Torah Sparks 5768

PARASHAT BERESHEIT - BIRKAT HAHODESH
October 6, 2007 – 24 Tishrei 5768
Annual: Genesis 1:1 – 6:8 (Etz Hayim, p. 3; Hertz p. 2)

Triennial Cycle: Genesis 1:1 – 2:3 (Etz Hayim, p. 3; Hertz p. 2)
Haftarah: Isaiah 42:5 – 43:10 (Etz Hayim, p. 36; Hertz p. 21)
Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Teaneck, New Jersey
Torah Portion Summary
The Torah begins with God’s creation of the world – light, heaven and earth, the
oceans and dry land, the heavenly bodies, plants, animals, and finally the first
human beings – in six days. God then blesses the seventh day, Shabbat, the
day of rest. The human beings are placed in the Garden of Eden “to till it and
tend it,” but when Adam and Eve disobey God’s commandment and eat the fruit
of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil they are expelled from the Garden.
Eve gives birth to two sons. When they are grown Cain, the elder, kills his
brother, Abel, and is punished by God. Adam and Eve have a third son, Seth,
and the Torah relates the 10 generations from Adam to Noah. The parasha
concludes with God’s sorrow over human wickedness.
1. Does "Torah" Mean "Law"?
When God began to create heaven and earth – the earth being unformed and
void, with darkness over the surface of the deep and a wind from God sweeping
over the water – God said “let there be light,” and there was light. (Bereisheit
1:1-3)
A. Rabbi Yitzhak said: It was only necessary to begin the Torah with “This
month shall mark for you...” (Shemot 12:2), for this is the first mitzvah
about which Israel was commanded. And what is the reason that it
begins with Bereisheit? Because of this verse: “He revealed to His
people His powerful works, in giving them the heritage of nations”
(Tehillim 111:6). For if the nations of the world should say to Israel, “you
are robbers because you seized the lands of the seven [Canaanite]
nations,” they can say to them, “The entire world belongs to the Holy
Blessed One; He created it and He gave it to whomever was right in His
eyes. By His will he gave it to them and by His will He took it from them
and gave it to us.” (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France],
based on Yalkut Shemoni)
B. One may well dispute this question, for there was a great need to begin
the Torah with “When God began to create heaven and earth...,” for that
is the very root of the faith; one who does not believe in this, and
believes that the world is primeval, denies the very essence of the faith
and such a person has no Torah at all! (Ramban [Rabbi Moses ben
Nachman, 1194-1270, Spain])
C. On the face of it, it would appear that the highest sanctity pertains only to
the commandments and admonitions, not to the narrative and
miscellaneous portions. Nor might we regard the Book of Deuteronomy,
which contains the addresses of Moses to Israel, as possessing full
sanctity. Yet we find that the sacredness of the entire Torah is of one
piece, whether it deals with the commandments of God or the marital
relations of Cain and his wife. The same scrupulous care applies to all,
that they should be written on proper parchment, without an extra or
missing letter, and read in synagogue with equal reverence. For it is all
the word of the living God, the Sovereign of the Universe, written two
thousand years before the creation of our world. All of it contains the
names of the Holy and Blessed One. (Rabbi Moses ben R. Joseph of
Trani [Safed, 16th century], “Beit Elohim” 33 in Abraham Joshua Heschel,
“Heavenly Torah As Refracted through the Generations,” edited and
translated by Gordon Tucker, p. 372)
Sparks for Discussion
Older English texts translate the word Torah as “law.” This is consistent with R.
Yitzhak’s statement that the logical beginning of the Torah should be Shemot
12:2, where the listing of mitzvot begins. Therefore, R. Yitzhak and Ramban
both offer explanations for why the Torah begins with creation, but each of them
applies only to the first chapter of Bereisheit. Why does the Torah contain the
remaining 49 chapters of Bereisheit and the rest of its narrative material?
Moreover, as R. Moses of Trani teaches, the Torah’s narratives are no less
sacred than the mitzvot. Clearly, a better translation for the word Torah is
“instruction.” Surely the Torah contains God’s commandments, but what else
does the Torah come to teach us?
2. The First Shabbat
On the seventh day God finished the work that He had been doing, and He
ceased on the seventh day from all the work that He had done. And God
blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because on it God ceased from
all the work of creation that He had done. (Bereisheit 2:2-3)
A. And there was evening and there was morning, a first day. (Bereisheit
1:5) Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Shimon said “let there be evening” isn’t
written here but “and there was evening.” From this we know that the
order of time preceded creation. (Bereisheit Rabbah 3:7)
B. Ten things were created on the eve of Shabbat at twilight. They are the
mouth of the earth [that swallowed Korach], the mouth of the well [that
accompanied Israel in the wilderness], the mouth of the ass [that spoke
to Balaam], the rainbow, the manna, the rod [of Moses], the shamir [a
magical creature that cut the stones used to build the Temple], the
characters [on the Tablets], the writing, and the Tablets. And some say,
also the demons... (Avot 5:8)
C. Rabbi [Yehuda haNasi] said... The Holy Blessed One created the souls
of the demons but when He came to create their bodies Shabbat began
and He didn’t create them. This comes to teach proper behavior from the
Torah, that if a person is holding in his hand a costly object or a precious
pearl on erev Shabbat at sundown we say to him “throw it away,” for He
at whose word the world came into existence was engaged in the
creation of the world and had created their souls but when He came to
create their bodies the holiness of Shabbat began and He did not create
them. (Bereisheit Rabbah 7:5)
* Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi was a key leader of the Jewish community of Judea
toward the end of the 2nd century CE, during its occupation by the Roman
Empire. He is best known in Judaism as the chief "editor" or "redactor" of the
Mishnah.
The midrash makes the extraordinary statement that God stopped in the middle
of an act of creation when the sun set on the first Shabbat. Certainly God could
have delayed the setting of the sun for a few moments until He finished what He
was doing. Or He might have said, “I’m God – I’m not bound by the rules I put
into place for human beings.” So why did God choose to let Shabbat interrupt
His work? Was it only to set an example for human beings? Perhaps God had
something more important in mind when He chose to be bound by these rules.
How does God’s self-imposed limitation impact our understanding of the brit
(covenant) between God and Israel? What impact does the knowledge that God
“plays by the rules” have on our relationship to God?
PARASHAT NOAH - ROSH HODESH HESHVAN
October 13, 2007 – 1 Heshvan 5768
Annual: Genesis 6:9-11:32 (Etz Hayim, p. 41; Hertz p. 26)

Triennial Cycle: Genesis 6:9 -- 8:14 (Etz Hayim, p. 41; Hertz p. 26)
Maftir: Numbers 28:9 – 15 (Etz Hayim, p. 930; Hertz p. 695)
Haftarah: Isaiah: 66:1 – 24, 66:23 (Etz Hayim, p. 1220; Hertz p. 944)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Pervasive human wickedness causes God to despair of His creation and to

decide to destroy humanity. But first, God tells Noah to build an ark in which he
and his family and some animals and birds will survive the flood. Forty days of
rain and a flood lasting for a year wipe out all life on earth, save only those in
the ark, who leave the ark to begin again. Noah’s first act upon leaving the ark
is to offer sacrifices of gratitude to God. God blesses Noah and his family and
places the rainbow in the sky as a sign of the covenant between God and man;
God will not again bring a flood to destroy all living creatures. Noah then plants
a vineyard, makes wine, and becomes drunk, leading to the cursing of Noah’s
grandson Canaan. The descendents of Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham, and Yaphet
are listed. The portion concludes with the story of the Tower of Babel and the
dispersion of humanity and the ten generations from Noah to Abraham.
1. And God Repented That He Had Made Man
The earth became corrupt before God; the earth was filled with hamas.
(Bereisheit 6:11)
A. Hamas is variously translated as “lawlessness” (Etz Hayim), “violence”

(Hertz Humash), “wrongdoing” (Everett Fox), and “robbery”. (Artscroll
Stone Humash)
B. Rabbi Levi said: Hamas connotes idolatry, sexual immorality, and murder.
(Beresheit Rabbah 31:6)
C. Said Rabbi Yohanan: Come and see how dreadful is the power of hamas.
For behold the generation of the flood committed every conceivable
transgression yet their fate was only sealed when they put forth their
hands to robbery, as it says “for the earth was filled with hamas because
of them; I am about to destroy them with the earth.” (Sanhedrin 108a)
D. When a person brought a basket of peas to the marketplace, he would
be surrounded by a group of people. Each would steal an amount worth
less than a peruta (the smallest coin) so that he had no redress at law.
(Beresheit Rabbah 31:5)
Idolatry, sexual immorality, and murder are Judaism’s greatest sins, the only
three of the 613 commandments that may not be broken even to save a life.
However, the consensus of the commentators is that robbery was the sin that
brought about the destruction of the generation of the flood. What was it about
this type of petty theft (elsewhere also attributed to the residents of Sodom) that
caused God to despair of His creation?
2. Silence is the Equivalent of Agreement
For My part, I am about to bring the Flood – waters upon the earth – to destroy
all flesh under the sky in which there is breath of life; everything on earth shall
perish. (Beresheit 6:17)
A. The entire flood episode was a direct result of Noah’s behavior.

According to the midrash, he was the one who caused the flood by not
protesting against the corrupt actions of the members of his generation.
This we see in the verse (Isaiah 54:9, from the haftarah for parashat
Noah) “For this to Me is like the waters of Noah” – where the flood is
attributed to Noah. (Imrei Shefer [Rabbi Shlomo Kluger, 1785-1869,
Croatia])
B. Rav Huna said in the name of Rabbi Yosi: For 120 years, the Holy One
kept warning the generation of the flood in the hope that they would
resolve to repent. When they did not repent, He said to Noah, “Make
yourself an ark of gopher wood” (6:14). Noah proceeded to plant cedars.
When asked, “Why these cedars?” He would reply, “the Holy One is
about to bring a flood upon the world, and He told me to make an ark,
that I and my family might escape.” They mocked and ridiculed him. In
the meantime, he watered the trees, which kept growing. When asked
again, “What are you doing?” He gave them the same reply, and the
generation of the flood continued to ridicule him. Finally, he cut the trees
down and, as he sawed them into planks, he was again asked, “What are
you doing?” He replied, “What I said I would do,” even as he continued to
warn the generation of the flood. When they did not repent even then, the
Holy One brought the flood upon them. (Tanhuma Noah, siman 5)
C. When Noah left the ark and saw the world destroyed, he began crying
and said to God: “Lord of the Universe! You are known as the Merciful
One. You should have been merciful to Your creatures!” God answered
him: “Now you say that! But not when I said ‘For My part, I am about to
bring the Flood’ – When you heard that you would be saved in the ark,
you never thought about the fate that would befall the world.” (Midrash
HaNe’elam [Rabbi Moses ben Shem Tov deLeon, 1240-1305, Spain])
D. First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a
Jew. Then they came for the Communists and I did not speak out
because I was not a Communist. Then they came for the trade unionists
and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they
came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me. (Pastor
Martin Niemoller [1892-1984, Germany])
Throughout the entire flood story, Noah never speaks – not to his family, not to
his neighbors, not to God. Midrash HaNe’elam attributes Noah’s silence to
selfishness, but there are other possibilities. Perhaps Noah was afraid to
challenge God. Perhaps he feared that his neighbors would respond to his
criticism with violence. Perhaps he believed that nothing he could say – to God
or to his neighbors – would have any effect. Why was Noah silent?
Today we are often asked to attend rallies or to write to newspapers and

elected officials to protest the genocide in Darfur and other human rights
violations around the globe. Should we continue to speak out even when our
protests appear to have no impact, or should we save our efforts for problems
closer to home? How do we choose when and how to speak out?
PARASHAT LEKH LEKHA


Teaneck, New Jersey
For reasons we are not told, God chooses Abram and tells him, leave your
home and your father’s house and go to the land I will show you, where I will
make you a great nation and bless you. Abram, his wife Sarai, and his nephew
Lot travel from Haran to Canaan. After some time, a famine causes Abram and
his family to travel to Egypt, where Abram claims that Sarai is his sister, so that
she is taken into Pharaoh’s harem. God intervenes, protects Sarai, and
Pharaoh sends Abram and Sarai away. When they return to Canaan with much
wealth, Abram allows Lot to choose the best grazing land for his own herds, and
Lot settles near Sodom. Lot is captured during a war between five rebel kings
and a coalition of four other kings. Abram assembles an army and goes into
battle to rescue his nephew and the other captives. Later, God once again
appears to Abram, who questions the value of God’s promise of the land
because he is childless. God promises Abram that he will have offspring and
instructs Abram to perform a ceremony affirming this covenant. Sarai gives her
servant Hagar to Abram as a concubine and Hagar becomes the mother of
Abram’s son Ishmael. When Abram is 99 years old, God gives Abram and Sarai
the new names Abraham and Sarah and instructs Abraham to circumcise
himself and all the males of his household.
1. To Be A Blessing
I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name
great, and you shall be a blessing. (Beresheit 12:2)
A. In the previous parashah, dealing with Noah, the Torah begins by

praising him as a righteous and perfect man. Why then doesn’t the Torah
begin its account of Abraham here by praising him as a righteous and
God-fearing man? The reason is that if it had, the text would have
implied that the reason that Abraham had been chosen by God was
because of that fact. Then, if at some time in the future the Jews would
not be worthy of being God’s choice, it would, Heaven forbid, mean that
the Jews no longer would be the Chosen People... Thus, by not
mentioning praise of Abraham’s righteousness at this point, the Torah
teaches us that God’s choice of him was for His own reasons, and that
this choice will never be annulled. (Maharal [Rabbi Judah Loew ben
Bezalel, 1525-1609, Prague])
B. I the Lord in My grace have summoned you, and I have grasped you by
the hand. I created you and appointed you a covenant people, a light of
nations. (Isaiah 42:6)
C. The text does not read v’hayita b’rakha (you will be a blessing) but ve’yei
b’rakha (you, become a blessing). These two Hebrew words subsume all
the phases of the moral mission upon whose fulfillment the fulfillment of
God’s own wish depends: “I wish to make your name great; therefore,
you, become a blessing. I wish to make of you a nation to which the
other nations need only look in order to become aware of their own task.
And the task which you are to fulfill, as distinct from all the other national
aspirations, is to become ‘a blessing.’” (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch,
1808-1888, Germany)
D. We learn to drive, to swim, to throw a football, or to play the piano not by
reading a book about how to do it, but by watching people do it correctly
and trying to imitate them... The Jewish people were [chosen by God] to
be a “pilot project,” a demonstration community. God would give them
explicit instructions about how to carry on the God-centered life. If they
did it... they would bring the other peoples of the world to see how
satisfying it is to live that way. (Rabbi Harold Kushner, "To Life")
The notion of chosenness makes many contemporary Jews uncomfortable. It

seems arrogant, perhaps even racist, as if to say that Jews are innately superior
to non-Jews or that God likes us best. Obviously, the Torah teaches that God
chose Abraham, and through him the Jewish people, but it also teaches that all
human beings are made in the image of God. Rabbi Hirsch points out that God
did not tell Abraham “you will be a blessing,” a statement about Abraham’s
essence, but “you, become a blessing,” a statement about Abraham’s mission.
What does it mean to say that the Jews are God’s chosen people? What, if
anything, does it tell us about all the other peoples/nations/religions of the
world? Is God’s choice like a race, in which one person wins and everyone else
loses, or is it like a baseball team, where one person plays first base, another
pitches, another plays center field, and winning depends on each one playing
his own position to the best of his ability? How do you understand the Torah
blessing “who has chosen us from among all people and given us His Torah”?
2. Neighborhood Watch
And there was quarreling between the herdsmen of Abram’s cattle and those of
Lot’s cattle... Abram said to Lot, “Let there be no strife between you and me,
between my herdsmen and yours, for we are kinsmen. Is not the whole land
before you? Let us separate: If you go north, I will go south; if you go south, I
will go north.” Lot looked about him and saw how well watered was the whole
plain of the Jordan, all of it... So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the
Jordan... Abram remained in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities
of the Plain, pitching his tents near Sodom. Now the inhabitants of Sodom were
very wicked sinners against the Lord. (Beresheit 13:7-13)
A. Lot found [Abraham’s] argument quite rational, he seems to have been
waiting only for some such opportunity. Wandering in inhospitable
regions could not have appealed to a man like him. What he wanted was
a rich luxurious district, protected against famine and scarcity, and that
he found. “Lot looked about him [literally, lifted up his eyes],” he let
himself be guided, undeterred by any consideration which would affect
an Abraham, simply by what appealed to his sensuous eyes. (Rabbi
Samson Raphael Hirsch)
B. He who keeps company with the wise becomes wise, but he who
consorts with dullards comes to grief. (Proverbs 13:20) A parable: When
a man walks into a spice vendor’s shop, even if he sells nothing to the
vendor or buys nothing from him, nevertheless, when he leaves, his
person and his garments exude a fragrant aroma. And the fragrance will
not leave him the entire day. When a man walks into a tanner’s shop,
even if he sells him nothing or buys nothing from him, nevertheless,
when the man leaves, his person and his garments reek with stench. And
the vile odor from his person and his garments will not leave him the
entire day. (Midrash Mishlei 13:20)
C. Rabbi Nehorai taught: Uproot yourself to live in a community where
Torah is studied; do not delude yourself that the Torah will come to you.
Only with colleagues can your studies be fortified. Do not rely on your
own understanding. (Avot 4:18)
D. May it be Your will, Lord my God and God of my ancestors, to protect me
this day and every day from insolence in others and from arrogance in
myself. Save me from vicious people, from evil neighbors, andfrom
corrupt companions. (Siddur Sim Shalom, Birkhot HaShahar)
We think of peer pressure in connection with teen-agers who engage in foolish

and even self-destructive behavior to fit in with their friends or to emulate the
“cool kids.” However, adults are not immune to influence by the people around
them. Lot chose to settle on the most fertile land, ignoring the fact that it placed
him among the wicked inhabitants of Sodom. And even though Lot was saved
from the destruction of the evil city, he and his family were still destroyed.
Can you think of a case in which someone who believed he could simply ignore
the negative behavior around him and go about his business was influenced by
his environment? How powerful is the argument “but everybody else is doing
it”? Does the behavior of community and neighbors influence people for good
as well as for evil? How would you handle the choice that faced Lot – more
wealth with unsavory neighbors or less wealth with upright neighbors? What if
you could increase your income substantially by moving to a community with
few or no Jewish residents, would that be a move worth making? How might it
impact your religious life?
Can you think of a case in which someone who believed he could simply ignore
the negative behavior around him and go about his business was influenced by
his environment? How powerful is the argument “but everybody else is doing
it”? Does the behavior of community and neighbors influence people for good
as well as for evil? How would you handle the choice that faced Lot – more
wealth with unsavory neighbors or less wealth with upright neighbors? What if
you could increase your income substantially by moving to a community with
few or no Jewish residents, would that be a move worth making? How might it
impact your religious life?
PARASHAT VAYERA
Annual: Genesis 18:1 - 22:24 (Etz Hayim, p. 99; Hertz p. 63)

Haftarah: II Kings 4:1 – 37 (Etz Hayim, p. 124; Hertz p. 76)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Abraham welcomes three wayfarers to his tent, unaware that they are angels.
They tell him that Sarah will bear a son. Sarah overhears and laughs in disbelief.
God tells Abraham that He has decided to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.
Abraham challenges God – “Will You sweep away the innocent along with the
guilty?” Abraham then bargains with God, Who promises not to destroy the
cities if 50, 45, 40, 30, 20, even 10 righteous people can be found there. Two
angels arrive in Sodom and are greeted by Lot. The angels urge Lot and his
family to flee. They leave, but Lot’s wife disobeys the instruction not to look
back and is turned into a pillar of salt. After the destruction, Lot’s daughters,
believing that no one else is left alive, trick their father into incestuous unions
and each bears a son, the founders of the nations of Ammon and Moab.
Abraham and Sarah travel to Gerar, where Abraham tells its king Abimelech
that Sarah is his sister. God again protects Sarah and Abimelech sends them
away from his kingdom. God fulfills the promise, and Abraham and Sarah’s son
Isaac is born. At Sarah’s insistence, Abraham sends away Ishmael and his
mother Hagar. God promises Hagar that Ishmael will become a great nation.
Abraham and Abimelech make a covenant of peace at Be’er-sheva. The
parashah concludes with the Akedah, the story of the binding and near-sacrifice
of Isaac.
1. To Serve God and Man
Looking up, he saw three men standing near him. As soon as he saw them he
ran from the entrance of the tent to greet them and, bowing to the ground, he
said, “My lords [adonai], if it please you, do not go on past your servant.
(Beresheit 18:2-3)
A. To the chief one of them he spoke and he called them all “lords”
[adonai]... And in this context adonai is not sacred. Another
interpretation: Adonai is holy and Abraham was saying to the Holy One
to wait for him until he would run and bring in the guests. (Rashi [Rabbi
Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. Rabbi Judah said in the name of Rav: Hospitality to guests is greater
than welcoming the Divine Presence, for Abraham pleaded with God,
“My Lord, if it please you, do not go on past your servant.” (Shabbat
127a)
C. Rabbi Judah said in the name of Rav: Hospitality to guests is greater
than welcoming the Divine Presence. How do we know that hospitality to
guests is greater? Couldn’t the two be of equal importance? The law,
though, is that a person is forbidden to run past a synagogue unless he
is doing so to perform a greater commandment than that of prayer in the
synagogue. Now here, where Abraham was speaking to God, the place
he was in was obviously holy, yet we are told that Abraham ran to greet
the three men. That is only permissible if the commandment of hospitality
is greater than that of speaking to God. (Various sources cited by Rabbi
Aharon Greenberg, Itturei Torah)
D. What if there should be 50 innocent within the city (18:24). The author of
Tiferet Shlomo says that the emphasis is on the words “within the city,”
namely those people who are engaged in commerce within the city.
Unfortunately, there are people who are extremely pious in the
synagogue but completely unscrupulous in the marketplace, and
consider other people’s money as fair game. Thus Abraham sought “50
innocent within the city,” 50 people who were righteous even in their
business dealings. (Rabbi Y. Pachanowski)
What picture comes to mind when you think of a religious or observant Jew? A
man with a beard, wrapped in tallit and tefillin, praying in shul? A woman with
her hair covered, lighting Shabbat candles? But what if that man leaves the shul
and goes to his business, where he pays his workers “off the books” to avoid
payroll taxes? What if that woman routinely goes to the market and gossips
about her neighbors? Can a good Jew keep the ritual commandments and
ignore the ethical ones? Can a good Jew keep the ethical commandments and
ignore the ritual ones? What does it mean to be a good Jew? How do we
balance our duties to God and our duties to other people?
2. Life is Not Fair
Far be it from You to do such a thing, to bring death upon the innocent as well
as the guilty, so that innocent and guilty fare alike. Far be it from You! Shall not
the Judge of all the earth deal justly? (Beresheit 18:25)
A. [The vocalization of the word Judge] denotes the interrogative: Shall not
He who is Judge not dispense true justice? (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo
Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. [This can also be read as a declarative sentence.] Rabbi Levi
commented: “The Judge of all the earth shall not deal justly.” If You want
the world to endure, there can be no absolutely strict judgment. If You
want absolutely strict judgment, the world cannot endure. You are trying
to grasp the rope at both ends. You want the world and You want
absolutely strict justice. Unless you relent a little, the world cannot
endure. (Beresheit Rabbah 49:6)
C. A parable of a king who had cups made of delicate glass. The king said:
If I pour hot water into them, they will [expand and] burst; if cold water,
they will contract [and break]. What did he do? He mixed hot and cold
water and poured it into them, and so they remained unbroken. Likewise,
the Holy One said: If I create the world with the attribute of mercy alone,
its sins will be too many; if with justice alone, how could the world be
expected to endure? So I will create it with both justice and mercy and
may it endure! (Beresheit Rabbah 12:15)
When misfortune strikes – serious illness, financial setbacks, the loss of

property or loved ones – many people cry, “It’s not fair! I don’t deserve this!” But
is it really fairness they are seeking? After all, when they experience good
fortune, how many people cry, “It’s not fair! I don’t deserve this!” Imagine living
in a world of strict justice, one in which every transgression is met with sure and
immediate punishment. (And, if you like, one in which every good deed is
immediately rewarded.) Could human beings still be said to have free will in
such a world? Would we still be recognizably human? What does it mean that
we live in a world in which bad things happen to good people and good things
happen to bad people? Would we be better off if life were truly fair?
PARASHAT HAYE SARAH
November 3, 2007 – 22 Heshvan 5768
Annual: Genesis 23:1 -- 25:18 (Etz Hayim, p. 127; Hertz p. 80)

