Monday, December 29, 2014

Vayechi

Genesis 47:28–50:26

Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Birthright and Brotherhood


This week's parashah, Vayhi, brings to a close the book of Bereshit/Genesis. In this chapter all that has been wrong is made right. Or has it?

Yes, Joseph and his brothers all reunite. Yes, Joseph and his beloved father Jacob are also reunited. But the reunion is all too short, for soon thereafter Jacob is on his deathbed. He has seen his beloved Joseph and now he can die in peace - or as much in peace as is possible for a man who has lived as he has. For Jacob has spent his whole life either running from a brother whom he had wronged, working in order to finally marry the woman he loved or mourning the loss of his favorite son. The days of peace and tranquility in Jacob's life have been few and fleeting. And yet, the name of this parashah - Vayhi - means "and he lived." True, the name is simply taken from the first word of the parashah, but perhaps it is meant to teach us something.

Perhaps contained in this simple word is a core truth of Jacob's life - and all of our lives. For in spite of all that had happened to Jacob he did live. His life may have been filled with much sorrow, deceit, trickery, sadness, anger, frustration and dejection. Yet, in the end he lived and was able to see his beloved son again and bless all of his sons before his death.

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Monday, December 22, 2014

Vayigash

Genesis 44:18−47:27

Rabbi Lewis Eron for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Prophets and Sages


The difference between a prophet and a sage is where they discover God working in our lives. The prophet studies the future and points out the opportunities for righteousness and goodness that we may encounter in our life's journey. The sage looks into the past and shows us how we made way for God's healing presence and loving power in the choices we made and the paths we followed. The prophet fortifies us with the gift of hope. The sage strengthens us with the gift of meaning.

We need both prophets and sages. We need to hear both voices. Yet, the task of the sage is harder and greater than that of the prophet. The prophet helps us find purpose and significance in the open-ended future. The sage guides us in the search for value and meaning in our already closed past.

Joseph's great gift was that he was both a prophet and a sage. He was by nature a visionary. Through the window of dreams he could peer into the future. Although he could not see all the details, he could picture what life could be like. He was, however, not born wise. He had to learn how to be a sage. He needed the insight and wisdom he earned through the challenges and trials of his life.

When we encounter Joseph in this week's Torah portion, Va-Yigash, he is no longer the obnoxious young visionary whom his brothers sold into slavery some twenty years earlier. His experiences as a slave, as a prisoner and as the highest official of the Egyptian court taught him to understand the human heart. He learned that it was necessary to let go of the burden of the past to be able to receive the promise of the future.

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Monday, December 15, 2014

Shabbat Hanukkah, Mikeitz

Genesis 41:1−44:17

Rabbi Lewis Eron for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Jews-By-Choice: Asenath and Ruth


Throughout our history, and particularly in our times, the Jewish people have been enriched by converts, people who have chosen to cast their lot with ours, to make our history and destiny their own. We benefit from their enthusiasm, their insight and their mature understanding of Judaism. We honor their new commitments by calling them "gerei tzedek" ("those who have chosen to dwell with us through righteousness") and by declaring them to be the direct descendants of our ancestors, Abraham and Sarah. They, in turn, compliment us by accepting our sacred heritage and remind us of the life-changing, life-enhancing power of our traditions.

Our ancient traditions present us with two powerful visions of the conversion process. One, represented by the story of Ruth, focuses on the convert's significant relationships with Jewish people. We all know many people who have chosen to join us because of their involvement with their Jewish spouse, their Jewish friends, and the Jewish community. The other, characterized by ancient legends concerning Joseph's Egyptian born wife, Asenath, stresses the convert's spiritual journey towards Jewish faith.

The story of the Moabite woman, Ruth, who after the deaths of her husband and father-in-law, followed her Israelite mother-in-law, Naomi, back to Naomi's hometown of Bethlehem in Judah, is found in the biblical Book of Ruth. The story focuses on Jewish values of peoplehood and community, which still play a central role in modern Jewish life.

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Monday, December 8, 2014

Vayeishev

Genesis 37:1−40:23

Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Joseph, Part 1


This week's parasha, Vayeshev, begins the Joseph saga. This amazing story comprises a full four Torah portions -- more than the stories of any of the prior patriarchs or matriarchs. This seems strange at first because Joseph is not even considered a patriarch in our tradition. He is merely the favorite son of our namesake Jacob/Israel who behaves in this parasha like a spoiled brat, telling on his brothers and then informing them of his dreams that he will someday rule over them and who often flaunts his special relationship with his father.

Of course, Jacob is not innocent in this, as he clearly shows favoritism to Joseph by giving him the famous coat of many colors. After all that happened to Jacob due to the favoritism showed to him by his mother and the rivalry that he experienced with his brother Esau one has to wonder how he could let the same thing happen to his son Joseph. It never ceases to amaze how familial patterns of deception continue from generation to generation, not only in the Torah, but in "real life" as well.

Commentators throughout the ages have criticized Joseph for the way he behaved towards his brothers. Yet Elie Wiesel has sympathy for Joseph. He states that Jacob's other sons should have shown compassion for their younger brother who lost his beloved mother while she was giving birth to his brother Benjamin. Instead, they treated him as an outsider, and so he used his father's natural favoritism (based on the fact that his was Jacob's beloved Rachel's son) to taunt his brothers. This eventually backfired and caused his brothers to decide to sell him to a caravan of Ishmaelites (though at first they were going to kill him), his coat then torn and dipped in goat's blood in order to convince Jacob that Joseph had been killed by a wild beast.

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Monday, December 1, 2014

Vayishlach

Genesis 32:4−36:43

Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities


The Legacy of Yisrael


In this week's parashah, Vayishlah, Jacob is reunited with his brother Esau some 20 years after stealing their father Isaac's blessing. As he spends the night alone in preparation for the fateful meeting he encounters a man/angel who wrestles with him through the night. As the sun begins to rise the angel begs Jacob to let him go, but he will do so only if the man/angel blesses him. And so he is blessed with a new name Yisrael, meaning "one who struggles with God. From then on Ya'akov is also Yisrael and his descendants become B'nai Yisrael, the Children of Israel.

On that life-changing evening our ancestor becomes not merely Ya'akov, the one who held on to the "heel" (akev) of his twin brother at birth, but Yisrael, the God-wrestler (to borrow a term from Rabbi Arthur Waskow). He is no longer simply the one who hangs on to his big brother trying to prevent him from getting what is rightfully his (the blessing and the birthright), but the one who is ready to forge a new path for himself and his descendants.

