BY RABBI DALE SCHREIBER
• Published August 3, 2011
Beginning a new book of Torah is a bit like greeting an old friend. The Book of Deuteronomy always begins in the heat of the summer, at the end of a ritual three weeks of diminished joy, on the Sabbath just before Tisha B'Av. Interestingly, the rabbis...
My Shabbat morning Torah study has become a highlight of my week at Temple Emanuel. We meet for study and discussion of the weekly Torah portion, but the fun of our learning lies in the loose, freewheeling nature of our discussions.This year, we have...
By Rabbi James Stone Goodman
• Published July 13, 2011
You know we are dreaming peace all the time nowthe evidence of that broken letter vavin the word shalom of brit shalom [Numbers 25:12]the covenant of peacethat may be what's holding it up - Let's fix the vav in the brit shalomthis reward that is given...
When Korach and his two hundred fifty followers rebel against Moses in this week's Torah portion Korach says to Moses. "All the community are holy, all of them, and the Lord is in their midst. Why then do you raise yourselves above the Lord's congregation?"...
This week's Torah Portion, Sh'lach L'cha, Numbers 13:1-15:41, is all about borders, boundaries and limits. The Sidrah starts with the story of the scouts, twelve in all, one leader from each tribe, dispatched by Moses at God's behest across the Jordan...
By Rabbi Carnie Shalom Rose
• Published June 1, 2011
Every parent knows that there are certain moments in the life of your child that can never be forgotten. Specific liminal events, which will forever be etched into your consciousness - engraved indelibly upon your heart. For me, one such moment took place...
By Rabbi James Stone Goodman
• Published May 26, 2011
Midbar means Wildernessfrom the root - word or thing The place of the wordor of no wordsthe place of the single wordm'dabberthe place of speakingwell placedthe word that works. The matter, the thingeconomy of wordsheat of the matterthis is where it happenedthe...
At Sinai, I imagine the Israelites might have felt a compelling need to look up as God was up there above and beyond the clouds. Given such a lofty beginning, it would be understandable to think that Torah was also up there- beyond our comprehension....
In this week's Torah portion, Behar, God instructs the Israelites, via Moses, that every 50 years they are to observe a jubilee (yovel) year in which they shall "proclaim liberty (dror) throughout the land." This phrase should "ring a bell," since it...
If your name is Cohen, Kohn, Cohn, or Kahn (or if you know someone with these names or similar variations), this parashah is for you. Your direct ancestors, Kohanim, the descendants of Moshe's brother Aharon, were once the unrivaled religious leaders...
BY RABBI HOWARD KAPLANSKY
• Published April 27, 2011
We are told "Kedoshim tihyuh," "You shall be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy." One rabbinic source stated that the words "you shall be holy" are an admonition "to strive for absolute human perfection." Respectfully, I offer a different perspective.Holy,...
It is said that more Jews celebrate the Passover seder than any other Jewish ritual. Unfortunately the seder is often misconstrued as a prayer service or recitation, a gauntlet that must be endured in order to reach...drum role...the meal. As the old...