Triennial Cycle: Genesis 23:1 -- 24:9 (Etz Hayim, p. 127; Hertz p. 80)
Haftarah: I Kings 1:1 – 31 (Etz Hayim, p. 143; Hertz p. 90)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Sarah dies at the age of 127. Abraham approaches the Hittites about acquiring
a burial place and then bargains with Ephron and buys the cave of Machpelah
and the field surrounding it from him. Abraham sends his senior servant
(unnamed here but known as Eliezer based on a verse in Lekh Lekha) to his
family in Aram-naharaim to find an appropriate bride for Isaac. Eliezer arrives at
his destination and asks God for a sign – the woman who will become Isaac’s
wife would be kind and generous and would draw water for Eliezer and his
camels. Almost immediately Rebecca arrives at the well and passes his test.
Eliezer learns that she is the granddaughter of Abraham’s brother Nahor and
realizes that God has guided him to the right woman. Eliezer is invited to
Rebecca’s home, where he explains the purpose of his journey to her brother
Laban and father Bethuel. They agree to allow Rebecca to go with Eliezer.
Rebecca also agrees and accompanies Eliezer to Canaan, where she becomes
Isaac’s wife. Abraham marries Keturah and fathers six more sons, although
Isaac is his sole heir. Abraham dies at 175 and is buried by Isaac and Ishmael
alongside Sarah in the cave of Machpelah. The parashah concludes with the
genealogy of Ishmael’s descendents.
1. Count Your Blessings
Abraham was now old, advanced in years, and the Lord had blessed Abraham
in all things. (Beresheit 24:1)
A. With wealth and possessions and honor, long life and children and this is
man’s every desire... He lacked nothing except to see his son have
children who would inherit his status and honor. (Ramban [Rabbi Moses
ben Nachman, 1194-1270, Spain])
B. Rabbi Meir said “in all things [bakol]” means he had no daughter. Rabbi
Judah said that he had a daughter. Others say he had a daughter and
her name was Bakol. Rabbi Elazar HaModa’i said that Abraham our
father was an astrologer and therefore all the kings of the west and the
east came to his door to ask his advice. Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai said, a
jewel hung from Abraham’s neck and any sick person who saw it was
immediately healed. (Talmud Baba Batra 16b)
C. God blessed Abraham with the quality of “all,” of being content with
whatever he had and never feeling that he was lacking anything. (Ohr
La-Yesharim [I am unable to identify which of several seforim with this
title this comes from])
D. Rabbi Levi said: It means with three things – He [God] made him
[Abraham] master of his evil inclination, Ishmael repented, and his
storehouse was never diminished in any way. (Beresheit Rabbah 47:7)
E. He lacked nothing and he needed nothing in this world except to marry
his son Isaac to a suitable wife. (Radak [Rabbi David Kimchi, 1160-1235,
France])
Which explanation of Abraham’s blessings do you prefer? How do you define

being blessed with everything? What are you doing to express your gratitude for
the blessings you have been given?
2. Intermarriage and the Jewish Future
And I will make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the
earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the
Canaanites among whom I dwell, but will go to the land of my birth and get a
wife for my son Isaac. (Beresheit 24:3-4)
A. Why did Abraham send Eliezer to find a wife for Isaac among his own
family rather than among the Canaanites, even though both were
idolaters? The reason is that the Canaanites, in addition to idolatry, were
also corrupt morally and sexually, as we see in the verse You shall not
copy the practices... of the land of Canaan to which I am taking you
(Vayikra 18:3). Now, even though Abraham’s family were idolaters, they
were moral people, and that was why he chose them for his son.
(Derashot haRan [Rabbenu Nissim ben Reuven Gerondi, d. 1380,
Spain])
B. The influence of a Canaanite wife of my son would be all the greater as I
dwell among the Canaanites. Not only the wife but her whole family and
circle of friends and relatives would have to be contended against.
(Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888, Germany)
C. Lest they should say about me, I acquired the land by inheritance and
gift; I want it to be clear that it was given to me by God by decree.
(Hizkuni [Rabbi Hezekiah ben Manoah, mid-13th century, France])
D. And why didn’t Abraham order Isaac not to marry a Canaanite woman?
From here we have proof for what is written in the Shulhan Arukh [in the
laws of Honoring Father and Mother], that a son is not obligated to obey
his father if he tries to prevent him from marrying a woman whom he
desires. (Meshekh Hokhma, Rabbi Meir Simha Hakohen of Dvinsk,
1843-1926)
As is clear from our parashah, concerns about intermarriage and its effect on
the future of the Jewish people are not a new phenomenon. The various
commentaries see marrying out as a real threat to Jewish survival. Are these
concerns still valid today? Even when we no longer believe that non-Jews are
morally inferior, should we still be concerned about assimilation into the majority
culture? What can we do to encourage our children, grandchildren, and other
Jews to marry Jews? Once an intermarriage has occurred, what can we do to
encourage the intermarried Jew to remain connected to the Jewish community
and to make Jewish choices for his or her family? What can our synagogues
and other Conservative institutions do to help?
PARASHAT TOLDOT - BIRKAT HAHODESH
November 10, 2007– 29 Heshvan 5768

Triennial Cycle: Genesis 25:19-26:22 (Etz Hayim, p. 146; Hertz p. 93)
Haftarah: I Samuel 20:18 – 42 (Etz Hayim, p. 1216; Hertz p. 948)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Isaac marries Rebecca, who is childless for 20 years. Isaac prays on her behalf
and she conceives. She feels the children struggling within her, goes to inquire
of God, and is told that there are two nations in her womb. Rebecca gives birth
to the twins Esau and Jacob. When the boys grow up, Esau, Isaac’s favorite,
becomes a hunter, while Jacob, Rebecca’s favorite, is a homebody. Esau sells
his birthright to Jacob for a pot of stew. Because of a famine, Isaac and
Rebecca go to Gerar, a Philistine community. God appears to Isaac and
confirms the covenant He had made with Abraham. Like his father, Isaac tells
the Philistines that Rebecca is his sister and his lie is discovered. Isaac
prospers, inciting the envy of the Philistines, who stop up the wells originally
dug by Abraham. Abimelech, king of Gerar, sends Isaac away and further
conflict over wells ensues. Isaac travels to Beer-sheva and concludes a peace
treaty with Abimelech. When Isaac becomes old and blind, he announces his
intention to bless Esau. Rebecca overhears and conspires with Jacob to secure
the blessing for her younger son. When Esau discovers that his blessing has
been stolen, he vows to kill Jacob after their father has died. Rebecca tells
Jacob to flee to the home of her brother Laban in Haran.
1. Born to Be Bad
But the children struggled in her womb, and she said, “If so, why do I exist?”
She went to inquire of the Lord, and the Lord answered her, “Two nations are in
your womb, two separate peoples shall issue from your body.” (Beresheit 25:22-
23)
A. Our Rabbis interpreted it [vayitrotzitzu – struggled] from the root ratz [run]
– when she would pass by the doors of Torah of Shem and Eiver, Jacob
ran and struggled to come out, when she would pass by the door of idol
worship, Esau struggled to come out. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki,
1040-1105, France])
B. Why did Jacob wish to come out when Rebecca passed by the doors of
Torah academies? After all, according to the Talmud (Niddah 30b), when
a child is still in the womb, “they teach him all of the Torah.” Why should
he prefer the Torah academies of Shem and Eiver? Evidently it is difficult
for a righteous person to be in the same location as a wicked person,
even if he is studying Torah from an angel. (Rabbi Bunim of Pshischa
[1765-1827, Poland])
C. There were twins in her womb (25:24) The word for twins – tomim –
suggests complete – temimim. Each of them was complete in his ways.
One was completely righteous and one was completely wicked. (Hatam
Sofer [Rabbi Moses Schreiber, 1762-1839, Pressburg, Hungary])
D. Rabbi Hanina ben Papa expounded: The name of the angel in charge of
conception is Night; he takes each drop [of semen] and places it before
the Holy One, saying to Him, “Master of the universe, what is this drop to
become, a strong man or a weak man, a wise man or a fool, a rich man
or a poor man?” But he does not say, “A righteous man or a wicked
man?” Rabbi Hanina added: Everything is in the hands of Heaven except
the fear of Heaven. (Talmud Niddah 16b)
E. We know that Esau began to make light of his birthright at an early age.
It was Esau’s attitude toward the sacred birthright that impelled Jacob to
seek an opportunity to divest him of it. From this we may learn that if we
should see a sacred object such as a Torah scroll in the hands of a
wicked man, the righteous are permitted to get it out of his hand even by
means of deceit if need be. (Sefer Hasidim [Rabbi Yehudah He-Hasid,
12th century, Germany])
One of the most basic teachings of Judaism, stated, for example, in the
passage from the Talmud Niddah 16b, is that each human being has free will,
the ability to choose to do good or evil. In fact, each of us faces this choice
every day of our lives. Yet the midrashim above and many others insist that
Esau was irretrievably evil (and Jacob similarly righteous) even before birth.
Why do the rabbis portray the twins this way? How does the passage from
Sefer Hasidim help to explain this contradiction?
2. Why the Jews
And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you have become too big
[elsewhere, mighty] for us.”
A. In this verse you find the basis and root of anti-Semitism. The reason the
anti-Semites envy and hate us is because they believe we are mightier
than they. (Hafetz Hayim [Rabbi Israel Meir HaKohen, 1835-1933,
Poland])
B. He [Abimelech] said to him: “All the might you have gotten – is it not from
us? [mimenu] Originally you had only one flock of sheep and now you
have many. (Beresheit Rabbah 64:6)
C. Leave the town where the ministers of state and magnates live; for you
have grown too rich for us and this is like thorns in their eyes... The text
implies that a similar fate will befall the Jews in the Diaspora when they
will be restricted in their right of domicile. (Ha’amek Davar [Rabbi Naftali
Tzvi Yehuda Berlin, 1817-1893, Lithuania])
D. How are the universality, depth, and permanence of anti-Semitism to be
explained? Why such hatred and fear of a people who never constituted
more than a small minority among those who most hated and feared
them? Why, nearly always and nearly everywhere, the Jews? Many
answers have been offered by scholars. These include, most commonly,
economic factors, the need for scapegoats, ethnic hatred, xenophobia,
resentment of Jewish affluence and professional success, and religious
bigotry. But ultimately these answers do not explain anti-Semitism; they
only explain what factors have exacerbated it and caused it to erupt in a
given circumstance. ("Why the Jews? The Reasons for Anti-Semitism";
Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin)
Why did the Philistines resent and envy Isaac? The commentators suggest
reasons that sound all too contemporary – you are too powerful, you have
become wealthy at our expense, you are more successful than we are. How do
you explain anti-Semitism? How does Israel fit in? Is anti-Semitism a significant
problem for North American Jews? Do you expect this to change?
PARASHAT VAYETZE
November 17, 2007 – 7 Kislev 5768

Haftarah: Hosea 12:13 – 14:10 (Etz Hayim, p. 189; Hertz p. 118)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Jacob sets out for Haran, fleeing Esau’s wrath. He stops for the night and
dreams of a stairway (or ladder) between earth and heaven with angels
ascending and descending. God speaks to Jacob in his dream and renews the
promise made to his father and grandfather. Jacob makes a vow that if he
returns safely to this place, he will give God one-tenth of all he has. Jacob
arrives in Haran and meets his cousin Rachel at the well. He falls in love with
her and agrees to work for her father Laban for seven years in exchange for
making Rachel his wife. When the time comes, Laban tricks him into marrying
Leah, Rachel’s older sister, instead. Jacob agrees to work another seven years
for Rachel. Leah gives birth to four sons, but Rachel is childless. Rachel gives
her maid Bilhah to Jacob as a concubine and Bilhah bears two sons. Leah then
gives her maid Zilpah to Jacob and Zilpah bears two sons. Leah gives birth to
two more sons and a daughter. Rachel finally becomes pregnant and gives birth
to Joseph. Jacob wants to return home to Canaan, but Laban persuades him to
stay by promising to pay him a share of the flocks that Jacob has caused to
increase. In time, Jacob realizes that Laban’s sons resent his growing wealth
and that Laban also seems less welcoming and he tells Rachel and Leah it is
time to leave. They agree and the family sets out for Canaan, although Jacob is
unaware that Rachel has taken Laban’s teraphim (household idols) with her.
Laban pursues and overtakes Jacob and his family, condemns their secret
departure, and demands the return of his stolen gods. Jacob insists that if
anyone in his party is guilty of stealing Laban’s idols, that person will die. Jacob
and Laban make a covenant of peace and go their separate ways.
1. Let's Make a Deal
Jacob then made a vow, saying, “If God remains with me, if He protects me on
this journey that I am making, and gives me bread to eat and clothing to wear,
and if I return safe to my father’s house – the Lord shall be my God. And this
stone, which I have set up as a pillar, shall be God’s abode; and of all that You
give me, I will set aside a tithe for You. (Beresheit 28:20-22)
A. How could Jacob act like those who serve upon the condition of receiving
a reward, by saying, “If God will be with me and keep me and give me...”
so and so, then he would accept Him as his God. Conversely, then, if He
would not perform these things for him, He would not be his God and he
would not serve him? (Don Isaac Abravanel, 1437-1508, Spain and Italy)
B. Rabbi Abbahu and Rabbi Jonathan differed. One maintained that the
narrative is in scrambled order, but the other said that it follows the order
in which the events took place. He who says that the account is in
scrambled order [bases himself on the argument that since] God had
already promised, “Remember, I am with you,” why should Jacob now be
saying, “If God remains with me”? But how does he who maintains that
the narrative is in order explain Jacob’s saying “If God remains with me”?
Because Jacob declared: If the conditions [namely, my refraining from
sin] are fulfilled so that God will be with me and protect me, then I will
fulfill my vow. (Beresheit Rabbah 70:9)
C. Who can count the men who were morally pure before they set out upon
the path to earning their daily bread and nourishment but who
subsequently, for the sake of making a living and attaining a position in
society, denied God, sacrificed morality, and failed to consider their
neighbor, not even when it came to that most precious jewel, his
personal honor, etc.... Jacob, who until this time had been one “who
stayed in camp” but has now gone out into the world to seek a wife and
sustenance for his future wife and family, has become so deeply aware
of these dangers that before all else, he prays to God to guard his
character so that he will not lose any of his spiritual and moral
blamelessness. (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888, Germany)
The language of Jacob’s vow clearly shocked Abravanel and many other
commentators. Did Jacob doubt God? Was Jacob serious when he tied his
commitment to God to God’s treatment of him? Was Jacob truly trying to strike
a bargain with God? What do you think of the attempts by Beresheit Rabbah
and Rabbi Hirsch to avoid these questions by their interpretations of Jacob’s
language?
Is it possible to bargain with God? Imagine Jacob’s emotional state – the mild
homebody suddenly finds himself fleeing his brother’s murderous rage, heading
for a place he does not know and relatives he has never met. Is Jacob’s vow a
rational act or is it really something else?
2. Be Fruitful and Multiply
When Rachel saw that she had borne Jacob no children, she became envious
of her sister; and Rachel said to Jacob, “Give me children or I shall die.” Jacob
was incensed at Rachel, and said, “Can I take the place of God, who has
denied you fruit of the womb?” (Beresheit 30:1-2)
A. “Jacob was incensed” Said the Holy One to him, “Is this the way to
answer a woman in distress? By your life, your children will one day
stand before her son [i.e., Joseph]. (Beresheit Rabbah 71:7)
B. “Jacob was incensed” at Rachel for saying, “Give me children,” implying
that he had the power to do so. In his zeal for the honor of God he
disregarded his love for her. (Rabbi Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno, 1475-
1550, Italy)
C. According to the plain sense Rachel asked Jacob to give her children
and in reality she meant to ask him to pray for her until she would be
granted children... Jacob was angry because the prayer of the righteous
is not in their power that it must automatically and invariably be granted.
(Ramban [Rabbi Moses ben Nachman, 1194-1270, Spain])
D. The two names “woman” (isha) and “Eve” indicate two purposes. The
first teaches that woman was taken from man, stressing that like him you
may understand and advance in the intellectual and moral field just as
did the matriarchs and many righteous women and prophetesses... The
second alludes to the power of childbearing and rearing children, as is
indicated by the name Eve – the mother of all living. A woman deprived
of the power of childbearing will be deprived of the secondary purpose
and be left with the ability to do evil or good like the man who is barren...
Jacob was therefore angry with Rachel when she said, “Give me children
or I shall die,” in order to reprimand her and make her understand this all-
important principle that she was not dead as far as their joint purpose in
life because she was childless, just the same as it would be, in his case,
if he would have been childless. (Akedat Yitzhak [Rabbi Isaac Arama,
1420-1494, Spain])
E. [A] profound frustration underlies the relationships between Jacob and
his two wives. Leah loves Jacob – names her children as a record of her
changing relation to her husband; Jacob loves Rachel; while Rachel’s
main passion is for children. Essentially, all the protagonists most want
what they cannot have. (Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg, "The Beginning of
Desire: Reflections on Genesis")
Why is Jacob so angry at Rachel? Is she, in fact, the true target of his anger?
Many of our synagogues place great emphasis on pre-schools, religious

schools, bnai mitzvah preparation, and youth activities – and, of course, these
are important. However, these synagogues also have members who are
struggling with infertility (although this is rarely public information). How can we
prevent couples and singles without children from feeling like second-class
members and failures in Jewish life?
Halakhah L'Ma-aseh
[This section presents examples of Conservative Jewish practice and their

anchor in sections of the Torah.]
30:1 Give me children. The CJLS has permitted a number of fertility treatments
for couples who cannot conceive without them. However, couples who cannot
have children are not obligated to use these treatments. Adoption is highly
encouraged.
PARASHAT VAYISHLACH
November 24, 2007 – 14 Kislev 5768

Haftarah: Obadiah 1:1 – 21 (Etz Hayim, p. 222; Hertz p. 137)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Returning to Canaan after 20 years away, Jacob nervously prepares for a

reunion with his brother Esau. The messengers he sends return with the report
that Esau is coming to meet Jacob with 400 men. Jacob divides his family and
flocks into two camps, hoping that one will survive if the other is attacked. Jacob
sends his brother a lavish gift of animals. That night, Jacob wrestles with a
mysterious “man” who injures his thigh and blesses him with the new name
Israel. Jacob and Esau meet without incident and then go their separate ways.
Jacob arrives at Shechem, where the local prince, Shechem son of Hamor,
rapes Jacob’s daughter Dinah. Dinah’s brothers take revenge, killing all the men
of Shechem, taking the women and children captive, and seizing all their
property. God tells Jacob to go to Bethel and build an altar. There, God appears
to Jacob, confirms his new name, and once again reaffirms the covenant.
Rachel dies in childbirth and is buried on the road to Ephrat. Reuben lies with
Bilhah, his father’s concubine. Jacob finally returns to his father’s house. Isaac
dies at the age of 180 and is buried by Esau and Jacob. The parashah
concludes with the genealogy of Esau’s descendents.
1. Be Prepared
Jacob was greatly frightened; in his anxiety, he divided the people with him, and
the flocks and herds and camels, into two camps, thinking, “If Esau comes to
the one camp and attacks it, the other camp may yet escape.” (Beresheit 32:8-
9)
A. He prepared himself for three things – for a gift, for prayer, and for war.
For a gift: And so the gift went on ahead (32:22). For prayer: O God of
my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac (32:10). For war: the
other camp may yet escape (32:9). (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-
1105, France])
B. The proper way is for man to keep both in mind, to make his own plans,
as far as possible, not to shun industry and self-help neither relying on
merit (i.e., Divine reward for his merits) nor giving himself up to despair,
but doing as much as is humanly possible in furthering his interests, not
trusting however in the success of his own efforts but in the will of God in
Whose hand is everything. (Akedat Yitzhak [Rabbi Yitzhak Arama, 1420-
1494, Spain])
C. If prayer does not succeed, of what use are the gift and the battle? What
it means is that Jacob prayed that the gift would be accepted and
appease Esau or that the battle would succeed. For that is the way of the
righteous, they do not rely on miracles – they do whatever they can and
pray to God that their efforts will succeed. Nifla’ot Chadashot (Rabbi
Noah Mindes Lipshutz, d. 1797. Lithuania)
D. Rabbi Yannai said: A man should never stand in a place of danger in the
expectation that a miracle will be wrought on his behalf. Perhaps it will
not be wrought, or if it is wrought, his merits will be diminished as a result.
(Shabbat 32a)
God had promised Jacob that He would be with him and it was God Who had
told Jacob it was time to return to Canaan. Even so, Jacob could not sit back
and wait for God to protect him from Esau. Was Jacob’s “bribe” an appropriate
gesture to an adversary? Was Jacob right to consider war an option? Was there
anything else that Jacob might have tried to effect a reconciliation with his
brother (who, of course, had a legitimate grievance)? Do you think the
resolution of this story was the result of Jacob’s actions or God’s? How do you
see human efforts and God’s providence working together in our lives today?
2. What's In A Name?
Said he, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven
with beings divine and human and have prevailed. (Beresheit 32:29)
A. God said to him, “You whose name is Jacob, You shall be called Jacob
no more but Israel shall be your name.” Thus He named him Israel.
(Beresheit 35:10)
B. It will no longer be said that the blessing came to you through guile [akva
– similar to Yaakov] and deceit, but through prevailing and openly. (Rashi
[Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
C. Bar Kappara said: Whoever calls Abraham “Abram” violates a positive
commandment. Rabbi Levi said: A positive and a negative
commandment: And you shall no longer be called Abram (17:5) – that is
a negative commandment; but your name shall be Abraham (17:5) – that
is a positive commandment... Again, by analogy, if one calls Israel
“Jacob,” does one infringe a positive commandment? It was taught: It
was not intended that the name of Jacob should disappear, but that
“Israel” should be his principal name and “Jacob” a secondary one.
Rabbi Zechariah interpreted it in Rabbi Aha’s name: At all events, You
whose name is Jacob save that but Israel shall be your name. Jacob
would be the principal name – Israel was added to it. (Beresheit Rabbah
78:3)
Once God changes Abram’s and Sarai’s names to Abraham and Sarah, their
original names are not used again. But even though Jacob is given the new
name Israel, first by the mysterious “man” and then by God, the Torah
continues to call him Jacob. Beresheit Rabbah and other commentators make it
clear – since there is no alternative – that Jacob’s name was not changed but
added to. Rashi explains that Jacob refers to Jacob’s past – the trickster and
deceiver – and Israel refers to his present and future as ruler and prince. Does
the continued use of the name Jacob mean that the patriarch has not changed
his character? Does it mean that he has changed but that his past cannot be
forgotten?
Most of us have things in our pasts that we regret. If we’re lucky, the things we
regret are merely embarrassing and foolish. Sometimes, however, we regret
acts of recklessness and cruelty. Even if we have changed and “grown up,”
what we once did cannot be forgotten. How can we best deal with the negative
aspects of our pasts? Can they, in fact, make us better people?
Halakhah L'Ma-aseh
32:33 to this day. Nikkur achoraim, removing the sciatic nerve and prohibited fat
from the hindquarters of kosher slaughtered animals, is extremely difficult and
requires special training and supervision. As a result, Ashkenazi and some
Sephardic communities do not consume the hindquarters but sell them to non-
Jews. In Israel, however, nikkur achoraim is performed under both Ashkenazi
and Sephardic supervision, so next time you’re in Jerusalem, feel free to enjoy
a tasty kosher sirloin or filet mignon.
PARASHAT VAYESHEV
December 1, 2007 – 21 Kislev 5768

