This week we begin the story of Joseph, which will take up most of the remainder of the Book of Genesis. Our Torah Portion is Va’yeshev, Genesis 37:1-40:23. Actually, we first met Joseph two weeks ago, when he was born. Then the Torah told us, “God...

This week, we read Vayeishev, the famous story of Joseph—his dreams, his colorful coat, and his envious brothers. This story, like many others throughout the Torah, was first introduced to me in a fun and lighthearted manner: through the Joseph and...

I love to plan—my day, my week, my class schedule, my friend’s schedule, you name it, I plan it. From the minute I woke up this morning I knew exactly what my day would look like: 8:30 a.m. alarm, 8:40 roll out of bed, spend an hour getting dressed...

Va-Yetse opens with Ya’akov’s flight from Be’er Sheva in southern Israel to Haran in modern-day Syria, where his mother’s family lives.  Ya’akov’s flight from home is a reaction to Esav’s threat to kill him over a berachah / blessing. ...

Our portion begins with eleh toldot, these are the generations of Isaac. The word toldot has a number of meanings. One is generations. Other equally compelling renderings are — these are the consequences or outcomes. The portion is the mid-point of...

Did you know… -     Breakfast, as we understand it today, didn’t exist for a large part of history. In fact, ancient Romans saw it as gluttonous to eat more than one meal a day.-     My high school in Atlanta is five hundred and fifty-five...

 “God heard the cry of the boy, and an angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What troubles you Hagar? Do not be afraid, for God has heard the cry of the boy (Ishmael) where he is” (Genesis 21:17) The Torah speaks powerfully...

Total belief and devotion to G-d and to Judaism is probably one of the only concepts that’s easier for a child than for an adult. When we’re young, it’s simple; the logic is so cut and dry: We know G-d exists because… (1) People have been believing...

Last week, an article in the New York Times presented the findings of a recent survey of American Jews (see related story on Page One). The results, while complicated, were presented with a simple, dire proclamation: American Jews are losing their religion. ...

This week, we read parshat Noach, the second parshah of the Torah. It’s a well known story: G-d saw that the people of the earth had been corrupted, so He instructed Noah to build in ark, inside which Noah, his family, and the animals would be protected...

We are hardly through the wonder of creation when the biblical narrative tells us that creation had failed to live up to its potential.  The fundamental nature of human life remained at a bestial level.  It was a failed experiment requiring a new paradigm. ...