Pesach 1 – 5779 Exodus 12:21 – 51; Numbers 20:16 – 25 “And Egypt bore down on the people [of Israel] to hurry to send them off from the land, for they said, ‘We are all dead men.’ And the people carried off their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls wrapped in their […]
Metzorah – 5779 Leviticus 14:1 – 15:33 Rabbi Bonnie Koppell teaches: “God creates the world through speech, as we also create our own world through the power of our words.” Although parashat Metzorah seems to be about skin disease and household mold on the surface, our tradition has long held that it is really about […]
Tazria – 5779 Leviticus 12:1 – 13:59 Tazria scares me. It always has. It is the rare person indeed who gets excited at the prospect of reading about oozy or bloody bodily emissions, but that is the topic of our parasha this week. Even more, the opening verses appear to be blatantly misogynist, adding another […]
> Passover asks us to review and to challenge our way of thinking about ourselves and our interactions This year, the first night of Passover falls on Friday, April 19th. We won’t have Shabbat services at the Synagogue that night since most of us will be gathering around our own family tables to share in […]
Shemini – 5779 Leviticus 9:1 – 11:47 Savlanut is the Hebrew word for “patience,” and when it comes to understanding the book of Leviticus that’s exactly what many of us need! In this week’s parasha Shemini we encounter the culmination of the eight-day dedication ceremony of Aaron and his sons as the priests of Israel. […]
Tzav – 5779 Leviticus 6:1 – 8:36 Yes, the priests got to wear the coolest couture of the day, with entire chapters of Torah devoted to describing each magnificent garment after another. And yes, the priests were revered as spiritual leaders, and given the holiest of tasks to perform before God on behalf of all […]