And so here we are today, the Jewish people, named after his son Yehudah/ Judah. The line of tradition continues. And yet will it always be that way? Will be able to continue the tradition of God-wrestling that has sustained us through the years or will we instead become more like Ya'akov, the one desperately trying to hang on and hold back the other from superseding us?

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Monday, November 24, 2014

Va'yetze


Genesis 28:10−32:3

Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Connecting with the Divine


This week's parashat is Va'yetze includes the well-known story of Jacob's dream. After fleeing from his brother Esau, Jacob finds a place to rest and while sleeping he has a dream. In this dream he sees a ladder reaching from earth to heaven. On this ladder angels are ascending and descending; God is "standing" on the ladder. God promises Jacob that he will indeed become a great nation and that his descendants will be blessed. Upon awakening Jacob proclaims that had he realized the awesomeness of the place he would not have gone to sleep for "God was in this place and I did not know it." He then names the place Bet El, the house of God.

I would imagine that if any of us were to have a similar experience we too would proclaim the awesomeness of the place. We might also have wished we had not gone to sleep. Rabbis and Sages throughout the centuries have commented on this story and on Jacob's reaction to his dream. Rabbi Lawrence Kushner wrote a book a number of years ago entitled "God Was in This Place and I, I Did Not Know" (Jewish Lights Publishing). This book focuses on the many interpretations of this single verse. The repetition of the word "I" that Kushner uses in the title is intentional. In the Hebrew if Jacob had simply said 'lo yadati' it would mean, "I didn't know. "The additional use of the word 'anochi' (I) before 'lo yadati' can therefore seem superfluous and be translated as "I, I did not know." However, tradition teaches that no word in the Torah is superfluous and so the Sages try to deduce the meaning of the additional "I."

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Monday, November 17, 2014

Toldot

Genesis 25:19−28:9

Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Connecting with the Divine


This week's parashat is Va'yetze includes the well-known story of Jacob's dream. After fleeing from his brother Esau, Jacob finds a place to rest and while sleeping he has a dream. In this dream he sees a ladder reaching from earth to heaven. On this ladder angels are ascending and descending; God is "standing" on the ladder. God promises Jacob that he will indeed become a great nation and that his descendants will be blessed. Upon awakening Jacob proclaims that had he realized the awesomeness of the place he would not have gone to sleep for "God was in this place and I did not know it." He then names the place Bet El, the house of God.

I would imagine that if any of us were to have a similar experience we too would proclaim the awesomeness of the place. We might also have wished we had not gone to sleep. Rabbis and Sages throughout the centuries have commented on this story and on Jacob's reaction to his dream. Rabbi Lawrence Kushner wrote a book a number of years ago entitled "God Was in This Place and I, I Did Not Know" (Jewish Lights Publishing). This book focuses on the many interpretations of this single verse. The repetition of the word "I" that Kushner uses in the title is intentional. In the Hebrew if Jacob had simply said 'lo yadati' it would mean, "I didn't know. "The additional use of the word 'anochi' (I) before 'lo yadati' can therefore seem superfluous and be translated as "I, I did not know." However, tradition teaches that no word in the Torah is superfluous and so the Sages try to deduce the meaning of the additional "I."

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Monday, November 10, 2014

Chayei Sarah

Genesis 23:1−25:18

Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

The Life of Sarah


This past March I had the wonderful opportunity to co-lead an interfaith Jewish / Roman Catholic tour of Israel sponsored by the Jewish Community Relations Council of Southern New Jersey and the Catholic Diocese of Camden. It was a special time in the land of Israel. The Pope was just about to make his pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The hope for a true and lasting peace - a hope now dimmed by the present conflict - seemed real. There was a sense of optimism that filled the air.

As our small group of Jews and Christians traveled through Israel, we were immediately confronted by the vast number of sites in that small country that are invested with holiness by one or more of the three faith traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. While some sites, like the graves of saints, martyrs and sages, only attract the spiritual attention of one of the three traditions, there are many sites that claim the affection of all three religions. As Americans on a very special journey of spiritual discovery, it was easy for us to admire and respect our fellow pilgrims' religious concerns. But, we also became aware of the bitter feelings many of these sites can evoke as people in our group recalled the centuries of strife between the various faith traditions - the struggles between the Christian churches, the conflicts between Christianity and Islam and the oppression and exclusion of the Jews by both of those more powerful religious communities.

Although the sacred nature of many of these holy places in Israel derives from Jewish roots, over the centuries our daughter religions were able to assert their claims to the sites over the claims of the numerically and politically weaker Jewish community. Despite this, the Land of Israel and its holy sites continued to play an important role in the religious and spiritual life of our people. Our ancestors never gave up their claim to these sacred locations.

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Monday, November 3, 2014

Vayeira

Genesis 18:1–22:24

Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

The destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah


This week's parashah is Va'yera. Within its verses we find some of the most familiar, and troubling, stories in the Torah. For Va'yera contains within it the stories of the Akeidah (the binding of Isaac on Mt. Moriah), the expulsion of Hagar and Ishmael by Abraham and Sarah, and the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. It is on this last narrative that I would like to focus my d'var torah for this week.

In our contemporary lexicon the phrase "Sodom and Gomorrah" has become synonymous with extreme depravity and immorality, with a particularly sexual connotation. Within the narrative in Bereshit it would seem that sexual immorality is only part of the evil of Sodom. Contrary to popular usage it is also clear from the reading of the narrative that it is not homosexuality that is the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah (though Jerry Fallwell and others might disagree). The people of Sodom did demand that Lot (Abraham and Sarah's nephew) hand over the strangers in their house (actually messengers of God sent to tell Lot of the impending doom) so that "we may know them," which is clearly a sexual reference in terms of biblical Hebrew. However, what makes them sinful according to our Sages is not sexual desire or lust, but rather their desire to abuse and humiliate other human beings because they are strangers in their midst. The two messengers could just has easily have been women and the people's response would have been the same. The Sages teach us that only the wealthy were welcome as guest in Sodom. The poor were to be expelled or killed.

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Lech L'cha

Genesis 12:1−17:27

Rabbi Lewis Eron for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Abraham the Warrior


Abraham the warrior! Could there be a more unlikely picture? Hardly. Yet, embedded in this week's Torah portion is a strange and ancient story of our the founder of our faith as a mighty warrior -- a noble desert sheik -- leading his men out to battle to rescue his nephew Lot and free Canaan from foreign overlords. A Jew in armor! This is not the image we have a Jewish hero, particularly when this Jew is the founding figure of our faith.