Haftarah: Amos 2:6 - 3:8 (Etz Hayim, p. 247; Hertz p. 152)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Jacob and his family are now settled in Canaan. The parashah begins when
Joseph is 17 and his father’s favorite; his father has given him the famous “coat
of many colors.” Because of his favored status and because Joseph is a
tattletale, his brothers hate and envy him. Joseph’s reports of his dreams, in
which his brothers bow down to him, only make matters worse. When Jacob
sends Joseph to find out how his brothers and the family’s flocks are getting
along, the brothers actually resolve to kill him. Reuven convinces them not to
commit murder, so they decide to sell Joseph into slavery. They dip his special
tunic in goat’s blood and bring it to Jacob as evidence of his favorite son’s fate.
Meanwhile, Joseph is brought to Egypt, where he becomes a slave in the
household of Pharaoh’s courtier Potiphar. The narrative is interrupted by the
story of Judah and Tamar and the birth of their sons Peretz and Zerach. The
story returns to Joseph, who is successful in Potiphar’s house, earning his
master’s trust. Yet when Potiphar’s wife fails in her attempt to seduce Joseph
and accuses him of trying to rape her, Potiphar sends the young man to prison.
Even in prison Joseph is successful, earning the trust of the chief jailer. In time,
Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker are imprisoned. Each has a disturbing dream
that Joseph interprets, telling the cupbearer that he will be restored to his
position and the baker that he will be executed. Events unfold as Joseph has
foreseen; still, the chief cupbearer forgets his promise to bring Joseph’s case
before Pharaoh.
1. Brotherly Hatred
At seventeen years of age, Joseph tended the flocks with his brothers, as a
helper to the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah. And Joseph brought
bad reports of them to their father. Now Israel loved Joseph best of all his sons,
for he was the child of his old age; and he had made him an ornamental tunic.
And when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of his
brothers, they hated him so that they could not speak a friendly word to him.
(Beresheit 37:2-4)
A. One should never show favoritism to one son above the other, for
because of the additional expenditure of the weight of two coins worth of
fine wool for the many-colored coat that Jacob made for Joseph, beyond
what he spent for his other sons, his brothers envied him, and the end
result was that our forefathers went down to Egypt. (Talmud Shabbat
10b)
B. Had Jacob shown the love to Benjamin that he showed to Joseph, the
brothers would have assumed that their father loved the two because
they were the children of his beloved Rachel. However, when they saw
that Jacob loved Joseph more than all his brothers, i.e., even more than
Benjamin, they suspected that this love stemmed from the fact that
Joseph carried tales to his father, and he was building himself up at their
expense. (Meshekh Hokhmah [Rabbi Meir Simha Hakohen of Dvinsk,
1843-1926, Latvia])
C. Joseph brought bad reports of them to their father. Can a righteous
person then engage in slander? Rather, when a person has one son who
excels above the others, the father shows him up as an example to the
others. By doing so, he rebukes, punishes, and humiliates the other sons,
telling them: “Why can’t you take an example from him? Why don’t you
act as he does?” That was what happened with Joseph. As his actions
were better than those of his brothers, he brought a bad report about
them to his father. In other words, he was the cause of their father
rebuking them. If that is the case, the question to be asked is why
Joseph was punished. The answer is that a righteous person should hide
his good deeds even from his father. (Rabbi Menahem of Amshinov,
1860-1918, Poland)
D. They hated him so that they could not speak a friendly word to him. But
had they sat down together, they would have spoken to one another and
told one another what bothered them. Then they would have ironed out
their differences. The trouble in every argument is that there is no
common language and no one is listening. (Tiferet Yonatan [Rabbi
Yonatan Eybeschuetz, 1690-1764, Prague])
Jacob grew up in a home where his father clearly favored his brother (while he
was his mother’s favorite). Why did he repeat the behavior that had caused him
so much distress? The Torah expects us to learn empathy and compassion
from our own mistreatment – you shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for
you were strangers in the land of Egypt (Shemot 22:20). Do you believe this is
reasonable, or do those who have been mistreated go on to mistreat others?
Why did Jacob favor Joseph above his other sons? How much of the blame for
the brothers’ hatred was due to Jacob’s actions, and how much to Joseph’s?
Tiferet Yonatan says that if the brothers had only sat down and talked, they
could have worked things out. Do you think this could be true?
2. To Do Right and Good In the Eyes of God
Then Judah said to his brothers, “What do we gain by killing our brother and
covering up his blood?” (Beresheit 37:26)
A. Covering up his blood – and concealing his death. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo
B. For our own honor and out of fear of our father. (Rabbi Ovadiah Sforno,
1475-1550, Italy)
C. If we are forced to conceal the matter and keep it a secret, that is a sign
that it is wrong. (Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk, 1787-1854, Poland)
D. [His disciples said to Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai], Our master, bless us.
He said to them: May it be God’s will that the fear of Heaven shall be as
much upon you as the fear of flesh and blood. His disciples asked: Is that
all? He replied: Would that you attained no less than such fear! You can
see for yourselves the truth of what I say: When a man is about to
commit a transgression, he says, “I hope no man will see me.” (Talmud
Berachot 28b)
E. If there is no God, all is permitted. (Feodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers
Karamazov)
Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk offers a simple, pragmatic test for right
behavior. When you contemplate a course of action, would you still do it if you
knew your parents, spouse, or children would find out about it? If it would
appear on the front page of the newspaper? Do you think this test is sufficient to
insure moral behavior (or at least to prevent immoral behavior)?
What does Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai’s blessing add to your understanding
of moral behavior? Is morality possible without God?
PARASHAT MIKETZ - BIRKAT HAHODESH -
SHABBAT HANUKKAH
December 8, 2007 – 28 Kislev 5768
Annual: Genesis Genesis 41:1-44:17 (Etz Hayim, p. 250; Hertz p. 155)

Maftir: Numbers 7:30 – 7:35 (Etz Hayim, p. 808; Hertz p. 598)
Haftarah: Zehariah 2:14 – 4:7 (Etz Hayim, p. 1270; Hertz p. 987)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Pharaoh dreams of seven lean cows devouring seven fat cows and seven thin
ears of grain consuming seven healthy ears. He is disturbed by his dreams, but
none of his magicians can interpret them. The chief cupbearer now remembers
Joseph and his ability to interpret dreams. Pharaoh sends for Joseph, who tells
him that his dreams are God’s way of informing Pharaoh about seven years of
abundance, to be followed by seven years of famine. Joseph then advises
Pharaoh to appoint someone to oversee the collection and storage of surplus
food in the prosperous years so that it will be available for the years of scarcity.
Pharaoh sees the wisdom of the plan and appoints Joseph to the position,
giving him many honors and a wife who bears him two sons. After the seven
years of plenty have passed, the famine begins in Egypt and surrounding lands.
Jacob sends 10 of his sons – all but Benjamin – to Egypt to buy food. When the
brothers come before the viceroy of Egypt – Joseph – he recognizes them but
they do not recognize him. Joseph accuses them of being spies and when they
protest, Joseph agrees to hold Shimon hostage until they return with Benjamin
to prove their innocence. When the brothers tell Jacob what has happened, he
refuses to let Benjamin go to Egypt. However, the famine continues and Jacob
reluctantly allows Benjamin to accompany his brothers to Egypt to buy food.
Joseph has the brothers brought to his house, where he serves them a feast.
However, Joseph tells his steward to hide his silver goblet in Benjamin’s sack.
After the brothers depart for home, Joseph sends his men after them to
apprehend the “thief.” Joseph tells the brothers he will keep the one who stole
the goblet as his slave and the others are free to return home.
1. Such A Pretty Cow
After two years’ time, Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by the Nile, when
out of the Nile there came up seven cows, handsome and sturdy, and they
grazed in the reed grass. (Beresheit 41:1-2)
A. Handsome [elsewhere, beautiful of appearance], this is a sign of the

days of plenty when creatures appear pleasing to each other, for the eye
of one creature is not envious of the other. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo
B. They grazed in the reed grass [ba-ahu]. What is ba-ahu? Ba-ahava – in
brotherhood, for when the good years come creatures become brothers
one to another, and when the bad years come, creatures become
strangers to their fellows; then they would look at each other and turn
their faces away. (Tanhuma Miketz, siman 3)
C. The torments of poverty deprive a man of his good sense and of the
capacity to acknowledge his Creator. (Talmud Eruvin 41b)
D. Ben Zoma taught: Who is rich? One who is happy with his portion. (Avot
4:1)
E. Esau said, “I have much”... But Jacob said, “I have everything.” (33:9-11)
The Hafetz Hayim commented that with these two remarks we see the
difference in world view between Jacob and Esau. Esau said he had a lot.
Even though he had a large amount, he would still want more, for
whoever has a hundred wants two hundred. Jacob, however, said “I have
everything.” I am not missing anything at all. Esau constantly wanted
more while Jacob felt great satisfaction in what he had. (Hafetz Hayim al
HaTorah [Rabbi Israel Meir HaKohen, 1835-1933, Poland])
Rashi and the Tanhuma suggest that people who have enough material goods
to meet their needs regard others as brothers. The implication is that enmity,
envy, and hatred are caused by poverty. Do you believe that envy, hatred,
crime, and violence are caused by poverty? Do you believe that most people
who have enough to meet their needs and then some treat others as brothers?
Or is the Hafetz Hayim right – people who have a great deal will always want
more? Where do wealth and poverty fit into your understanding of how people
treat each other?
2. If You're Not Part of the Solution...
Accordingly [elsewhere, Now], let Pharaoh find a man of discernment and

wisdom and set him over the land of Egypt. (Beresheit 41:33)
A. It is asked: as Pharaoh only asked Joseph to interpret his dream, why did
Joseph give him advice? However, this was an integral part of the
interpretation of the dream, for one can ask: Why was it necessary for
God to have Pharaoh dream of the seven lean years? Why not only
show him the seven years of plenty at this time and later give him a
dream of the seven lean years? From this, Joseph deduced that this was
being shown to Pharaoh now so that he could prepare for the years of
famine. That is what is meant by Now – the fact that you saw the vision
of the seven lean years now is so that Pharaoh will be able to find a man
of discernment and wisdom to prepare for the lean years. (Ma’ayanah
shel Torah [Rabbi Alexander Zusia Friedman, 1897-1943, Poland])
B. None could interpret them (41:8) No one provided Pharaoh with a
satisfying interpretation. He wished them to detect in his dream a
message regarding the future of his people, and which it would profit him
to know beforehand. He believed that God had not vouchsafed him the
dreams for nothing, particularly as they came to him on his birthday.
Otherwise, what prevented them from offering any interpretation they
could think up? According to this, we can appreciate why Joseph offered
advice to the king. The latter did not want to know the future but to know
what was in store so that he could take preventive steps. (Rabbi Shmuel
David Luzzatto, 1800-1865, Italy)
C. Accordingly, let Pharaoh find... Since God informed you that there will be
a famine to enable you to save your people, and He [even] showed you
the [years of] plenty, informing you how you may save [them], it is proper
that you do so and not sin against Him. (Rabbi Ovadiah ben Jacob
Sforno, 1475-1550, Italy)
Joseph not only interpreted Pharaoh’s dream and identified the problem facing
Egypt, he also offered a solution. Why do you think Joseph’s interpretation and
advice rang true to Pharaoh, so that he acted immediately and raised Joseph to
the position of viceroy? What do you think would have happened if Joseph had
only described the problem but had not offered a solution?
Human institutions (and relationships) are, of course, imperfect, so it’s not hard
to identify problems – the synagogue is losing membership, there are too few
volunteers, we need to do more fundraising. However, too often people get
stuck in rehashing the problems and never move on to solutions. How can we
encourage people to come forward with creative solutions or even partial
solutions? How do we discourage the attitude of “that’s not the way we do
things around here?” How can we get more people to be part of the solution?
PARASHAT VAYIGASH
December 15, 2007 – 6 Tevet 5768

Haftarah: Ezekiel 37:15 – 28 (Etz Hayim, p. 291; Hertz p. 178)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Judah, the brother who had originally come up with the idea of selling Joseph,
steps up and offers himself as a substitute slave, so Benjamin can return home
and their father’s heart will not be broken. Joseph realizes that his brothers
have changed and he reveals his identity to them. He tells his brothers that he
realizes that what they had done to him was, in fact, part of God’s plan to save
lives. Joseph sends his brothers home to bring Jacob and the entire family to
Egypt so they will not suffer during the remaining years of famine. Jacob at first
does not believe what his sons tell him, but he finally accepts the news that
Joseph is alive and is eager to go to Egypt to see him. As the family sets out on
its journey, God appears to Jacob and tells him not to fear because God will be
with him. The 70 members of Jacob’s family in Egypt are listed. Joseph goes to
meet his father and tells him of his plan that the family settle in the region of
Goshen. Joseph brings his father and some of his brothers to meet Pharaoh,
who gives his approval to Joseph’s plan. As the famine continues, Joseph
acquires the Egyptians’ livestock and land for Pharaoh in exchange for food and
transforms the population into serfs. During the same period, the Israelites in
Goshen prosper.
1. Just What Do You Mean By That?
Then Judah went up to him and said, “Please, my lord, let your servant appeal
to my lord, and do not be impatient with your servant, you who are the equal of
Pharaoh.” (Beresheit 44:18)
A. You are considered in my sight as the king; this is the plain meaning. But
the midrash interprets it: In the end you will be smitten because of him
with leprosy, just as Pharaoh was smitten because of Sarah my
grandmother for the one night he detained her. Another interpretation:
Just as Pharaoh decrees but does not establish them, makes promises
but does not carry them out, you too are the same... Another
interpretation: If you will provoke me, I will slay you and your lord. (Rashi
B. Judah was an astute diplomat. The words he addressed to Joseph – you
who are the equal of Pharaoh – could be interpreted in various ways.
They could be taken as words of respect, meaning: “You are as
important in my eyes as Pharaoh himself.” Or they could be construed as
a threat: “You will be stricken with leprosy just like that other Pharaoh
before you.” Or else they could be interpreted as an insult: “Just as
Pharaoh issues decrees and then fails to carry them out, so you too are
undependable.” Judah had in mind all three of these meanings, and it is
as if he had said to Joseph: “Interpret my words in any way you choose,
for all the interpretations would be equally correct.” (Rabbi Judah Leib
Graubart, 1861-1937, Toronto, Canada)
C. He spoke to him harshly. At first, Judah had thought that this was
retribution for their sin of selling Joseph, and it was only appropriate that
their punishment should be that they be sold as slaves – just as they had
sold Joseph into slavery. Now, though, that he saw that all the brothers
were to be released except Benjamin, and he was the only one who had
not taken part in the sale of Joseph, he understood that this was not
punishment for the brothers, but a plot. That was why he spoke harshly.
(Rabbi Moses Alshikh, 1508-1600, Israel)
D. Just as Pharaoh decrees but does not fulfill, promises but does not carry
out, you too are the same (Rashi). This seems strange: Here Judah is
standing in front of the ruler and pleading for mercy. Is that, then, the way
to talk to him? Rather, this is what Judah said: The king issues decrees
that apply to everyone in the kingdom, but he himself has the right to
violate them. His primary right is to pardon criminals, because according
to the letter of the law they may not be freed. You, Joseph, also have that
right, for you freed us even though, under Egyptian law, if a theft is found
in the hands of one of a group of ten men, all are imprisoned. That being
the case, I beg of you to pardon Benjamin as well. (HaDrash v’HaIyun
[Rabbi Aaron Lewin of Reisha, 1880-1941, Poland])
E. I honor you as a Pharaoh, so if anything that I say does not please you,
do not think that I do it from lack of honor. What I say to you I would also
say to Pharaoh. (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888, Germany)
You who are the equal of Pharaoh could be taken as flattery, as a threat, as an
insult, or as a plea for mercy. What did Judah have in mind when he spoke
these words?
What did they convey to Joseph when he heard them? At this point, Joseph
was still speaking with his brothers through a translator. How did the translator
present these words?
Translating any text from one language to another inevitably involves at least
some interpretation and distortion. What do we lose – or gain – by reading the
Torah, the siddur, and other Hebrew texts in English? Is there a difference
between tzedakah and charity? Between tefillah and prayer? Between teshuvah
and repentance?
2. Love Means Having to Say "I'm Sorry"
Therefore, please let your servant remain as a slave to my lord instead of the
boy, and let the boy go back with his brothers. (Beresheit 44:33)
A. Joseph could no longer control himself (45:1) Why was Joseph able to
control himself until that time, and what changed matters right then? The
answer is that he had spoken to them harshly in order to have them
realize the enormity of their sin and to repent, so that they would atone
for the sin of having sold him. Now that Judah had said, Therefore,
please let your servant remain as a slave to my lord instead of the boy,
and had shown that he was ready to humble himself and to become a
slave with all the hardships involved, Joseph realized that they had
regretted their actions. That was why he was no longer able to control
himself. (Shem Mi-Shmuel [Rabbi Samuel Bornstein, 1856-1926,
Poland])
B. Then Judah said, “What do we gain by killing our brother and covering up
his blood? Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites.” (Beresheit 37:26-27)
C. What constitutes complete repentance [teshuvah]? If the sinner has the
opportunity of committing once again the sinful act and it is quite possible
for him to repeat it and yet he refrains from so doing because he has
repented - for example, a man cohabited unlawfully with a woman and,
after a time found himself alone with her again and he still loves her and
is still physically capable as ever and it takes place in the same province
in which he had previously sinned with her and yet he refrains from
repeating the transgression -- he is a true penitent... (Rambam [Rabbi
Moses ben Maimon, 1135-1209, Spain and Egypt], Mishneh Torah,
Hilchot Teshuvah, 2:1)
D. Rabbi Adda bar Ahavah said: A man who confesses after committing a
transgression but does not change his ways is like one who persists in
holding a dead reptile in his hand – even if he immerses himself in all the
waters of the world, his immersion will not cleanse him. But once he
throws the reptile away and immerses himself in no more than forty seah
of water, the immersion is effective. (Talmud Taanit 16a)
E. He who says, “I will sin and then repent, I will sin and then repent,” will be
given no opportunity to vow penitence. (Talmud Yoma 85b)
Do Judah’s words meet Rambam’s criteria for complete teshuvah? Is this

standard too strict? Is a person who avoids temptation (in Rambam’s example,
avoiding the woman with whom he sinned) rather than resisting it truly
repentant?
It seems that hardly a week goes by without some public figure – a politician, a
sports star, or an entertainer – being caught behaving badly, from sexual
impropriety to misuse of funds to employing offense language. This is usually
followed by a tearful public apology and a promise to go into rehab. Is this true
teshuvah? Is it a necessary part of repentance? How do we know when
teshuvah has occurred?
PARASHAT VAYEHI - HAZAK SHABBAT
December 22, 2007 – 13 Tevet 5768

Triennial Cycle: Genesis 47:28--48:22 (Etz Hayim, p. 293; Hertz p. 180)

