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: February 13 – 19, 2011
Parashah (portion) Ki Tissa - Living our Lives "All in!" Exodus 30:11 - 34:35 I have been fascinated, this year, by Moses' spiritual evolution one Torah portion at a time. Since the beginning, I noticed, Moses has been ambivalent toward the Israelites; remaining...
Torah Reflections: February 6 – 12, 2011
Parashah (portion) T'tzaveh - The Transformative Power of Mitzvot Exodus 27:20 - 30:10 This week's Torah portion is called T'tzaveh, which is usually translated as "Instruct!" or "Command!" The word itself shares the same root as mitzvah which is also, most often,...
Torah Reflections: January 30 – February 5, 2011
Parashah (portion) T'rumah - Torah and Kabbalah Exodus 25:1 - 27:19 This week marks the transition between two midot/values that we, as a community, are seeking to bring more fully into our lives. January's focus was on Compassion; February's is Service. The word I...
Torah Reflections: January 23 – 29, 2011
Parashah (portion) Mishpatim - You Shall Be Holy Exodus 21:1 - 24:18 Both this past week and this week's Torah portions speak of God's desire for us to be holy. Last week, just before the Decalogue, God said: "... all the earth is Mine, and you shall be to Me... a...
Torah Reflections: January 16 – 22, 2011
Parashah (portion) Yitro - We Begin with the Tenth Commandment Exodus 18:1 - 20:23 The month of January is dedicated to the practice of compassion. We often equate compassion with an emotion, with an open-hearted feeling of interconnectedness toward another sentient...
Torah Reflections: January 2 – 8, 2011
Parashah (portion) Bo - Practicing Compassion Exodus 10:1 - 13:16 We begin the year with a new midah, a new value, as our focus for the month of January: Compassion. I plunged into this week's Torah portion with eagerness, waiting to extract from it the many teachings...
Torah Reflections: December 26, 2010 – January 1, 2011
Parashah (portion) Va'era -Worthy and Belonging Exodus 6:2 - 9:35 Perhaps it is because I can't help but see the Torah through the prism of the midah/value of "trust" that we, as a community, have elected to focus on this December that I am discovering a totally...
Torah Reflections: December 19 – 25, 2010
Parashah (portion) Shemot -Trusting the Light Within Exodus 1:1 - 6:1 This week marks the beginning of the book of Exodus. With its early chapters begins the story of Moses, the towering figure of the biblical narrative whose life will be at the center of the next...
Torah Reflections: December 12 – 18, 2010
Parashah (portion) Vayechi -Awakening to a Deeper Trust Genesis 47:28 - 50:26 As I pick up these Torah Reflections after having been away in Israel for close to three weeks, I find myself deeply connected to the midah, to the personal value of trust which is our...
Torah Reflections: November 14 – 20, 2010
Parashah (portion) Vayishlach -Awakening beyond Silence Genesis 32:4 - 36:43 One of the first revelations that meditation allows is one's encounter with the unbelievable noise which lies within us, right behind our eyes. As if by magic, as soon as our eyes are closed...
Torah Reflections: November 7 – 13, 2010
Parashah (portion) Vayeitzei -The Silence of an Absence Genesis 28:10 - 32:3 This week's Torah portion marks the first leg of Jacob's journey. But this first leg is about uprooting, about expiation, about exile. Jacob betrayed his blind father Isaac's trust, in...
Torah Reflections: October 31 – November 6, 2010
Parashah (portion) Toldot -Inward Bound Genesis 25:19 - 28:9 Silence is the midah, the value, we -- as a community -- are focusing on this month. And although I am aware that just having this as a focus influences my reading of the weekly Torah portion, it is striking...