by Joseph Morris I was sitting in my comfy recliner staring out the patio door at the pile of snow from the November snowstorm. Lake effect snow requires an unfrozen Lake Erie. I wondered how climate change was impacting Lake…
Torah Thoughts – Vayigash – Genesis.44.18-47.27 – “Chelm: A History”
Last week’s snowstorm not only postponed our Chanukah in Chelm service but gave me an opportunity to do a little research about the mythical city. Here are a few of the key points I discovered: The literary tradition of a…
Torah Thoughts – Miketz – Genesis.41.1-44.17 – “Chelm Story Four: The Rabbi’s Running Late”
This week’s Torah portion is Miketz, featuring the emotional reconciliation of Joseph and his brothers. In honor, of the struggles all humans have in meeting one another where they are, I would like to share my final Chelm story, a…
Torah Thoughts – Vayeshev – Torah Portion: Genesis 37:1-40:23 – “Chelm Story Three: Capturing the Moon”
In this week’s Torah portion Vayeshev we begin the tale of Joseph. At the beginning of the story, Joseph has a dream featuring “the sun, the moon, and eleven stars bowing down” (Genesis 37:9) to him. In honor of Joseph’s…
Thoughts for the New Year
by Joseph Morris While writing this column at the end of October, I was thinking about the past year. According to NOAA (parent organization for the weather service), 2022 was another warm year. For example, September 2022 tied with last…
Torah Thoughts – Vayishlach – Torah Portion: Genesis 32:4-36:43 – “Chelm Story Two: Fences and Bridges”
For the next few weeks, in preparation for Chanukah in Chelm on Friday, December 23, I will be sharing stories from the mythical shtetl of Chelm, a place where even the wise are foolish. This particular story is one I…
Torah Thoughts – Vayetzei – Genesis 28:10-32:3 – “Chelm Story Number One: Backwards Shoes”
In preparation for Chanukah in Chelm on Friday, December 23rd, I’ll be using my Torah Thoughts column these next few weeks to share some of my favorite stories from the mythical village of Chelm, a 19th Century shtetl whose residents…
Torah Thoughts – Toldot-Genesis 25:19-28:9 – “The Rule of One Hundred Blessings”
This week’s Torah portion, Toldot, provides us with the origin of the Jewish practice of offering one hundred blessings every single day. In Genesis 26:12, when Isaac survives his trial with Avimelech, he is given a “hundredfold” blessing by God. …
Torah Thoughts – Chayeh Sarah – Genesis.23.1-25.18 – “Moving Toward a Guilt Less Judaism”
To find the Genesis of Jewish guilt, one needs not look much further than the Book of Genesis. Before there is even a Judaism, there is a worry about not doing Judaism right. We saw it last week, when Abraham…
Torah Thoughts – Vayera – Genesis 18:1-22:24 – “Chance Encounters that Open Our Eyes”
In Chaim Potok’s seminal work, The Chosen a chance encounter between a pair of 15-year-olds, Reuven Malter and Daniel Sanders, leads to an unlikely friendship. On the surface, both boys have little in common – one a modern Orthodox son…