The AJR Center for Judaism and Science has an annual competition for the best student D’var Torah infused with science. Click here to view the entries that have won our לדעת חכמה (Lada’at Hokhmah) Award.
Parashat Vayeira 5786
November 3, 2025
Rabbi Rachel Posner and PhD
Abraham’s Vision: Welcoming the Stranger A D’var Torah for Parashat Vayeira by Rabbi Rachel Posner, Ph.D. (AJR 25) In the middle of the day, under the full weight of the desert sun, God appears to Abraham as he sits at the entrance of his tent. So opens the scene in which we witness our patriarch’s radical hospitality. The theme of vision preoccupies the opening of our (appropriately titled) Parashat Vayeira (“and He appeared”): Genesis 18:1–2 וַיֵּרָ֤א אֵלָיו֙ הֹ’ בְּאֵלֹנֵ֖י מַמְרֵ֑א וְה֛וּא יֹשֵׁ֥ב פֶּֽתַח־הָאֹ֖הֶל כְּחֹ֥ם הַיּֽוֹם׃ HaShem appeared to him by the terebinths of Mamre; he was sitting at the entrance of the tent as the day grew hot. וַיִּשָּׂ֤א עֵינָיו֙ וַיַּ֔רְא וְהִנֵּה֙ שְׁלֹשָׁ֣ה אֲנָשִׁ֔ים נִצָּבִ֖ים עָלָ֑יו וַיַּ֗רְא וַיָּ֤רׇץ לִקְרָאתָם֙ מִפֶּ֣תַח הָאֹ֔הֶל וַיִּשְׁתַּ֖חוּ אָֽרְצָה׃ Looking up, he saw three figures standing near him. Perceiving this, he ran from the entrance of the tent to greet them, bowing to the ground. God...
October 27, 2025
Rabbi Kaya Stern-Kaufman
The Eternal As Our Compass A D’var Torah for Lekha By Rabba Kaya Stern-Kaufman The Eternal As Our Compass A D’var Torah for Parashat Lekh Lekha By Rabba Kaya Stern-Kaufman (AJR ’11) Perhaps you are familiar with the opening phrase of this week’s Torah portion in which God speaks to Avram and tells him “Lekh Lekha-Go Forth, and leave your native land and your father’s house.” Much ink has been spilled exploring the meaning of these opening words; the command to leave behind all that is familiar. But this week, I want to focus on Avram’s destination. There is an interesting lack of clarity as to where exactly he, and by extension, we are meant to go. The complete opening verse states: And the Eternal said to Avram, Go forth from your native land, and from your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” (Gen. 12:1) And thus, the story of the founding of the...
Parashat Noah – 5786
October 20, 2025
Rabbi Anat Katzir
Thinking about floods, languages, anger and love A D’var Torah for Parashat Noah By Rabbi Anat Katzir (AJR ’22) As I am writing this D’var, I am feeling flooded. Flooded with so much emotion. Flooded with feelings that I have been accumulating over two years and some that were building even longer. Hearing the story of Noah and the flood as a child seemed magical, a miraculous tale of survival. But a flood of such proportions seemed unrelatable, unreal, a legend. Something so scary, powerful, non-discriminatory in its destruction, that it could only be a myth. Then two years ago, in one day, the idea of such a flood became all too real as I woke up at 4 a.m. to the updates on the TV as Israeli news was in the background. That part wasn’t uncommon. Falling asleep to the news of Israel continuously playing on the TV. But that morning the headlines were...
Parashat Bereisheet – 5786
October 13, 2025
Rabbi Scott “Shalom” Klein
A Work in Progress: God’s Ongoing Creation and Our Role in It A D’var Torah for Parashat Bereisheet By Rabbi Scott “Shalom” Klein (AJR ’24) The opening verses of Parashat Bereisheet describe a familiar scene: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” We are taught that creation unfolds over seven days, each marked by a specific act of divine utterance and artistry. From the light to the firmament, from the trees to the stars, we witness a world being meticulously brought into being. And then, on the seventh day, God rests. The story seems complete. Yet, a closer look reveals that the creation narrative is not simply a historical account of a completed event. The text states: “Vayekhal Elohim bayom ha-shevi’i melakhto asher asah”—”God completed (or ceased from) on the seventh day His work that He had done” (Genesis 2:2). This specific choice of the root k.l.h (כ.ל.ה) for “completed/ceased” (often translated...
Parashat Ha’azinu – 5786
September 29, 2025
Rabbi Rob Scheinberg
“From the hands of his enemies and from the hands of Saul” A D’var Torah for Parashat Ha’azinu By Rabbi Rob Scheinberg The traditional cycle of Haftarot, prophetic readings for each Shabbat and holiday of the year, is one of the more confusing parts of synagogue ritual, between the numerous differences in practice between Ashkenazic and Sefardic communities, the even greater number of divergences in practice when one considers the Italian and Mizrahi rites, and the quirks of the holiday cycle that are hard for anyone to keep track of without a detailed perpetual calendar (or a website like hebcal.com). This is one of the relatively few years when traditional Jewish communities read the Haftarah for the Torah portion of Ha’azinu, a poem from the end of the 2nd Book of Samuel (2 Samuel 22). Most frequently, the Torah portion of Ha’azinu is read between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur, prompting the assignment of a special haftarah for...
