וְלֹ֥א אִתְּכֶ֖ם לְבַדְּכֶ֑ם אָנֹכִ֗י כֹּרֵת֙ אֶת־הַבְּרִ֣ית הַזֹּ֔את וְאֶת־הָאָלָ֖ה הַזֹּֽאת כִּי֩ אֶת־אֲשֶׁ֨ר יֶשְׁנ֜וֹ פֹּ֗ה עִמָּ֙נוּ֙ עֹמֵ֣ד הַיּ֔וֹם לִפְנֵ֖י ה’ אֱלֹהֵ֑ינוּ וְאֵ֨ת אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֵינֶ֛נּוּ פֹּ֖ה עִמָּ֥נוּ הַיּֽוֹם׃ I make this covenant, with its sanctions, not with you alone, but both with those who are standing here with us this day before our God HaShem and with thoseContinue reading “Shabbat Nitzavim-VaYelekh 5786: All Of Us”
Tag Archives: Torah
Shabbat Shoftim: Singular and Plural
ancient wall with gateway at Tel Dan, northern Galilee _______________________________________________________ doing the same thing over and over gets old after a while, so we take a break. Is that all there is to the acts of our lives, and the work of our hands? In their wisdom, our ancestors understood that human nature is changeable;Continue reading “Shabbat Shoftim: Singular and Plural”
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 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 VaYakhel-Pekudey:
“‘Where is the dwelling of G*d?’ This is the question with which the Rabbi of Kotzk surprised a number of learned scholars who happened to be visiting him. They laughed at him: ‘What a thing to ask! Is not the whole world full of G*d’s glory?’ Then he answered his own question: ‘G*d dwells whereverContinue reading “Shabbat VaYakhel-Pekudey:”
Shabbat Parah 5786: That Golden Calf, Again
מִקְדָּשׁ רִאשׁוֹן מִפְּנֵי מָה חָרַב — מִפְּנֵי דְּבָרִים שֶׁהָיוּ בּוֹ: עֲבוֹדָה זָרָה וּשְׁפִיכוּת דָּמִים. Due to what reason was the First Temple destroyed? It was destroyed due to matters that existed in the First Temple [including]: Idol worship and bloodshed. מִקְדָּשׁ שֵׁנִי מִפְּנֵי מָה חָרַב? מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהָיְתָה בּוֹ שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם. לְלַמֶּדְךָ שֶׁשְּׁקוּלָה שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם כְּנֶגֶדContinue reading “Shabbat Parah 5786: That Golden Calf, Again”
Torah for the 21st Century by Rabbi Ariel Stone 