in many shades and gradations. In Vayigash we read of Joseph’s forgiveness towards his brothers. As we see in Genesis 45:5 “And now, do not be troubled, nor let it be disturbing in your eyes that you have sold me into this place, for God sent me before you in order to preserve life.” This is a clear indication that Joseph did not harbor any bad feelings towards his brothers for their actions. As we approach the Common New Year many of us recall actions that fell upon us by others over the past year. When those actions occurred to us, did we feel vengeful? When the wrong doers admitted their wrongdoing and took responsibility for what they have done, did we forgive them? Do we feel that it is better or more hurtful to the person we wronged to admit our wrongdoing?

Joseph doesn’t show any signs Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-12-31T14:38:21-05:00December 31, 2008|

Parashat Miketz

By Hayley Siegel

At face value, our currency is just a simple piece of paper. That currency only becomes activated when we invest it with our trust in each other and our institutions, and receive that trust in return from others. However, if we look into our world today, there is a lack of trust on the part of investors and lenders and for good reason. The recent Bernard Madoff financial scandal has been a tragic illustration of trust’s betrayal. In this week’s Torah portion, Miketz, we witness our ancient ancestors grapple with similar challenges during times of economic hardship. Joseph’s reconciliation with his brothers, who come to him for help during the famine, teaches us important lessons about how it is necessary to rebuild trust and faith in each other before we may move forward to overcome pressing challenges and survive great hardships.

Our narrative takes place in Egypt in a time of Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-12-27T21:45:00-05:00December 27, 2008|

Parashat Veyeshev

Joan Lenowitz

Just when our own breathing quickens, as Joseph, Jacob’s favorite, is thrown into the pit and then sold off by his treacherous brothers in one of the most suspenseful narratives in the Torah, there comes a pregnant pause. The scene recedes from view, with Joseph on his way to his daring adventures in Egypt, and our attention turns to a vignette of Judah and Tamar, seemingly only tangentially related to the main narrative.

Judah has taken himself a wife from among the Canaanites; she bears him three sons but then dies. Judah chooses Tamar as a wife for the first son Er, but God is displeased with him and shortens his life. Tamar is then given, as a levirate wife, to the second son, Onan with the expectation that he will fulfill his obligation to procreate with Tamar on behalf of his deceased brother. God is displeased with the second son, Onan, Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-12-20T17:56:08-05:00December 20, 2008|

Parashat Vayishlah

The courage to say “I’m sorry.”
By Irwin Huberman

There are two short phrases which are among the most powerful in our tradition.

They are “I’m sorry,” and “I forgive you,” and they both come into play in this week’s parashah, Vayishlah, as our forefather Jacob comes to grips with two enemies who have haunted him since his departure from Isaac and Rebecca’s household.

They are Esau, and himself.

The story of how Jacob tricked Isaac into receiving the family birthright is one of the most famous in our tradition. In the weekly Torah portion that we read two weeks ago, Jacob disguises himself as his gruff brother Esau, and accepts the “blessing of the firstborn” from his confused father. Aside from some token signs of remorse, Jacob, prompted by his mother, coolly executes the plan of deceit.

To this point, Jacob is less than what we could consider a model forefather. In some Read More >

By Rabbi Irwin Huberman|2008-12-18T07:08:05-05:00December 18, 2008|

Parashat Vayetze

Parashat Vayetze begins and ends with Yaakov encountering angels; first in a dream, and then, presumably, in a vision or daydream of some sort.

A commentary in the Etz Chaim Chumash suggests that these encounters serve as bookends, or parentheses, bracketing Yaakov’s 20 years in Laban’s home. I will return to that thought.

But we also know that angels appear for a reason. Sometimes it’s to bring good news, such as telling Sarah she will have a child. But, sometimes, the news isn’t so good, as in the case of Sodom and Gomorrah.

This second possibility gives a 1968 movie its title – “Where Angels go, Trouble Follows.” In that movie, Rosalind Russell plays an old-fashioned Mother Superior who takes the young nuns and girls of her school on a cross-country trip. It’s a comedy of errors as they have multiple bus mishaps, are forced to stay at a Catholic school Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-12-03T20:08:15-05:00December 3, 2008|

Parashat Toldot

By Doug Alpert

How do we define greatness? And moreover, by what criteria do we establish those who we believe possess qualities of greatness as our leaders? I pose these questions as a means to understanding our patriarch-Yitzhak Avinu/Isaac. If one can suggest with a straight face that any one of our patriarchs is a forgotten patriarch, it would be Isaac.

From the beginning of this week’s parashah, Toldot, the Torah defines Isaac within the context of his father, Avraham. “Avraham was the father of Yitzhak.” (Bereshit 25:19) Rashi’s exegesis on this verse suggests that its inclusion in our Torah was to establish, in contravention to anyone who might be dubious in regard to Isaac’s lineage, that Isaac was really the progeny of Avraham and Sarah. And, to drive home the point, Rashi states that G-d shaped Isaac’s facial features to be similar to those of Avraham. Thus, lest there be any Read More >

By Doug Alpert|2008-11-27T21:43:03-05:00November 27, 2008|

Parashat Hayyei Sarah

By Molly Karp

Hayyei Sarah, while not the only parashah named for a person, is the only one named for a woman. It is not surprising that it is named for Sarah; what is surprising, however, is that this parashah seems not to be about Sarah Imeinu – Sarah Our Mother – at all! What really is going on here?

The first chapter of the parashah is about Abraham’s purchasing a burial cave for Sarah from Ephron the Hittite. Sarah is not an active character in this chapter; we know nothing about her death save that it is recorded directly following Abraham’s returning home alone from the near-sacrifice of Isaac, but that is the topic of another d’var Torah. The second chapter of the parashah, Chapter 24 is the longest chapter in B’reshit, and one of the central ones as well. Its placement tells us that it is a most important chapter. By Read More >

By ahsilver|2008-11-12T09:24:43-05:00November 12, 2008|

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|

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