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Shabbat Weekly Dvar Torah

Ritual as the Expression of Wonder

Dec 23, 2022

Ritual as the Expression of Wonder

Many Jews see Hanukkah as the Jewish Christmas, or the childish celebration of the miracle they're not even convinced took place. But here, too, the tradition seeks not mechanical compliance, but marvel, awe, and wonder at the "miracle" of Jewish history and survival.
Chanukah=Education?

Dec 16, 2022

Chanukah=Education?

Rabbi Shimshon Rafael Hirsh (19th c Germany) explains that another cognate meaning of the root of the word Chanukah is “chinuch” (education) and the core of the celebration on Chanukah is the concept of education.
Sibling Rivalry

Dec 9, 2022

Sibling Rivalry

This week’s parsha, Vayishlach, begins with Yaakov (Jacob) returning to the Land of Israel with his family and all his possessions. He knows that he will encounter his brother Eisav (Esau) on the way and the last time he saw his brother, Eisav (Esau) wanted to kill him...
Art Basel Shabbat

Dec 2, 2022

Art Basel Shabbat

Art Basel is here and even the most philistine Miamian is out and about commenting on the art they see. For centuries, Jews created art, but it was almost exclusively for practical purposes — beautiful mezzuzot cases, lovely candelabras for Shabbat and holiday candle lighting, seder plates, and the like — because of the second commandment prohibition in Exodus 20:4 against graven images...
Turn Hate Into Hope

Nov 23, 2022

Turn Hate Into Hope

Pittsburgh and Charlottesville, Poway and Monsey — a litany of names associated with antisemitism over the past five years. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks points out an interesting phrase in Parashat Toldot that foreshadows the antisemitism we are seeing today.
“I Will”

Nov 18, 2022

“I Will”

I once tasked a group of leaders to come up with a six-word mission statement in the spirit of Ernest Hemingway’s famous six-word short story. A person in the back of the room shared, in six words, a life lesson he carried with him from his father: “Always do the right thing. Period.” These six simple words continue to give him moral clarity. Rebecca, in this week’s sedra [Chayei Sarah], has her own two words of clarity: “I will.”
Tending the Fire of the Akeidah

Nov 11, 2022

Tending the Fire of the Akeidah

How are we meant to respond to God’s instruction to sacrifice Yitzhak / Isaac and Avraham’s willingness to obey? We aren’t the first to be thrown by this scene. An early midrash relates Sarah’s pain, wail, and ultimate death when she heard of what transpired.
Lech Lecha: Go Forth to an Unknown Place

Nov 4, 2022

Lech Lecha: Go Forth to an Unknown Place

This week’s parsha begins with God telling Avram to leave everything he knows for a place that is unknown. God uses the phrase “lech lecha / go forth…” Let’s look at this phrase in its wider context: The words “lech lecha” appear as bookends on either side of Avram’s spiritual journey...
Staying Afloat in a World of Loss

Oct 28, 2022

Staying Afloat in a World of Loss

The resounding focus on loss of life in the Flood at the beginning of the parashah reemerges in a more contained and subtle way, as the end of the parashah relates that Avram and Sarai could not bear children.
A Spiritual Refresh: Shehechiyanu

Oct 21, 2022

A Spiritual Refresh: Shehechiyanu

This week’s parsha is Bereisheet / Genesis and just yesterday, CAJE was able to host its first in-person board retreat in 3 years—yay! So there was a lot to celebrate. We began with this dvar torah on the Shehechiyanu prayer, which is also very appropriate for the beginning of our Jewish year as well.