Psalm 30: Dedication of the βInner Templeβ
Oct 17, 2012 By Samuel Barth | Commentary
Psalm 30 has the enigmatic introduction, βA Psalm of David for hannukat habayitβthe dedication of the Templeβ; enigmatic because David never built or saw the Temple. It was his dream, but a dream unrealized in his lifetime and brought to reality by his son, Solomon. So we wonder how it came to be that we have a song (psalm) ascribed to David for an occasion he could not have seen, and we also wonder why this psalm became a part of traditional Jewish liturgy, always recited at the end of the preliminary blessings, followed by the mournersβ kaddish (see, for example, the Rabbinical Assemblyβs Siddur Sim Shalom, page 14).
Read More
Daydreaming Out the Window
Oct 17, 2012 By Rabbi Abigail Treu | Commentary | Noah
The arkβs window bothered the Rabbis. It is a technical problem: in Genesis 8:6, Noah βopened the window (chalon) of the ark that he had made,β but in the very thorough account of the construction of the ark earlier in the parashah, no window was ever made. βWhat window?β the Rabbis wonder.
Read More
A Tiny Point of Hope
Oct 17, 2012 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Noah
Unrelenting human wickedness leads to the collapse of humanity and the world.
Read More
When the Jews Arrived in the Iberian Peninsula (Part 1a)
Oct 12, 2012 By Benjamin R. Gampel | Video Lecture
Introduction to Sephardic History: From the Golden Age to Expulsion
The History, Society and Culture of Medieval Sephardic Jewry
The Myths of Creation
Oct 12, 2012 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Bereishit
With the celebration of this coming Shabbat, we return to the beginningβspecifically, to the narrative of Creation.
Read More
The Rule of the Visigoths (Part 1b)
Oct 11, 2012 By Benjamin R. Gampel | Video Lecture
Introduction to Sephardic History: From the Golden Age to Expulsion
The History, Society and Culture of Medieval Sephardic Jewry
The Muslims Triumph; Andalusian Jewish Community Grows and Sephardic Jewry Emerges (Part 2)
Oct 10, 2012 By Benjamin R. Gampel | Video Lecture
Introduction to Sephardic History: From the Golden Age to Expulsion
The History, Society and Culture of Medieval Sephardic Jewry
My Lips, My Mouth, My Heart
Oct 10, 2012 By Samuel Barth | Commentary
With the cycle of Festivals behind us, and approaching the Torah portion Parashat Bereishit (βIn the beginning . . . β), it is fitting to look at the very beginning of the core text of our liturgyβthe βA³ΎΎ±»ε²Ή³σ or tefillah. We turn to this ordered sequence of blessings in every Jewish service, whether with a community or praying privately. The structure and history of the βA³ΎΎ±»ε²Ή³σ open enormous areas of reflectionβto which this column will turn quite frequentlyβbut here let us look at the phrase that comes, so to speak, even before the beginning. The words βAdonai sefatai tiftach ufi yagid tehilatekhaβ (God open my lips and my mouth will declare Your praise) are from Psalm 51:17, and are printed in just about every version of the siddur (in smaller type) just before the opening of the βA³ΎΎ±»ε²Ή³σ (see for example the Shabbat/Festival siddur of the Rabbinical Assembly on pages 35, 115, 156).
Read More
Whoβs the Hero and Whoβs the Villain?
Oct 10, 2012 By Richard Kalmin | Commentary | Bereishit
To state things up front, my claim is that Adam and Eve did not just undergo a fall, but also a significant rise; to make that claim, Iβm going to argue that two of the main characters, the snake and God, have often been misunderstood. The snake has gotten a bum rap, and God has usually gotten off much too easily.
Read More
The Rise of the Christians: Whither Sephardic Jewry (Part 3)
Oct 9, 2012 By Benjamin R. Gampel | Video Lecture
Introduction to Sephardic History: From the Golden Age to Expulsion
The History, Society and Culture of Medieval Sephardic Jewry
The Reconquista: Sephardic Jewish Culture and Society are Transformed? (Part 4)
Oct 8, 2012 By Benjamin R. Gampel | Video Lecture
Introduction to Sephardic History: From the Golden Age to Expulsion
The History, Society and Culture of Medieval Sephardic Jewry
The Riots and Conversions of 1391-1392 and their Immediate Aftermath (Part 5)
Oct 7, 2012 By Benjamin R. Gampel | Video Lecture
Introduction to Sephardic History: From the Golden Age to Expulsion
The History, Society and Culture of Medieval Sephardic Jewry
The Iberian Expulsions and their Repercussions (Part 6a)
Oct 6, 2012 By Benjamin R. Gampel | Video Lecture
Introduction to Sephardic History: From the Golden Age to Expulsion
The History, Society and Culture of Medieval Sephardic Jewry
Moses’s Final Words
Oct 6, 2012 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Simhat Torah
As we approach the end of the Five Books of Moses with our celebration of Simhat Torah, we arrive at Parashat Vezot Haberakhah.
Read More
Judaism Without Revelation?
Oct 5, 2012
“Can There Be Judaism Without Revelation?” As part of the Tikvah Instituteβs lecture series on Contemporary Jewish Philosophy, Professor Michael Morgan from the University of Toronto delivers a talk on just how necessary a central point of Jewish belief system truly is.
Read More
Maimonides and the Messiah
Oct 5, 2012
Professor Kenneth Seeskin, Northwestern University, discusses “Maimonides on the Days of the MessiahβRestorative or Utopian?”
Read More
On Holiness
Oct 5, 2012
If holiness is defined as transcendence, how does one emulate God’s transcendence? Dr. Lenn Goodman delivers a lecture relating to this topic.
Read More
The Renewal of the Covenant
Oct 5, 2012
The third in a series on Contemporary Jewish Philosophy by The Tikvah Institute for Jewish Thought at 91Ώμ²₯, Rabbi Irving “Yitz” Greenberg delivers a lecture entitled “The Renewal of the Covenant- Humanity Come of Age.”
Read More
Zionism and Jewish Theology
Oct 5, 2012
Dr. David Novak of the University of Toronto, delivers a talk entitled βZionism and Jewish Theologyβ as part of a series on Contemporary Jewish Theology by The Tikvah Institute for Jewish Thought of 91Ώμ²₯ (91Ώμ²₯).
Read More
Doing Jewish Theology Today
Oct 5, 2012 By Arnold M. Eisen | Public Event video
What does it mean to be a Jew in the modern world? Professor Arnold Eisen, Rabbi Julie Roth, Rabbi Gordon Tucker, and Rabbi Neil Gillman discuss this topic throughout the program, “Doing Jewish Theology Today: God, Torah, and Israel in Modern Judaism.”
Read More
SUBSCRIBE TO TORAH FROM 91Ώμ²₯
Our regular commentaries and videos are a great way to stay intellectually and spiritually engaged with Jewish thought and wisdom.