וַיֹּ֕אמֶר לֹ֥א תוּכַ֖ל לִרְאֹ֣ת אֶת־פָּנָ֑י כִּ֛י לֹֽא־יִרְאַ֥נִי הָאָדָ֖ם וָחָֽי׃ “you cannot see My face, for a human being may not see Me and live.” (Ex. 33.20) “You can’t handle the truth.” – Col. Jessup, A Few Good Men, Aaron Sorkin, 1992 This Shabbat we read from parashat Ki Tisa, in close proximity to the storyContinue reading “Shabbat Ki Tisa: Truth requires Mercy”
Tag Archives: Israel
Shabbat Zakhor: What are we supposed to remember? to forget?
What are we supposed to remember to forget? Remember what Amalek did to you on your journey, after you left Egypt— how, undeterred by fear of G!d, they surprised you on the march, when you were famished and weary, and cut down all the stragglers in your rear. Therefore…you shall blot out the memory ofContinue reading “Shabbat Zakhor: What are we supposed to remember? to forget?”
Shabbat Mishpatim: Narrow Bridge
וְדַע, שֶׁהָאָדָם צָרִיךְ לַעֲבֹר עַל גֶּשֶׁר צַר מְאֹד מְאֹד, וְהַכְּלָל וְהָעִקָּר – שֶׁלֹּא יִתְפַּחֵד כְּלָל Know that a person needs to cross a very very narrow bridge, and the rule, the essence, is to not give in to fear at all. Rebbe Nahman of Bratslav, Likkutei Mohoran II.48 וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהוֹשֻׁ֜עַ אֶל־הָעָ֗ם לֹ֤א תֽוּכְלוּ֙ לַעֲבֹ֣ד אֶת־יְהֹוָ֔הContinue reading “Shabbat Mishpatim: Narrow Bridge”
Shabbat Yitro: Silence
The Still, Small Voice This week our parashat hashavua narrates a – literally – peak moment in the Israelite story: the revelation at Mt Sinai. It’s a moment that our ancestors assumed was full of intensity and the resultant stress. One midrash goes so far as to aver that our ancestors died when they heardContinue reading “Shabbat Yitro: Silence”
Shabbat Hayye Sarah: The Opposite of Despair
If you have been watching the news with anything like the frequency of the average person in the U.S. over the past few weeks, you may rightly be feeling overwhelmed. The urge to despair is strong for those of us who believe that the most recent election results are catastrophic for human rights, civil rights,Continue reading “Shabbat Hayye Sarah: The Opposite of Despair”
Shabbat Ekev: What If You’re Mistaken?
Getting all judge-y אַל־תֹּאמַ֣ר בִּלְבָבְךָ֗ בַּהֲדֹ֣ף יְהֹוָה֩ אֱלֹהֶ֨יךָ אֹתָ֥ם ׀ מִלְּפָנֶ֘יךָ֮ לֵאמֹר֒ בְּצִדְקָתִי֙ הֱבִיאַ֣נִי ה’ לָרֶ֖שֶׁת אֶת־הָאָ֣רֶץ הַזֹּ֑את And when your God ‘ה has thrust them from your path, say not to yourselves, “יהוה has enabled us to possess this land because of our virtues”. (Devarim 9.4) This week is the second of Seven Weeks of Consolation,Continue reading “Shabbat Ekev: What If You’re Mistaken?”
Shabbat Shelakh L’kha: Israel Is Neither Here Nor There
This week’s parashah is a turning point for our people, and not a good one. Astonishingly enough, the journey from the foot of Mt Sinai to the edge of what the Torah calls the Land of the Promise is relatively very short: our ancestors began to journey in last week’s parashah and already they haveContinue reading “Shabbat Shelakh L’kha: Israel Is Neither Here Nor There”
From Whence Our Help
The established leadership of the American Jewish community is freaking out. Why is the response to the horrific events of October 7 2023 in some ways more extreme here than in Israel? For some time now I’ve been convinced that we are in transition to a new Third Era of Jewish life; that as aContinue reading “From Whence Our Help”
Shabbat Toldot: It Can Stop Here
Have you ever been vilified? Or known someone who was? We tend to shake our heads over the person as well as the process, decrying “cancel culture” but believing that the lashon hara’ must have some root in truth. Our parashat hashavua describes two brothers, twins, who are quite different. One loves the outdoors andContinue reading “Shabbat Toldot: It Can Stop Here”
Shabbat VaYishlakh: Becoming Whole By Becoming Oneself
There’s a crack in everything – that’s how the light gets in – Leonard Cohen ז״ל In this week’s parashah, the eponymous ancestor of the People of Israel is given the name Israel. The deceiving, conniving, too smart by half Jacob has apparently achieved some kind of transition. The people Israel has for two thousandContinue reading “Shabbat VaYishlakh: Becoming Whole By Becoming Oneself”
Torah for the 21st Century by Rabbi Ariel Stone 