Our tradition is not a militaristic one. We have no tradition of knighthood. We hold ways of peace to be more precious than feats of valor. Our sages exhort us to be disciple of Aaron, the one who pursued peace, and not followers of Joshua, the conqueror of the Promised Land. Yet, in the middle of Parashat Lech Lecha, the Torah portion that introduces us to Abraham and his story, we meet Abraham the warrior. As unusual and surprising as this encounter maybe, it is very important because it presents through Abraham's deeds and words the groundwork for our people's understanding of the role of warfare and the warrior.

The strange account of Abraham the Warrior reflects the political and military instability prevalent in Canaan during the time of our patriarchs. After many years of domination by a coalition of Mesopotamian monarchs, the kings of the Canaanite city-states rise in revolt. The Mesopotamian invaders overwhelm the Canaanite alliance in battle just south of the Dead Sea and capture the Canaanite leaders including Abraham's nephew Lot, who joined the Canaanite King of Sodom in the fight.
By Julie Levine for Raising Kvell

During the Hebrew month of Cheshvan, or MarCheshvan, [Bitter Cheshvan] there are no Jewish holidays. Jvillage Network, therefore, will be printing articles relating to Jewish Arts.

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Monday, October 20, 2014

Rosh Chodesh 2, Noah

Genesis 6:9−11:32

By Rabbi Arthur Waskow for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

The Computer of Babel


The Torah's story of the Tower of Babel is about what happens when humanity becomes so arrogant as to use a "universal language" to "storm Heaven."


Today our universal language is the 0-1-0-0-1-1-0-1-0-0-0-0-1 of the computer, and we have used it to make the whole human race dependent on a single technology. Now we know how flawed that technology is. Will computers and chips that do not recognize the Year 2000 actually bring on a near apocalyptic global disaster simply because they get the date -- one of the most the basic numbers -- wrong?

Some believe this might happen, if chips and computers that are embedded in electric power systems and other crucial infrastructures fail as the millennium turns. This could be even more serious than failures in bank records and other commercial enterprises.

What is to be done? Here too the Bible points the way. When Babel's arrogance brings disaster on its builders, God not only baffled and "babbled" them -- but also healed them -- with a multiplicity of tongues.

"Back to the space where you speak face-to-face," said God: "Recreate your local cultures and communities, to replace the towering machinery of global arrogance!"

Out of that crisis, if we look back at our Bibles, came the family of Abraham and Sarah, the people Israel -- and all the other peoples that speak their own local mother-tongues in their own localities on Mother Earth.

Whether the Y2K bug creates merely serious problems or a major disaster, the solution is the same -- because the values that Babel teaches are the same:

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Monday, October 13, 2014

B'reishit

Genesis 1:1−6:8

By Mel Scult for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Kaplan on Creation: An Explanation of Jewish Mission


The account in Genesis is perplexing to the modern person. We inevitably get bogged down with the first chapter of the Bible because it seems to conflict with our knowledge that comes from the scientific study of the natural world. Mordecai Kaplan being the modern man par-excellence accepted the scientific view of the universe but realized, of course, that the Torah has a different perspective in telling us about the origin of things. In this selection he focuses on the connection between the creation of the world and God's attention to Israel. Though Kaplan did not believe in the concept of the chosen people, he did see a special task and destiny for the Jewish people.

While only a few may be chosen, every person and every group may have a special destiny depending on their ability and their character and their history. Kaplan explains here that insofar as the rabbis are concerned, God created the world that it might be perfect and turned to the Jewish people as the special agents in that perfecting process.

In Kaplan's Own Words [From his notes]

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Monday, October 6, 2014

Sukkot: Yom Kippur's Counterbalance

Rabbi Michael Cohen for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Imagine Yom Kippur, the synagogue packed for the holiest day of the year. The anticipation of the day is upon everyone as they take their seats. But suppose something different occurs: Mahzorim for Sukkot are handed out along with hundreds of pairs of lulav and etrogom. This is one of my rabbinic fantasies -- to switch Yom Kippur with the first day of Sukkot. We often bemoan the fact that our synagogues are never so full as they are on Yom Kippur. Part of the problem with the rest of the year has to do with what happens on Yom Kippur! Known as the holiest day of the year, Yom Kippur is the day that we go to shul. That long day in synagogue reinforces the idea that Judaism is heavy and serious, and that we should spend our time inside the synagogue in prayer or study. The problem with this picture is that it does not present a balanced view of what Judaism that takes us beyond the walls of the synagogue.

The worshiper also needs Sukkot which counterbalances Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur takes place inside; Sukkot takes place outside. On Yom Kippur we fast; while on Sukkot we feast. On Yom Kippur we pray and study with our minds; for Sukkot we build with our might. On Yom Kippur we hold a book in our hands; on Sukkot with the lulav and etrog we hold nature. On Yom Kippur we are serious and introspective; on Sukkot we are told to be joyful.

One of the giants of Kabbalah, Isaac Luria (16th century), instructed his disciples that the cultivation of joy is one of the prerequisites for attaining mystical illumination. Having gone through the necessary ten days of teshuvah (return) from Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur we are ready to begin our engagement with the new year. That engagement can only take place with joy as one of its elements, the joy of Sukkot sets our bearings on the right course.

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Monday, September 29, 2014

Yom Kippur 5775

By Dr. Ellen Frankel for Reconstructionist Jewish Communities

Unetanah Tokef - In the Wake of the Decree




On Rosh Hashanah it is written and on Yom Kippur it is sealed… Who shall live and who shall die… Who shall be at peace and who shall be tormented… but teshuvah, repentance; tefilah, prayer; and tzedakah, acts of righteous compassion, will annul et ro’ah ha-gezera, the severity of the decree.

What is the meaning of these few lines, some of the most familiar in the High Holy Day liturgy, specifically three questions that emerge from them:

What do we make of this notion of God's decree?

How is it possible for human actions-repentance, prayer, and tzedakah-to influence divine actions?

Precisely what do we imagine will change for us if we perform these actions?

In other words, I'd like to explore with you the ideas of fate and free will, and how they interact, especially in the imagery evoked in the prayer I cited above.

First, a traditional Chinese parable:

Long ago in a remote village in China, there lived a man whose only possession was his horse. One day the horse ran away. “Ah, terrible fortune!” lamented the poor man. But a few days later, his horse returned, with a beautiful wild mare by its side. “Ah,” said the man. “Good fortune!” But when the man's only son tried to break in the new horse, it threw him, and he broke his leg. “Ah,” said the man. “Terrible fortune!” Shortly after this, a military recruiter came through the village, drafting every able-bodied man into the emperor's army. Since the man's son had a broken leg, he was not considered fit to serve. “Ah,” said the man. “Great fortune!”

