Torah Reflections
Each week, Rabbi Olivier prepares a written reflection on the weekly Torah portion. These provide yet another way to discover the texts sacred to Judaism and to prepare for Shabbat each week.
Torah Reflections: November 12 – 18, 2017
Toledot Genesis 25:19 - 28:9 Breaking Free From The Great Teachers At the opening of Toledot we find Isaac pleading with God, in the presence of his barren wife, Rebecca, that she might—after twenty years of waiting—finally bear a child. God hears Isaac’s plea and...
Torah Reflections: November 5 – 11, 2017
Chayei Sarah Genesis 23:1 - 25:18 When Isaac Met Rebekah This week’s Torah portion opens with Abraham setting out to find a wife for his son Isaac. To do so, he sends his most faithful servant back to the city of Nachor, his hometown, to find him a spouse from his...
Torah Reflections: October 29- November 4, 2017
Vayeira Genesis 18:1 - 22:24 Beyond Our Need For Justice In his life storyline, Abraham did not always rise to the occasion of his ethical challenges. Yet this aspect of his story is worthy of praise: his standing up to God in the episode of Sodom and Gomorrah....
Torah Reflections: October 22- 28, 2017
Lech Lecha Genesis 12:1 - 17:27 Heading Home Lech Lecha marks the beginning of the Patriarchal story in the Book of Genesis. We have traveled through the confusion of Creation and the Flood, and now we are about to embark on our spiritual journey as the descendants of...
Torah Reflections: October 15- 21, 2017
Noah Genesis 6:9 - 11:32 A World Filled with Violence Our, then, 10-year-old daughter, Amalya came home one day from the Jewish day-school she attended, with an assignment: to write a short essay about the first verses of Noah, this week’s Torah portion. This is the...
Torah Reflections: October 8- 14, 2017
Bereshit Genesis 1:1 - 6:8 Cain & Abel: A Teaching on Generosity Abel was a Shepherd and Cain tilled the soil. And it was, after the passing of days, that Cain brought some of the fruit of the soil as an offering to the Eternal; and as for Abel, he too brought [an...
Torah Reflections: September 10- 16, 2017
Nitzavim-Vayelech Deuteronomy 29:9 - 31:30 Embracing Our Unpreparedness My heart is beating a little bit faster than usual today. No, I didn’t have one cup of coffee too many. But it just so happens that the combined Torah portions for this week are Nitzavim and...
Torah Reflections: September 3- 9, 2017
Ki Tavo Deuteronomy 26:1 - 29:8 Let Your Heart Crack Open This week’s Torah portion begins: When you enter the land that the Eternal your God is giving your as a heritage, and you possess it and settle in it, you shall take some of every fruit of the soil, which you...
Torah Reflections: August 27- September 2, 2017
Ki Teitzei Deuteronomy 21:10 - 25:19 On Being Commanded This week’s Torah portion is the last in Deuteronomy to present us with a collection of laws. With this kind of portion, we find ourselves struggling with some aspects of the text and truly moved by others. Among...
Torah Reflections: August 20- 26, 2017
Shoftim Deuteronomy 16:18 - 21:9 The Healing Power of Self-Awareness This week marks the beginning of the month of Elul, the last month of the Jewish year. Less than 29 days separate us from Rosh HaShanah, New Year’s Day. Elul is a month of preparation ahead of the...
Torah Reflections: August 13- 19, 2017
Re'eh Deuteronomy 11:26 - 16:17 Waking Up From Our Collective Amnesia See! I place before you today a blessing and a curse. The blessing, that you listen to the mitzvot of the Eternal your God, that I enjoin upon you today; and the curse if you do not listen to the...
Torah Reflections: July 16- 22, 2017
Mattot-Masei Numbers 30:2 - 36:13 First, Break All Your Vows Yom Kippur is fast approaching. Rabbis don’t need to look at the calendar to figure this out. We know. This is Mattot-Masei, the weekly Torah portion that is ten weeks away from Yom Kippur, and whose opening...