BeShalach – 5779 Exodus 13:17 – 17:16 Finally! After hundreds of years of slavery, we escape Egypt – only to arrive at an impassable sea with Pharaoh’s chariots in fast pursuit. This was not exactly the kind of redemption Moses promised, and our people were stuck, overwhelmed with the sense that life was pressing in […]
Praying in the Woods I have always loved being outdoors, especially hiking in the woods. There’s something about being outdoors that I find spiritually fulfilling. One of the first gifts that I bought for Lynn – before we were married – was a backpack, so she can’t say she didn’t know what she was getting […]
Bo – 5779 Exodus 10:1 – 13:16 When did God put Torah in the Torah? In parashat Bo. This week the word “torah” (which means ‘teaching’ and/or ‘law’) is used for the very first time in the Torah, and under the strangest of circumstances. Parashat Bo describes one of the most intense times in Torah. […]
A Few Words About Israel (from the January 2019 Chadashot) Dear Friends, I am writing these words in mid-November. The pain of Pittsburgh is still raw as we mourn our loss and look to our own safety. At the same time, intense political turmoil in Israel has called the future of the current government into […]
A Few Words About Israel Dear Friends, I am writing these words in mid-November. The pain of Pittsburgh is still raw as we mourn our loss and look to our own safety. At the same time, intense political turmoil in Israel has called the future of the current government into question. I learned long ago […]
Vaera – 5779 Exodus 6:2 – 9:35 Think you don’t have what it takes? Neither did Moses: “And Moses spoke before the Eternal, saying, ‘Behold, the children of Israel would not listen to me; how then shall Pharaoh hear me, who am of uncircumcised lips.’” [Ex. 6:12] When God appeared to Moses at the Burning […]
Shemot – 5779 Exodus 1:1 – 6:1 The end of the book of Genesis focuses on the men – on Jacob and his sons. The Exodus from Egypt, in contrast, begins with five courageous women: Shiphrah, Puah, Yocheved, Miriam and Pharaoh’s daughter. A new pharaoh has risen in Egypt and enslaved the Hebrew people. Even […]
