וְיֵעָשׂוּ כֻלָּם אֲגֻדָּה אֶחָת לַעֲשׂוֹת רְצוֹנְךָ בְּלֵבָב שָׁלֵם

All shall unite to do God's will with an open heart.

וְיֵעָשׂוּ כֻלָּם אֲגֻדָּה אֶחָת לַעֲשׂוֹת רְצוֹנְךָ בְּלֵבָב שָׁלֵם

All shall unite to do God's will with an open heart.

2 05, 2023

Parashat Emor 5783

By |2023-05-03T15:42:32-04:00May 2, 2023|

Lo tehal’lelu
You shall not
profane
pollute
desecrate.
Do not.

You and I
and each of us,
holy leaders
great and small,
let us think twice
about what we do,
let us remember
and pay attention,
that we do not
profane
pollute
desecrate…

…ourselves
or others (Lev.21:9) —
precious
are you
are they
am I,
beloved
by one or more,
sacred;

…our children, (Lev. 21:15)
mine
yours
theirs
ours,
the future they are;
we will not be here
one day
but they will,
they will only
if we remember
and if we restrain
and if we transform
our baser
instincts;

…the Name; (Lev. 21:6)
you
are not the center
of the Universe
nor am I
nor he nor she
nor they nor them —
much is beyond us
greater
more important,
critical on every level
to functionality
to wellbeing;

…the sanctuary of the Oneness (Lev. 21:12)
the Breathe
the All-Encompassing
the Mystery—
minuscule though we are,
you hold
and I hold,
the power
to wreak havoc;

…any place sacred to the One— (Lev. 21:23)
is there a place not cherished
by the Initiator
of all
holding that hallowedness?
what does it take
for us to notice the sanctity
feel it
respect it
care Read More >

24 04, 2023

Parshiyot Aharei Mot-Kedoshim 5783

By |2023-05-03T22:22:28-04:00April 24, 2023|

“Hokheiah tokhiah et amitekha.” “You shall surely reprove your fellow.” (Leviticus 19:17) Giving critical feedback, or tokhehah (often translated as “reproof” or “rebuke”), is a positive mitzvah in the Torah.

Perhaps this shouldn’t surprise us, as constructive critique and feedback is a primary way that we learn and grow. And yet, already in the time of the Talmud, two of the greatest sages of their generation indicated that almost everyone who attempts to fulfill this mitzvah is doing it wrong.

In the Babylonian Talmud, Arakhin 16b, Rabbi Tarfon and Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah differ about why the system of tokhehah seems to be broken. According to Rabbi Tarfon, “I would be surprised if there is anyone in this generation who can receive rebuke. If the one rebuking says ‘Remove the splinter from between your eyes,’ the other responds: ‘Remove the beam from between your eyes!’” In other words, the experience of receiving criticism, even when generously offered, tends to activate Read More >

17 04, 2023

Parshiyot Tazria-Metzorah 5783

By |2023-05-03T12:07:38-04:00April 17, 2023|

Click here for an audio recording of this D’var Torah

A D’var Torah for Parshiyot Tazria-Metzorah
By Rabbi Matthew Goldstone

Reading Parshiyot Tazria-Metzorah this year I can’t help but think about bodily autonomy and the conversations taking place across the United States about the legality of abortion and related procedures. The Torah establishes a system in which those in power, the priests, are tasked with looking at a part of a person’s body to dictate their ritual status. Based upon their determination, the person may be socially isolated and required to shave portions of their body. The voyeurism coupled with a religiously-imposed obligation to do something with, or to, one’s body, grates against modern notions of personal autonomy.

And yet, at the same time, I realize that I actually do subscribe to certain bodily limitations and restrictions imposed by governing powers. להבדיל,[1] I endorse vaccination requirements for people to enter certain spaces. Even beyond Covid-19, I expect public schools to mandate Read More >

10 04, 2023

Parashat Shemini 5783

By |2023-05-03T12:07:52-04:00April 10, 2023|

The Bitter and the Sweet
A D’var Torah for Parashat Shemini
By Rabbi Greg Schindler (’09)

Most of us are familiar with the concept of a hyperlink. Case in point: hyperlink. When you click on a hyperlink, you begin a journey connecting the idea on the page to a related concept. Quite the innovation, right?

Yes, indeed. The hyperlinks embedded in the Torah were quite the innovation.

Wait, what? The Torah?

In Jewish tradition, a hyperlink is called a gezerah shaveh – where the same words are used in two different cases in order to shed light upon each case. In this way, the Torah comments upon itself.  For example, in Num. 28:2 we read that the daily burnt offering is to be brought “בְּמוֹעֲדוֹ ” (bimoado) – “at its appointed time”, meaning even on Shabbat. In Num. 9:2, we similarly read that the Passover offering is to be brought “בְּמוֹעֲדוֹ” (bimoado). From this, the rabbis determined that, just as the Read More >

3 04, 2023

Hol HaMoed Pesah 5783

By |2023-05-03T12:08:28-04:00April 3, 2023|

Click here for an audio recording of this D’var Torah

A D’var Torah for Hol HaMoed Pesah
By Rabbi Ira J. Dounn (’17)

The Passover story, which we recount in our seders this week, highlights Moses (on behalf of G-d) telling Pharoah to “Let My people go!” (Exodus 5:1)

And yet I wonder: What are the things that we are holding onto? What do we need to let go of in our own lives?