Teaneck, New Jersey
As Jacob’s life draws to a close, he summons his son Joseph. Jacob asks
Joseph to swear that he will not bury him in Egypt, but will return his body to
Canaan for burial in the cave of Machpelah. Later, Joseph brings his sons to
visit his ailing father. Jacob tells Joseph that Ephraim and Manasseh will be
considered equal to Jacob’s sons. Jacob blesses his son and grandsons. Jacob
then gathers all of his sons and speaks to each individually about his character
and his future, “addressing to each a parting word appropriate to him.” Jacob
then dies at the age of 147. Joseph has his father’s body prepared according to
the Egyptian custom and then Jacob’s family, accompanied by Egyptian
dignitaries, travels to Canaan to bury him with his parents and grandparents.
Joseph’s brothers, fearing what Joseph may do now that their father is dead, tell
Joseph it was Jacob’s dying wish that Joseph forgive his brothers. Joseph
assures them that he bears no grudge because even though they acted out of
spite, God turned their actions to good. Joseph dies at the age of 110, after
asking his family to swear that they will return his bones to Canaan when God
will bring the Israelites back to the land He has promised.
1. The Last Kindness
And when the time approached for Israel to die, he summoned his son Joseph
and said to him, “Do me this favor, place your hand under my thigh as a pledge
of your steadfast loyalty [literally, do kindness and truth with me]: please do not
bury me in Egypt. (Beresheit 47:29)
A. The kindness that is shown to those who are dead, that is a true
kindness, for one does not look forward to the payment of a recompense.
(Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. Can there be a false kindness, that he says to him, a kindness and truth?
Why then did he speak thus? The common [cynical] proverb runs: When
your friend’s son dies, bear with him [in sorrow]; when your friend dies,
throw off sorrow [for he cannot repay you]. Therefore, he said to him, if
you show me kindness at my death, and after my death, that indeed is
true kindness. (Beresheit Rabbah 96:5)
C. At first blush, it would appear that the kindness one does for the dead
also has compensation, because, as our Sages tell us (Talmud Moed
Katan 28): “If one eulogizes others, he is eulogized, if one buries others,
he is buried.” However, we should note that Rashi says that “one does
not look forward to the payment of a recompense.” In other words, there
is indeed compensation, even for doing something for the dead, but no
one looks forward to this compensation or wants to receive it. On the
contrary, every person hopes that he will live a long life. (Rabbi Yonatan
Binyamin HaKohen of Solish)
D. When dealing kindly with a person in life, one cannot know whether it
was truly kindness, for many times that which one thinks is an act of
mercy and kindness results in harm. But the mercy one shows to the
dead is always true mercy because this is loving-kindness which the
dead truly require and it therefore cannot result in harm or evil. (Ohel
Yaakov [Rabbi Joseph ben Wolf Kranz, known as the Maggid of Dubno,
1740-1804, Poland])
Do all acts of kindness to others include some calculation of return? Does the
fact that a person who does acts of kindness and hopes for some reward, either
in this world or the next, detract from the value of that kindness to the person
who receives it? Is any person truly selfless? Ohel Yaakov suggests that
sometimes an act that is meant as kindness may in fact be harmful. Under what
circumstances does this happen?
Imagine a relative who has had a problem with alcohol. He has completed a
course of treatment and has been sober for 90 days. He asks to borrow $3,000,
which you can easily afford, for a security deposit on an apartment and new
clothes for job hunting. Do you give him the money? Do you refuse? Do you
agree to make the loan on the condition that you write the checks directly to the
landlord and the clothing store? How do you decide what is really true
kindness?
2. A Blessing On Your Head
So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you shall Israel invoke blessings,
saying: God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.” (Beresheit 48:20)
A. Whoever shall come to bless his sons will bless them with their blessing,
and a man will say to his son, “God make you as Ephraim and as
Manasseh.” (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. Why should Jacob have wanted all his descendents to bless their
children with the example of Ephraim and Manasseh rather than with that
of some other two of the Tribes of Israel? Because the two young sons of
Joseph had conducted themselves in accordance with the fundamental
law of the Torah; namely, that one should neither consider oneself
greater than another nor envy another. Even though Jacob had set
Ephraim, the younger son, before Manasseh, the first-born, Ephraim did
not become arrogant and Manasseh did not become jealous. Seeing this,
Jacob expressed the hope that all the Children of Israel would be like
Ephraim and Manasseh, free of arrogance and envy. (Igra DeKallah
[Rabbi Zvi Elimelekh of Dinov, 1795-1851, Poland])
C. Why specifically as Ephraim and Manasseh? The reason is that Jacob
realized that the time of the exile of his descendents was approaching,
and he knew that in exile their Jewishness was in great danger. He
therefore blessed them that they should be as Ephraim and Manasseh –
the first Jews who were born, grew up, and were educated in exile – and
yet in spite of that, they “are mine” – they remained faithful to the House
of Israel, just as Reuven and Shimon. (Yalkut Yehuda [Rabbi Yehuda
Leib Ginsburg, 1885-1946, Russia, United States])
We bless our daughters, “God make you like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and
Leah.” Why don’t we bless our sons in the names of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob? What comes to mind when you bless your sons or grandsons in the
names of Ephraim and Manasseh? What blessings would you choose for your
children and grandchildren?
Halakhah L'Ma-aseh
48:1 “Your father is ill.” Bikur Holim, visiting the sick, is one of the mitzvot “which
yield immediate fruit and continue to yield fruit in time to come.” The purpose of
this mitzvah is to cheer up and encourage the sick person and to pray for his or
her recovery. (The latter need not be elaborate – think of Moses’ prayer for his
sister Miriam: “Please God, please heal her.”) The Shulhan Arukh lays out
specific laws for visiting the sick, but much of it is common sense: Call ahead to
make sure visits are welcome and to find out what time of day the sick person is
best able to receive visitors. Don’t bring sad or disturbing news. Don’t touch the
sick person or sit on the bed without asking first, since these things can
sometimes cause pain. And the sick person really doesn’t need to hear how
your sister-in-law’s cousin suffered terribly and then died from exactly the same
illness.
PARASHAT SH’MOT
December 29, 2007 – 20 Tevet 5768
Annual: Exodus 1:1-6:1 (Etz Hayim, p. 317; Hertz p. 206)

Triennial Cycle: Exodus 1:1-2:25 (Etz Hayim, p. 317; Hertz p. 206)
Haftarah: Isaiah 27:6 – 28:13; 29:22-23 (Etz Hayim, p. 343, 347; Hertz p. 225,
228)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Parashat Sh’mot begins with a list of the sons of Israel/Jacob who came to
Egypt. At this point, the Torah transitions from the story of a family to the story
of a people. The Egyptian king fears and hates the Israelites and enslaves them,
forcing them to perform hard labor. When this oppression fails to curb the
growth of the Israelite population, Pharaoh orders the midwives to kill all the
newborn boys. The midwives refuse to obey the order, so Pharaoh issues a
general order that every baby boy born to Hebrew parents is to be drowned in
the Nile.
Against this background, Moses is born. When his mother can no longer hide
her baby son, she places him in a basket in the river, hoping he might survive.
Moses is discovered by Pharaoh’s daughter who recognizes that he is a
Hebrew child but still decides to adopt him as her son and raise him in the royal
palace.
Once Moses has grown up, he goes out to see the state of his people. He
comes upon an Egyptian beating a Hebrew slave and kills the Egyptian. He
learns that his act is known, so he flees to Midian. He marries Zipporah, the
daughter of Jethro, and becomes a shepherd of his father-in-law’s flocks.
One day, when Moses is tending the sheep, he comes upon a burning bush.
God speaks to Moses from the bush and tells him that he is being sent to
Pharaoh to free the Israelites. Moses objects, insisting that he is neither worthy
nor capable of this mission. God counters Moses’ arguments, reassures him,
and gives him signs to show that he is God’s messenger.
Moses sets out for Egypt with his wife and sons. God sends Aaron to meet him
and together they assemble the Israelite elders and tell them that God has
promised to end their servitude. Moses and Aaron then go to Pharaoh and ask
that the Israelites be allowed to go into the wilderness to worship God. Pharaoh
not only refuses, but retaliates by increasing the severity of the Israelites’
oppression. The people blame Moses and Aaron for their punishment, but God
tells Moses, “You shall soon see what I will do to Pharaoh.”
The Righteous Women of That Generation

The king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named
Shifrah and the other Puah, saying, “When you deliver the Hebrew women, look
at the birthstool: if it is a boy, kill him; if it is a girl, let her live.” The midwives,
fearing God, did not do as the king of Egypt had told them; they let the boys live.
(Shemot 1:15-17)
A. Rav and Shmuel: one said, a woman and her daughter, and the other
said, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. The one who said a woman and
her daughter [identified them as] Yocheved and Miriam, and the one who
said mother-in-law and daughter-in-law [identified them as] Yocheved
and Elisheva [Aaron’s wife]. (Sotah 11b)
B. Yocheved and Miriam could have refused the royal appointment to serve
as the Jewish midwives, but they were afraid that someone else who
accepted the job might not have the strength of character and the
tenacity of spirit to stand up to Pharaoh and ignore his directive. They
therefore willingly placed themselves in jeopardy in order to thwart
Pharaoh’s diabolical design. This was fear of Heaven at its best. (Rabbi
Shlomo of Lutzk)
C. Alarmed thereat, the king, on this sage’s advice, ordered that every male
child born to the Israelites should be destroyed by being cast into the
river, and that the labors of Hebrew women with child should be
observed and watch kept for their delivery by the Egyptian midwives: for
this office was, by his orders, to be performed by women who, as
compatriots of the king, were not likely to transgress his will. (Josephus,
Antiquities II, IX, 2, 1st century CE)
D. Shifrah and Puah were originally Egyptians who embraced Judaism.
Otherwise, how could Pharaoh have ordered them to kill Jews? How
could they in the first place have agreed? Surely every Jew is obliged to
sacrifice his life rather than commit idolatry, incest, or murder! That is
why the text observes: The midwives, fearing God – implying that
previously when they were still heathens they had not feared Him. Had
they not been Egyptians what would have been the point of telling us that
they feared God? Surely as Jews that was taken for granted. (Imrei
No’am, cited in Studies in Shemot, Nehama Leibowitz)
Who were the midwives? The Hebrew text is wonderfully ambiguous concerning
their identity. The words “Hebrew midwives” can be understood as the midwives
who were themselves Hebrews or as the midwives who tended the Hebrew
women but were not themselves Hebrews. Both interpretations have been
offered by our commentators over the centuries. Do you think that Shifrah and
Puah were Jews or Egyptians? Why? What lesson can we learn if they were, in
fact, Jewish? If they were Egyptian?
The Righteous Gentiles who saved Jews from the Nazis risked not only their
own lives but the lives of their families. What do you think motivated them?
What would you have done in their position?
Be A Man
Some time after that, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his kinsfolk
and witnessed their labors. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his
kinsmen. He turned this way and that and, seeing no one about [literally, when
he saw there was no man], he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.
(Shemot 2:11-12)
A. The Sages said: He saw that there was no hope that righteous persons
would arise from him or his offspring until the end of generations. When
Moses saw this, he took counsel with the angels and said to them, “this
man deserves death.” They agreed; hence it says when he saw there
was no man to say a good word for him. (Shemot Rabbah 1:29)
B. “He didn’t see a man” isn’t written here, but “he saw there was no man.”
He surely saw people, but there was no one to turn to at the time of
trouble, there was no savior, there was no one from whom to seek help
in distress, for the entire assembly were traitors and haters of Israel.
(Ha’amek Davar [Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin, 1817-1893,
Lithuania])
C. After Moses saw what the Egyptians did to the Jews, he understood the
nature of Egyptian culture, which was based on enslaving others, on
discrimination and tyranny. He turned this way and that, he turned to the
Left and to the Right, to all the different parties and classes, seeking help
from them. And when he saw there was no man, that there was not a
single individual willing to stand by the weak, he struck down the
Egyptian and hid him in the sand. It was then that he killed the Egyptian
within his heart, divorcing himself totally from the Egyptian culture, which
was totally profane. (Rabbi Meir Shapira of Lublin, 1887-1934, Poland)
D. He saw that the Jew was not considered to be a “man” in the Egyptians’
eyes and that all the laws that had been enacted did not apply to him. All
his protests were meaningless, with no one willing to stand by him. (Cited
by Rabbi Aharon Greenberg, Itturei Torah)
E. Hillel taught: In a place where there are no men, strive to be a man. (Avot
2:6)
It was inconceivable to our Rabbis that Moses would be looking around like a
common criminal to make sure there were no witnesses. Therefore, when he
saw there was no man must have a deeper meaning. What does it mean to be
a man? Popular culture offers us images of John Wayne, Alan Alda, and
countless others in between. The commentators have their own ideas. What do
you think it takes to “be a man?” (And don’t forget, the literal translation of the
Yiddish word mensch is “man.”)
PARASHAT VAERA - BIRKAT HAHODESH
January 5, 2008 – 27 Tevet 5768
Annual: Ex. 6:2 – 9:35 (Etz Hayim, p. 351; Hertz p. 232)

Triennial Cycle: Ex. 6:2 - 7:7 (Etz Hayim, p. 351; Hertz p. 232)
Haftarah: Ezekiel 28:25 – 29:21 (Etz Hayim, p. 370 Hertz p. 244)

Teaneck, New Jersey
God reminds Moses of the covenant God made with the patriarchs, and says that the
time has come for God to free the Israelites from Egyptian bondage. Even so, Moses
resists the charge God gives him to go to Pharaoh, saying “the Israelites would not
listen to me; how then should Pharaoh heed me?” Still, God instructs Moses and Aaron
to go to Pharaoh and deliver the Israelites from Egypt. The Torah then recounts the
genealogy of the tribe of Levi.
God tells Moses, who again protests that he has a speech impediment, that Aaron will
serve as his spokesman. God also tells Moses that he will harden Pharaoh’s heart and
that Egypt will be punished severely before God finally brings the Israelites out.
Moses and Aaron come before Pharaoh, demonstrating the sign God had given them.
When Pharaoh’s magicians duplicate this sign, turning their own rods into serpents,
Pharaoh dismisses Moses and Aaron. Now the plagues begin – blood, frogs, lice, and
more. As each plague afflicts Egypt, Pharaoh appears to relent, but once the plague
has stopped, he reneges on his promise to allow the Israelites to go.
After the seventh plague of hail, Pharaoh appears to be beaten. He says to Moses and
Aaron, “I stand guilty this time. The Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the
wrong... I will let you go; you need stay no longer.” But yet again, once the hail stops
Pharaoh refuses to let the people go.
You Can Take the Slave Out of Egypt...
Say, therefore, to the Israelite people: I am the Lord. I will free you from the labors of
the Egyptians and deliver you from their bondage. I will redeem you with an
outstretched arm and through extraordinary chastisements. And I will take you to be My
people, and I will be your God. And you shall know that I, the Lord, am your God who
freed you from the labors of the Egyptians. I will bring you into the land which I swore to
give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will give it to you for a possession, I the Lord.
But when Moses told this to the Israelites, they would not listen to Moses, their spirits
crushed by cruel bondage. (Exodus 6:6-9)
A. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: When Israel left Egypt, there were among them
men crippled by heavy labor, for as they worked in clay and bricks, now and
then a stone, dropping from the structure, would break a man’s arm or sever his
leg. Hence the Holy One said: It is not right that I give My Torah to cripples.
What did He do? He beckoned to the ministering angels, and they came down
and healed them. (Tanhuma [a Midrash collection] Yitro 8)
B. Sivlot Mitzrayim – the labors [burdens] of the Egyptians – can be understood as
tolerance. Even though the work was hard and oppressive, still they became
accustomed to hardships and they bore the yoke and distress with patience
(savlanut) and they saw their condition as natural. The Holy Blessed One said,
Since they already do not experience their state as bitter, there is great danger
and their redemption cannot be delayed any longer. (Rabbi Simcha Bunim of
Przysucha, 1765-1827, Poland)
C. Why does the Torah first mention I will free you [take you out] from the labors,
i.e. that God would take the Israelites out of Egypt, before and deliver you from
their bondage? After all, their bondage ended before they were brought out of
Egypt. The answer is that only after I will free you [take you out] from the labors,
after the Jews left Egypt would they be able to appreciate how bitter it had been.
Only then would they truly understand and deliver you from their bondage.
(Tiferet Uzziel [Rabbi Uzziel ben Tzvi Hirsch Meisels, 1743-1785, Poland])
The Egyptian slavery had devastating physical effects on the Israelites. But that was
not all – slavery also had emotional, psychological, and spiritual effects. According to
Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, God had the angels heal the physical injuries, but what
about the rest? Did the freed slaves ever recover from the mental and spiritual injuries?
Why do you think that?
Rabbi Simcha Bunim suggests that physical bondage was not the greatest danger the
Israelites faced. Do you agree that people can come to accept the intolerable as
natural? Can you think of examples? How do we learn to stop shrugging off oppression
and injustice – whether we or other are the victims – because “that’s just the way it is”?
The Point of No Return
But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, that I may multiply my signs and marvels in the land
of Egypt. (Exodus 7:3)
A. The first five plagues are accompanied by the passive formulation: “Then
Pharaoh’s heart was hardened,” because after they came upon him he refused
to let the people go. Accordingly, the Holy Blessed One said: “Henceforth, even
if he should want now to let them go, I shall not let him.” For this reason, the
text adds in the last five plagues “God hardened Pharaoh’s heart.” (Tanhuma
Vaera 3)
B. For I have hardened his heart (Exodus 10:1) Said Rabbi Yohanan: This
provides an opening for the heretics to say: He (Pharaoh) was not allowed by
God to repent. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish replied: Let the mouths of the heretics
be stopped up. ... When God warns a man once, twice, and even a third time
and he still does not repent, then God closes his heart against repentance so
that God should exact vengeance from him for his sins. Thus it was with the
wicked Pharaoh. Since God sent five times to him and he took no notice, God
then said: ‘You have stiffened your neck and hardened your heart; well, I will
add to your impurity.’ (Shemot Rabbah 13:3)
C. God desires the repentance of the wicked and not their death.... Without a
doubt, were it not for the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart he would have sent forth
Israel, not because of repentance or submission to God, the Blessed One, [nor
because] he regretted his rebellion, recognizing God’s greatness and goodness
– but because he could no longer abide the anguish of the plagues. . . . Now
this would not have been repentance. However, if Pharaoh would have truly
wished to submit to God and return to Him in full repentance, there would have
been no Divine deterrent at all. (Rabbi Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno, 1475-1550,
Italy)
D. Ben Azzai taught: Pursue even a minor mitzvah and flee from a transgression,
for one mitzvah draws another in its train and one transgression draws another
in its train. Thus, the reward for a mitzvah is another mitzvah and the penalty for
a transgression is another transgression. (Pirkei Avot 4:2)
E. Rav Huna said: When a man has committed a sin once and a second time, it
appears to him as if it were permitted. (Yoma 86b)
If God hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that he repeatedly refused to let the Israelites go,
why were he and all Egypt punished so terribly? How could Pharaoh be held
responsible if his free will had been removed? All the commentators follow the
Tanhuma – it was only after Pharaoh hardened his own heart over and over again that
God stepped in. Pharaoh freely chose toresist Moses’ (and God’s) demand that he let
the Israelites go five times before God hardened his heart.
Some, like Resh Lakish, say this was so that Pharaoh would be properly punished for
his evil acts. Others, like Sforno, say it was so that Pharaoh would achieve and act
from true repentance. Do you think that these explanations solve the problem?
Rav Huna takes a different tack – a person who sins repeatedly becomes accustomed
to it – it’s human nature, the way God made us. It is an article of Jewish faith that as
long as a person lives he or she can do teshuva – repent – and turn away from sinning.
Do you believe that this is true in the “real world”? Is change always possible, or does a
person ever become a lost cause? How do our past actions shape and constrain our
choices in the present?
PARASHAT BO
January 12, 2008 – 5 Shevat 5768

Triennial Cycle: Ex. 10:1 – 11:3 (Etz Hayim, p. 374; Hertz p. 248)
Haftarah: Jeremiah 46:13 – 28 (Etz Hayim, p. 395; Hertz p. 263)

Teaneck, New Jersey
We have come to the climax of the story of the Israelites in Egypt. Pharaoh’s
intransigence continues, and Egypt experiences the eighth and ninth plagues –
locusts and darkness. God tells Moses that there is only one more plague to
come and then Pharaoh finally will let the people go. He instructs Moses to tell
the people to request objects of silver and gold from their Egyptian neighbors.
Moses announces the final plague to Pharaoh – the death of the firstborn – but
once again Pharaoh doesn’t listen. God then tells Moses to instruct the
Israelites to prepare a lamb to be slaughtered and eaten with unleavened bread
and bitter herbs on the fifteenth of Nisan, the night on which God will strike
down all the Egyptian firstborn. Moreover, this date is to begin a seven-day
celebration in subsequent years. Moses speaks to the elders and tells them to
prepare for the first Passover, and the people do as they have been taught.
The final horrible plague occurs and the firstborn of all Egyptians of all strata of
society are dead. Finally, Pharaoh summons Moses and Aaron and tells them
to take the Israelites and go immediately. The Israelites leave Egypt after 430
years.
God gives Moses and Aaron the laws of the Passover festival that is to be
observed in future years. He also gives them the laws of the redemption of the
firstborn and of tefillin.
A Circle Around God
Moses replied, “We will all go, young and old: we will go with our sons and
daughters, our flocks and herds; for we must observe the Lord’s festival.
(Exodus 10:9)
A. “The reason why we must take our young with us,” Moses told Pharaoh,
“is that we must hold a feast to the Lord, and how could we rejoice or
celebrate a holiday if we were to leave our children behind in an alien
land? Without our children, no joy can be complete.” (Shem Mi-Shmuel
[Rabbi Samuel Bornstein, 1856-1926, Poland])
B. We have no intermediary, no priests, no representative before our God. If
we are to go, we must all go; the tiniest baby in the cradle, the last sheep
of our possessions. Each and all are integral parts of our community.
None and nothing may remain, for we are all to form a circle about God.
God calls us together around Him, and when God calls us, He wants to
see us with every member of our family and with all our possessions,
about Him. (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888, Germany)
C. The Baal HaTurim [Rabbi Jacob ben Asher] suggests that when Pharaoh
says “men,” his intention is males between the ages of 20 and 60.
Pharaoh refused to allow those under 20 or over 60 to leave. … Pharaoh
understood something about the Jewish people. In order for there to be a
Jewish people, there has to be a past and there has to be a future. Klal
Yisroel must have a past. We are a religion with a concept of “mesorah,”
a concept of tradition that we get from our fathers and from our fathers’
fathers. This concept is vital to what Judaism is all about. But we are also
a religion that believes that unless we have someone to give over this
heritage to, we have no future. (Rabbi Yissochar Frand, Ner Yisrael,
Baltimore, Maryland)
D. A community that ignores the spiritual plight of its young and focuses
only on the old people is like an old-age home. Conversely, one that
shunts aside its elders in favor of the young is like an orphanage.
Fortunate are the young who view the wisdom of their elders as a
beacon of light by which to make their way through life; blessed are the
elders who are strengthened by the alacrity and verve of the young.
(Hagigei Asher)
We live in an increasingly age-segregated society. Few extended families live

together; grandparents and grandchildren may see each other only a few times
each year. There are surely benefits to “active senior” communities and “child-
friendly” vacation destinations, but there are disadvantages as well. Our
commentators are clear that the Jewish community not only requires the
presence of elders and youth, it requires their interaction. What can the young
gain from spending time with their elders? What can elders gain from spending
time with children and youth? How can we as a community encourage the
young and the old to spend time together? How can we create a truly
intergenerational community?
The True Plague of Darkness
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Hold out your arm toward the sky that there may
be darkness upon the land of Egypt, a darkness that can be touched.” Moses
held out his arm toward the sky and thick darkness descended upon all the land
of Egypt for three days. People could not see one another and for three days no
one could get up from where he was; but all the Israelites enjoyed light in their
dwellings. (Exodus 10:21-23)
A. Ordinary “darkness” is no phenomenon in itself and merely the absence

of light. When there is no light, it is dark. Darkness of this sort has no
existence in its own right and can be readily dispelled by the kindling of a
light. But the darkness which came over the land of Egypt was a
phenomenon in its own right, so real that it could be felt and could not be
dispelled by light. (Rabbi Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno, 1475-1550, Italy)
B. If a person does not see his fellow, or does not want to see him, there is
darkness in the world. (Eshkol Ma’amarim)
C. The greatest darkness is when a person does not see his fellow and
does not participate in the distress of others. People could not see one
another – they did not feel the other’s distress. Their senses were dulled
-- no one could get up from where he was. This is what the Sages meant
when they stated in Shemot Rabbah that “the darkness was as thick as a
golden denar.” Running after the golden denar increases one’s
egocentrism, dulls his eyes, and makes it difficult for him to feel the
distress of other Jews. (Avnei Ezel [Rabbi Alexander Zusia Friedman,
1897-1943, Poland])
D. [Only one person was originally created] to proclaim the greatness of the
Holy Blessed One. If a human being stamps several coins with the same
die, they all resemble one another. But the King of kings, the Holy
Blessed One, stamps all human beings with the die of the first man; and
yet not one of them is identical with another. (Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5)
The Torah makes it clear that the ninth plague was not the ordinary darkness of
night. Our commentators understand this darkness as a condition of the souls of
the Egyptians, blindness to the needs and feelings of others. Avnei Ezel
attributes this blindness to chasing after money. To what do you attribute it?
Today, there is another way to understand people could not see one another.
Rather than seeing others as people, we often see people simply as
representatives of racial, ethnic, political, or other groups. Once we know that
someone is Asian, Cuban, Muslim, gay, evangelical Christian, we believe we
know everything we need to know about that person. How does the mishnah
from Sanhedrin challenge our “red state/blue state” thinking?
PARASHAT B’SHALAH - SHABBAT SHIRAH
January 19, 2008 – 12 Shevat 5768

