Parashat Ha Shavua Commentaries

Three things never before attempted in a rabbinic address: First, about a month ago I was given a message by God to deliver to you people. Most of the time (just as a heads up!) if someone starts a talk that way, you want to institutionalize and medicate them. But in this case it really was a message from God for you. Two, it is show-and-tell time, and I have something that I brought for show-and-tell. Three, I intend to protect your inheritance, so I am glad you have assembled for this talk today, where we can explore prudent forms of investment to be able to protect what you have. Read more...

After two days of Rosh Hashanah and a day of fasting on Yom Kippur, you would think that Jews would be exhausted.  Enough Judaism, already!   Yet at precisely that time, the calendar of Judaism presents a dazzling array of festivals: Sukkot, Hoshanah Rabbah, Sh'mini Atzeret, and Simhat Torah.  For more than a week, we continue to celebrate one holiday after another, each with its own set of rituals, songs, and customs.   Read more...

There is an ancient talmudic tradition that affirms that the world was created on Rosh Hodesh Tishrei, a day also known as Rosh HaShanah, the Jewish New Year. Our Mahzor also reminds us that the world was created on this day. So it’s particularly appropriate for Jews to stop and think about how we are celebrating this most ancient Earth Day, how we are honoring the birthday of our home, the planet earth. Read more...

Some look to religion to transmit a sense of the majesty of the past. Traditions, because they come to us from a purer time, embody fragile vessels carrying remnants of a lost insight.   Such a view of Judaism correctly perceives the treasures of our ancestors' seeking and recording their relationship with God. But it errs in transforming the record of that search into a type of fossil, a brittle relic which can only be passed from hand to hand, without any direct contribution from the viewer.   Read more...

Some look to religion to transmit a sense of the majesty of the past. Traditions, because they come to us from a purer time, embody fragile vessels carrying remnants of a lost insight.   Such a view of Judaism correctly perceives the treasures of our ancestors' seeking and recording their relationship with God. But it errs in transforming the record of that search into a type of fossil, a brittle relic which can only be passed from hand to hand, without any direct contribution from the viewer.   Read more...