Dear Friends, This has been another tumultuous week, with events in Kenosha reverberating across the continent. My dvar Torah this week addresses matters of social unrest in Israel, and you will see that I take these issues seriously. Reader and viewer discretion is advised, as I tackle sensitive, adult material. You can find Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, Welcome to the stretch run! We are now in the month of Elul, and it is time to prepare our hearts for the season of teshuvah, self-reflection and improvement. A great way to start is to commit to studying Torah and its endless reservoir of meaning in our own day. As always, Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, We come to the end of a week that brought exciting news. The normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates is a small step in the road toward peace. We hope that more states will follow, and that the Palestinians will be inspired to return to negotiations as Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, I hope this week’s message of Torah finds you staying well. If you are struggling the longer this pandemic keeps us away from our normal shul routine, you are not alone. And if this week’s storm caused you damage or inconvenience, I hope that you can recover whatever you may have lost. Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, As we emerge from the observance of Tish’ah B’Av, the saddest day on the Jewish calendar, we spring into Shabbat and Parshat Vaet-hanan, which includes both the Ten Commandments and the Shema’. Though those are among our greatest hit passages, I want to direct our attention to the first words of the portion, in Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, We have made it to the brink of the Holy Land. This Shabbat, we begin reading Sefer Devarim, the final book of our Humash. Click here for the written version of my dvar-Torah for this week. If you prefer a video version, click here. During the Three Weeks between the 17th of Tammuz and Tish’ah B’Av, Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, After a week away, I’m glad to be back in the mode of teaching Torah. In this final double portion to the Book of Numbers, here is the written version of my dvar Torah for Mattot/Mas’ei. If you want the video version, click here. During the Three Weeks between the 17th of Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, Ever since Shavu’ot, we have been out of sync with our Israeli sisters and brothers. For us, that Yom Tov was Friday and Shabbat; they only observed Friday, and resumed the Torah reading cycle on Shabbat. So we’ve been a week and parshah behind them. This is the week we catch Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, The trials and tribulations of the wilderness continue this week, with the insurrections of Korah, Datan and Aviram. When you consider the results of the previous parshah, all that unrest was probably inevitable. That’s what I address in this week’s Dvar Torah. Click here for the written version. You can find the video version Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, The tension mounts, and another traumatic moment in Israelite history consigns us to wander in the wilderness for 40 years. That’s the main narrative of this week’s Torah portion, Shelah-Lekha. But there are silver linings here, too. Some dreams remain intact. Click here for the written version of this week’s Dvar Torah. You Continue Reading »