Triennial Cycle: Ex. 13:17 – 15:26 (Etz Hayim, p. 399; Hertz p. 265)
Haftarah: Judges 4:4 – 5:31 (Etz Hayim, p. 424; Hertz p. 281)

Teaneck, New Jersey
The Israelites leave Egypt and head into the wilderness. God accompanies
them, appearing as a pillar of cloud during the day and as a pillar of fire at night.
Being a slow learner, Pharaoh again changes his mind and takes off after his
former slaves with his warriors and 600 chariots. The terrified Israelites find
themselves trapped between the pursuing Egyptians and the Sea of Reeds.
God tells Moses to hold out his rod over the sea and the sea splits. The
Israelites cross on dry land and then, at God’s command, the sea closes and
the Egyptians drown. Moses leads the people in the great song of praise and
thanksgiving to God; Miriam leads the women.
Just three days later, the people begin complaining that the water they find at
Marah is too bitter to drink. God instructs Moses in how to make the water
potable. A month later the people are complaining yet again, this time about the
lack of food. God responds with the miraculous manna and with quails. Along
with the instructions for gathering manna the Israelites are given the laws of
Shabbat.
Once again the people find no water. God tells Moses to strike a rock and water
comes from it. The Israelites are attacked by Amalek; they defeat their attackers
with God’s help.
The First Leap of Faith
The Lord said to Moses, “why do you cry out to Me? Tell the Israelites to go
forward.” (Exodus 14:15)
A. According to Rabbi Eliezer, the Holy One said to Moses: There is a time
to be brief and a time to be lengthy. My children are in great distress, the
sea is enclosing them, the enemy is in pursuit, and you stand here
praying away! Tell the Israelites to go forward. (Shemot Rabbah 21:8)
B. Rabbi Joshua said, God said to Moses: All that Israel have to do is to go
forward. Therefore, let them go forward! Let their feet step forward from
the dry land to the sea, and you will see the miracles that I will perform
for them. (Shemot Rabbah 21:8)
C. Rabbi Meir said: When the Israelites stood at the Reed Sea, the tribes
were vying with one another, one saying “I will be first to go down into the
sea,” and the other saying “I will be first to go down into the sea.”... Rabbi
Judah said to Rabbi Meir: That is not quite the way it happened. In fact,
one tribe said, “I will not be the first to go into the sea,” and another tribe
also said, “I will not be the first to go into the sea.” While they were
standing there deliberating, Nachshon ben Amminadav sprang forward
and was the first to go down into the sea. (Talmud Sotah 36b)
D. Rabbi Yisrael Salanter was accustomed to say that a Jew has to be a
heretic to a certain extent, and if someone in need comes to him, he
should not trust to God to help the person. Instead, he must do whatever
he can to help a person in need.
E. Pray as if everything depended on God and work as if everything
depended on man. (Francis Cardinal Spellman, Archbishop of New York,
1889-1967)
According to tradition, it was only after Nachshon leapt into the sea that the
waters divided. What do you think would have happened if Nachshon (or
someone else) hadn’t jumped? What do you suppose was in Nachshon’s mind
as he leapt -- I have faith that God will save me? I’d rather die than go back to
Egypt as a slave? Doing something – anything – is better than this endless
debating? What moved Nachshon to act?
Cardinal Spellman makes the point nicely. How can we know whether the
“miracles” we see are due to divine or human efforts? Do you believe it makes
sense to keep trying in the face of apparently insurmountable obstacles?
God of War, God of Peace
The Lord, the Warrior – Lord is His name! (Exodus 15:3)
A. Why is this said? For this reason. At the sea God appeared to them as a
mighty hero doing battle... At Sinai God appeared to them as an old man
full of mercy... Scripture, therefore, would not let the nations of the world
have an excuse for saying that there are two Powers, but declares: The
Lord, the Warrior – Lord is His name! It is God who was in Egypt and
God who was at the sea. It is God who was in the past and God who will
be in the future. It is God who is in this world and God who will be in the
world to come. (Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael, Shirata 4)
B. When they ask me, “What is His name?” what shall I say to them? And
God said to Moses, “Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh [I am what I may be].” (Exodus
3:13-14) According to Rabbi Abba bar Mammel, the Holy One said to
Moses: You wish to know My name. I am variously called, in keeping
with My diverse deeds, El Shaddai, Tzeva’ot, Elohim, Adonai. When I
judge created beings, I am called Elohim, God. When I wage war against
the wicked, I am called Tzeva’ot, Hosts. When I suspend [judgment] of a
person’s sins, I am called El Shaddai. And when I have mercy on My
world I am called Adonai. (Shemot Rabbah 3:6)

In the Torah, the rest of the Tanakh, the Talmud, and the siddur, God is called
by many names and described as performing many roles. Just in our parashah,
God appears as protector, Lord, miracle worker, warrior, ruler, law-giver, and
healer.
Do you have a single image of God or does it change depending on

circumstances? What images or names of God do you find particularly
appealing or meaningful? Are there some that you find off-putting or distasteful?
How would you describe the God to whom you pray? What do you mean when
you say “God”? When you say “Adonai”?
PARASHAT YITRO
January 26, 2008 – 19 Shevat 5768

Triennial: Ex. 18:1 – 18:27 (Etz Hayim, p. 432; Hertz p. 288)
Haftarah: Isaiah 6:1 – 7:6:9:5-6 (Etz Hayim, p. 452; Hertz p. 302)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro (Yitro), hears about the Exodus and what God has
done for the Israelites and comes to visit his son-in-law, bringing Moses’ wife
Zipporah and their sons. Jethro acknowledges God’s greatness and offers a
sacrifice. The next day, Jethro sees Moses spending hours and hours
answering the people’s questions and settling their disputes. He advises Moses
to choose officers and judges to assist in these efforts. Jethro then returns to his
home.
At the beginning of the third month after the Exodus, God tells Moses to instruct
the people to prepare to receive the Torah at Mount Sinai. On the appointed
day, amid thunder and lightning, thick clouds, and the sound of a shofar, God
speaks. The Ten Statements (Commandments) are given. The people are
overwhelmed and terrified by God’s power and they ask Moses to serve as
intermediary between God and the Israelites. Moses ascends the mountain and
disappears into the clouds. God instructs Moses about the prohibition against
idols and about the proper construction of the altar.
Justice Delayed, Justice Denied
But Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “The thing you are doing is not right; you
will surely wear yourself out, and these people as well. For the task is too heavy
for you; you cannot do it alone.” (Exodus 18:17-18)
A. What is this thing you are doing to the people? (18:13) This was a hard
thing he did to them, for their cases would wait all day, and sometimes
they never did come before Moses because they were so many others.
You will surely wear yourself out, and these people as well. This refers to
exhaustion. You cannot carry the burden and these people cannot
endure it, for they stand all day waiting for their judgment. And some
explain that you will surely wear yourself out refers to confusion, for you
and they will become confused since each one shouts to you “hear me,
my lord!” And this one shouts and you don’t know to whom you should
respond, and they don’t know to whom they should speak. (Bechor Shor
[Rabbi Yosef of Orleans, 1140-1190, France])
B. The people stood about Moses (18:13) to wait until he could turn to them
after dealing with the princes and the leaders of the generation. (Rabbi
Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno, 1475-1550, Italy)
C. When there are many judges, a party to a dispute can come to the judge
whenever he wants and he will have the opportunity to be heard. (When
Moses sat alone) a person could not approach him in a timely fashion
because there were cases involving large sums of money or important
people taking precedence. Therefore, many of them would tolerate the
injustices that were done to them because they didn’t want to abandon
their work and business affairs to wait for an opportunity to approach
Moses. This would then provide an opening for robbers to commit crimes
and exploiters to provoke disputes. (Ramban [Rabbi Moses ben
Nachman, 1194-1270, Spain])
Jethro saw right away that Moses’ approach to leadership was not working well.
At the simplest level, Bechor Shor sees the problem as people being kept
waiting all day in the hot sun, leading to frustration and confusion. Sforno and
many others add the notion that the rich and important went to the head of the
line, leaving the ordinary people to wait.
Ramban points out that this is not only unfair, but dangerous. When people
believe “the system is broken” or that it doesn’t have a place for people like
them, they turn their backs on the system. Do you think our society suffers from
“broken systems”? Where and how? Can you think of remedies that might make
these systems work better or convince people to give them a chance? Does the
Jewish community also suffer from broken systems? What can we do to fix
them?
And the Winner Is...
You shall also seek out from among all the people capable men who fear God,
trustworthy men who spurn ill-gotten gain. Set these over them as chiefs of
thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, and let them judge the people at all times.
(Exodus 18:21-22)
A. This is the generation and those who seek its welfare. (Tehillim 24:6)
Rabbi Judah ha-Nasi and the sages differed about this matter. According
to one opinion, the character of a generation is determined by its leader.
According to the other opinion, the character of its leader is determined
by the generation. (Arakhin 17a)
B. +You shall also seek out from among all the people. You shall look for
them with your prophetic power capable men that is, wealthy people,
people of means who fear God who, when sitting in judgment, fear only
God trustworthy men that is, people of trust who spurn ill-gotten gain
those who when sitting in judgment hate to accept money. These are the
words of Rabbi Joshua. Rabbi Eleazar of Modi’im said, You shall also
seek out from among all the people. You shall look for them with the
glass through which kings try to see capable men people of trust who
fear God who seek to arbitrate litigation trustworthy men like Rabbi
Hanina ben Dosa and his companions who spurn ill-gotten gain those
who disdain their own money. For if they disdain their own money, how
much more will they disdain the money of others. (Mekhilta, Amalek 4)
C. Trustworthy men who spurn ill-gotten gain. What does this mean? Men
who insist upon true justice and who spurn even their own wealth, how
much more the wealth of others. Such a man would say, “Even though
you burn my standing crops, even though you cut down my vineyard,
nonetheless I will judge you truly.” (Tanhuma Yitro 2)
D. Rabbi Berekiah said in the name of Rabbi Hanina, judges need to have
seven qualities: Wisdom, understanding, knowledge, and four from this
verse, You shall also seek out from among all the people... And why are
not all seven stated together? To tell us that if men possessing all seven
qualities cannot be found, choose a person with these four, and if the
four cannot be found, then choose a person possessing three, and if
even three cannot be found, then those possessing one quality are
selected, for it is written, what a rare find is a capable woman (Mishlei
31:10), to hint that even the single quality of “capable” is difficult to find.
(Devarim Rabbah 1:10)
E. In the case of a court of three... it is essential that every one of the
members thereof possess the following seven qualifications: Wisdom,
humility, fear of God, disdain of gain, love of truth, love of his fellow men,
and a good reputation. (Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Sanhedrin, 2:7
[Rabbi Moses ben Maimon, 1135-1209, Spain and Egypt])
The United States is at the beginning of what promises to be a long and difficult
election year. Can the Torah help us choose the best candidates? The
commentators expand on Jethro’s words to explain the qualities of the men
whom Moses should choose to be judges. Do you think these qualities are the
ones we should seek in candidates for political office? Why?
The commentators focus on character traits. How much weight do you think
should be given to character traits versus states positions on issues in choosing
a president? A Supreme Court justice? The mayor of your town?
PARASHAT MISHPATIM - BIRKAT HAHODESH
February 2, 2008 – 26 Shevat 5768

Haftarah: Jeremiah 34:8 – 22:33:25 – 26 (Etz Hayim, p. 482; Hertz p. 323)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Parashat Mishpatim is called Sefer HaBrit, the Book of the Covenant, for it
begins the presentation of the mitzvot, the particulars that define the
relationship between God and the Jewish people. In fact, Mishpatim contains 53
of the 613 mitzvot found in the Torah. Up until this point, the Torah has been a
narrative; from here on, the Torah will present the laws by which the Israelites
are to live, with occasional narrative breaks.
The laws of Mishpatim deal with master and slave, capital offenses, personal
injury, negligence, theft, and property. There are also laws prohibiting the
mistreatment of the weak and powerless – strangers, widows, orphans, and the
poor. We also read about Shabbat, the Sabbatical year, and major festivals.
God again repeats the promise that the Israelites will inherit the land of Canaan
and warns against worshiping the gods of the Canaanite nations.
The covenant is ratified at a formal ceremony of acceptance. Moses and the

elders eat a meal and see a vision of God. Moses alone ascends the mountain
to receive the stone tablets, remaining there for forty days and nights.
Torah and Mitzvot
These are the rules... (Exodus 21:1)
A. Wherever [the term] eileh (these) is stated, it cuts off the preceding;
v’eileh (and these) adds to the preceding. Just as the preceding [laws
were given] at Sinai, so these [were given] at Sinai. (Rashi [Rabbi
Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. Just as the former are from Sinai, these too are from Sinai (Rashi). We
know that every commandment in the Torah is from Sinai, and “even that
which a veteran student will teach before his master was already said to
Moses at Sinai” (Yerushalmi Peah 2:6). What then is the stress in Rashi
that the laws of this parashah were given at Sinai? Rather, this teaches
us that even those laws that we can understand purely intellectually and
logically are valid only because God wants them and agrees to them. It is
not human logic that determines matters, but God’s will as expressed at
Sinai. (Hidushei HaRIM [Rabbi Isaac Meir Alter, the Gerer Rabbi, 1799-
1866, Poland])
C. Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: Scripture puts the easiest of
commandments on the same level as the most difficult of observances.
The easiest of commandments – letting a mother bird go; and the most
difficult of commandments – honoring a father and mother. And with
regard to each, it is written “that your days may be long.” (Yerushalmi
Peah 14d)
D. Rabbi Judah said in the name of Rav: A person should always occupy
himself with Torah and mitzvot, even if it be for an ulterior motive, for out
of occupying himself with them for an ulterior motive, he will come to
occupy himself with them for the right motive. (Nazir 23b)
E. Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah declared: A person should not say, “I do not
like swine’s meat, I do not like wearing linsey-woolsey (shatnez).” He
should say, “I like both. But what can I do? My Father in heaven decreed
for me not to.” (Sifra 93d)
Rashi and others make the point that all of the Torah’s mitzvot are equal, all
given by God at Sinai, all equally binding. Still, it is almost impossible for a
person to given equal weight to observing all the mitzvot. Why do you perform
the mitzvot you do? Why do you choose not to do others? Are there any mitzvot
you do just “because God said so”? What do you imagine God would think of
your approach to mitzvot? How do you define the word “mitzvah”?
To Learn and To Teach
...that you shall set before them. (Exodus 21:1)
A. God said to Moses: It should not enter your mind to say, “I will teach
them a section of the Torah or a single halakhah twice or three times
until it will be fluent in their mouths exactly according to its wording [i.e.
verbatim], but I shall not take the trouble to make them understand the
reason of each thing and its significance.” Therefore, Scripture says that
you shall set before them – like a table fully set before a person with
everything ready for eating. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105,
France])
B. Rabbi Yisroel Yaakov Lubchanski said, we see from God’s command to
Moses that: (1) A teacher must acquire the patience necessary to explain
matters at length; (2) Although Moses would have been able to attain
greater heights if he would have devoted all his time to his own spiritual
elevation, God commanded him to use his precious time to explain the
laws to the people; and (3) A teacher must have his students’ best
interest in mind, rather than his own. (Rabbi Yisroel Yaakov Lubchanski,
d. 1941, Lithuania)
C. Disciples increase the teacher’s wisdom and broaden his mind. The
sages said, “Much wisdom I learned from my teachers, more from my
colleagues, from my pupils most of all.” Even as a small piece of wood
kindles a large log, so a pupil of small attainment sharpens the mind of
his teacher, so that by his questions, he elicits glorious wisdom.
(Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Talmud Torah, 5:13 [Rabbi Moses
ben Maimon, 1135-1209, Spain and Egypt])
D. A student should not be embarrassed if a fellow student has understood
something after the first or second time and he has not grasped it even
after several attempts. If he is embarrassed because of this, it will turn
out that he will come and go from the house of study without learning
anything at all. (Shulkhan Arukh, Yoreh Deah 246:11)
We are all, at various times, teachers and students – not just in classrooms, but
learning to read Torah, teaching a teenager to drive, training a new employee at
work, or being that new employee. Think about the best teachers you ever had.
What makes a great teacher? What qualities are most important for teachers?
For students? How do we encourage great teaching and learning in our schools,
shuls, homes, and workplaces?
Halakhah L'Ma-aseh
21:19 pay for... his cure [literally, he shall certainly cure him] From this we learn
that authorization was granted to the physician to heal (Baba Kamma 85a) The
Committee on Jewish Law and Standards [CJLS] has looked at the issue of
responsibility for providing medical care. Among its conclusions:
1. Jewish law requires that people be provided with needed health care, at
least a “decent minimum” that preserves life and meets other basic
needs, including some amount of preventive care.
2. Individuals have the responsibility to care for their own health, and the
primary responsibility to pay (directly or through insurance).
3. Physicians and other health care professionals must treat patients in
case of emergency... At the same time, health care professionals
legitimately may expect compensation for their efforts.
4. The community bears ultimate responsibility to assure provision of
needed health care for individuals who cannot afford it...
5. The guarantee of provision of needed health care does not extend to all
treatment that is desired, or even all that might provide some benefit.
The entire CJLS paper is available at www.RabbinicalAssembly.org.

PARASHAT TERUMAH
February 9, 2008 – 3 Adar I 5768
Annual: Ex. 25:1 – 27:19 (Etz Hayim p 485; Hertz p. 326)

Triennial: Ex. 25:1 – 25:40 (Etz Hayim p 485; Hertz p. 326)
Haftarah: I Kings 5:26 – 6:13 (Etz Hayim, p. 500; Hertz p. 336)

Teaneck, New Jersey
God tells Moses to instruct the Israelites to bring gifts – precious metals, fine
fabrics, skins, wood, oil, spices, and jewels – for the building of the mishkan, the
portable sanctuary, and its furnishings. God says, “Let them make Me a
sanctuary that I may dwell among them.”
God then provides detailed instructions for the ark and its cover, the table, and
the menorah. Next, there are the instructions for making the mishkan’s
coverings – layers of cloth, goats’ hair, and skins, from inside to outside. Next,
the wooden structure of planks and silver and gold fittings is described.
The mishkan also was to have a curtain to partition off the Holy of Holies and a
screen for its entrance. The altar of wood overlaid with bronze was to be placed
outside the screen. The entire mishkan was to be surrounded by an enclosure
made of linen curtains supported by wooden planks with bronze and silver
fittings.
Just Do It
Tell the Israelite people to bring Me gifts; you shall accept gifts for Me from
every person whose heart so moves him. (Shemot 25:2)
A. Tell the Israelite people to bring Me gifts – As soon as Israel said, “We
will do and listen,” God immediately told Moses, Tell the Israelite people
to bring Me gifts (Tanna d’Bei Eliyahu). The Baal Shem Tov said: If a
person feels an urge to perform a commandment, he should take this
urge and convert it to action, or else the urge will soon disappear without
a trace This we see in Aicha 3:41, Let us lift up our heart with our hands
to God in heaven – a person must transform the feeling in his heart into
action with his hands, so that the feeling should not go to waste.
Therefore, following all the enthusiasm that resulted from the receiving of
the Torah, God said to Moses, “Take this enthusiasm and transform it
into action – by building the Sanctuary.” (Sadeh Margalit)
B. [The King of the Khazars], as we know from historical records, became a
convert to Judaism about four hundred years ago. Once while he was
dreaming, it appeared as if an angel addressed him, saying: “Your
intentions are pleasing to the Creator, but not your actions.” (Kuzari
[Rabbi Yehudah haLevi, 1080-1141, Spain])
C. Rabbi Hanin of Sepphoris said [about a mound of earth], What does one
who is slow-witted say? “Who,” he says, “can ever clear away such a
mound?” But what does he who is intelligent say? “I will clear away two
basketsfuls today and two basketsfuls tomorrow, until I have cleared it
away entirely.” So also he who is slow-witted says, “How can I learn the
entire Torah – Nezikin with its thirty chapters, Kelim with its thirty
chapters?” But what does he who is intelligent say? “I will study two
halakhot today and two halakhot tomorrow, until I have learned the entire
Torah, all of it.” (Vayikra Rabbah 19:2)
D. Shimon ben Rabban Gamliel taught: Not study, but action, is the
essence of the matter. (Avot 1:17)
From time to time, each of us is filled with enthusiasm to do something new or

to change the way we live – to learn Talmud, to reconnect with distant family
members, to become shomer Shabbat, to begin a regular exercise program.
With the best of intentions we declare our goals. But then, we think about how
busy we already are or realize how large the task we have set ourselves is, and
six months or a year later, all that is left is “I really, truly meant to do it.”
The Baal Shem Tov points out the critical importance of transforming
enthusiasm and good intentions into actions. The question is, how do we do
this? Rabbi Hanin of Sepphoris suggests one approach. Does this make sense
to you? Can you think of others? How can you best go about turning your
intentions into accomplishments?
Home, Sweet Home
The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark: They shall not be removed from it.
(Exodus 25:15)
A. According to the simple meaning, there was no need for these poles to
be removed because there was no bother or difficulty involved, since
they were in the Holy of Holies where there were no people going in and
out, only the Kohen Gadol who entered four times on one day of the year
(Yom Kippur). But concerning the bronze altar, which was placed in the
courtyard where everyone came and went, if its poles remained in place,
the passersby would be inconvenienced. (Hizkuni [Rabbi Hezekiah ben
Manoah, mid-13th century, France])
B. The ark is the dwelling place of the Torah, our foundation and glory, and
we have to show it the greatest reverence and respect. We are bidden
not to remove its poles, since we might be called upon to go forth with
the ark in haste, and in the hurry of the moment forget to examine
whether the poles are properly secured and, God forbid, the ark might
slip from our hold. If the poles are always secured in their place such a
thing could never happen, since the ark would always be ready for
transportation. (Sefer HaHinukh [attributed to Rabbi Aharon of Barcelona,
13th century, Spain])
C. The poles, the means of conveying the ark, symbolically represent the
command and the mission to carry the ark and its contents, if it becomes
necessary, away from the precincts of its present position. The command
that these means of transport may never be lacking is to emphasize in
our minds the fact that from the very beginning it must be made clear that
this Torah and its mission is in no way bound or confined to the place or
existence at any time of the Temple and Sanctuary. (Rabbi Samson
Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888, Germany)
While the table and the two altars were also transported using poles, it was only
the ark whose poles were permanent fixtures. Hizkuni suggests that God didn’t
want to inconvenience the people entering and leaving the sanctuary by making
them walk around the protruding poles – something to keep in mind in designing
our own sacred spaces. Sefer HaHinukh calls to mind the story of Uzzah
(Shmuel Bet 6:6-7, also the haftarah for Shemini). Rabbi Hirsch focuses on the
symbolic rather than the practical.
The Jewish-born German poet Heinrich Heine called the Torah the portable
homeland of the Jewish people. How does this fit with Hirsch’s understanding?
Do you believe this is true? Can you think of times and places where this has
been true? How does the existence of the State of Israel figure into the
equation?
PARASHAT TETZAVEH
February 16, 2008 – 10 Adar I 5768

