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Like many people of my generation (I’m 68), I’m thinking about downsizing and simplifying. Each week I look at the bookshelf in my study to identify a book I might no longer need, to … more
I am grateful to my beloved predecessor at Temple Beth-El, my cherished teacher William Braude, who shared something new with me about this week’s familiar Torah portion. It begins with the words: “These are the toldot, the generators … more
We read from the Torah tomorrow what is sometimes known as “The Heart of Scripture.” It is the portion that delineates holiness. Indeed, the parashah is referred to as the Holiness Code. It has been said that “holy” and “holiness” … more
Lag B’Omer – the Hebrew letters lamed and gimel represent the numerical equivalent of 33, and so Lag B’Omer is a shorthand way of referring to the 33rd day of the 50-day count … more
Just a week ago, I heard a TV news commentator discussing one of the presidential contenders’ positions on a particular subject. He described the hardline posture as “Old Testament” strictness, as opposed to “New Testament” forbearance, … more
LOS ANGELES (JTA) — On Shavuot, we are reminded that the Torah is a tree of life to which we are to hold fast. But what happens when that hold slips from your grasp? It’s a question I found myself asking six weeks before Shavuot, … more
In this week’s Torah portion, we begin a new book, Ba-midbar – “In the Wilderness” – or as we call it in English, the Book of Numbers. Unlike its companion books in the Pentateuch, the themes and focus of Numbers are relatively … more
Do you remember the commercial where a father and his son are walking back to their car after a football game? It is the one where the son’s team has just won the championship. It is the one … more
In this week’s portion, Beha’alotecha , we find a number of interesting narratives: Aaron’s instructions on lighting the Tabernacle Menorah on a daily basis; initiation of … more
Parashat Hayyei Sarah Genesis 23:1-25:1   In this week’s Torah portion, Abraham sends his slave to find a wife for Isaac. The dramatic scene unfolds as the slave finds Rebecca, described as tovat mar’eh me’od,  “an exceedingly … more
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