The pre-Passover purge might indicate that we’re not too shabby at letting go of things. The spring cleaning that features the throwing away, giving away, or selling of our hametz is a reminder to us that it’s good to let things go.

But anyone who has had the unenviable job of cleaning out the home of a loved one who has passed away might find the task more daunting. In this instance, the only physical thing we have left of the person are their Read More >

27 03, 2023

Parashat Tzav 5783

By |2023-05-03T12:08:38-04:00March 27, 2023|

Click here for an audio recording of this D’var Torah

Constancy and Careful Guarding: How to Link the Jewish Past with the Future
A D’var Torah for Parashat Tzav
By Rabbi Mitchell Blank (’21)

This coming Shabbat is the last one before Passover begins (Shabbat HaGadol) and the Torah reading this year falls on Parashat Tzav. Both Tzav and Exodus 12, the chapter that details Passover observance, emphasize the biblical world view that constancy of action (temidut) and careful guarding of ritual (shemira) are the glue linking past and future generations. The Rabbis endorse these paths to Jewish survival yet also understand that the ultimate guarantor of continuity in an ever-changing world is intergenerational peace. Passover, the time of our freedom and redemption, is davka the holiday our sages choose to accentuate that the most important mitzvah is to maintain Jewish continuity by children and parents being in dialogue.

Parashat Tzav begins with particulars of Olat HaTamid, the daily burnt offering. Intertwined in these details is a related command, Read More >

20 03, 2023

Parashat Vayikra 5783

By |2023-05-03T12:08:48-04:00March 20, 2023|

Click here  for an audio recording of this D’var Torah

Keeping focus on sacred connections
A D’var Torah for Parashat Vayikra
by Rabbi Steven Altarescu (’14)

The Book of Vayikra begins where Exodus leaves off. The Israelites have finished building the Mishkan and God has shown approval through the appearance of a cloud of God’s Presence. Exodus thus ends triumphantly with a description of the work being finished;

“Now the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the Presence of YHVH filled the Mishkan” (Exodus 40:34)

We are then told that Moses:

“was not able to come into the Tent of Meeting for the cloud was dwelling on it and the Presence of YHVH filled the Mishkan.” (Exodus 40:35)

Vayikra begins with God calling out to Moses:

“YHVH called to Moses and spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting…” (Leviticus 1:1)

The building of the Mishkan and the blessing of God’s presence add a sense of completion to Read More >

13 03, 2023

Parshiyot Vayakhel-Pekudei 5783

By |2023-05-03T12:08:59-04:00March 13, 2023|

Click HERE  for an audio recording of this D’var Torah

Where do we face in our holy space?
A D’var Torah for Parshiyot Vayakhel-Pekudei
By Rabbi Rob Scheinberg

“Once or twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading, but it had no pictures or conversations in it, “and what is the use of a book,” thought Alice, “without pictures or conversations?” — Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

Alice might have approved of the Talmud, which has conversations among the sages on every page. But she might have been disappointed that there are not very many pictures. There is, however, an evocative picture inspired by a verse from this week’s Torah portion, found in printed editions of the Babylonian Talmud in Rashbam’s commentary to Tractate Bava Batra 99a, that carries some relevance for us as we Read More >

7 03, 2023

Parashat Ki Tissa 5783

By |2023-05-03T12:09:07-04:00March 7, 2023|

Click HERE   for an audio recording of this D’var Torah

The Golden Calf: Not a Tantrum, but a Meltdown
A D’var Torah for Parashat Ki Tissa and Shabbat Parah
By Rabbi Katy Allen (’05)

Perhaps the golden calf was inevitable,
and perhaps
even necessary.
Egel ha’masekhah, the molten calf (Ex. 32:4),
the meltdown–
the internal or external loss of control
stemming from demands
stress
over-stimulation
disruption
or overwhelming emotions.
Not a tantrum.

Not a tantrum
but the breaking down
that leads to breaking open.

G!d demanded so much,
and all at once
and in no uncertain terms.
Moses seemingly disappeared
just when everyone’s lives
were being overwhelmingly disrupted
stimulated
changed irrevocably.

Has it ever happened to you?

Hamasekhah hanesukhah
the veil that is spread over all the nations (Is. 25:7)
the veil of mourning that covers us all (BDB)
G!d will remove it,
and will “wipe away the tears” (Is. 25:8)
from all our faces.

But first, Read More >

27 02, 2023

Parashat Tetzaveh 5783

By |2023-05-03T12:09:17-04:00February 27, 2023|

Click HERE  for an audio recording of this D’var Torah

Remembering and Turning Things Upside-Down: Shabbat Zakhor and Purim
A D’var Torah for Parashat Tetzaveh, Shabbat Zakhor, and Purim
By Rabbi Rena Kieval (’06)                         

“There is a certain people, scattered and separate from the peoples in all the provinces of your realm, and their rules are different from those of any other people… It is not in your Majesty’s interest to tolerate them. If it please your Majesty, let an edict be drawn for their destruction…” (Esther 3: 8,9)

Every Purim, these words of Haman in Megillat Esther send chills down my spine. The words are ancient, yet they are all too familiar. We recognize the anti-Jewish tropes, the intolerance of anyone who is seen as ‘other’ or different, and the quintessential hate speech that is gaining more open Read More >

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