Torah 
Thu Apr 24, 2008 at 18:56:22 PM EDT
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In preparation for Passover this year, I spent some time going back to the sources, reflecting on the story of the Exodus, and on the details and nuances of the biblical text. It's a rich and layered tale: a dramatic episode in its own right, the paradigm of redemption for social movements throughout history, the foundational narrative for the Jewish people. We tell it and retell it every year, instructed as we are to locate ourselves in our collective past while sharing the story with the our children, so that it lives on into the the next generation. On seder night, we experience the interplay between past, present and future. A hint of these temporal relationships, and a suggestion that time can be fluid and flexible time, appears in Exodus, Chapter 12. God instructs the Israelites to prepare for a hasty departure, to feast on roast lamb, and to mark their doorposts with the blood of the pesach offering. Narrative melds with law as the ritual commemoration of the exodus becomes part of the nation's future calendar. In relaying God's instructions to the elders of Israel, Moshe adds the following directive: And when you enter the land that God will give you, as God has promised, you shall observe this rite. And when your children ask you "what do you mean by this rite?" you will say, "this is the Passover offering for God, on account that God passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt, when God smote the Egyptians—but our homes God saved…" 12:25-27 This vivid image, of children who are not yet born, asking their parents of the Passover offering's origin, is one of the biblical bases for the commandment to retell the story of Passover each year, in every generation. What I find curious about Moshe's addition is its timing, its inclusion as part of the instruction to prepare for the Exodus itself. In these hours immediately prior to the departure from Egypt, which are surely filled with details and logistics to be attended to, Moshe takes a pause, shifts the people's focus from the present moment towards the future.
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Thu Apr 17, 2008 at 14:56:19 PM EDT
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( - promoted by Rabbi Jill Jacobs)
So much of Torah is about the ambivalent relationship between humanity and God. God is both near and far, transcendent and imminent, loving and punitive. God creates humanity by fiat, and yet humanity is created in God's image. God creates humanity by simple command, and also by fashioning the earth and breathing life into the earthling God has created. Our lives are God's breath, yet who can see the face of God and live? The people gathered at the foot of Har Sinai crave that direct encounter with the divine, yet step back in fear, asking Moshe to intervene on their behalf. The great covenant ceremony of parasht mishpatim, where the covenant community partakes of the sacred meal in the presence of the divine, yields to parashat teruma, where a sanctuary and a priesthood with all of their intricate accoutrements, must mediate that direct encounter.
Sefer Vayyikra, the Book of Leviticus, often alienates the modern reader with its focus on Temple ritual, the slaughter of animals, the sprinkling of blood, the castigation of those who, through normal bodily function, are relegated to the status of "impure," unable to participate in the communal ritual.
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Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 15:57:08 PM EDT
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Click here to listen to Rabbi Jill Jacobs discuss the meaning of the reconciliation of two very different types of leaders in Parshat Shmini. This Torah commentary draws inspiration from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who said: "I submit that nothing will be done until people of goodwill put their bodies and their souls in motion. And it will be the kind of soul force brought into being as a result of this confrontation that I believe will make the difference."
Jill gave this d'var torah last weekend at Kehilat Hadar in New York City.
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Wed Mar 26, 2008 at 19:04:00 PM EDT
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The book of Vayikra (Leviticus) is referred to as a "user's manual for priests." Simply put, herein lie the instructions of the temple sacrificial service. But those instructions are only a portion of the book and the manual can be read more broadly than just as a ritual guide.
This weeks' reading has a number of seemingly disparate yet memorable aspects. After an opening segment that initiates the worship in the tabernacle, we come to the dramatic death of Nadab and Abihuh, two of the sons of high priest Aaron (and inspiring the Nazi island special effects segment in Raiders of the Lost Ark). The essence of the story is that they entered the sanctuary to make an unauthorized incense offering and while inside, they are struck down by God. Mourning commences.
There is a brief segue in which Moses engages in some seriously heavy duty supervision of priestly behavior (not irrational considering this debacle), in which (10:16) he gets "angry" with the surviving brothers about a ritual practice, has words with his own brother Aaron, and then comes to realize that in fact all is right with God.
Finally, God speaks to Moses and Aaron, relaying to them the food laws of Kashrut.
How do the rules of food relate to the prior drama?
Returning to the idea that all of Leviticus is a how-to guide for priests, lets examine these segments a little closer, seeing them not only as a guide to ritual practice, but as a larger meditation on the attributes a leader should embody.
