The fifty days between the two harvest festivals of Pesakh and Shavuot are traditionally counted. The daily count is called Sefirat haOmer, the “counting of the [barley] measure,” because in the unceasing toil of ancient agricultural subsistence, every day of the harvest was a time to count in gratitude and in hope for continuing harvest. … Continue reading
Shabbat hol hamo’ed Pesakh: the Imperative of Joy
On Sunday evening at our Second Seder we counted the plagues: world wide pandemic and more than 2.5 million souls lost Oregon fires Texas ice storm George Floyd economic hardship assault on the U.S. Capitol children in U.S. concentration camps 31 million people without health insurance white supremacy violence The Federal government repeatedly using weapons … Continue reading
We Need a Nekhemta
Spring is here – and with it, more light! We can go outside, safely distanced, and bask in sunshine. Relief for light, and the ability to see more and further, is a natural response. We are like the new growth it the spring, flowering in delight. But after the last 9 days, with eight massacred … Continue reading
Shabbat Tetzaveh: For Want of a Tent Peg
Our parashat hashavua is Tetzaveh, from the same root as mitzvah, that is, obligation. The parashah’s name is generic: every week we are presented with mitzvot, which we are to carry out. No matter what the occasion or occurrence, there’s always a mitzvah to fulfill; this is the framework that structures Jewish life. The mitzvot … Continue reading
Shabbat Zakhor: Remember to Forget
The parashat hashavua is Terumah, which begins with the insistence that if we would know the holy – know peace, serenity, friendship and love – we must build a holy place in which to focus our intention: Let Them make Me a sanctuary where I can be among them (Exodus 25.8) We cannot truly understand … Continue reading
Shabbat Mishpatim: The Necessary Subversiveness of Delight
Be Happy, It’s Adar! How is it possible that we can be commanded to be happy on a given day? That on the first of Adar, two weeks from Purim, we should somehow manage to be joyful? The more we know of life, the more we are saddened. Global communication brings news of a friend’s … Continue reading