Triennial: Ex. 27:20 – 28:30 (Etz Hayim p. 503; Hertz p. 339)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses is told to instruct the Israelites to prepare olive oil for lighting the ner
tamid, the “eternal light” in the mishkan.
God then gives instructions for making the special vestments for Aaron, the
kohen gadol (high priest), and his sons, the ordinary priests. Aaron’s vestments
would include the ephod (a long vest or apron), breastplate, robe, sash, tunic,
and a headdress with a golden plate inscribed “Holy to the Lord.” The ordinary
priests were to wear tunics, sashes, and turbans.
The parashah continues with instructions for the seven-day ordination

ceremony for the priests. It concludes with instructions for making the altar for
burning incense in the mishkan.
Torah and the Infield Fly Rule
You shall bring forward your brother Aaron, with his sons, from among the
Israelites, to serve Me as priests: Aaron, Nadav and Avihu, Eleazar and Itamar,
the sons of Aaron. (Exodus 28:1)
A. Not to make him important, nor to exalt him, but to draw him near to you.
The leader of the nation must not be above the people, but close to them,
within the people. (B’nei Yissachar [Zvi Elimelekh, Rabbi of Dinov, 1795-
1851, Poland])
B. God appointed Aaron, and not Moses, to the office of high priest because
the work of bringing the people, including sinners, closer to God required
a leader who would be closer to the people than Moses was. As a result
of the high moral level he had attained, Moses was too far removed from
the people, and just as it is useless to engage a great Talmudic scholar
to teach a small child who has yet to learn the Hebrew alphabet, so
Moses would not have made a good high priest for the children of Israel.
(Ohel Yaakov [Rabbi Joseph ben Wolf Kranz, known as the Maggid of
Dubno, 1740-1804, Poland])
C. When the Torah says here from among the Israelites we have a hint
about why Moses was not chosen to be the high priest. The reason is
that the high priest performs the Temple service on behalf of the people
and carries upon himself the sins of the people. As such, he must be
from among the people; he must be involved with them and know their
weaknesses and faults, their needs and their worries. A man who is
above the material needs of the people, who is above their fleshly
desires and feelings, cannot attain such a position. The position could
not go to a Moses who had gone up to heaven, where he had not eaten
or drunk or had any of the other petty needs of man, but to Aaron, who
sought to make peace between each man and his fellow and between
man and wife. Aaron was chosen because he was “from among the
Israelites.” (MeiOtzar HaTorah)
D. Rabbi Meir of Premislan remarked: It is known that Moses and Aaron
had different ways in their contacts with people. Moses our teacher had a
great tendency for solitude, as it is written: Now Moses would take the
Tent and pitch it outside the camp, at some distance from the camp.
(Exodus 33:7) Aaron his brother, on the other hand, was very involved
with people, loving peace and pursuing peace. That is why Adonai here
says to Moses: You shall bring forward your brother Aaron to you. Bring
close to yourself the good attribute of your brother Aaron, who is involved
with other people at all times. As a true leader, you have to live among
the people every day, and must not set up any division between yourself
and the people. (Cited in The Torah’s Seventy Faces: Commentaries on
the Weekly Sidrah, compiled by Simcha Raz, edited by Rabbi Dov Peretz
Elkins)
E. White-maned Dr. Solomon Schechter, the seminary’s president, took
special pains with the shy scholar [Rabbi Louis Finkelstein]. Walking with
him on the street one day, Dr. Schechter stopped at a newsstand to read
the latest World Series scores. “Can you play baseball?” he asked. “No,”
admitted Finkelstein. “Remember this,” said the old man. “Unless you
can play baseball, you'll never get to be a rabbi in America.” (“A Trumpet
For All Israel,” Time Magazine, October 15, 1951)
There is a midrashic tradition that Moses believed that he should have been
appointed high priest, rather than his brother. Why do you think that God chose
Aaron? What do these commentators see as the essential qualities of a
religious leader? Do you agree?
Is this still true today? What is the role of a rabbi? A cantor? What qualities do
our clergy need? How do you think your rabbi or cantor would answer these
questions?
Clothes Make the Priest
Make sacral vestments for your brother Aaron, for dignity and adornment. Next
you shall instruct all who are skillful, whom I have endowed with the gift of skill,
to make Aaron’s vestments, for consecrating him to serve Me as priest. (Exodus
28:2-3)
A. [F]or consecrating him to serve Me as priest. To sanctify him in order to

induct him into the priesthood by means of the garments so that he will
be a priest to Me. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. If one serves as a priest without the full priestly vestments, his service is
disqualified. At the time their vestments are upon them their priesthood is
upon them. If their vestments are not upon them, their priesthood is not
upon them. (Talmud Zevahim 17a)
C. Now the garments ordained were evidently external ones and the text is
concerned to relate how the artisans performed the work. But in reality
they symbolized inner vestments. The priests were to invest themselves
with noble qualities that are the vestments of the soul. These vestments
the artisans did not make. But God commanded Moses to make these
holy garments, that is to instruct them in the improvement of their souls
and their characters so that their inner selves should be clothed in
majesty and splendor. (Malbim [Rabbi Meir Yehuda Leibush ben Yehiel
Michal, 1809-1880, Russia])
D. There are two ways in which garments set a person apart from others:
(they affect one’s attitude) toward oneself and toward others. Toward
oneself – He wears these garments so that he should not forget his
special position and so he should not mix with others and imitate their
practices. This was Israel’s unique merit in Egypt, that they did not
change their clothing (to imitate the Egyptians). As a result of this the
people remained separate and apart from others and did not mix with the
other nations. And toward others – By wearing unique garments others
would recognize the special standing of the priests as well. (K’tav Sofer
[Rabbi Abraham Samuel Benjamin Schreiber, 1815-1875, Hungary])
The K’tav Sofer points out that the clothes we wear speak both to ourselves and
to others. Today, we wear tallit and tefillin only during morning services, but
during Rabbinic times Jews wore tzitzit and tefillin all day. Beyond fulfilling
specific mitzvot, what do you think was the reason for this practice?
Do you ever go out in public wearing something that identifies you as a Jew – a
kipah, a Star of David necklace, a t-shirt with Hebrew words or the logo of a
Jewish organization? Do you think that strangers who see this perceive or treat
you differently? Do you behave differently? Do you think it is a good thing for
Jews to identify themselves in public by what they wear?
PARASHAT KI TISSA
February 23, 2008 – 17 Adar I 5768


Teaneck, New Jersey
God instructs Moses to take a census of adult men by asking each to donate a
half shekel. The instructions for making the bronze basin, the anointing oil, and
the incense are given. Bezalel is named to head the construction of the mishkan
and its furnishings, with Oholiav as his assistant. God tells Moses to remind the
people of the importance of keeping Shabbat and then gives him the tablets
inscribed with the Ten Statements.
While Moses is on the mountain, the people despair of his return and demand
that Aaron “make us a god who shall go before us.” Aaron fashions the Golden
Calf and the next day the people offer sacrifices and rise to dance before it. God
tells Moses what is happening in the camp. Moses pleads with God to restrain
God’s anger and then descends the mountain. When Moses sees what the
people are doing, he angrily shatters the tablets. He destroys the calf and 3000
of its worshipers are put to death. Moses returns to Mount Sinai and intercedes
with God to save the people.
God tells Moses to lead the people to the land God has promised, but that God
will no longer go in their midst. Moses once again steps forward on behalf of the
people and God relents. Moses asks to see God, but God refuses, saying, “man
may not see Me and live.” Moses ascends Mount Sinai a third time and receives
the revelation of God’s Thirteen Attributes. After forty days, Moses descends
the mountain with the second set of tablets.
All Together Now
And the Lord said to Moses: Take the herbs stacte, onycha, and galbanum –
these herbs together with pure frankincense; let there be an equal part of each.
Make them into incense, a compound expertly blended, refined, pure, sacred.
(Exodus 30:34-35)
A. and galbanum A spice whose odor is bad... And Scripture numbers it

among the spices of the incense to teach us that it should not be
unimportant in our sight to include among us in the assemblies of our
fasts and our prayers the sinners in Israel, that they should be numbered
together with us. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. Rabbi Shimon the Pious said: No fast is a true fast unless some of the
sinners in Israel participate therein, for the smell of the galbanum is bad,
yet Scripture enumerates it together with the other spices. (Keritot 6b)
C. Galbanum was to be mixed with the incense although it stank because
God’s mercies are always manifest over Israel – over those that are
wicked among them and over those that are upright. (Tanna de be
Eliyahu)
D. One who says, “Let good people [any only good people] bless You” is
considered to have spoken heresy. (Mishnah Megillah 4:9)
E. On the first day you shall take the product of hadar trees, branches of
palm trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook... (Leviticus
23:40) The product of hadar trees: these are the Israelites. As the etrog
has taste and smell, so among the Israelites some have both Torah and
good works. Branches of palm trees: these are the Israelites. As the date
has taste, but no smell, so are there Israelites who have Torah but no
good works. Boughs of leafy trees: these are the Israelites. As the myrtle
has smell, but no taste, so there are Israelites who have good works but
no Torah. Willows of the brook: these are the Israelites. As the willow has
neither taste nor smell, so there are Israelites who have neither Torah
nor good works. What is God to do with them? It is not possible to
destroy them. God says, “Bind all together into one bundle, and the one
will atone for the other.” (Vayikra Rabbah 30:12)
Why is it crucial that sinners be included as part of the congregation? Does

anyone but God truly know which members of the community are sinners and
which are righteous? Are there people whose behavior should prevent them
from being included in a minyan? How might you rewrite these texts in modern
terms to describe the various people who should and must be included in our
shuls and communities?
The Seventh Day
The Israelite people shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath [literally, to
make the Sabbath] throughout the ages as a covenant for all time. (Exodus
31:16)
A. The mitzvah of Shabbat is different from other ritual mitzvot, such as

tzitzit, tefillin, sukkah, and lulav. Even if these commandments are not
observed, they are still distinctive objects, unique to themselves. This is
not so with Shabbat. If it is not observed actively, there is no way to tell it
from any other day. The day itself has no special character. (Torah
Temimah [Rabbi Baruch Epstein, 1860-1940, Russia])
B. We have been taught that Rabbi Yose ben Rabbi Judah said: On the eve
of Shabbat, two ministering angels accompany every man from the
synagogue to his home, a good angel and an evil one. When the man
arrives home and finds the lamp lit, the table set, and his couch spread,
the good angel says, “May it be God’s will that it be thus another
Shabbat!” and unwillingly the evil angel responds, “Amen!” But if not [if
the room is dark, the table and the couch bare], the evil angel says, “May
it be God’s will that it be thus another Shabbat!” and unwillingly the good
angel responds, “Amen!” (Talmud Shabbat 119b)
C. Rabbi Hanina said: A man should have two cloaks, one for weekdays
and one for Shabbat. When Rabbi Simlai preached this to an assembly,
the disciples burst into tears in front of him, saying, “Master, our garment
on Shabbat is necessarily the same as our garment on weekdays.” He
replied, “Nevertheless, you must make some change in it for Shabbat.”
(Jerusalem Talmud Peah 8:7, 21b)
The Torah Temimah makes a profound point – we decide if the seventh day is
Shabbat or merely Saturday. There are many Conservative Jews who are
Shomrei Shabbat – Shabbat observers who refrain from all prohibited forms of
work and perform the prescribed Shabbat rituals. There are many more who are
not. But Shabbat is not a matter of all or nothing. Just as Rabbi Simlai told his
poor students that they should make some change in their everyday clothing to
acknowledge Shabbat, we can take gradual steps to “make Shabbat.” Usher in
Shabbat with candles and Kiddush, use the good china and silverware for
Friday night dinner, don’t listen to the car radio while driving to shul, turn off the
TV, computer, and other electronics.
What ways can you think of to begin to “make Shabbat” or to expand your
current Shabbat observance? How can those who are more observant help
those who want to learn and practice more? What specific things mark the
difference between Shabbat and Saturday in your life?
PARASHAT VA’YAKHEL - BIRKAT HAHODESH
March 1, 2008 – 24 Adar I 5768

Triennial Cycle: Ex. 35:1 – 37:16 (Etz Hayim p.552; Hertz p. 373)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses assembles the entire Israelite community and instructs them once again
to observe Shabbat. He then asks them to bring their gifts of materials for
building the mishkan, the tabernacle, and for those who have the necessary
skills to come forward to perform the work. When the artisans come together
under the leadership of Bezalel and Oholiav, they report to Moses that the
people are bringing more materials than are necessary. Moses issues a
proclamation that no one should bring any more gifts for the mishkan.
The Torah then describes the making of the cloth walls, roof, planks, and bars
of the mishkan, the curtain for the Holy of Holies, and the screen for the
entrance. Bezalel makes the ark and its cover, the table, the menorah, the
altars for incense and for burnt offerings, the anointing oil, and the incense.
Shabbat Shalom
You shall kindle no fire throughout your settlements on the Sabbath day.
(Exodus 35:3)
A. The Sabbath is a day of rest, on which the people have leisure to discuss
communal affairs, to talk about their rabbis, cantors, slaughterers, and
sextons, and to offer their comments on the way their institutions, such
as the Hebrew school and the ritual bath, are run. This is the reason why
we are admonished explicitly: You shall kindle no fire throughout your
settlements on the Sabbath day. Do not mar your Sabbath rest by
kindling fires of evil gossip and contention. This is not the purpose for
which the Sabbath was given to you. The Sabbath is not only a day of
rest but also a day of moral sanctity. (Shnei Lukhot HaBrit [Rabbi Isaiah
Horowitz, 1556-1630, Europe and Israel])
B. Rabbi Eliyahu Lopian wrote in a list of regulations for his yeshiva that
everyone should be careful not to speak angrily on Friday and Shabbos.
He added that ideally a person should never feel angry; someone who
nonetheless feels angry should at least not speak out of anger. On
Friday, in the rush to finish the Shabbos preparations on time, a person
is apt to become short-tempered. Also, on Shabbos when the entire
family sits at the table together, parents might become angry with their
young children for not behaving properly. Therefore, special care should
be taken to control one’s anger. (Lev Eliyahu, cited in Love Your
Neighbor, Rabbi Zelig Pliskin)
C. In the school of Elijah it was taught: Among the days that were to be
fashioned, one was to be wholly His (Tehillim 139:16) This is Israel’s
Sabbath day. In what sense is it to be wholly His? Say, a man who labors
for six days rests on the Sabbath and so finds it possible to come closer
to his children and the other members of his household. Likewise, a man
may labor all six days in the midst of people who are hostile to him, but
then, as he rests on the Sabbath, he forgets all the vexation he has
previously suffered. (Tanna de-Bei Eliyahu)
D. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: The Holy One gives man an additional
soul on Shabbat eve, and at Shabbat’s departure it is taken from him.
(Talmud Beitzah 16a)
Shabbat is not only a time for performing certain actions and abstaining from
others, it is a condition of mind and soul. If a person lights candles, eats
Shabbat meals, attends services, and refrains from cooking or doing laundry,
but spends the entire day thinking about how her boss unfairly blamed her for a
co-worker’s mistake or the big presentation she had to make on Monday, is she
truly observing Shabbat? What techniques can you suggest to create a Shabbat
state of mind? What do you say to someone who wants to discuss local real
estate prices or the stock market at kiddush? How do you create Shabbat
shalom?
It's All Good... Or Is It?
All the artisans... said to Moses, “The people are bringing more than is needed
for the tasks entailed in the work that the Lord has commanded to be done.
(Exodus 36:4-5)
A. One cannot understand the nature of this people: If asked to give for the
Calf they give; if asked to give for the Sanctuary they give. (Yerushalmi
Shekalim 2a)
B. Rabbi Shimon says: A parable: To what may this be likened? To one
who used to entertain scholars and students, and everyone praised him.
Heathens came and he entertained them, robbers and he entertained
them also. Finally people said, “It is his nature to entertain anyone at all.”
Even so Moses said to Israel, “enough gold for the Tabernacle and
enough gold for the calf.” (Sifre Devarim)
C. This is what everyone who is entered in the records shall pay: a half-
shekel by the sanctuary weight. (Shemot 30:13) He (God) showed him a
type of coin of fire and said to him, “Such as this they will give” (Rashi
quoting midrash). And why specifically a coin of fire? This is a hint that
money is like fire. Fire can be very useful, by supplying power or heat,
but it can also be very damaging. By the same token, money can be
used for the most worthwhile causes, for tzedakah and good deeds, but it
can also be used to cause damage, as the source of every type of wrong.
(Noam Elimelekh [Rabbi Elimelekh of Lizensk, 1717-1787, Poland])
Jews are known as generous contributors to good causes, but not all the
causes to which people contribute are equally good. How do you choose where
your tzedakah dollars go? Do you have an annual budget and a list of
organizations to which you contribute or do you respond to appeals when you
are asked? How do you balance giving to Jewish and secular causes? To local
organizations and to Israel? Have you ever been a collector for tzedakah as
well as a donor? Do your children know where your tzedakah goes and why?
What is your “tzedakah profile?”
PARASHAT PEKUDEI - ROSH HODESH ADAR II -
SHABBAT SHEKALIM
March 8, 2008 – 1 Adar II 5768

Triennial Cycle: Ex. 38:21 – 39:21 (Etz Hayim p.564; Hertz p. 373)
Maftir: Numbers 28:9-15: Ex. 30:11 – 16 (Etz Hayim, p. 930, 523; Hertz p. 695.
352)
Haftarah: II Kings 12:1 – 17 (Etz Hayim, p. 1277; Hertz p. 993)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses instructs Aaron’s son Itamar to conduct an accounting of the materials

used for the building of the mishkan, tabernacle. The making of the priestly
vestments is described. Once all of the work has been completed, the mishkan
and its furnishing are brought to Moses and he blesses the people who made
them. God instructs Moses to set up the mishkan, to anoint it and its contents,
and to consecrate Aaron and his sons. The cloud representing God’s presence
fills the mishkan, lifting up from it when it is time for the Israelites to set out on
their journeys.
Whom Do You Trust?
These are the records of the Tabernacle, the Tabernacle of the Pact, which
were drawn up at Moses’ bidding – the work of the Levites under the direction of
Itamar son of Aaron the priest. (Exodus 38:21)
A. Moses... was made the treasurer over the work of the tabernacle. Our
rabbis taught: One must not appoint less than two people with control
over the finances of a city or community. But surely you find that Moses
was solely in charge, while here you say that one must not invest less
than two with this authority? The answer is that though Moses was the
sole treasurer, yet he called others to audit the accounts with him.
(Shemot Rabbah 51:1)
B. We do not ask for an accounting from treasurers of religious charitable
trusts, as they are presumed to do their work honestly. Shulhan Arukh,
Yorah Deah 257b Even though we are not exacting with kosher
collectors for charity, still it is good that they should give an accounting,
as we find concerning Moses our teacher who gave an accounting of the
donations for the mishkan. (Be’er ” Haitave ad loc)
C. Now, why did he feel he had to give an accounting? The Holy One
trusted him, as is said, He is trusted throughout My household (Bamidbar
12:7). Why then did he give an accounting? Because he heard the
scoffers of the generation talk behind his back, as it is said, Whenever
Moses went out... all the people would... gaze after Moses (Shemot 33:8).
And what were they saying? Eying him with contempt from behind, one
would say to the other: Look at his [beefy] neck! Look at his [fat] thighs!
He stuffs himself with what belongs to us and guzzles what is ours. And
the other would reply: Stupid! A man appointed over the work of the
Tabernacle, over talents of silver and talents of gold whose weight and
number are too great to measure – what do you expect? That he would
not enrich himself? When Moses heard this talk, he said: As you live,
when the work of the Tabernacle is finished, I will give you an accounting.
(Tanhuma Pekudei, Siman 7)
D. Rabbi Shmuel bar Nahman said, We find in the Torah, the Prophets, and
the Writings that a person needs to be accountable to human beings just
as he is accountable to God. In the Torah – You shall be clean before the
Lord and before Israel (Bamidbar 32:22). In the Prophets – The Lord
God! He knows, and Israel too shall know! (Joshua 22:22). In the
Writings – And you will find favor and approbation in the eyes of God and
man (Proverbs 3:4). And from whom do you learn this? From Moses.
Even though it is written about him, He is trusted throughout My
household, he chose to be accountable to human beings, because when
the work of the Mishkan was finished he said to them, These are the
records of the Tabernacle. How much more so does this apply to the
leaders of the community who must be accountable to the community.
(Torah Sh’leimah, volume 23, p. 55)
God did not command Moses to conduct an audit of the accounts of the
mishkan – Moses did it of his own volition. Why do you think he chose to do
this? Do you think the Tanhuma reflects the attitude of most people today? Is
that attitude justified? How much information and transparency do charitable
organizations owe to their donors?
Our synagogues and communal organizations raise funds, but they also ask
people to volunteer to serve on boards and committees, to work on programs,
and to perform many other tasks to further the organization’s goals. How can an
organization show that it is as responsible with its volunteers’ time as it is with
its donors’ money? Do you think more people would volunteer or that people
would volunteer more often if it could be proved to them that their time would
not be wasted?
The Rule of Gold
All the gold that was used for the work in all the work of the sanctuary – the
elevation offering of gold – came to 29 talents and 730 shekels by the sanctuary
weight. (Exodus 38:24)
A. [Alternate reading: All the gold that was made for the work, in all the holy
work] This implies that gold was put into the world only that man should
use it for good and sacred purposes. All the gold that was created was
made only for “the work in all the holy work.” (Tiferet Yonatan [Rabbi
Yonatan Eibeschutz, 1690-1764, Bohemia])
B. Gold brings about the ruination of the world. It has left many people dead.
But it is also a tool for many good deeds. If one uses it for tzedakah and
good deeds, the gold is elevated. Its moral value increases. That is the
elevation offering of gold – the gold which was elevated into an offering
because it had been donated to the Sanctuary. (Shirei Zimrah)
C. The Torah attests to and defines the quantity of gold, silver, and bronze
included in the work of the mishkan, which was a very small amount
compared to the riches of the First Temple, and even more so were the
riches of Herod’s temple. Nevertheless the appearance of God’s glory
was more constantly found in the mishkan of Moses than in the First
Temple and was not present at all in the Second Temple. This teaches
us that it is not the amount of riches and the size of the structure that
causes the Divine Presence to dwell in Israel, but God desires those who
fear Him, and their deeds, in order to dwell in their midst. (Rabbi Ovadia
ben Jacob Sforno, 1475-1550, Italy)
D. Wrap up the money in your hand (Deuteronomy 14:25). You must bind
up your money and keep it in your hand – under your control – so that
you rule it and it doesn’t rule you. (Rabbi Meir of Premishlan, 1780-1850,
Poland)
Tiferet Yonatan reminds us that God wants us to use gold – and indeed
everything in the world – for good. However, the choice is in our hands. Beyond
the obvious (tzedakah), how can we use gold (money, wealth) for good? What
are the good and not so good uses of sexuality? Of religion? Are there things in
the world that have no good uses? That have only good uses? How can we
make sure that we rule our gold and that it doesn’t rule us?
PARASHAT VAYIKRA - SHABBAT ZAKHOR
March 15, 2008 – 8 Adar II 5768
Annual: Leviticus 1:1 – 5:26 (Etz Hayim, p. 585; Hertz p. 410)

Triennial: Leviticus 1:1 – 2:16 (Etz Hayim, p. 585; Hertz p. 410)
Maftir: Deuteronomy 25:17 – 19 (Etz Hayim, p. 1135; Hertz p. 856)
Haftarah: 1 Samuel 15:2 - 34 (Etz Hayim, p. 1281; Hertz p. 995)

Teaneck, New Jersey

The book of Vayikra is known as Torat Kohanim, the Teaching of the Priests, for
much of it concerns things that fall within priests’ area of responsibility – the
korbanot (sacrifices), ritual impurity and ways in which it is removed, and the
Yom Kippur purification ritual. The initial parasha of the book describes the
different types of sacrifices that were to be brought by individuals.
Almost all the olah, or burnt offering, was completely consumed on the altar,
except for the animal’s hide. An olah could be cattle, sheep, goats, birds, or
even grain, depending on the donor’s means. The minhah, or grain offering,
was only partially burned on the altar. The remainder was given to the priests to
eat. There were two types of minhah, the communal grain offering made on
Shabbat and festivals and the individual offering brought by those too poor to
afford an animal for an olah. The zevah sh’lamim, the offering of well-being, was
only partially burned. After the designated portions were removed and placed
on the altar, the rest became a sacred meal shared by the donors and the
priests. A person who committed a sin accidentally or unknowingly was to bring
a hattat, a sin or purification offering. Community elders also would offer a hattat
when the entire community had committed a sin inadvertently. Finally, the
asham, or guilt offering, was to be brought when a person was unsure if he had
sinned or when he wanted to make amends for a sin previously committed
against another person. In the latter case, the asham was in addition to making
restitution and paying a fine to the person who had been wronged.
1. Are You Talking to Me?

The Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting, saying:
(Vayikra 1:1)
A. [In the Sefer Torah, the aleph of Vayikra is written smaller than the other
letters.] Moses was both great and humble, and wanted only to write
Vayikar, signifying “chance,” as if the Holy Blessed One appeared to him
only in a dream, as it says of Bilaam [vayikar, without an aleph] –
suggesting that God appeared to him by mere chance. However, God
told him to write the word with an aleph. Moses then said to Him,
because of his extreme humility, that he would only write an aleph that
was smaller than the other alephs in the Torah, and he did indeed write it
small. (Baal HaTurim [Rabbi Jacob ben Asher, 1275-1340, Spain])
B. Mordecai had this message delivered to Esther: “Do not imagine that you,
of all the Jews, will escape with your life by being in the king’s palace. On
the contrary, if you keep silent in this crisis, relief and deliverance will
come to the Jews from another quarter while you and your father’s house
will perish. And who knows, perhaps you have attained to royal position
for just such a crisis.” (Esther 4:13-14)
C. The length of time the Israelites lived in Egypt was four hundred and
thirty years. (Shemot 12:40) Rabbi [Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi] says: One
passage says they shall be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years
(B’reisheit 15:13) and one passage says, And they shall return here in
the fourth generation (B’reisheit 15:16). How can both these passages be
maintained? The Holy Blessed One said: If they repent I will redeem
them after the number of generations and if not, I will redeem them after
the number of years. (Mekhilta Pisha 14)
According to the Baal HaTurim, Moses, who was known for his humility, did not
think there was anything special about him that warranted his being chosen by
God – he was simply there in the right place at the right time.
This may be the most interesting question in the study of history – do people
shape events or do events shape people? Are the men and women we read
about in history books there because of their unique qualities or by chance? Put
in the starkest possible terms, if someone had strangled Hitler in his crib, would
the Shoah have happened? How do these texts address the question? How do
they suggest that God might answer it?
2. What Did You Bring Me?

Speak to the Israelite people and say to them: When any of you presents an
offering of cattle to the Lord, he shall choose his offering from the herd or from
the flock. (Vayikra 1:2)
A. Why [is adam (man) rather than the expected ish] stated? Just as the
first man (Adam) did not bring an offering from anything that was stolen,
for everything was his, so you shall not bring an offering from that which
is stolen. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. For I desire goodness, not sacrifice; obedience to God, rather than burnt
offerings. (Hosea 6:6)
C. A stolen lulav is invalid [for performing the mitzvah]... Stolen myrtle
branches are invalid... Stolen willow branches are invalid... A stolen etrog
is invalid. (Mishnah Sukkah 3)
D. It is forbidden to fulfill a commandment by means of a transgression.
(Sukkah 30a)

As the verse from Hosea makes clear, sacrifices are not an end in themselves
but a means to an end. The person who brings a stolen animal for a sacrifice or
who steals to offer a more impressive sacrifice than his means allow has
missed the point. How would you apply this insight to our modern forms of
worship and ritual?
Imagine that you are on the board of a shul, school, or charitable organization.
The board is approached by someone who offers a sizable donation, money
that is very much needed. However, the prospective donor is known to have
made his money through illegal activities. Do you accept the donation? Does it
matter what type of illegal activity was involved – for instance, if it were insider
trading or the use of substandard construction materials that led to injuries and
deaths? What do you think about this argument: If your organization accepts the
money it will be used for good, providing scholarships for poor children or
supporting a food pantry, but if you refuse it, the prospective donor will wind up
spending it on lavish parties or a yacht? What if the donor earned the money
through activities that are legal but unsavory – cigarette manufacturing or “adult
entertainment”? When, if ever, does money become “treif?”
PARASHAT TZAV - SHUSHAN PURIM
March 22, 2008 – 15 Adar II 5768

Haftarah: Jeremiah 7:21 – 8:3, 9:22–23 (Etz Hayim, p.627; Hertz p.439)

Teaneck, New Jersey

Sefer Vayikra began with a description of the different types of korbanot
(sacrifices). Parashat Tzav now takes the form of a priest’s manual, as God tells
Moses to instruct Aaron about the rituals the kohanim are to use when they
offer the various korbanot.
We learn that the zevah sh’lamim, the offering of well-being, was to be brought
for three reasons – for thanksgiving, in fulfillment of a vow, or as a freewill or
voluntary offering.
A person in a state of ritual impurity may not eat from any of the sacrifices. No
one is permitted to eat chelev, the fat covering an animal’s internal organs, or
blood. Portions of these offerings are to be set aside to be given to the priests.
God instructs Moses about the ceremony of consecration of the priests. Aaron
and his sons are washed, dressed in their ceremonial garments, and anointed.
Moses offers sacrifices on their behalf. The ritual of ordination continues for
seven days.
1. Remembrance of Things Past

The priest shall dress in linen raiment, with linen breeches next to his body; and
he shall take up the ashes to which the fire has reduced the burnt offering on
the altar and place them beside the altar. He shall then take off his vestments
and put on other vestments, and carry the ashes outside the camp to a pure
place. (Vayikra 6:3-4)
A. The purpose of the mitzvah is to enhance the sanctuary and beautify it to

the utmost of our ability…. Beauty is added to the altar by cleaning out
the ashes from where the fire has to be kindled; moreover, the flame
burns well when there are no ashes beneath. (Sefer HaHinukh [attributed
to Rabbi Aharon of Barcelona, 14th century, Spain])
B. This is the very first thing the high priest must do before he enters into
the Holy of Holies, so that he will not forget the people’s everyday needs
when he enters this holy place. The Torah commands him to remove his
elaborate clothes and put on simple clothes to remind him to pray for the
day-to-day needs of the Jewish people. (Rabbi Simcha Bunim of
Przysucha, 1765-1827, Poland)
C. One of the 613 commandments is to take up the ashes each day; that is,
to remove the ashes of the sacrifices that had been burned. This is
symbolic and teaches us that after a person who sinned brings his
sacrifice to God and confesses on it, one may not mention his sin to him
any more. Instead, we are commanded to erase all traces of the sin and
to forget it. (Rabbi Menahem ben Moses HaBavli, 16th century, Greece
and Israel)
D. While the “taking up” of the ashes is meant to introduce the new day’s
service as directly linked to whatever had been accomplished on the
preceding day, as a permanent reminder of those past accomplishments,
the removal of the ashes from the camp conveys the thought that at the
same time, the Jewish nation must begin its task anew each day. The
start of every new day summons us to set out upon our task with full,
renewed devotion, as if we had never accomplished anything before. The
memory of yesterday’s accomplishments must not detract from the
energy with which we must do our duty today. Thoughts of what already
has been accomplished can spell death to what has yet to be done. Woe
to him who rests upon his laurels in smug complacency, who does not
begin the work of each new day with new, complete devotion as if it were
the very first day of his life’s work. (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-
1888, Germany)
Even this seemingly simple and prosaic task – taking up and removing the
ashes of the previous day’s offerings – is surrounded by ritual. Why? The Sefer
HaHinukh suggests practical considerations. Rabbi Simcha Bunim and Rabbi
Menahem suggest that it is to teach important moral lessons. How would you
explain the meaning of this ritual?
Rabbi Hirsch sees the ritual as full of symbolism, teaching us that each day is
an opportunity for a new beginning. The danger he sees is that people tend to
become smug and complacent because they believe their past
accomplishments are more than sufficient. Do you agree? When people are
tripped up by the past is it because they believe they have already done
enough? How do you think a person’s past accomplishments affect his or her
life today? What affect do hopes or fears about the future have on us?
2. Shame on You!
Speak to Aaron and his sons thus: This is the ritual of the purification
[elsewhere: sin] offering: the purification offering shall be slaughtered before the
Lord, at the spot where the burnt offering is slaughtered: it is most holy. (Vayikra
6:18)
A. And why is this so [that both are slaughtered in the same place]? In order
not to embarrass the sinners. (Yerushalmi Yevamot 8:3)
B. The matter is explained according to what is written in Sotah 32b: Why
did they establish that the amidah should be said in a whisper? In order
not to embarrass those who commit sins [that others will not hear their
confessions]. (Torah Temimah [Rabbi Baruch Epstein, 1860-1942,
Russia])
C. Rabbi Elazar Ha-Modai taught: A person who profanes the sacred,
despises the festivals, shames a fellow human being publicly … though
he be learned in Torah and perform good deeds, shall have no share in
the world-to-come. (Avot 3:15)
D. A tanna recited before Rabbi Nahman bar Isaac: He who shames his
fellow man in public is as though he shed blood. Rabbi Nahman replied:
Well put! Because we see ruddiness depart and paleness take its place
[in the face of the person who is humiliated]. (Baba Metzia 58b)
Why do the rabbis see humiliating another person as such a grave sin? Do you
think it is still a serious offense today? Are there certain people whom it is
acceptable to humiliate in public? Does a person put herself in that category by
the way she behaves in public (for example, by posting photos of drunken party
behavior on her MySpace page)?
At family gatherings, are certain “cute” or “amusing” stories told year after year
while the subject of the story squirms in embarrassment? Do you tell these
stories? Are they told about you? Do you think it might be time to retire them?
PARASHAT SHEMINI - SHABBAT PARAH
March 29, 2008 – 22 Adar II 5768


Teaneck, New Jersey

On the eighth and final day of the ordination ceremony, Moses instructs Aaron,
Aaron’s sons, and the Israelites about consecration rituals. Aaron offers his own
purification offering and burnt offering. Next, he offers a purification offering, a
burnt offering, and an offering of well-being on behalf of the people. Aaron first,
then Moses and Aaron together, bless the people. The Presence of the Lord
appears and a fire comes forth and consumes the offering on the altar.
Aaron’s sons Nadav and Avihu offer “alien fire” before the Lord. A fire comes
forth and kills them. Moses tells Aaron and his two remaining sons that they
must not engage in the normal mourning rituals, but the rest of the Israelites will
mourn. The kohanim are prohibited from drinking alcohol while they are
engaged in their sacred duties. Moses instructs Aaron, Eleazar, and Itamar
about which of the various portions of the offerings they may eat.
God tells Moses and Aaron to instruct the people about the animals they are
permitted to eat. Land animals must have cloven hooves and chew their cuds.
Animals that have only one of these two markers and so may not be eaten are
listed. Sea creatures must have fins and scales. No signs are given for birds;
forbidden species are listed. Permitted insects are listed; all the rest are
forbidden.
Animals whose carcasses transmit ritual impurity are listed. A general warning
is given to guard against defilement and to be concerned about ritual purity.
1. Playing With Fire

Now Aaron’s sons Nadav and Avihu each took his fire pan, put fire in it, and laid
incense on it; and they offered before the Lord alien fire, which He had not
enjoined upon them. And fire came forth from the Lord and consumed them;
thus they died at the instance of the Lord. (Vayikra 10:1-2)
A. Bar Kappara in the name of Rabbi Jeremiah ben Eleazar said: For four
things did the two sons of Aaron die: For drawing near, and for the
sacrifice, for the alien fire, and for not consulting each other. For drawing
near – that they entered into the innermost precincts; for the sacrifice –
that they offered a sacrifice which they had not been commanded; for the
alien fire – they brought in fire from the kitchen; and that they did not
consult one another – as it is said: each took his fire pan – each one
acted on his own, individually.
Rabbi Mani, Rabbi Joshua of Siknin, and Rabbi Yohanan in the name of
Rabbi Levi said: The sons of Aaron died for four things – because they
had drunk wine; because they lacked the prescribed number of
[ceremonial] garments; because they entered the Sanctuary without
washing hands and feet; and because they had no children.
Rabbi Levi said that they were arrogant. Many women remained
unmarried waiting for them. What did they say? “Our father’s brother is a
king, our mother’s brother is a prince, our father is a high priest, and we
are both deputy high priests; what woman is worthy of us?” (Vayikra
Rabbah 20)
B. My grandfather (Rabbi Isaac Meir Alter of Ger) said that one can deduce
from this that the most important component in the performance of
commandments is the fact that one performs them because he was
commanded to, rather than any lofty intentions he has in performing
them. The proof is here, in that we see that Nadav and Avihu, who were
great sages, surely had the most lofty of intentions, yet they were
punished for doing something they had not been commanded to do. How
much more, then, is the reward of a person who fulfills a commandment
solely because it was commanded by God, even though he knows
nothing about the hidden intentions involved. (Sefat Emet [Rabbi Judah
Aryeh Leib Alter, 1874-1905, Poland])
C. Closeness and nearness to God can be attained only by being
disciplined to His will.… We may understand the death of the sons of
Aaron on the eighth day of their consecration as a warning to future
generations of priests to avoid personal and subjective predilections and
ordinances of their own invention in their approach to the service in the
sanctuary, which belongs to God and is governed by His law and not by
any newfangled innovations introduced into the order of the service. Only
by observance of the precepts of the Torah can the priest of Israel
remain true to his principles. (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888,
Germany)
Why did God strike down Nadav and Avihu? The selections from Vayikra
Rabbah (and many similar midrashim) search the text for clues to the sins for
which they were punished. Why do the rabbis take this approach? When
tragedy strikes, we want to know why. What do we achieve by blaming the
victim? What do we lose?
The Sefat Emet focuses on the words which He had not enjoined upon them.
Nadav and Avihu were not sinners in the conventional sense, they simply went
beyond the letter of the law. How do you feel about this explanation?
Rabbi Hirsch adds another dimension. Nadav and Avihu were punished so
severely because of their position as newly ordained priests. Do you agree that
religious leaders should be held to higher standards? Does this apply only to
their religious observance or to all aspects of their lives? What about leaders in
government, business, and other areas of society?
2. The Sounds of Silence

Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord meant when He said: through
those near to Me I show Myself holy, and gain glory before all the people.” And
Aaron was silent. (Vayikra 10:2)
A. He received a reward for his silence. And what reward did he receive?
That the word was especially addressed to him, for to him alone was said
the section [regarding] those intoxicated with wine. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo
B. Scripture chose “vayidom” rather than “vayishtok” [synonyms of silence].
The latter signifies the abstention from speaking, weeping, moaning, or
any other outward manifestation…. The verb “domem,” however,
connotes inner peace and calm…. Accordingly, Scripture describes the
saintly Aaron as “vayidom” and not merely as “vayishtok,” thus
emphasizing that his heart and soul were at peace within, that rather
than questioning the standards of God he justified the Divine verdict.
(Shem Olam [Rabbi Eliezer Lipman Lichtenstein, 1848-1896, Poland])
C. Aaron was silent from his mourning. He did not weep and he did not
mourn, as is written in Ezekiel 24:16-17, O mortal, I am about to take
away the delight of your eyes from you through pestilence; but you shall
not lament or weep or let your tears flow. Moan softly; be silent in
mourning the dead…. Here also he was silent although he wanted to
mourn and weep. (Rashbam [Rabbi Shmuel ben Meir, 1080-1158,
France, grandson of Rashi])
D. His heart turned to lifeless stone [domem – mineral], and he did not weep
and mourn like a bereaved father, nor did he accept Moses’ consolation,
for his soul had left him and he was speechless. (Don Isaac Abravanel,
1437-1508, Spain and Italy)
The Torah makes a point of telling us that Aaron witnessed the death of his
sons and was silent. Rashi and Shem Olam understand Aaron’s silence as a
sign of acceptance of God’s judgment. Rashbam and Abravanel see Aaron’s
silence as external only. Why was Aaron silent? Did he accept and feel at
peace with what God had done? Was he in shock? Did he believe that his
position as high priest required him to hide his emotions in public? Was he so
filled with anger that he was speechless? What did Aaron’s silence
communicate?
PARASHAT TAZRIA - BIRKAT HAHODESH -
SHABBAT HAHODESH
April 5, 2008 – 29 Adar II 5768

Triennial Cycle: Leviticus 12:1 – 13:39 (Etz Hayim p. 649; Hertz p. 460)
Maftir: Exodus 12:1 – 20 (Etz Hayim p. 380; Hertz p. 253)
Haftarah: Ezekiel 45:16 – 46:18 (Etz Hayim p. 1291; Hertz p. 1001)

Teaneck, New Jersey

When a woman gives birth, she enters a state of ritual impurity. If she gives
birth to a boy, she is in a state of niddah (separation) for seven days, and she
remains ritually impure for 33 days. Following the birth of a girl the
corresponding periods are two weeks and 66 days. At the end of this time she is
to bring a burnt offering and a purification offering and she is restored to a state
of ritual purity.
God instructs Moses and Aaron about tzara’at, a scaly skin disease traditionally
translated as “leprosy” but clearly not the condition known today as Hansen’s
disease. When a person developed a rash or other signs of skin disease, the
priest was to examine it and determine if it was in fact tzara’at, which would
render the person ritually impure. If the diagnosis was uncertain, the priest was
to quarantine the person for seven days and then examine him again. If the
diagnosis was still uncertain, the person was to be isolated for another seven
days; if the rash had not spread, he was declared ritually pure. Once a person
was determined to have tzara’at, he was declared ritually impure and sent to
live outside the camp.
Tzara’at could affect fabrics as well as people. Once a priest had determined
that an article of cloth or leather was affected it was to be burned.
1. Daughters and Sons

Speak to the Israelite people thus: When a woman at childbirth bears a male,
she shall be impure seven days; she shall be impure as at the time of her
menstrual infirmity. – On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be
circumcised. – She shall remain in a state of blood purification for thirty-three
days: she shall not touch any consecrated thing, nor enter the sanctuary until
her period of purification is completed. If she bears a female, she shall be
impure two weeks as during her menstruation, and she shall remain in a state of
blood purification for sixty-six days. (Vayikra 12:2-5)
A. Why must the mother bring a sin-offering after childbirth and why must
she keep more “days of purification” for a girl-child than for a boy-child?
According to the sages, she must bring a sin-offering after childbirth
because many women in the agony of their labor vow never again to
have relations with their husbands, but then, in their rejoicing over the
new-born infant, they regret their resolution. The sacrifice serves to atone
for the rashly made vow. This also explains also why she must wait
longer to make the offering in the case of a female infant than in the case
of a male... When a girl-child is born, the rejoicing is not so great as it
would be over a boy-child, so that the mother will take longer to regret
her rash vow than if the baby had been a boy. Klei Yakar [Rabbi
Solomon Ephraim ben Aaron of Lunchitz, d. 1619, Poland])
B. After a daughter was born to Rabbi Shimon Berabbi, he was
disappointed. His father, Rabbi Judah, seeking to comfort him, said, “The
possibility for further increase has now come into the world.” But Bar
Kappara said to Rabbi Shimon, “Your father has offered you vain comfort.
The fact is, as we have been taught, the world cannot endure without
both males and females. Nevertheless, happy is he whose children are
males, and alas for him whose children are females.” (Baba Batra 16b)
C. It is written in the book of Ben Sira: “A daughter is a deceptive treasure to
her father. Because of anxiety on her account, he cannot sleep at night –
when she is young, lest she be seduced; when she reaches puberty, lest
she play the harlot; after she grows up, lest she fail to marry; after she is
married, lest she have no children; after she has grown old, lest she
practice witchcraft.” (Sanhedrin 100b)
The reason that a new mother’s period of impurity is twice as long for a
daughter as for a son is a mystery. What is clear is that our commentators take
it for granted that all parents would prefer that their children be sons. The
passage from Sanhedrin offers some less than complimentary reasons why that
might be. Can you think of legitimate reasons why parents would have preferred
sons in the economic and social climate of earlier centuries? Do these reasons
still apply? If parents were able to choose the sex of their children, do you think
the gender distribution of the population would be different?
Imagine you have just been blessed with a new nephew. Would you drive 100
miles to attend his brit milah? Take a three-hour flight? Travel to Israel? Would
you do the same to attend the naming/Simhat Bat of a new niece?
2. Not So Fast!
The priest shall examine the affection in the skin of his body: if hair in the
affected patch has turned white and the affection appears to be deeper than the
skin of his body, it is a leprous affection; when the priest sees it, he shall
pronounce him impure. (Vayikra 13:3)
A. On the day that discolored flesh appears. (13:14) What does Scripture
teach? It comes to teach that there is a day when you may see it and
there is a day when you may not see it. Hence our rabbis said, “a
bridegroom is granted [exemption from examination] all the seven days
of celebration for himself and his garments and his house; and similarly
on a festival one is granted exemption all the days of the festival. (Rashi
B. Why the redundancy? [ra’ah ha-koken – the priest shall see – appears
twice in this verse] One can say that the verse refers to two different
aspects. In the first, the priest shall examine the affection. This involves
the physical act of looking, where the priest checks to see if there are
signs of tzara’at. The second aspect, though, refers to another type of
“looking.” Thus we are told, for example, that if the person is a
bridegroom in the first seven days of his marriage or if a person comes to
the priest in the middle of a festival, the priest does not judge the person
to have tzara’at until that week or that festival has ended, so as not to
disturb his joy. Thus, the priest must “look” at various external factors as
well, for the ways of the Torah are ways of pleasantness. (Meshekh
Hokhma, Rabbi Meir Simha Hakohen of Dvinsk, 1843-1926, Latvia)
C. In the world to come, a person will have to give an accounting for every
good thing his eyes saw, but of which he did not eat. (Yerushalmi
Kiddushin 4:12)
Given the attention the Torah pays to the diagnosis of and purification rituals for
tzara’at, it would seem logical that the identification of this condition and the
quarantine of people with tzara’at should be of paramount importance. However,
the rabbis teach that even a person with obvious symptoms is not to be
declared to have tzara’at at times of personal or communal celebration. What
can we learn from this? Are there times when ritual requirements should take a
back seat to the needs of the individual or the community? Can you think of
situations in which we routinely ignore the letter of the law in order to better
serve God and Torah?
Imagine there is a new family in your community, a young couple with two small
children. The wife tells you that in recent months they have begun to celebrate
Shabbat on Friday nights with candles, kiddush, and a special meal. However,
she says, there are some weeks when her husband gets stuck at work and
cannot be home in time for dinner. On those Fridays, she simply feeds the kids
fish sticks and puts them to bed. She wants to know if when this happens, she
should also feed her husband fish sticks when he gets home, or can the two of
them go out for a nice dinner together. How would you answer her?
PARASHAT METZORA
April 12, 2008 – 7 Nisan 5768

