This Shabbat, we read from Parashat Vayeilech, which brings us to the conclusion of Moses’ life. After forty years of leading the people of Israel through the wilderness, Moses knows that his own journey is coming to an end. He…
Tag: Torah
Ki Tavo – Do Not Neglect Nor Transgress
Listen to an audio version …lo avarti mi’mitzvoteycha v’lo sha’chachti “I have neither transgressed nor neglected any of your commandments” (Devarim 26:13). This is the pledge that God commanded the children of Israel to declare every third year after removing…
Shoftim – The Gift of Da’at
The Search for Spiritual Insight Human beings have always searched for spiritual insight. We long to understand what lies ahead, to make sense of life’s uncertainties, and to find wisdom beyond ourselves. That longing is not sinful. I believe it…
Re’eh – There Shall Be No Destitute Among You
A Kingdom Unlike Any Other The Torah places before us what appears to be a contradiction. In Deuteronomy 15:4 Moses declares with breathtaking confidence, “There shall be no destitute among you.” Yet only a few verses later he says, “The…
Eikev – Look to the Rock
The Rock Our Haftarah opens with one of Isaiah’s most beautiful invitations: “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek Adonai. Look to the Rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were…
Chazon and Devarim: The Vision Beyond the Rubble
A Time To Move On There are moments in life when we realize we have been standing still for far too long. Sometimes we remain in place because of circumstances beyond our control. More often, however, we remain because something…
Bittersweet: Remembering Who We Are
Parashat Chukat is one of the most enigmatic portions in the entire Torah. It begins with a strange ritual, winds through miracles and mourning, and ends in paradox. The sages teach us that if we are willing to live with…
Korach – You Say You Want a Revolution
Do you ever have, as one children’s book would describe it, a “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day”? Well, Moses sure did. In fact, it must have seemed to him like he had fourteen thousand six hundred days like…
Beha’alotcha – Salvation On Trial
This week’s parasha will introduce a theme that will characterize much of the remaining narrative of Bamidbar. Chapters 11-25 contain a series of refusals on the part of Israel to accept authority. In chapter 12 even Miriam challenges Moses’ authority.…
Nasso – Bless is More
Listen to an audio version… The Blessing We Never Outgrow This week’s parasha contains one of only two prescribed blessings in the entire Torah: the Birkat Kohanim, the Priestly Blessing. “Adonai bless you and keep you! Adonai make His face…