You can set your watch to it
By Rabbi Shawn ZellParashat Devarim You can set your watch to the fact that when we begin reading Deuteronomy, the fifth and final book of the Torah, Tisha B’Av, a…
A river runs through it
By Rabbi Yaakov GreenParashat Matot-Masei While it was wonderful to celebrate this past Sunday the amazing freedoms this great country provides to us and all its citizens, as Jews we…
The prophet Balaam
By Rabbi Seymour RosselParashat Balak What makes a prophet? Amos tells us in eloquent poetry: “Indeed, my Sovereign God does nothing / without first revealing God’s purpose / to God’s…
The ‘whys’ of the copper serpent
By Cantor Sheri AllenParashat Chukat Some pretty major events take place in Parashat Chukat, both sad and puzzling, but I want to focus on an incident that happens toward the…
Dispute and its motivations
By Rabbi Dan LewinParashat Korach One of the relevant questions these days is, can you be friends with someone and nourish the personal relationship although you strongly disagree with their…
Standing up for the land
By Rabbi Ari SunshineParashat Shelach Lecha It can be tough to take what may seem like an unpopular position against very loud voices trying to shout you down. In this…
Let’s get a move on
By Rabbi Ariel RackovskyParashat Behaalotecha As we begin yet another graduation season, heads of school, guest speakers and members of the clergy will be offering words of advice to the…
The mitzvah of blessing another person
By Rabbi Dan LewinParashat Naso One of the most famous passages appears this week as Moses instructs the Kohanim to bless the entire nation of Israel, both in the Temple…
A census of names
By Cantor Sheri Allen This Shabbat, we begin the fourth book of the Torah, B’midbar, otherwise translated as “in the wilderness.” B’midbar chronicles the next 38 years of the Israelites’…
The uncomfortable parts of Torah
By Rabbi Charlie Cytron-WalkerParashat Behar-Bechukotai The Torah contains powerful ethical teachings that are celebrated throughout Jewish tradition: Every person was created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27). Love your neighbor as…