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Monday, September 22, 2014

Shabbat Shuva; Ha-azinu

Deuteronomy 32:1-52

by Rabbi Ellen Dannin for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Between a Rock and a Hard Place


The Torah constantly puts us between a rock and a hard place . . . literally.

Take Ha'azinu, for example. A few years ago I first noticed something interesting about rocks while reading Ha'azinu, Moses' farewell poem. It is a poignant piece of literature, because it is impossible to read it without knowing that it is given in the shadow of his death. Even worse than his death, Moses is to be left behind as the children of Israel - the same people who have plagued his life through forty years in the desert - get to enter the Promised Land. Ha'azinu's gracious song of praise to God is a remarkable act under the circumstances.

Those circumstances become even more ironic, for hidden within that song, Moses seems to be twitting God. Moses refers to God as the "Rock." The parsha begins with Moses extolling God, saying, "The Rock! - His deeds are perfect, Yea, all His ways are just." (Deuteronomy 32:4) Again, this seems bittersweet, but when in context it seems mostly bitter.

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Monday, September 15, 2014

Shabbat Slichot - Nitzavim-Vayelech

Deuteronomy 29:9-63:9

Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Choose Life

This week's parasha is the double portion Nitzavim/Vayeleh. At the beginning of the parasha Moses tells the Jewish People, "You stand this day, all of you, before the Eternal your God . . . to enter into the covenant of the Eternal your God, which the Eternal your God is concluding with you this day . . . that God may establish you this day as God's people and be your God."

Three times, Moses stresses the phrase, "this day," emphasizing the contemporaneity of God's outreach to the Jewish People. Rashi notices this repetition, and comments that the chorus of "this day" indicates that, "just as this day enlightens, so will God enlighten [the Jewish People] in the future." The text reminds us that each one of us stands before God "this day" because God is always present to us. This relationship that continues from generation to generation reminds us not only of our connection to God, but to our ancestors and our future descendants as well. We have stood, stand, and will stand in God's presence, surrounded and filled with the power of Divinity, if we only recognize this. God's presence will then continue to enlighten us for all time. The text applies this to the Jewish people, but we certainly understand this as applying to all who choose to connect with the Divine within their lives.
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Monday, September 8, 2014

Ki Tavo

Deuteronomy 26:1–29:8
Rabbi Lewis Eron for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Serving God in Gladness



It's hard to believe that in a few weeks we will be begin the fall holidays with the celebration of Rosh Ha-Shanah, the Jewish New Year. While we often think of this season as a time of solemn observance to be approached with awe and reverence, the High Holy Days are truly festive days, as well. On these holidays, we celebrate God's presence in our lives and the opportunity His presence offers us to be better people.

The High Holy Days are a time to look into our souls. We come before God and measure our lives. Trusting that our God is a merciful God who reads our hearts, we believe that our judgment rests not on our deeds but on our souls, not on our actions over the past twelve months but on our responses to the choices we have made, the words we have said, and the deeds we have done. We believe that forgiveness is available to us if we are receptive to it. We need to ask ourselves if we are willing to change for the better and to continue striving to tighten our bonds with our family, our community, our world and our God.

It is particularly important during this season, when most Jews seek out the opportunity to come to synagogue to worship, that we, as a people, take to heart the Psalmist's exhortation to come rejoicing before God (Psalm 100:2). How can we take advantage of the promise of forgiveness and rebirth if we do not accept this opportunity cheerfully and with a sense of optimism? If we enter the synagogue out of a sense of obligation, with a feeling of being burdened, and without any trust in the process, how can we hope for self-improvement?

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Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Ki Teitzei

Deuteronomy 21:10–25:19

Rabbi Lewis Eron for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

It Just Isn't So!


There comes a point in the life of all faithful Jews when we face the fact that what the Torah says, just isn't so. This does not occur when we see the differences between the ancient understanding of the origins and structures of the physical world and contemporary scientific knowledge. The Torah is not a science text book, but uses the knowledge of its time to illustrate the various ways in which God, the Creator, interacts with creation. Nor does it happen when we first note the differences between the Torah's use of history and modern academic historical work and journalistic reporting. The Torah's concern is not objective reporting but rather is interested in using historical events to describe the evolving relationship between God and God's people, Israel.

The fundamental challenge takes place when we discover that the way in which the Torah orders its world does not correspond to the way in which we experience our world. In the world described by the Torah those loyal to the Covenant and strive to fulfill its holy directives are promised success, security and long years. But in our world, those promises are rarely, if ever kept. What we see in our live-a-day world is that all too often the saintly receive no rewards, people of faith fail to obtain material gifts, and the blessings of health, happiness, prosperity and longevity are not guaranteed to any human being no matter how righteous that soul may be. Theologians describe this challenge to faith as the question of theodicy, God's justice.

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Monday, August 25, 2014

Shoftim

Deuteronomy 16:18–21:9

Rabbi Lewis Eron for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Melech Ha-Olam, Sovereign of All


Each time we pronounce a blessing, we are making a political statement. Within the introduction to every blessing are the words which declare that our Eternal God is melech ha-olam, Sovereign of the Universe. Every time we express our gratitude for the opportunities and experiences life offers us, we also affirm our loyalty to God as our sovereign and acknowledge our citizenship in the Divine One's dominion. In Hebrew this is called kabbalat ol malchut shamayim, accepting the yoke of the kingdom of heaven.

This basic Jewish concept appears as one of the central themes of our worship. Our tradition sees the recitation of the Shema as a way to witness our acceptance of God's rule over our lives. When we bring our worship to a conclusion with the Aleinu prayer, we thank God for our unique destiny and bow before God's sovereign power. We finish the prayer with the hope that all nations will join together acknowledging God as the Ruler of All. Earthly dominion will pass away and we all will recognize that we are God's subjects.

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Monday, August 18, 2014

Re'eh

Deuteronomy 11:26–16:17

Rabbi Eric Mendelsohn for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

"Be Happy!"


"Remember the month of Aviv and keep the Passover ...". In Parshat Re'eh we are given a description of the three major pilgrim festivals, Pesah, Shavuot, and Sukkot. These are the Chagim. Chag is a correlative of the word Haj. Just as Haj to Mecca is a requirement for the Moslem (if one can afford it) so is the Chag to Jerusalem if one is a Jew.

The grandchildren of the great medieval Jewish commentator Rashi, building on his commentary, note that the word "Simcha" which like "V'ahavta" is an imperative - "Be happy !" occurs three times in the description of Sukkot (and with the extra command "Ach Sameach" - "Also be happy", it is almost like a parents' reminder -- "Have a good time and by the way, have a good time.") On the other hand - "Simcha" is mentioned only once for Shavuot, and not at all with regard to Pesah.