The text doesn't specifically explain what the brothers' sin was that incurs their death, leaving the commentaries
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Thu Mar 20, 2008 at 17:57:17 PM EDT
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I have very mixed feelings about Purim-- I love listening to the megillah, eating hamentaschen, and all of that, but the violence at the end of the story always gets me--as does the real-life violence that always seems to happen in Adar. (and violence aside--Adar always seems to be an unlucky month; since this morning, I've gotten three e-mails about deaths). In this mix of joy and pain, I offer you a rerun of two Jewish Funds for Justice text studies from last year:
The Possibility of Purim
and
The Problem of Purim
So--no need to decide. Have it your way, and have a Chag Purim Sameach.
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Thu Mar 20, 2008 at 00:39:19 AM EDT
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Will you be at the National Havurah Committee Summer Institute this August? I will--I'll be co-teaching a course on power inside and outside of the Jewish community, along with the incomparable Guy Austrian (full disclosure: my husband). My sources tell me that Jspot bloggers Elizabeth Richman, BZ, Marisa Harford, and RubyK will be there as well.
And now, you can not only join us there, but can also use the Institute to try out your best social justice idea--all while receiving a tuition discount and a subsidy for materials. See below, or check out www.havurah.org for more.
Imagine late-night singing and philosophical discussions under the stars... engrossing Jewish learning ... opportunities to participate in a variety of services, social justice programs, arts experiences, shabbat celebrations, and outdoor activities... the chance to meet a group of dynamic, thoughtful, energetic community members of all ages at a weeklong institute. Sounds fantastic, right?
The National Havurah Summer Institute 2008 will take place August 11th-17th at Franklin Pierce College in rural New Hampshire. Each participant selects two week-long courses on topics ranging from text study to ethics and social justice to arts and culture. In addition to the week-long classes, there are daily workshops and activities; participants (even first-timers) are encouraged to design and teach a workshop, lead services, or otherwise take leadership roles. The community is egalitarian, diverse, and pluralistic.
Hollander Social Justice Fellowship www.havurah.org
Do you have a social justice cause you are passionate about and want to pursue with the NHC community? Apply for the Hollander Social Justice Fellowship. You will receive a $400 scholarship towards Institute fees and up to $100 for materials or preparation in exchange for planning social justice oriented programming for the NHC community. Your proposal needs to include at least three hours of programming, which could involve a daytime workshop (or workshop series), evening community-wide program, kids camp, Everett fellowship, Shabbat program--on a relevant and nonpartisan social justice issue. We expect that the strongest applications will come from people with at least three to five years of professional or volunteer experience in their area.
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Wed Mar 19, 2008 at 18:44:30 PM EDT
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Ta'anit Esther--the Fast of Esther--is a dawn-to-dusk fast that is usually explained as a commemoration of Esther's fasts before she went to plead with King Achashverosh on behalf of the Jews. The fast often gets overshadowed by the upcoming Purim festivities, and it can seem strange to ask people to fast when they are likely to be in the middle of baking hamentashen, assembling costumes, and preparing for revelry. Viewed in a different light, though, Ta'anit Esther can actually provide a powerful, ritualized way of thinking about the dynamics of power and powerlessness in our lives.
Contrary to the popular explanation for the fast, Ta'anit Esther actually falls on the day of the calendar (the 13th of Adar) when the Jews of the Purim story rose up to defend themselves and slaughtered thousands of their enemies. The Jews were given permission to take such actions through a decree that was issued in the King's name but dictated by Mordechai. The decree proclaimed that "[t]he king has permitted the Jews of every city to assemble and fight for their lives; if any people or province attacks them, they may destroy, massacre, and exterminate all their army together with women and children, and plunder their possessions..." (Esther 8:11).
The extent of the violence that Mordechai's decree allows the Jews to commit can feel shocking. If the Jews are acting in self-defense, why does Mordechai give them permission to murder (presumably innocent) Persian women and children and plunder their possessions, rather than requiring the Jews to limit their actions to those who actually plan to harm them? One answer may lie in the language of the decree itself. Mordechai's words in the decree are almost identical to the words that Haman uses in his original decree against the Jews ("destroy, massacre, and exterminate all the Jews, from young to old, children and women...and plunder their possessions" Esther 3:13).
As the balance of power in the story is suddenly reversed
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Fri Mar 14, 2008 at 13:06:09 PM EDT
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A young woman, with no parents in the picture, conceals her identity and sleeps with a powerful man in the hopes of moving up in the world, or at least of saving herself from ruin.
Must be almost Purim.
