Leviticus 1:1 – 5:26 The Levitical priests were on the front line of the Biblical response team. They attended simultaneously to the physical, spiritual, and emotional needs of the entire community. In normal times, this meant administering to the daily flow of…
Torah Thoughts Vayakeil-Pikudei (Exodus 35:1 – 40:38) – “Be Strong, Be Resolute: Adapting to Change Penguin Style”
Exodus 35:1 – 40:38 Last week I picked up a book at the library called Our Iceberg is Melting by business writers John Kotter and Holger Rathgher. It is a modern parable about a group of penguins facing a dire situation and how…
Torah Thoughts – Ki Tisa – (Exodus 30:11 – 34:35) – “Moving Past Handshaking: Creating Sacred Boundaries at the Time of the Coronavirus”
We Jews love to shake hands. At Congregation Shir Shalom, we shake hands before services, we shake hands after services, and shake hands during services. One of my favorite Friday night rituals that we have as a community is going…
Torah Thoughts Titzaveh (Exodus 27:1 – 30:10) – “Personalizing our Garments”
Titzaveh (Exodus 27:1 – 30:10) An argument had broken out between a Bar Mitzvah boy and his parents. He was insisting on coming to services with a casual 1960’s style vibe. He refused to wear a suit, calling it “preppy.” As you…
Torah Thoughts Yitro (Exodus 18:1 – 20:23) – “The Power of Our Commandments”
(Exodus 18:1 – 20:23) For the nine members of our 2020 Adult B’nei Mitzvah class (two were absent), looking at the Torah Scroll opened this past Sunday to this week’s portion, Yitro, with the Ten Commandments prominently displayed, was to…
Torah Thoughts Beshalach – Freedom
Exodus 13:17 – 17:16 In honor of Shabbat Shira, a Shabbat dedicated to song and poetry, I’d like to offer a poem I recently uncovered that I wrote on a trip to Thailand and Cambodia in the summer of 2004. As…
Torah Thoughts Vayechi
(Genesis 47:28-50:26) “Jewish and Proud” Marty Bates, of blessed memory, was not an ostentatious person. He was frugal and understated, except when it came to one thing – the large (and I mean large) Jewish star necklace he wore around…
Torah Thoughts – Miketz (Genesis 41:1 – 44:17) – “A New Way of Blessing the Hanukkah Candles”
Apparently, Ishmaelites were quite common in the ancient world. Descendants of Abraham and Hagar’s son Ishmael from a few chapter’s back in Genesis, they are at this point in the story a fearsome nation that lives not too far from…
Torah Thoughts Vayeshev (Genesis 37:1 – 40:23)
“You Never Know When You Are Going to Run Into an Ishmaelite.” Apparently, Ishmaelites were quite common in the ancient world. Descendants of Abraham and Hagar’s son Ishmael from a few chapter’s back in Genesis, they are at this point…
Torah Thoughts Vayetzei (Genesis 28:10 – 32:3)
“Is there such a thing as a Jewish Angel?” On Sunday, I will be visiting St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral to answer this very question. Outside of “do Jews believe in Heaven and Hell”, this particular question is the one get asked…