Slavery
- 5784, Aaron, Burning Bush, Egypt, Exodus, Freedom, I Am Who I Am, Jacob, Levites, Midian, Miriam, Moses, Names, Parsha, Pharaoh, Shemot, Slavery, Tzipporah, Voice
Placing Names, Naming Places
And so Shemot/Exodus, in the parsha (Shemot) of the same name, begins as our last parsha of Genesis/Bereshit ended: walking us through the generations (by names, literally שמות) of Jacob’s descendants. The missing…
- 5784, Benjamin, Bereshit, Dreams, Egypt, Family, Famine, Genesis, Goshen, Jacob, Joseph, Parsha, Pesach, Slavery, Vayigash
Goshen-ward
We move from dreaming in the last parsha to the fulfillment of Joseph’s dream to have his family together again in Parashat Vayigash. At least – this seems to be a narrative juxtaposition…
- 5784, Abraham, Bereshit, Bilhah, Egypt, Genesis, Hagar, Isaac, Ishmael, Jacob, Joseph, Judah, Leah, Parsha, Potiphar, Rachel, Slavery, Tamar, Vayeishev, Zilpah
Forgotten Anchors
This parsha is astoundingly anchored by stories of women, often regarding how their actions affect the men in these stories. Parashat Vayeshev begins with the story of tension between Jacob and his brothers. For…
- Aaron, Bamidbar, Brooklyn, Egypt, Exodus, Forgiveness, Lamentations, Masei, Matot, Miriam, Moses, Numbers, Parsha, Priests, Slavery, Tisha B'Av, Voice
What’s in a Voice?
Last week, I gave the D’var Torah on the double parsha Matot-Masei for Shir HaMa’alot, an independent minyan/chavurah in Brooklyn. The main text follows. ********* Some of you may remember that in last…
- Beauty, Exodus, Faithfulness, Freedom, Instructions, Komps Kaos, Oppression, Parsha, Pekudei, Physical Presence, Priests, Promises, Redemption, Relationship, Shemot, Slavery, Tabernacle, Temple, Tent of Meeting
Enduring Beauty
Every year when I read Exodus, I begin to feel like the last few weeks’ parshiyot are a long repetition (in case that wasn’t obvious to you from my recent reflections). Maybe they’re…
- Aaron, Deities, Egypt, Exodus, Freedom, Israelites, Komps Kaos, Miriam, Moses, Oppression, Parsha, Pharaoh, Plagues, Redemption, Slavery, Vaeira
Promises, Promises
I know this is repetitive, but G!d’s promise in Exodus 6:6-7 still connects me to this parsha undeniably. Through years of Seders, the four (five?) promises are engraved in my heart and mind.…
- Bereshit, Brothers, Chanukah, Dreams, Egypt, Generations, Interpretation, Jacob, Jail, Joseph, Komps Kaos, Leaders, Light, Menorah, Parsha, Pharaoh, Potiphar, Slavery, Thanksgiving, Vayeishev
Stars in Your Eyes
Dreamers – Joseph seems to represent this wide-ranging group. Some dreamers are visionary – they provide us with new ideas and take us where we need to go. Joseph does this for Pharaoh…
- Burning Bush, Disobedience, Egypt, Exodus, Fear, Fire, Hebrew, Israelites, Kings, Moses, Names, Nation, Parsha, Pharaoh, Redemption, Refining, Shemot, Slavery, Trials
Haughty Kings and Trials of Fire
Done, done, and we’re on to the next one… Welcome to Exodus, the story of our people, or so they say. Named after the first word, and the title of the book, Shemot,…
- Aramean, Brooklyn, Drama, Family, Four Cups, Haggadah, Hallel, Joy, Matzah, Music, New York, Pesach, Seder, Slavery, Songs, Stories, Wine
Back to Brooklyn
Pesach 5776 in Midwood was a smashing success for the second year in a row! Five sojourners came together for a literal exodus – since our hosts were moving the very next week!…
