The Torah portion this week, Yitro, begins with Moses’ father-in-law arriving in the Israelite camp in response to something he heard. As the first verse states: “When Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had…
Torah Thoughts – Beshelach – Exodus 13:17-17:16 – “Life Inside the Trash Compactor”
My favorite scene from the original Star Wars movie is not the light saber fight between Obi Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader or the proton torpedo shot that destroys the Death Star, but instead the near-death experience that the four…
Torah Thoughts – Bo – Exodus.10.1-13.16 – “What a Long Strange Trip It’s Been”
When Bob Weir, of Grateful Dead fame, wrote the song “Truckin’” he was thinking of the immense toll being a rock and roller can have on a person’s body and soul. As he told the Wall Street Journal: “[Our touring…
Torah Thoughts – Vaera – Exodus.6.2-9.35 – “Which God is it Anyway?”
What if God was not one thing, but many things, able to appear in whatever form we need in whatever time we most need? One of my favorite midrashim of all time from the Pesikta de-Rav Kahana describes this possibility…
Torah Thoughts – Shemot – Exodus.1.1-6.1 – “Pharaoh and the Wisdom of Chelm”
Chelm, as anyone knows, is a mystical place in Poland full of folly, dressed as wisdom. There is a long tradition of stories about all the bad decisions made by the leaders of this small European shtetl. Shalom Aleichem, Isaac…
Torah Thoughts – Vayechi – Genesis 47:28-50:26 – “Bracing Ourselves for the Cold”
There is something difficult about coming to the end of Genesis. Not only do we have to say goodbye to the wonderful characters of the inaugural book of the Torah, but the path ahead is long and difficult. While the…
Torah Thoughts Vayigash – Genesis 44:18-47:27 – “Heroic Interventions”
To Judah and his brothers, the man standing in front of them who held their lives in balance, was a complete stranger. And not just a stranger, but an outsider. They were there to beg for mercy, a reprieve from…
Torah Thoughts – Mikeitz – Genesis.41.1-44.17 – “Shine a Light Into The Darkness”
On Hanukkah we shine a light into darkness to try to make a difference. The Menorahs we place in our windows are not merely decorative, but projections of our values out into the world. For the past two years I…
Torah Thoughts – Vayeshev – Genesis.37.1-40.23 – “Innocent Bystander vs. Co-Conspirator”
In the final episode of Seinfeld, the central characters of the sitcom are accused of being bystanders. Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer watch as a heavy-set man is carjacked, poking fun at him instead of rushing to his aide. In…
Torah Thoughts – Genesis 32:4-36:43 – Vayishlach “Be the First Candle”
There are forty-four candles in a box of Hanukkah candles, enough for every night of the holiday. Every is candle vital to performing the mitzvah of our festival of lights. As instructed by Rabbi Hillel, we start with just one,…