Modern Torah

Sukkot is hands down, my favorite Jewish holiday, a season when we're commanded to gather and rejoice, in the middle of what has always been my personal season of joy. This year, of course, feels different, but the perspective makes me appreciate a little recognized Sukkot ritual which has always felt particularly odd to me.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. I’m not...

This week, as we sit between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, Moses is wrapping up his final speech when he suddenly breaks into song. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chance to find our own meaning in the text. Whether you’re studying Torah daily, or taking...

Every year, on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, the traditional Torah reading presents an odd start to the New Year—a portrait of extreme duality. Two women, one ecstatic with joy, the other paralyzed by sorrow. As we turn the page to a fresh season, what can we learn from these stories our tradition highlights on Rosh Hashanah? I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to...

As Moses approaches his own death, he's increasingly concerned with who will influence the Israelites after he's gone. Throughout their time in Canaan, at times of need, prophets arose to lead the Israelite people. But how are the people, warned repeatedly by Moses to be wary of corrupt leaders, supposed to discern a true prophet from a false one? I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look a...

Last week, over 600 Jewish organizations raised their voices as one, to make a simple statement. Black Lives Matter. Twice, in our portion this week, the Torah indicates that injustice stemming from actions committed in darkness and secrecy should be met with outrage—loudly and publicly.  I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world a...

This week, the Torah presents a series of challenging laws, many of which challenge our modern sense of morality, at least on first glance. One particularly distasteful law until the rabbis of the Talmud create a series of rules and protocols that make it highly unlikely, in fact nearly impossible, for that particularly troublesome law to ever be put into practice. I’m not a rabbi, so every week,...

In Parshat Shoftim, Moses reviews the judicial code that will govern Israelite society in the Land of Canaan, and he starts, with a passionate call to action, commanding the People, “justice, justice shall you pursue.” I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the cha...

This week is Shabbat Nachamu, Shabbat of Comfort, and our Torah portion this week finds Moses recounting the experience at Sinai, including the 10 Commandments, to the Israelites community, on the eastern bank of the Jordan River. But the version of the 10 Commandments Moses shares is slightly different from the version in Exodus. And, as you might imagine, the differences are interesting. I’m not...

This week's Torah portion finds the Israelites camped on the Jordan River's eastern bank. Before crossing the river into Canaan, Moses gathers the people for one last, long teaching, his famous speech that comprises most of Deuteronomy. In the beginning of his speech, as he's just warming up, Moses does a funny thing, he subtly changes the narrative of history to place himself in a...

The Israelites loot and raze cities as they wage total war against the idolatrous Midiante and Moabite peoples. After the slaughter, they gather the booty and spoil of battle, including captive slaves, and bring it to the Israelite camp, where G-d commands it be equitably divided among the Israelite nation. What can we take away, today, from these violent and destructive portions?  See acast.com/p...

This week's Torah portion picks up at the end of a story, just after the climax, leaving it to readers (and listeners) to look back and understand why Phinehas is being praised. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chance to find our own meaning in the t...

Balaam is summoned to curse the Israelite people by Balak, King of the Moabites. Along the way, Balaam encounters an Angel of the Lord, standing in his path, ready to strike him down. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chance to find our own meaning in the...

Parshat Korach is named for the leader of a failed rebellion against Moses, Aaron, and the Israelite priests. By harnessing resentment and stoking anger, Korach aims to supplant Moses and lead the Israelites himself. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chanc...

This week's Torah portion presents a case of fake news that could be ripped from the headlines, complete with vain leadership and a supporting cast just trying to hold the people together. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chance to find our own meani...

Towards the end of Beha'alotcha, the Torah presents a moment of family drama that plays out between Miriam, Aaron, and Moses.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chance to find our own meaning...

In a week where justifiable rage is sweeping our country, the Torah presents the Nazarite vow, a ritual where one volunteers to assume the responsibility of additional restrictions beyond everyday Jewish law and perhaps merits greater holiness in the process. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in t...

Rashi says, when the Israelites arrived at Sinai they encamped before the mountain as "one people with one heart." Dedicated to the memory of my friend, Charles Kreinik, a lover of music, z"l. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chance to find...

The book of Numbers begins with a lot of counting, mainly of "men aged 20 and over, able to bear arms." Are the Israelites gearing up for war or being practical about safety based on their history with tyrants? I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the c...

This week's Torah portion, Behar, presents a new way to regulate the economic and agricultural life of ancient Israel, one that reoriented the Israelites back towards what was most important. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chance to find our own me...

Synagogue communities around the world rely on members for support. As virtual synagogue attendance rises, what does it mean to be a member? I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chance to find our own meaning in the text. Whether you’re studying Torah daily,...

The first of this week's two Torah portions, Achrei Mot, introduces a new word, one that only appears four times in the Hebrew Bible, all in this parsha. And how it's spelled makes a big difference in what it means. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves...

This week this Torah gives us a double parsha, all about ritual purity and impurity, and to be honest, leprosy dominates 90% of the conversation. So what's the deal with leprosy? I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism is rich in tradition, and each of us deserves the chance to find our own meaning in the...

Our tradition sets aside a special Torah portion for years when Shabbat during Passover falls on the "in between days." This portion is full of examples where the Israelites lose faith and demand proof of G-d's power and even G-d's existence. In a world where proof is everything, how do we prove to ourselves that G-d exists. Do we even need to? I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I...

Passover and hospitality are intertwined for me, and so much of my love for the holiday is based in my family's traditions of hosted large Passover Seders. This episode explores the roots of hospitality in Judaism, and how those values can be represented in our holiday traditions I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world aroun...

This week's Torah portion, Parshat Shmini, calls for us to "separate the sacred and the profane, the clean and the unclean." Humans bring order to our chaotic world by defining the sacred, the special, the extraordinary, and we use it to anchor our lives. I’m not a rabbi, so every week, I look at our Torah portion and try to put it in conversation with the world around me. Judaism i...