The agricultural basis of these holidays provides a simple explanation. Passover is the time of lambing and the sign of spring, but there is great apprehension about the crops to come. The winter wheat is in but the barley and vegetables will take seven more weeks. At Shavuot - the barley is in and one can breathe somewhat easier. But Sukkot is the grand Thanksgiving feast, at which rich and poor alike are assured enough sustenance. Judaism teaches that one has the right to enjoy the material benefits of this world and we are enjoined to rejoice in having them.

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Monday, August 11, 2014

Ekev

Deuteronomy 7:12–11:25

Rabbi Lewis Eron for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Rewards and Blessing


The heart of our worship service is our declaration of love and loyalty to the one and unique God - the prayer we know as the Shema. The first six words (Deuteronomy 6:4) are deeply imbedded in every Jews' soul - "Hear O Israel, the Eternal is our God, the Eternal is One!" These six words form the basic Hebrew prayer vocabulary shared by all Jews and expresses the sacred ties that bind us together.

But the Shema is longer than those six words. The opening declaration is followed first by a response proclaiming the glory of the God's dominion and then by three long paragraphs from the Torah underscoring our binding relationship to God through what we say, do and feel.

The first of these paragraphs, Deuteronomy 6:5-9, the prayer that begins with the word "Ve'ahavta", expresses our promise to love God with all our intellectual, emotional and physical abilities and our commitment to demonstrate this love in our daily lives. Within this paragraph are the roots of our custom of placing a meuzzah on our door posts and our tradition of wearing tefillin during worship and the foundation of our people's commitment to values education.

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Monday, August 4, 2014

Shabbat Nachamu - Va-et'chanan

Deuteronomy 3:23–7:11

Rabbi Richard Hirsh for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

The summer cycle of scriptural readings revolves around two sets of text. The first is the weekly cycle of readings which progresses through the final book of the Torah, Deuteronomy. The second is the ten week cycle of haftarot, or supplementary readings, selected from the writings found in the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah, which orbit around the fast day of Tisha B'Av.

Tisha B'Av commemorates the destruction of the first and second Temples, as well as other historical oppressions of the Jewish people which our tradition has connected with the ninth day of Av. For the three weeks prior to Tisha B'Av, the haftara readings deal with prophetic denunciation of the sins of the Jewish people, as first Jeremiah and then Isaiah condemn the transgressions of the Covenant. In particular, Jeremiah's prophecies of the imminent destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem predict with frightening accuracy the fate that in fact befell the Jewish people in 586 BCE.

This Shabbat, which comes immediately after Tisha B'Av, is known as Shabbat Nahamu, after the opening words of the haftara: "Nahamu, nahamu ami -- give comfort to My people". (Isaiah 40:1) There are seven Shabbatot, including this one, between Tisha B'Av and Rosh HaShana; each of them features a selection from Isaiah which speaks of the themes of forgiveness, reconciliation, and repentance.

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Monday, July 28, 2014

Shabbat Hazon - D'varim

Deuteronomy 1:1−3:22

by Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

The book of Devarim consists of three major farewell speeches that Moses makes to the people as they prepare to enter the Land of Canaan and he prepares to die.

Though Moses has known for years that he will not be permitted to enter the land, now that they are on the other side of the Jordan River he acts in a very human way. As any of us might do, Moses pleads with God to allow him to enter the land. God's response is succinct and final -- rav lakh -- often translated as "this is enough." In other words, God tells Moses that it's no use complaining or trying to persuade God to change the decree. Moses will not enter the land. Yet, the exact meaning of "rav lakh" is unclear and can be translated in numerous ways. It literally means "this is much for you." In addition to understanding it as "enough!" it can also be translated, as Rabbi Analia Bortz does in her commentary in "The Women's Torah Commentary," as "this is much for you" or "you have achieved much." Though still implying that God's decision will not change, God is also trying to remind Moses that he has accomplished much during the 40 years of wandering.

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Monday, July 21, 2014

Masey

Numbers 33:1-36:13

By Rabbi Lewis Eron for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Personalizing the Epic Narrative

 

The Torah portion, Masey (Numbers 33:1 – 36:13), which concludes Sefer Bamidbar (the Book of Numbers), brings us to the end of our ancestors’ journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. Forty years have passed since the Exodus. A new generation, born in freedom, has replaced the last generation to experience slavery. This generation has proven itself in battle. It is proud, self-assured, and ready to engage in the struggle to win and hold a new land. It will not be held back by the fears that constrained its parents. Although in the future the comforts of settled life will tempt their descendants and challenge the coming generations to rediscover their unique Israelite heritage, this generation is a generation born to action.

The opening chapter of Parashat Masey (Numbers 33) is a tribute to the wilderness experience. In it Moses records the forty-two steps of Israel’s journey from Ramases in Egypt to Abel-shittim in the plains of Moab, across the Jordan River from Canaan for posterity. Moses recalls each march and each encampment with often no more information than they left here and went there.

There is no need to elaborate on what happened at each step in the journey. Moses’ list comes at the end of a well-known story. The events of our people’s travels from Egypt to Canaan were part of the living folk—memory of our Israelite ancestors and should be well known to us since we read the Torah every year. The mere mention of each place should evoke the memory of Israel’s experiences in the Wilderness.

Once, however, in this long list Moses does pause to recollect what happened along the way. In this pause Moses, for a brief moment, puts aside the mantle of prophetic leadership. He is no longer God’s faithful shepherd. Here, Moses exposes his humble humanity and gives us a glimpse at what it might feel like to be the last of a generation—the feelings of loss and of hope. By personalizing the journey, Moses transforms what might have been another list of God’s saving deeds into a moving recollection of his and his people’s real life experiences.

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Monday, July 14, 2014

Matot

Numbers 30:2-32:42

Rabbi Richard Hirsh for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

The Importance of Re-Reading Torah


The Book of Numbers is in many ways the least cohesive of the five books of the Torah. Its narrative excursions and legal legacies are occasionally related, but more often discrete.

In Matot and Masey, which conclude the fourth book of the Torah, the narrators/editors of the Torah attempt to pull things together by accounts which summarize the forty years in the desert and anticipate the imminent entrance into the Land of Israel.

However, even before the Torah moves to prescriptions for social and religious regulation within the Land, it presents a narrative of proscription which is chilling. Beginning in Numbers 31, the text tells the story of the Israelite war against the Midianites. So brutal is the account that even Dr. J. H. Hertz, the preeminent apologist for the traditional rendering of the text, states in his well-known commentary that "The war against the Midianites presents peculiar difficulties...we cannot satisfactorily meet the various objections that have been raised...".