In the midst of the inescapable (at least in NY) 24/7 Spitzer coverage, I was most struck by the pictures of "Kristen" published in yesterday's New York Times--in one picture, she's the sweet girl next door; in another, she's a heavily-made-up call girl. If I didn't know otherwise, I'd think these two pictures were of two different women.
I'm also struck by how little distance we've traveled in the past three thousand years. Famously, biblical women use sex--the only power at their disposal--to get what they want. Esther seduces the king in order to save the Jewish people; Tamar dresses as a prostitute to trick her father-in-law into sleeping with her and continuing the family line; Yael uses her sexual wiles to kill Sisera and win a battle for the Jews. And today, a young girl from New Jersey finds that selling sex is the easiest means of escaping an abusive family, financing her budding singing career, and avoiding homelessness. Like Ahasueros, powerful men can just order up sex (just as Ahasueros calls all of the kingdom's virgins to his service, one imagines Spitzer and others ordering up three brunettes and a blond as easily as they'd order a turkey sandwich). And, of course, women still conceal their identities through make-up, sexy clothes, and fake names.
Who wins in the end? For the biblical women, sexual power can be a means of saving lives (Esther), winning battles (Yael), and even birthing the messianic line (Tamar)-- these women take the power available to them and use it to change the world. Kristen's ambitions were a bit less grand (though perhaps these might have changed if she had known she was sleeping with the governor)
In any case, a reminder during Women's History Month, that perhaps we haven't come as far as we'd like.
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Thu Mar 06, 2008 at 18:37:29 PM EST
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This Shabbat we welcome the month of Adar. Hamantashen preparations are underway. For a couple of weeks already purchases of poppyseed, honey, nuts and flour have been secured. Wrists are strengthened for the festive ritual of rolling, cutting stirring, and shaping required to produce massive quantities of the Purim delight. A craving is easily summoned.
On this Shabbat we also conclude the reading of the Book of Exodus/Shmot recapping the splendid ingredients required to meticulously fashion the Mishkan, the Holy Tabernacle, the dwelling place of the Holy One upon earth. For several weeks the Mishkan has been under careful construction and the priestly garments have been tailored according to heavenly patterns. The great communal building project is now complete. Moshe is invited to inspect the sacred space and upon observing the dwelling, built exactly according to the specifications of the Holy One, recites a blessing for the Children of Israel.
The sequence of events that closes Sefer Shmot: the satisfying completion of work culminating in the creation of a holy place meriting a blessing, echoes both in spirit and in word the sequence of events that opens the book of B'reisheet/Genesis. There we read, "The heavens and the earth were completed [vayachulu]. God finished the work [melachto] God had been doing" (Gen. 2:1-1) and "God blessed [vayivarech] the seventh day." (Gen. 2:3) And now in Pikudei it is taught, "All the work of the Mishkan, of the Tent of Meeting was completed; [vateychel] the Children of Israel had done it, according to all that God had commanded Moshe so it was done (Ex. 39:32) "And Moshe observed all the work [melacha] and saw that it was done just as Adonai had commanded, so it was done, and Moshe blessed [vayivarech] them."
(Ex. 39:43)
In both events, the creation of the world and in the erecting of the Mishkan, we discover a distinct pattern that begins with holy work, results in a satisfying completion and earns a blessing.
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Fri Feb 29, 2008 at 18:13:36 PM EST
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Parashat Vayak'hel (Exodus 35:1-38:20)
An unexpected problem arises as the Israelites take up an impressive and inspiring collection of precious materials for the tasks of building their sanctuary in the desert. They just keep bringing too much. The overwhelmed artisans plead with Moses to declare a moratorium on the people's contributions.
This is a startling development, because the people are doing their best to build a holy sanctuary (mikdash). Yet, according to the Torah, "their efforts had been more than enough for all the tasks to be done" (35:7). How could we ever do too much in the effort to create holiness in our midst? The challenge of our broken world calls out for an infinite, insatiable response.
In fact, Moses anticipates this problem at the beginning of the parashah, when he calls the people together (both men and women, according to the medieval commentator Ramban). Moses delivers a stern reminder about Shabbat: "On six days work (melakhah) may be done, and on the seventh day you shall have a Sabbath of complete rest, holy to YHWH; whoever does any melakhah on it shall be put to death" (35:2).
What is this melakhah? The commentators agree that it refers to the construction of the mikdash, the instructions for which follow immediately. And indeed, when the people offer too much, their efforts and the tasks at hand are referred to repeatedly by the same word, melakhah (36:4-7).
But what sort of behavior could constitute too much melakhah, too much effort in the creation of holy space?
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