Torah Reflections

God Was In This Place!: VaYeitzei VaYeitzei: Genesis 28:10 - 32:3   There is one verse in this week’s Torah portion which encompasses the entirety of the Kabbalistic endeavor: “Waking from his sleep, Jacob said, ‘Truly, the Eternal is in this place, and I did not...

Inward Bound: Tol'dot Tol'dot: Genesis 25:19 - 28:9   There is a popular ice-breaker I often use to start a workshop or a meeting. I ask the people present, as they introduce themselves to the group, to add before their name an adjective that reflects who they...

When Isaac Met Rebekah: Chayei Sarah Chayei Sarah: Genesis 23:1 - 25:18   This week’s Torah portion opens with Sarah’s death. After Abraham mourns her, he sets out to accomplish his last fatherly duty before he, too, makes his transition: finding a wife for his...

The Spiritual Aim of Circumcision: VaYera VaYera: Genesis 18:1 - 22:24   The subject of circumcision has engendered much controversy over the past few years. Should we or should we not, as a Jewish people, continue to honor this millennia old tradition that is...

What We Are Called Upon To Do: Lech Lecha Lech Lecha: Genesis 12:1 - 17:27   Ramban, Rabbi Moses Nachmanides (13th century Spain,) comments at length on a verse in the Torah which does not seem to hold much importance in the early unfolding of Abraham’s...

A Righteous Man in His Generation?: Noach Noach: Genesis 6:9 - 11:32   There is a thought-provoking Midrash about Noah from this week’s Torah portion that details a debate between two rabbis as to why the biblical author begins with introducing Noah as “a...

In The Image of God: B'reshit B'reshit: Genesis 1:1 - 6:8   As the Torah scroll is open once more to its very first word, and the annual cycle of our Torah study begins again, we are immediately plunged into the grand story of creation of sacred space. In the...

A Kabbalistic Dig: V'Zot HaBrachah V'Zot HaBrachah: Deuteronomy 33:1 - 34:12   Several Chasidic Masters associate Moses with the Sephirah of Da’at of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. The Sephirah of Da’at is known as the hidden Sephirah, situated as the threshold...

The Tears of Our Liberation: HaAzinu HaAzinu: Deuteronomy 32:1 - 52   Found in this week’s Torah portion is a meditation for the High Holy Days.           Know, now, that I AM; I AM Is-ness itself. I AM that which manifests as Creation, there is nothing else. I...

Tuning in to God's Voice: Ki Tavo Ki Tavo: Deuteronomy 26:1 - 29:8   As the rabbis of Talmudic times ordered the daily prayer schedule, they made sure we recite the Sh’ma—the central affirmation of our tradition—at least three times a day; during morning and...

Bridging Heaven & Earth: Ki Teitzei Ki Teitzei: Deuteronomy 21:10 - 25:19   As we find ourselves entering the second half of the book of Deuteronomy, our weekly parasha/portion contains a record of individual, familial, and communal laws and mitzvot. In the...

Humility is Not Humiliation: Shoftim Shoftim: Deuteronomy 16:18 - 21:9   This week is the first week of Elul, the month leading up to Rosh HaShanah, the Jewish New Year. It is traditionally a time dedicated to introspection, to reviewing the year that was, and to...