The text by itself is straightforward: "The Lord spoke to Moses saying 'Avenge the Israelite people on the Midianites'... Moses spoke to the people saying 'Let men be picked out from among you for a campaign, and let them fall upon Midian to wreak the Lord's vengeance on Midian'". (31:1-3) The punishment is understood as retribution for the role of the Midianites in seducing the Israelites from their God and luring them into false worship and sexual immorality (see Numbers 25).

After slaying "every male", the Israelites "took the women and children of the Midianites captive, and seized as booty all their beasts, all their herds, and all their wealth" (31:9). Upon discovering this, Moses is extremely upset, and he orders the execution of all the women who are not virgins as well as all the male children.

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Monday, July 7, 2014

Pinhas

Numbers 25:10 - 30:1 127

By Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Reconstructionist Jewish Communities

Egalitarianism


This week's parasha is Pinhas. Towards the beginning of the parasha we read the story of the daughters of Zelophehad. After Moses instructs the people on the division of the Promised Land once they enter it he also informs them that the land will pass from father to son so that it will remain within the tribes. Upon hearing this the five daughters of Zelophehad confront Moses with the fact that their father died in the desert leaving behind only daughters. Given the new laws their land would be lost from their family. They believe that they deserve to inherit the land by stating "Let not our father's name be lost to his clan just because he had no son! Give us a holding among our father's kin!" (Numbers 27:3-4). Moses brings their case before God who declares that their claim is just and that they should be allowed to inherit their father's share of the land. The law from that time on is that if a man dies without sons the land shall pass to his daughters.

Towards the end of Numbers/Bemidbar the tribe of Menasseh, to which Zelophehad and his daughters belong, complain that if the daughters marry outside the tribe the land will be lost from the tribal inheritance. Therefore the law is amended by Divine decree to include the provision that daughters who inherit must marry within their own tribe. Both decrees concerning daughters and inheritance insure that the land remains not only within the family, but within the tribe. Though at first it might seem that women's rights and equality are the main concern of the authors (and many have tried to make that point) the reality is that familial and tribal integrity are the overriding principles.

In discussing the daughters of Zelophehad the rabbis portray them (and the other women of their generation) in an almost saintly light. "For forty years in the wilderness, the men tore down fences and the women repaired them (Midrash Numbers Rabbah 21:10). Furthermore, tradition teaches that the women did not participate in the sin of the Golden Calf (for which they were rewarded with the monthly holiday of Rosh Hodesh -- the New Moon) and when the men lost all hope upon hearing of the negative report of the spies who scouted the land the daughters of Zelophehad came forward to claim their share of it. They had faith that they would indeed conquer the land so that they would be able to have a share of it.

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Monday, June 30, 2014

Balak

Numbers 22:2-25:9

By Ellen Dannin for Reconstructionist Jewish Communities

A Curse Turned Blessing

I - maybe we - tend to think of Our Story as encapsulated in the exodus from Mitzrayim and the entry into the Promised Land. But our story is more than leaving and arriving. Most of it is the story of living in the desert, of journeying, and of being on the way. And that certainly captures most of my life - and maybe our lives. Just as we want to skip over all those endless details of sacrifices, priestly vestments, sanctuaries, red heifers, and bizarre diseases, so too do we want to skip over or regard as of less interest the minutiae of each day. Between the high points, there is a lot of desert. Yet, can it be that what makes up the bulk of our lives is not worth paying attention to?

This week's parsha has one of the best stories of being on the way - the story of King Balak and Baalam. In fact, we remember this story in each service when we sing "Ma Tovu." This is a story of curses turned into blessings. And, surely, there is nothing more important for us than blessing in living through our personal "desert days."

This is the parsha in which King Balak sent Baalam, the greatest magician in the world, to curse the children of Israel so they would die. The focus is on this action, so for a moment this story obscures the fact that our ancestors were wandering in the desert, gathering the manna, thinking it was just another in a chain of endless days of sameness, completely unaware that disaster was being prepared for them. In fact, maybe they never knew just how close they had come and that they had every reason to make these potentially last moments significant in some way.

Imagine them, down below while Baalam was going up to the mountain top overlooking them. There he was, making the proper sacrifices - seven rams and bullocks on seven altars. There was Baalam, standing above the Israelites, arms outstretched, ready to pronounce the curse. He opened his mouth to say the words of death, the words of power. And . . . for a moment, the words hung there in mid-air. And then the words that were intended to be curses tumbled, down, down, . . . and were transformed . . . and landed as blessings: "Ma tovu ohalecha Yaakov, mishk'notecha, Yisrael." "How good are Jacob's tents and Israel's dwelling places."

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Monday, June 23, 2014

Chukat

Numbers 19:1−22:1 - Rosh Chodesh Tammuz

By Ellen Dannin for Reconstructionist Jewish Communities

The Red Heifer

Nehama Leibowitz says this is one of the most mystifying parts of the Torah, "one of the matters which even the wisdom of the wisest of men failed to fathom." Certainly, you can spend a lot of time just trying to sort out how it works and then even more on what its purpose is. Uncleanliness accompanies the making of the red heifer, its administration and the purpose for its administration, but this uncleanliness is obviously more in the nature of uncanniness -- a sense of confrontation with divine and fundamental mysteries. They system seems almost like a game of tag but with touchbacks allowed. Left unchecked everyone would become unclean -- and today with no red heifer we are all unclean with no chance of ever achieving ritual cleanliness.

When Nehama Leibowitz tackles the question of the purpose of the red heifer ritual, she tells the story of the rational explanation given to a non Jew, that the defilement is a sort of disease of the spirit which the red heifer's ashes cure. But to the Jews she explained that the ashes have no intrinsic curative properties. Rather they are commandments, and following them refines the human soul.

But there is another question easily left unseen amidst these puzzles. Often the purpose for which we do something does not capture its whole effect, how it shapes a society.

So the question left unanswered is what would it be like to live in a society that observed this ritual uncleanliness? In a world of battles, diseases that would carry off the young and infirm, and death in childbirth the chances of becoming unclean on a regular basis would be high. Whoever touches any part of a dead body or a grave or is in the tent of one who dies -- all become unclean for seven days and forever if they do not or can not submit to the ritual of the red heifer. What would this do to a society?

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Monday, June 16, 2014

Korach

Numbers 16:1−18:32


By Rabbi Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Reconstructionist Jewish Communities

Destruction and Creation


This week's Torah portion begins with the rebellions of Korach, Dathan, Aviram and their followers. These three tribal leaders question the authority of Moses and end up being swallowed up by the earth.

