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190 results total, viewing 1 - 10

How to save ourselves from creating Hell on Earth

We live in an era that represents an epic crossroad of human history on multiple fronts. Our material successes have created a large human footprint; combined with materialism, and aided by intractable problems of equity, responsibility and collective action, we are in the midst of a silent yet ongoing sixth extinction, with dramatic declines in biodiversity and catastrophic threats to the geological and biological processes that sustain life on earth. more

d'Var Torah | 7/5/24

Shavuot, the Torah and the sound of silence

“On the first day of the second month, in the second year following the exodus from the Land of Mitzrayim, the Lord spoke to Moshe in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, saying…” (Numbers 1:1) more

d'Var Torah | 6/7/24

Animals are God’s creation too

The Torah portion is Kedoshim, and the topic is “Holy Things,” laws and regulations that can guide us toward a life that is sanctified and set apart from the ordinary and the mundane. The … more

d'Var Torah | 5/10/24

Finding joy and meaning in Pesach during this difficult time Finding joy and meaning in Pesach during this difficult time

Pesach is a joyous celebration of our physical redemption from the land of Egypt. We host or attend sederim, during which we eat foods that connect us to the events of the narrative, we share the … more

d'Var Torah | 4/5/24

Our individual and collective responsibilities

This week’s parashah , Ki Tisa , takes us on a roller-coaster of high highs and low lows as it moves through a series of vignettes depicting the ongoing revelation at Sinai. The parashah … more

d'Var Torah | 3/1/24

Diversity enriches Judaism

There are 54 portions in the Torah. Only six of the portion titles include the names of people, three of whom were Israelites (Sarah, Korach and Pinchas) and three of whom were not (Noach, Yitro and … more

d'Var Torah | 2/2/24

Live up to your name

The title of this week’s parashah , Shemot, means “names,” and refers to the names of Jacob’s sons, who entered Egypt as free men. However, in the biblical account of the … more

d'Var Torah | 1/7/24

We too often view criticism as disloyalty

Harvard Prof. Shaye J.D. Cohen identifies the Maccabean Revolt against Greek King Antiochus IV Epiphanes, which began in 167 B.C.E., as “history’s first recorded struggle for relgious … more

d'Var Torah | 12/1/23

It’s not a sin to argue with God

The book of Genesis begins with God deciding to create human beings to rule all the other created things: “Let us make human beings in our image, after our likeness. They shall rule the fish of … more

d'Var Torah | 11/6/23

Finding your letter in the Torah

The Hebrew month of Tishrei is one long marathon of Jewish rituals. We blasted into this month with Rosh Hashanah. We raised ourselves up with the White Fast of Yom Kippur. We entered the comfort of … more

d'Var Torah | 10/5/23