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Holy Work for God鈥檚 Creation

Feb 15, 2019 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Tetzavveh

The most important headline of the week (and perhaps the year) did not appear in the top right column of the New York Times last Thursday. That spot鈥攖raditionally reserved for the lead story鈥攚as given over to the troubles facing the governor of Virginia, a scandal likely to be resolved and forgotten in a matter of weeks. Not so the fact that 鈥渢he five warmest years in recorded history have been the last five, and that 18 of the 19 warmest years have occurred since 2001.鈥� This story is likely to shape human history鈥攁nd the life of the planet鈥攆or many years to come; it now seems indisputable that 鈥渢he quickly rising temperatures . . . correspond with the scientific consensus that climate change is caused by human activity.鈥�

Why God Needs a Dwelling Place

Feb 8, 2019 By Robert Harris | Commentary | Terumah

Recent portions of the Torah have dealt with the arrival of the Israelites at Mount Sinai; the great theophany of God, in which God spoke the Ten Words, or Decalogue; the revelation of the Book of the Covenant, containing the first extended legal section of the Torah; and the covenantal ceremony sealing the everlasting special relationship between God and the people of Israel (Exod. 19鈥�24). Our portion this week turns to the subject of proper worship of God (a subject with which the Torah will be concerned formally for the next eight portions), and opens with a command from God that Moses organize the people to build God a sanctuary in the wilderness: 鈥淎nd the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 鈥楽peak to the Israelites that they may take for me a contribution; from everyone whose heart so moves him, take my contribution . . . and let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them鈥欌�� (Exod. 25:1鈥�2,8).

A Wall 鈥淭o the Right of Them, and To the Left鈥�

Jan 18, 2019 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Beshallah

For many years my favorite line in Parashat Beshallah鈥攖he section of Torah that I studied at age 11 while learning to chant with proper musical notation from the scroll鈥攚as the Israelites鈥� sarcastic complaint to Moses when they found themselves trapped between Pharaoh鈥檚 army advancing from behind them, and the sea blocking their way forward.

What? There weren鈥檛 enough graves in Egypt, so you took us out to die in the wilderness? (Exod. 14:11)

The Confusion of Revelation

Jan 25, 2019 By Barry Holtz | Commentary | Yitro

We have now come to Parashat Yitro in our annual Torah reading cycle, arguably the most significant sedra in the Humash. While Parashat Bereishit has the mythic power of the creation stories and Parashat Beshallah includes the narrative of the Exodus from Egypt and the miraculous crossing of the Sea, it is in Yitro that we see the culmination of that crossing, for here in Parashat Yitro we read about our first connection to the Torah, the single most significant element of Judaism as it later evolved.

Opt-In Judaism

Feb 1, 2019 By Amy Kalmanofsky | Commentary | Mishpatim

鈥淚鈥檓 gonna make him an offer he can鈥檛 refuse鈥� may be the most well-known line of any movie. Spoken by Don Corleone to Johnny Fontane in The Godfather, it communicates the chilling reality of doing business with a mobster.

The Talmud suggests that God made a similar offer to Israel at Mount Sinai (BT Shabbat 88a). The Torah鈥檚 description that Israel stood under the mountain (转讞转讬转 讛讛专) to receive revelation in Exod 19:17, inspires the Rabbis to imagine God holding the mountain over the people鈥攖hreatening them to accept the Torah . . . or else.

Memory and the Exodus from Egypt

Jan 11, 2019 By Jan Uhrbach | Commentary | Bo

Zakhor鈥擱emember this day, on which you went free from Egypt, from the house of bondage, for with a mighty hand Adonai brought you forth from this . . . (Exod. 13:3).

The Exodus from Egypt is the first of several things the Torah commands us to remember (zakhor). What does it mean to remember, and how do we accomplish it?

Open Your Eyes, Open Your Ears

Jan 4, 2019 By Jack Moline | Commentary | Va'era

Liberation being what it is, oppression is a necessary precursor. Would the world have been a better place if liberation were never necessary? That鈥檚 either a profound or a sophomoric question. Before I make my case, let me acknowledge that the question is purely hypothetical because liberation does exist as a response to the preexisting condition of oppression.

A Turn for the Better

Dec 28, 2018 By Ariella Rosen | Commentary | Shemot

It鈥檚 an all too familiar image: an individual in distress calling out, seeking help, as person after person walks by, completely ignoring their plight. Many of us prefer to see ourselves as the exception, the one who would stop and offer a hand, but statistics paint a different picture. In social psychology, the bystander effect describes the direct inverse correlation between the size of a crowd and the likelihood that someone will step in and help in a moment of crisis. In other words, someone in distress is much more likely to receive support from a solitary passerby than from a large group gathered around them. It appears to be the case that human beings are much more willing to step up when we are alone.