The parashah ends with a reminder that the first born of every human being and animal is to be dedicated to God. However, the first born [male] of each human being is to be redeemed by the priests and is replaced by the Levites who are to serve in the Mishkan/Tabernacle and later in the Temple in Jerusalem. The first born of impure (read:unfit) animals are also to be redeemed, but the first born of cattle, sheep and goats are not to be redeemed for they are to be dedicated to God is through their sacrifice on the altar.

As I thought about this parashah, a connection between these two parts became clearer in my mind. What caused this connection to arise in my mind was the concept of opening. In the rebellion narrative the earth 'opens up its mouth' to swallow the rebels. In the latter passage the first born is referred to not simply as the "bechor", which is the common word used for first-born, but as "pe-ter rechem" - the one who opens up the womb.

The image of Korach's demise can be viewed as an instance when the earth - associated within many traditions (including parts of Judaism) as the maternal source of life - opens up its lips to swallow, or destroy, human beings. The image of the first-born is also that of a maternal opening, but in this case, it is to bring life into the world. Though different Hebrew words are used, the image bears a striking similarity, albeit of contradictory concepts.

One image is of destruction and the other is of creation. Yet, an opening that allows the powerful force of the Divine to enter the world causes both to occur. In one instance, this force kills and in the other, it gives birth. In thinking about this the phrase, pe-ter rechem (one that opens the womb) struck me in another way. Though rechem is the word for womb, it is also the root of the word rachamim/compassion. Keeping this in mind, I have retranslated the concept of pe-ter rechem to mean "the opening of compassion." In that case, verse 18:15 would be translated (or interpreted), as "All things that open up compassion to all living creatures shall be yours to bring near to God." It is opening up to the womb-like quality of compassion within all living creatures that brings us near to God. It is our ability to show compassion that elevates us, like an offering, to the realm of godliness.

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Monday, June 9, 2014

Sh'lach L'cha

Sh'lach L'cha, Numbers 13:1−15:41

By Rabbi Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Reconstructionist Jewish Communities

The Reminder of Tzitzit


The parasha this week is Shelah-Lekha. In this parasha Moses, at God's command, chooses one leader from each of the twelve tribes to serve as spies. Their mission is to enter the land of Canaan, the Promised Land, and to bring back a report to the people. "See what kind of country it is..... [investigate its cities, people, soil, and forests and] bring back some of the fruit of the land." They do bring back grapes and other fruits, but ten of the twelve spies also bring back a report that, though the land is flowing "with milk and honey," it is filled with "giants," large fortified cities and other dangerous inhabitants. Only two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, bring back a positive report reminding the people that God is with them and so they can overcome any obstacle or enemy. Unfortunately, the people are carried away by the report of the majority and wonder why Moses brought them this far out of Egypt in order to die in the desert. As punishment for following the negative report of the ten spies God declares that the Israelites will wander in the desert for forty years until this generation dies. Joshua and Caleb will be the only ones of that generation allowed to enter the land.

The parasha also includes the story of a man who is discovered gathering wood in public on Shabbat and is summarily stoned to death for violating the Shabbat. It concludes with what is later to become the third paragraph of the Shema ("Vayomer") which commands the people to wear tzitzit, fringes, on their garments as a reminder of the covenant with God and to prevent them from going astray after other gods or the "lusts of their hearts."

At first glance it would not seem that there is much to connect these three sections of the parasha. However, I believe that there is. Following the story of the man stoned for breaking Shabbat with the commandment to wear tzitzit teaches us that if we do not have something to constantly remind us of our commitment to God and the mitzvot we may end up as did the man gathering wood. In addition, a large part of the his sin was that the man was gathering wood in public. Judaism has a long history of various transgressions which are considered more serious if they are performed in public. One reason for this is that each of us is meant to serve as an example to our fellow Jews, and our fellow human beings. We are each responsible for one another. If someone blatantly transgresses a law in public others may assume that it is permissible to do so. After all, if so-and-so can do it, why can't I?

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Monday, June 2, 2014

B'haalot'cha

Numbers 8:1−12:16

By Rabbi Rabbi Steven Pik-Nathan for Reconstructionist Jewish Communities


Miriam

This week's parasha is Beha'aloteha One of the most fascinating, but often forgotten, parts of this narrative involves Moses and his siblings Aaron and Miriam.

We read in Chapter 12, verse 1 that "Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married; for he had married a Cushite woman." Before we find out who this Cushite woman was (Cush refers
today to Ethiopia, but his wife Tzipporah was a Midianite. Does this refer to Tzipporah or did Moses have a second wife?) the text then tells us that Aaron and Miriam complain "Has Adonai spoken only through Moses? Has God not spoken through us as well?" And so it would seem that the siblings have two complaints against Moses, the first having to do with his wife (whoever she might be) and the second with their roles as prophets in Israel.

Miriam is referred to only five times in the Torah, and this is the most detailed narrative involving her. She is referred to as a prophet and yet little is known about her in the Torah. God responds later in the parasha to Miriam and Aaron that Moses' prophetic ability is different from theirs -- or that of any prophet to follow -- for God and Moses speak "peh el peh" mouth to mouth. This does not negate Miriam's prophetic status, but merely distinguishes that of her baby brother Moses.

What occurs after God responds angrily to Miriam and Aaron is that Miriam is stricken with tza'arat, a skin affliction, and is sent out of the camp for seven days until she recovers. We are told that the people wait for her recovery before continuing on their journey.

Rabbi Ruth Sohn, in her commentary in The Women's Torah Commentary discusses the role of Miriam in Jewish tradition. In her lengthy treatment of this issue it becomes clear that there was most likely a much stronger Miriam tradition in which she played a much greater role as prophet and leader.

What remains in the Torah are fragments of this tradition -- and how ironic (or is it) that the largest fragment involves her chastisement and punishment by God (while nothing at all happens to Aaron, who had also complained).

Luckily, traditional midrash fills in the gaps for us and creates a Miriam who speaks, prophesies, advises and has a "real life." The midrashim on this particular passage are fascinating, especially since we can assume that they were written by male rabbis approximately two millennia ago!

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Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Naso

Numbers 4:21−7:89

By Rabbi Howard Cohen for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Holy Isolation


In this week's Torah portion, Naso, we learn about the Nazir, the person whose chooses a life style even more disciplined than that of the Kohanim (high priests). "God to spoke to Moshe: Speak to the Israelites and say to them: When anyone, man or woman, makes the express resolve to take the vow of Nazir ...[so that] all the days of his nazirship he is holy to God" (Numbers 6:1-2, 8). What is the Nazir and what relevance does this have to us today?

