rabbiariel

Shabbat Korakh: An Authentic Team Member

וַיִּקַּ֣ח קֹ֔רַח בֶּן־יִצְהָ֥ר בֶּן־קְהָ֖ת בֶּן־לֵוִ֑י Now Korah, son of Izhar son of Kohath son of Levi, took… (Numbers 16.1) found on a wall at a resistance gathering in October 2021, Portland Oregon The parashah for this week’s learning is Korakh, named for the leader of a rebellion against Moshe. It’s not the first rebellion norContinue reading “Shabbat Korakh: An Authentic Team Member”

Shabbat Shelakh L’kha: Look and Remember

Look at Them and Remember seen in a clothing store window on Ben Yehudah Street in Jerusalem In this week’s Torah reading, parashat hashavua Shelakh L’kha, we come across a very familiar text to anyone who davens even irregularly: דַּבֵּ֞ר אֶל־בְּנֵ֤י יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֲלֵהֶ֔ם וְעָשׂ֨וּ לָהֶ֥ם צִיצִ֛ת עַל־כַּנְפֵ֥י בִגְדֵיהֶ֖ם לְדֹרֹתָ֑ם וְנָ֥תְנ֛וּ עַל־צִיצִ֥ת הַכָּנָ֖ף פְּתִ֥יל תְּכֵֽלֶת׃ Continue reading “Shabbat Shelakh L’kha: Look and Remember”

Shabbat BeHa’alot’kha: It Won’t be Perfect, Do It Anyway

There is a difference between Christian and Jewish religious ethics: Christian theology posits that the messiah has already arrived, and therefore they are called upon to practice messianic ethics. For Jews, who are still waiting for a messiah, all we have are messy ethics. – Dr Byron Sherwin ז״ל For this week in which weContinue reading “Shabbat BeHa’alot’kha: It Won’t be Perfect, Do It Anyway”

Shabbat Naso 5786

“if I were a rich man…” הַמַּבְדִיל בֵּין קֹדֶשׁ לְחוֹל. חַטֹּאתֵינוּ הוּא יִמְחוֹל. זַרְעֵנוּ וְכַסְפֵּנוּ יַרְבֶּה כַּחוֹל. וְכַכּוֹכָבִים בַּלָּיְלָה May HaShem who separates between the holy and the mundane forgive our sins and increase our offspring and our money like sand and like stars at night – from the Havdalah prayer This is the oldestContinue reading “Shabbat Naso 5786”

Shabbat Shavuot: Process Not Place

Receiving the Torah, Moving Toward Wholeness Giving of the Torah: Becoming Whole ראוים היו ישראל לקבל התורה במדבר דווקא, כי האדם שנקרא על שם האדמה, כאשר אין לו תורה נחשב כמדבר שאין בו עשב וצמח האדמה. ובשביל חסרון האדם שהוא כמו מדבר ניתנה לו התורה להשלימו, ואז האדמה הזאת מוציאה אילנות וצמחים שלה. It wasContinue reading “Shabbat Shavuot: Process Not Place”

Shabbat BaMidbar: Standing Together

כל ישראל ערבין זה בזה kol yisrael arevin zeh bazeh All Israel are guarantors, each for each other שאו את ראש כל עדת בני ישראל. אין עלויין של ישראל אלא בקיום התורה, ועל כן אחז הכתוב לשון שאו שהוא לשון כולל “take a census of the entire assembly of the Jewish people, etc.” TheContinue reading “Shabbat BaMidbar: Standing Together”

Shabbat Emor: from suffering to hope

בַּחֹ֨דֶשׁ הַשֵּׁנִ֜י בְּאַרְבָּעָ֨ה עָשָׂ֥ר י֛וֹם בֵּ֥ין הָעַרְבַּ֖יִם יַעֲשׂ֣וּ אֹת֑וֹ עַל־מַצּ֥וֹת וּמְרֹרִ֖ים יֹאכְלֻֽהוּ׃ לֹֽא־יַשְׁאִ֤ירוּ מִמֶּ֙נּוּ֙ עַד־בֹּ֔קֶר וְעֶ֖צֶם לֹ֣א יִשְׁבְּרוּ־ב֑וֹ כְּכׇל־חֻקַּ֥ת הַפֶּ֖סַח יַעֲשׂ֥וּ אֹתֽוֹ׃ They shall offer [Pesakh Sheni] in the second month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight. They shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, and they shall not leaveContinue reading “Shabbat Emor: from suffering to hope”

Shabbat Akharei Mot/Kedoshim 5786

Shabbat Akharei Mot Kedoshim 5786:Be Holy (Like a Pharisee) (Pharisees), [literally: “those who are separated” from self-indulgence, as will be explained, or “those who practice self-restraint”]. – R Moshe ben Nakhman This Shabbat is the first after the 78th observance of the establishment of the modern state of Israel. Balancing a fine line between my own feelingsContinue reading “Shabbat Akharei Mot/Kedoshim 5786”

Shabbat of Pesakh 5786: That Matzah on Our Back

מָזְגוּ לוֹ כוֹס שֵׁנִי….מַתְחִיל בִּגְנוּת וּמְסַיֵּם בְּשֶׁבַח They pour the second cup, and begin with the disgrace of our ancestors, ending with glory (Mishnah Pesakhim 10.4) 1. They pour the first cup….and recite the blessing for the day 2. They bring unleavened bread, lettuce, and haroset…they bring the Pesakh lamb 3. They pour the secondContinue reading “Shabbat of Pesakh 5786: That Matzah on Our Back”

Shabbat HaGadol: Leaving Egypt

בְּכָל דּוֹר וָדוֹר חַיָּב אָדָם לִרְאוֹת אֶת עַצְמוֹ כְאִלּוּ הוּא יָצָא מִמִּצְרַיִם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שמות יג), וְהִגַּדְתָּ לְבִנְךָ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא לֵאמֹר, בַּעֲבוּר זֶה עָשָׂה ה’ לִי בְּצֵאתִי מִמִּצְרָיִם In each and every generation a person must view himself as though he personally left Egypt, as it is stated: “And you shall tell your child on thatContinue reading “Shabbat HaGadol: Leaving Egypt”