• The True Fulfillment of Terumah

    This week’s Torah portion, Terumah, begins: “Speak to the children of Israel, and they should take terumah (gifts/donation) for me, from every person who’s heart gives, shall you take my terumah.”    The Torah then proceeds to list the types of gifts that the jewish people should give for the building of the Tabernacle, such…

  • Responsibility in the Face of Tragedy

    This Shabbat is the double parsha of Bihar-Bechukotai.   In Bechukotai we read of the blessings and curses which outline the good things that will happen to the Jews as a nation if they obey the word of God and the terrible things which will befall them if they do not.   Though these end…

  • Sacrifice, Mystery, and Meaning

    Now to this week’s Torah portion, Trumah, in which we begin to read the description of the Tabernacle and its vessels.   The laws of the Tabernacle take up an enormous amount of space in the Torah.  Is the Tabernacle really so central to Jewish life that it should occupy more space than any other…

  • Embracing Tradition and Reason in a Modern World

    In this week’s parsha God tells Yitzchak He will bless him, “because Avrohom listened to My voice, and guarded my commandments and my Torah.”   According to Rash”i this verse tells us that Avrohom actually kept the entire Torah even though it was not yet commanded.   The Kabbalah says that this was possible since…

  • The Joy and Opportunity of the High Holidays

    It is almost Rosh Hashanah and we all approach the High Holidays with different feelings and perspectives.  Some are worried about the coming year and hope that prayer will secure a healthy and prosperous year for them.  Others want to fulfill their chivuvim – obligations and mitzvot – by praying, hearing the shofar and fasting. …

  • From Exile to Redemption: The Power of Transition

    This week’s double parsha of Bihar and Bechukotai begins with shemitah, the commandment to let the land lay fallow every seven years.   One of the purposes of this mitzvah is for us to realize that we are not in charge.  We do not make the rain fall or the crops grow, nor did we…

  • Embracing Change on the Road to Redemption

    This week’s double parsha of Bihar and Bechukotai begins with shemitah, the commandment to let the land lay fallow every seven years.   One of the purposes of this mitzvah is for us to realize that we are not in charge.  We do not make the rain fall or the crops grow, nor did we…

  • Building Community Through Exile and Renewal

    This week’s parsha, Ki Tavo, begins with the first fruits.   The Torah tells us that the farmer in the Land of Israel must bring a basket of the first fruits of the orchard to the Temple, give them to the Kohen to wave, and make the following declaration:  “An Aramean tried to destroy my…

  • The Mishkan: A Sanctuary of Spiritual Maturity

    In the beginning of this week’s Torah Portion, Terumah, Moses has just ascended Mount Sinai after the saying of the aseret hadibrot, Ten Commandments, and G-d now commands Moses to tell the Jewish People to collect funds for the building of the Mishkan, (Tabernacle), a moving Temple the Jewish people traveled with in the desert. …

  • The Balance We Must Uphold as a People

    This Sunday we will observe the fast day of the 17th of Tammuz, which commemorates the siege of Jerusalem leading to the destruction of the Temple.  The Talmud says that the Temple was destroyed due to baseless hatred among Jews.  This is hard to avoid, for as one great thinker said, “We see anyone more…

  • The Nighttime Prayer: Transforming Darkness into Light

    The Talmud writes that we learn to pray three times a day from both the sacrifices in the Temple and from our Avot, Avrohom, Yitzchak and Yaakov.  Avrohom stood before god just after the destruction of Sodom, and the Talmud says “standing” means prayer.  Reguarding Yitzchak the Torah tells us, “And Yitzchak went out to…

  • Understanding Bilam’s Spiritual Failure

    In this week’s parsha, Balak, Balak the king of Moav realizes he will not be able to defeat the Jewish people in war and that he must reckon with them on a spiritual level.  He hires Billam, a Midianite prophet, to curse the Jews.   Bilam tells God about the Jewish people, that they came…

  • The Tension of Sinai and Shmita

    This week’s double Torah portion of Bihar and Bichukoti begins, “And G-d spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai saying, speak to the Children of Israel and say to them, when you enter the land which I am giving you the land must rest a Sabbath to G-d…six years you shall plant….and the seventh year shall…

  • Concrete Worship or Spiritual Growth

    In the beginning of this week’s Torah portion, Terumah, Moses has just ascended Mount Sinai after the saying of the aseret hadibrot, Ten Commandments, and God now commands Moses to tell the Jewish people to collect funds for the building of the Mishkan, (Tabernacle), a moving temple the Jewish people traveled with in the desert.…

  • The Call of Elul: Listening as the First Step to Return

    We are currently in the month of Elul, the Hebrew month preceding the days of awe.   This is the month spent cultivating tishuvah.  Tishuvah is often translated as repentance but literally means return.   The Torah portion this week speaks of blessings and curses.  The Jewish people are promised blessing if they listen to…

  • Moshe’s Prayer for Compassionate Guidance

    In this week’s parsha, Pinchas, Moshe begins to prepare for the succession of his leadership:  “Moses spoke to the Lord, saying, “Let the Lord, God of the breath of all flesh, appoint someone over the community.”” Moshe’s wording is strange in many ways.  This is the only place in the Torah where the verse, “And…

  • Protecting Our Community in Times of Uncertainty

    This coming week the Mayor of Washington, D.C. will lift the mandatory mask mandate.  According to the Mayor, the city is getting out of the business of mandates and leaving it up to individuals, organizations and businesses to make decisions regarding the best way to protect themselves and their constituents, utilizing “layered mitigation strategies.”  …

  • Beyond Rebuke: Transforming Hatred into Compassion

    We are now in the midst of the period of the Three Weeks, a sad time during which we mourn the destruction of both Temples.  The Talmud writes that the Temple was destroyed and the Jewish people exiled at this time due to sinat chinam, baseless hatred. In fact though, all hatred is forbidden, as…

  • Embracing Light and Darkness in Jewish Tradition

    One of Judaism’s greatest strengths is its ability to utilize every emotion.  For example, many people try to avoid sadness, but Judaism has a day, Tisha B’av, entirely focused on a sadness so deep that we sit on the ground and cry, feeling as if we have lost a loved one.  Purim, in contrast, utilizes…

  • The Transformative Journey of Yom Kippur

    It is almost Rosh Hashanah and we all approach the High Holidays with different feelings and perspectives.  Some are worried about the coming year and hope that prayer will secure a healthy and prosperous year for them.  Others want to fulfill their chivuvim -obligations and mitzvot – by praying, hearing the shofar and fasting.  Still…