In short, a Nazir is a person who voluntarily takes an oath to enter into a life of discipline and "aspirations above and beyond his contemporaries in whose midst he lives and sets him the task of being completely "holy to his God". (S.R. Hirsch, Torah Commentary, p.534) A Nazir is one who totally commits him or herself to being completely holy. The Torah describes the Nazir as a person who more than abstains from such things as wine and grapes, hair cutting and a corpse (even of a close relative!) but also a person from whom others must keep away! Indeed, the things which indicate a person is a Nazir are mainly a fact of advertising the person's status as a person who should be avoided.

Paradoxically, to be a Nazir, or as Hirsch summaries it, "to go into isolation with and for God" does not mean physical isolation. It is this very paradox that makes the idea of being a Nazir relevant today. Choosing the vow of the Nazir is not permanent. In the Mishnah it states that such avow without fixed duration is binding for thirty days (Nazir 1.3). From this we can infer that people committed themselves to the disciplined life of a Nazir for short periods of time. This is the point that makes the idea of total dedication to God relevant: we can choose to "go into isolation with and for God" for short periods of time.

Most of us, for one set of reasons or another, find ourselves almost always available to someone else. Whether it is for our young children, aging parents, patients, colleagues or employees, we are constantly available by phone, fax, email, pager or even face-to-face chats. To be unavailable once in awhile, however, is not a bad thing. Indeed, we learn from the Torah that it is OK to say "I'm not available". This is what it means to be a Nazir, to be in isolation with and for God.

 

Monday, May 19, 2014

Bemidbar,

Numbers 1:1−4:20

By Mel Scult for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Kaplan on Creation: An Explanation of Jewish Mission

The account in Genesis is perplexing to the modern person. We inevitably get bogged down with the first chapter of the Bible because it seems to conflict with our knowledge that comes from the scientific study of the natural world. Mordecai Kaplan being the modern man par-excellence accepted the scientific view of the universe but realized, of course, that the Torah has a different perspective in telling us about the origin of things. In this selection he focuses on the connection between the creation of the world and God's attention to Israel. Though Kaplan did not believe in the concept of the chosen people, he did see a special task and destiny for the Jewish people.

While only a few may be chosen, every person and every group may have a special destiny depending on their ability and their character and their history. Kaplan explains here that insofar as the rabbis are concerned, God created the world that it might be perfect and turned to the Jewish people as the special agents in that perfecting process.

In Kaplan's Own Words [ From his notes]

"To the average person, the opening chapter of the Bible is an obstruction to an appreciation of the Bible as a whole. Finding that the account of creation is at variance with the scientific view of the origin of the world, he concludes that it can hold out to him very little of spiritual value. The various interpretations whereby apologists attempt to reconcile the Biblical account of creation with science are far fetched. To explain seven days as denoting seven aeons, ... does not add to an actual understanding of what the story of creation is intended to convey.

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Monday, May 12, 2014

B'chukotai

Leviticus 26:3-27:34

By Rabbi Howard Cohen for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

What is 'Herem" (Proscribed)?


During our Shabbat morning Torah discussions we have often struggled over the meaning of certain words. Four, in particular, that have attracted our attention are "tamei" (ritually unclean), "tahor" (ritually clean), "kadosh"(holy) and "herem" (proscribed). A verse from this week's Torah portion provides an enigmatic clue to the true meaning of these key concepts.

The second half of Leviticus 27:28 states that "...every proscribed thing is totally consecrated (alternatively, is considered to be super holy) to the Lord". Since something that is "tamei" (ritually unclean) must be set aside, that is put into a kind of temporary "herem", for varying lengths of time and must not come into contact with things or people who are deemed "tahor" (ritually clean) or "kadosh" (holy) it is hard to understand why the Torah describes something proscribed as also super holy ("kodesh-kodeshim"). Moreover, both "herem" and "kodosh" have essentially the same meaning: something set aside for specific purposes associated with the temple, property (so to speak) of God. How is it that something which is "herem"- proscribed can also be "kodesh-kodeshim - holiest of holies?

Rabbi David Kraemer offers a brilliant insight into understanding this problem. Both "herem" and "kadosh" mean set aside for God. The difference, Kraemer argues, is that things which are proscribed are completely cut off from human access while things which are 'kodesh' have limited access. In other words, "herem" is like "kodosh" only more so, hence the reason why Leviticus 27:28 conflates "herem" with "kodosh-kodeshim".

Why then do we conceptualize "herem" as a kind of super state of "tamei" (ritual uncleanliness), and both in a negative sense? The solution to understanding this in part explains why this verse is set within the context of a larger discussion about property rights. When something is either "tamei" or in "herem" it is in effect unavailable to us. According to Mishnah (Nedarim 4.3) the difference between a 'tahor' [ritually clean] animal and one that is "tamei", according to Rabbi Eliezer, is that the the soul of the "tahor" animal belongs to heaven, i.e., God and the body belongs to its owner, (either the living animal or its actual owner). A "tamei" animal, on the other hand, belongs body and soul to God. In other words, something which is seen as wholly in the possession of God is then off limits to humanity.

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Monday, May 5, 2014

Behar

Leviticus 25:1-26:2

By Rabbi Richard Hirsh for Jewish Reconstructionist Communities

Land

Parashat Behar is primarily concerned with rules and regulations pertaining to the land of Israel. We read the description of the laws governing the sabbatical ("Shmitta") years in which the land was to lie fallow one out of every seven years. We learn of the idea of the Jubilee year, which occurred every fifty years, when property that had passed out of a family by reason of economic necessity reverted to the original owners.

The Torah also teaches that each Jubilee year was an opportunity for anyone who had been forced to self himself into servitude to redeem himself, even if his master was a resident alien, i.e., not a member of the Israelite community.

Leviticus concludes with a graphic vision of the desolation of the land of Israel and the dispersal of the Israelite people if, after entering the land, they fail to fulfill the Covenant obligations of the Torah. Exile and oppression, couched as a warning, are described in terrifying terms.

"For the Land is Mine [says God]; you are but strangers resident with Me" (Leviticus 25:23). With this brief but powerful verse, the Torah strives to dispel the perhaps inevitable tendency for the ancient Israelites -- and modern Jews -- to assume that ultimate authority over the land of Israel belongs to people, rather than to God.

There is an important connection between the idea that the land is ultimately God's, and the idea that every fifty years, at least, servants are given the opportunity to be set free. Both rules testify to the unique vision of God and of humanity that the Torah seeks to establish.

Despite the emotional exuberance of the song "Exodus" -- "This land is mine, God gave this land to me" -- Jewish tradition was concerned to communicate that this inheritance was contingent, not necessary; that it was potentially eternal, but also potentially transient.

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