Triennial Cycle: Leviticus 14:1 – 32 (Etz Hayim p. 660; Hertz p. 470)
Haftarah: II Kings 7:3 - 20 (Etz Hayim p. 676; Hertz p. 477)

Teaneck, New Jersey

God gives Moses instructions for the rites of purification and the sacrifices that
the m’tzora (person afflicted with tzara’at) must bring in order to complete the
process of ritual purification. Provisions are made so that a poor person can
bring less costly sacrifices.
God also tells Moses that once the people have settled in the land of Canaan a
person may discover some sort of plague on the walls of his home. A priest
must examine it; if he declares that the house is afflicted with tzara’at, the
affected stones must be removed and replaced. If the tzara’at returns, the
house must be demolished. If it does not return, the priest performs the
specified ritual of purification.
Finally, God instructs Moses about the impurity resulting from discharges from
the genital organs – both those discharges that are the result of disease and the
normal discharges of semen and menstruation – and the process of purification
for each.
1. Guard Your Tongue

This shall be the ritual for a leper [traditionally, this is the law of the m’tzora] at
the time that he is to be purified. (Vayikra 14:2)
A. This is the law of the m’tzora: This is the law of the motzi shem ra
(Talmud Arakhin 15b). Nega’im come for the sin of lashon hara – slander.
For the m’tzora to become clean, he needs a priest, the symbol of purity
and the sanctity of the mouth and tongue, as it says (Malachi 2:7), For
the lips of a priest guard knowledge, and men seek rulings from his
mouth. This teaches that a m’tzora cannot go to a doctor to be cured, but
requires the pronouncement of a priest. Thus we are told (Nega’im 3:1),
“The priest says ‘clean.’” As the pronouncement of the m’tzora results
from the sins of the mouth, the Torah requires the healing to result from a
pronouncement of the mouth, for “death and life are in the control of the
tongue.” (Hafetz Hayim [Rabbi Israel Meir HaKohen, 1835-1933,
Poland])
B. Whoever indulges in gossip will be stricken with tzara’at … because
gossip is worse than bloodshed. A person who commits manslaughter
kills one person, but gossip kills three: the person repeating the gossip,
the person listening to it, and the person about whom it is said.
(Tanhuma M’tzora 2)
C. Jews often treat the sin of lashon hara lightly, as if they don’t realize the
tremendous power of the mouth. They don’t understand the harm that
lashon hara can cause. After all, they think to themselves, “What have I
done? All I did was say a few words. Big deal!” The person therefore is
brought to the priest and there he sees that it is the words of the priest
that determine his fate – whether he will be considered clean or unclean.
He realizes what power words do indeed have. “Death and life are in the
control of the tongue.” (Rabbi Joseph ben Wolf Kranz, known as the
Maggid of Dubno, 1740-1804, Poland)
D. Don’t speak well of your friend, for although you will start with his good
traits, the discussion might turn to his bad traits. (Baba Batra 164b)
E. Gossip is cathartic, empowering, and comforting... one of the great
luxuries of democracy. It is the tawdry jewel in the crown of free speech
and free expression... It makes you interesting and boosts your self
esteem at having it to relate. (Liz Smith, syndicated gossip columnist)
The rabbis understand tzara’at not as an ordinary disease but as punishment

for a sin, specifically for the sin of lashon hara. The usual translation – slander –
is misleading, because in American law slander refers only to spreading
negative information that is false. Lashon hara refers to spreading any negative
information about another person, either true or false.
The passage from the Tanhuma is only one of many examples of how seriously
the rabbis regard the sin of lashon hara. Why do you think they do so? After all,
as children we all learned, “sticks and stones will break my bones but names
will never harm me.” Do you think lashon hara is a problem in your community?
What impact does it have? How has the internet changed the nature of lashon
hara?
Liz Smith reminds us why it is so hard to avoid lashon hara. Still, if we cannot
eliminate it we certainly can reduce it. What strategies can you think of to avoid
speaking or listening to lashon hara?
2. Walk a Mile in My Shoes

The priest shall go outside the camp. If the priest sees that the leper has been
healed of his scaly affection. (Vayikra 14:3)
A. Why does the priest have to go forth out of the camp? Rather, the priest
is the righteous one, the leader of the generation, and to him even a
small sin appears enormous. But God wants the leaders to give the
people the benefit of the doubt, and they should realize that had they
needed to earn their living, they, too, might have sinned. Thus the Torah
tells us that the priest must go forth out of the camp – he has to put
himself in the place of the sinner, outside the priest’s own camp, and in
that of people who have to earn their living – and it is then that the priest
will see that the tzara’at will be healed. (Si’ah HaSadeh)
B. Joshua ben Perahyah taught: When you assess people, tip the balance
in their favor. (Avot 1:6)
C. Our masters taught: He who judges his fellow man on the scale of merit
is himself judged favorably. (Shabbat 127b)
D. Rabbi Reuben ben Itztrobilei said: A person does not incur suspicion
unless he has done [what he is suspected of]; or if he did not do all of it,
he did part of it; or if he did not do part of it, he yearned to do it; or if he
did not yearn in his heart to do it, he saw others do it and was happy.
(Moed Katan 18b)
E. In Jerusalem there is a group that regularly discusses practical ways to
judge people favorably. A member of the group gives true-to-life
situations, and everyone else offers explanations that would present the
person involved in a favorable light. For instance: You didn’t receive an
invitation to a wedding:
a. Perhaps the person was under the impression that he had already
sent you an invitation.
b. Perhaps he sent you an invitation and it was lost in the mail.
c. Perhaps he can’t afford to invite many people.
By judging someone favorably, even if your assumption is wrong, you still

fulfill a Torah commandment. (Rabbi Zelig Pliskin, Love Your Neighbor, p.
261)
Si’ah HaSadeh says that God wants community leaders (and by extension, all
of us) to give the people the benefit of the doubt. Too often we interpret other
people’s behavior in the most negative way possible and ignore innocent
explanations. Why do you think people tend to think the worst of others? How
does this affect a community? Has someone ever accused you of doing
something wrong when you were innocent? How did you handle the situation?
What do you think of Rabbi Reuben ben Itztrobilei’s claim thatwhere there’s
smoke there must be fire? What do you think of Rabbi Zelig Pliskin’s approach?
PARASHAT AHAREY MOT - SHABBAT
HAGADOL - FIRST PESAH SEDER -
ANNIVERSARY WARSAW GHETTO UPRISING
April 19, 2008 – 14 Nisan 5768

Haftarah: Malakhi 3:4 – 24:3:23 (Etz Hayim, p. 1296; Hertz p. 1005

Teaneck, New Jersey

God instructs Moses about the Yom Kippur rituals, during which the High Priest
was to cleanse and purify the sanctuary from the effects of the sins of the
Israelites. Only on that holiest of days was Aaron permitted to enter the Holy of
Holies, the inner sanctuary. He was to dress in special linen garments and to
bring a purification offering on behalf of himself and his household. He would
then cast lots over two goats, designating one for God as a purification offering
on behalf of the people and one for Azazel, the “scapegoat” to be sent off into
the wilderness bearing Israel’s sins. The people were to observe Yom Kippur
each year as a day of fasting and abstinence from work so that their sins might
be forgiven.
Moses tells the people that animals, whether they were intended for food or as
sacrifices, were to be slaughtered only at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. It
is strictly forbidden to eat blood.
God instructs Moses to tell the people that they are not to copy the practices of
the Egyptians or the Canaanites. Forbidden sexual relationships are specified.
1. True Confessions
Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat and confess over
it all the iniquities and transgressions of the Israelites, whatever their sins,
putting them on the head of the goat; and it shall be sent off to the wilderness
through a designated man. (Vayikra 16:21)
A. He who says again and again, “I will sin and then repent” – he will be
given no opportunity to repent. He who says, “I will sin, and the Day of
Atonement will procure forgiveness for me” – the Day of Atonement will
not procure forgiveness for him. (Talmud Yoma 85b)
B. Rabbi Adda bar Ahavah said: A man who confesses after committing a
transgression but does not change his ways is like the one who persists
in holding a dead reptile in his hand – even if he immerses himself in all
the waters of the world, his immersions will not cleanse him. But once he
throws the reptile away and then immerses himself in no more than forty
seah of water, the immersion is effective in cleansing him, as it is said,
He who confesses and gives [his faults] up will find mercy (Mishlei 28:13).
(Talmud Taanit 16a)
C. That is the meaning of the Jewish vidui [confession], which is no
“confession” to any other person, not even an avowal to God, but
essentially, as the expression hitvadah [a reflexive verb form] signifies,
an “admission to oneself,” which in one’s innermost self silences every
extenuating, excusing defense. It is only when one has the courage to
look at one’s wrongdoings in the same disapproving clarity with which
God’s Eye sees them, only then will our resolutions for the future
betterment not fail to be realized. A genuine hatati [I have sinned]
precludes the recurrence of the sin. Every true self-judgment includes
self-knowledge, not only that we should have behaved otherwise, but
that we could have behaved otherwise, and by such recognition of our
moral freedom of will rejects any excuse for present or future failings.
(Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888, Germany)
On Yom Kippur, we repeat our confessions of sins – both the short Ashamnu
and the long Al Het – many times. But saying the words is not magic; the words
must be matched by action. What does Rabbi Hirsch see as the essence of
confession and of repentance? How often do you think this actually happens on
Yom Kippur? Why is it so hard?
We frequently read news stories about some politician, businessperson, or

celebrity caught with a hand in the cookie jar, with a zipper undone, or in some
other compromising position. He or she then will issue a statement “taking
responsibility,” apologizing to anyone who was offended, and claiming that he
didn’t mean it, he couldn’t help himself (but he would be going to rehab), or he
was drunk. Do you think these public confessions are ever real, or are they
simply damage control? What motivates a person to change?
2. On One Condition
For on this day expiation shall be made for you to purify you of all your sins; you
shall be pure before the Lord. (Vayikra 16:30)
A. Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah expounded on the verse, of all your sins; you
shall be pure before the Lord. This means that for transgressions
between man and God Yom Kippur procures atonement; for
transgressions between a man and his neighbor Yom Kippur does not
procure atonement until he appeases his neighbor. (Talmud Yoma 85b)
B. The Lord will make atonement for all your sins, but only if you will be
clean before the Lord – if you will first repent and cleanse yourselves of
your transgressions. (Binah LeIttim [Rabbi Obadiah Figu, 1579-1647,
Italy])
C. Our rabbis taught: If a man misappropriates a beam and builds it into a
palace, he must demolish the palace and return the beam to its rightful
owner. So says the school of Shammai. But the school of Hillel says:
Because we wish to encourage penitents, the owner may claim no more
than the value of the beam. (Talmud Gittin 55a)
D. In my humble opinion, Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah deduced from the text
that Yom Kippur atones for transgressions between man and God and
that when he has, in addition, transgressions between man and man to
his debit, the atonement for his iniquities against God is suspended until
he has placated the man he has wronged. As soon as he placates his
fellow, the Holy Blessed One is reconciled with him and gives him
atonement for the iniquities he perpetrated against Him…. What the text
means is therefore that Yom Kippur will indeed make atonement for you
to purify yourself from all your sins before the Lord (sins against God) on
condition you purify yourselves from the transgressions on the human
plane, between man and man. (Rabbi Josiah ben Joseph Pinto, 1565-
1648, Syria and Israel)
In The Book of Jewish Values, Rabbi Joseph Telushkin quotes Rabbi Abraham
Joshua Heschel: No one can forgive crimes committed against someone else.
According to our commentators, not even God is willing to do this. Why do you
think this is so? How does a person earn the forgiveness of someone he or she
has wronged? Does the injured party have the right to withhold forgiveness?
What does Rabbi Pinto’s comment add to your understanding of the nature of
forgiveness? Does this affect your understanding of what it means to be a
religious person?
SHABBAT – SEVENTH DAY PESAH
April 26, 2008 – 21 Nisan 5768
Annual: Exodus 13:17 – 15:26 (Etz Hayim, p. 399; Hertz p. 265)

Maftir: Numbers 28:19 – 25 (Etz Hayim, p.932; Hertz p. 695)
Haftarah: II Samuel 22:1 – 51 (Etz Hayim, p. 1311; Hertz p. 1017)

Teaneck, New Jersey

The Israelites leave Egypt and head into the wilderness. God accompanies
them, appearing as a pillar of cloud during the day and as a pillar of fire at night.
Being a slow learner, Pharaoh again changes his mind and takes off after his
former slaves – with his warriors and 600 chariots. The terrified Israelites find
themselves trapped between the pursuing Egyptians and the Sea of Reeds.
God tells Moses to hold his rod out over the sea and the sea splits. The
Israelites cross on dry land and then, at God’s command, the sea closes and
the Egyptians drown. Moses leads the people in the great song of praise and
thanksgiving to God; Miriam leads the women. According to one tradition, this
occurred on the seventh day of Pesah.
Just three days later, the people begin complaining that the water they find at
Marah is too bitter to drink. God tells Moses how to make the water potable.
The maftir reading describes the sacrifices to be offered on each day of Pesah.
1. God Does Not Desire the Death of Sinners

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord. They said: I will sing
to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously; horse and driver He has hurled into
the sea. (Shemot 15:1)
A. The ministering angels wanted to sing a hymn at the destruction of the

Egyptians, but God said: “My children lie drowned in the sea, and you
would sing?” Rabbi Elazar said: He does not rejoice, but He causes
others to rejoice. (Talmud Megillah 10b)
B. Why do we remove 10 drops of wine from our cups? We glory in our
liberation, but we do not gloat over our fallen foes. When the waters of
the Sea of Reeds engulfed the Egyptians, the ministering angels began
to sing praises. But God silenced them, saying, “My children perish.
Cease your songs!” So we celebrate with less than a full heart, with less
than a full cup. (Passover Haggadah: The Feast of Freedom, The
Rabbinical Assembly, p. 58)
C. You find three verses that command you to rejoice on Sukkot... For
Passover, however, you will not find even one command to rejoice. Why
not? ... because the Egyptians died during the Passover. Therefore you
find that though we read the entire Hallel on each of the seven days of
Sukkot, on Passover we read the entire Hallel only on the first day[s] and
the night[s] preceding [them]. Why not on the other days of the festival?
Because of “if your enemy falls, do not exult; if he trips, let your heart not
rejoice” (Mishlei 24:17). (Yalkut Shimoni, Emor 654)
D. Pharaoh himself, according to legend, did not perish in the Sea of Reeds.
He repented, and was delivered from the depths. Later he was appointed
king of Nineveh. When that city’s impending doom was announced by
the reluctant prophet Jonah, the king led his people in fasting and
penitential prayers. And Nineveh was spared. Now, when tyrants
gravitate to their eternal unrest, the reformed Pharaoh greets them with
hindsight’s vexatious wisdom: “Why did you not profit from my example?”
(Passover Haggadah: The Feast of Freedom, The Rabbinical Assembly,
p. 62)
E. In Rabbi Meir’s neighborhood there lived some ruffians who annoyed him
so much that he prayed for them to die. His wife Beruriah said to him:
What are you thinking of? Are you relying on the verse “May sinners
disappear from the earth? (Tehilim 104:35) It is rather “sins.” [The word
hata’im can be understood as “sins” or “sinners.”] Moreover, look at the
end of the verse “and the wicked be no more,” which implies that when
sins come to an end, the wicked will be no more. You should seek mercy
for them, that they turn in penitence, so that they will be wicked no more.
Accordingly, he besought mercy for them, and they did turn in penitence.
(Talmud Berakhot 10b)
The deaths of the Egyptians at the sea and during the 10 plagues may
have been necessary, but they were not a cause for gloating. God
rebukes the angels when they want to sing. Why does He permit – even
encourage – the Israelites to sing? How, if at all, do you think repeating
these stories for centuries has shaped the character of the Jewish
people?
2. The Prose of Life

Then Moses caused Israel to set out from the Sea of Reeds. They went
on into the wilderness of Shur; they traveled three days in the wilderness
and found no water. They came to Marah, but they could not drink the
water of Marah because it was bitter; that is why it was named Marah.
And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?”
(Shemot 15:22-24)
A. A maidservant at the sea saw what Isaiah and Ezekiel and all the
rest of the prophets never saw. (Mekhilta Shirata 3)
B. As soon as they came to the sea and saw the might of God in His
execution of judgment upon the wicked... and how He drowned
the Egyptians in the sea, then at once: “They had faith in the
Lord.” It was on account of this faith that the Holy Spirit rested
upon them and they recited the Song. (Shemot Rabbah 23:2)
C. From Beshalach we learn a great lesson: The miracle, the
revelation, and also man’s elevation to poetry as a result of a
miracle of revelation – all this is but a passing episode that has no
continuing influence. What endures is not the poetry of life but
rather the prose of life. (Yeshayahu Leibowitz, 1903-1994, Israel)
D. One should not depend on a miracle. (Pesachim 64b)
Why doesn’t our Torah reading for the seventh day of Pesah conclude
with the triumphant song; why does it add these verses? The rabbis tell
us we should not rely on miracles. Does this mean to save us from
danger, or might it perhaps mean to sustain our faith? Is it possible to
have an intense spiritual experience each time you pray? Every Shabbat
and Yom Tov? What sustains you when life is not poetry but prose?
PARASHAT KEDOSHIM - BIRKAT HAHODESH
May 3, 2008 – 28 Nisan 5768

Haftarah: Amos 9:7 – 15 (Etz Hayim, p. 706; Hertz p. 509)

Teaneck, New Jersey

Parashat Kedoshim contains the bulk of the Holiness Code, characterized by
the commandment You shall be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy. The
many mitzvot found here call for striving for holiness in all areas of life – ritual
(You shall keep My Sabbaths and venerate My sanctuary, 19:30), civil (You
shall not falsify measures of length, weight, or capacity, 19:35), and ethical (You
shall rise before the aged and show deference to the old, 19:32). Its best known
commandment is Love your fellow as yourself. Israel is told to observe all of
God’s laws and rules.
God tells Moses to warn the people against child sacrifice and witchcraft and
divination. The laws of forbidden sexual relationships are repeated. Similarly,
God warns Israel not to follow the practices of the Canaanite nations and to
remember that God has set them apart to be a holy people.
1. To Be Holy
Speak to the whole Israelite community and say to them: You shall be holy, for I,
the Lord your God, am holy. (Vayikra 19:2)
A. The Holy Blessed One said to Moses: “Go and say to Israel: ‘My
children! As I am separate so you be separate; as I am holy, so you be
holy.’” (Vayikra Rabbah 24:4)
B. This [the word kol, whole] teaches that this parashah was stated in an
assembly and why was it stated in an assembly – because the majority
of the essence of the Torah is derived from it. (Sifra)
C. This teaches that this parashah was said at hakhel (when all the
Israelites had to gather together – this is derived from the use of the word
whole in the verse). The Torah does not demand a holiness of
withdrawal and asceticism, and the command to be holy was stated at
hakhel, when everyone stood together. (Hatam Sofer [Rabbi Moses
Schreiber, 1762-1839, Pressburg, Hungary])
D. God is the absolute authority over the world because He is separate from
it and transcends it but He is not withdrawn from it. Israel must in
imitating God by being a holy nation similarly not withdraw from the world
of the nations but rather radiate a positive influence on them through
every aspect of Jewish living. (Martin Buber, cited in Nehama Leibowitz,
Studies in Vayikra, p. 167)
E. Can God demand that a human attain the level of holiness? This does
not mean that one must attain the level of angels, something that is
impossible. All that God demands is that man attain the level of holiness
of which he is capable. Be holy: in whatever circumstances you find
yourself, advance a little at a time in your holiness. (Rabbi Menachem
Mendel of Vorka, 1819-1868, Poland)
What does it mean to live a life of holiness? As we learn from Vayikra Rabbah,
the root meaning of the word kadosh, holy, is separate. In some religious
traditions, people who seek to live a holy life remove themselves from the
everyday world, joining religious communities devoted to prayer, contemplation,
and meditation. But as the Hatam Sofer and many others insist, the Torah
wants us – all of us – to live lives of holiness in the world.
Is holiness possible in the real world? How is “holy” different from “religious” or
“ethical”? What can you do to live a more holy life? What can your community
do to become more holy? What practical guidance do you find in the parashah?
2. Mind Your Own Business?

You shall not hate your kinsfolk in your heart. Reprove your kinsman but incur
no guilt because of him. (Vayikra 19:17)
A. How do we know that when a man observes something unseemly in his

neighbor, he should reprove him? From the verse “Reprove your
kinsman.” How do we know that if he reproved him and his neighbor
refused to accept the reproof, he is to reprove him again? From the
words hokhai’ah tokhi’ah [emphatic doubling of the verb], meaning under
all circumstances. Should you suppose the obligation holds even if the
neighbor’s face changes color [from public humiliation], the verse goes
on, but incur no guilt because of him. (Talmud Arakhin 16b)
B. Alternative rendering: “Reprove your kinsman and do not place guilt upon
him.” In rebuking another, do not treat him as a wicked man but put
stress on his dignity, making him understand that the wrong he
committed was beneath his dignity. Only thus will your rebuke have the
desired effect. Thus, then, is the thought Scripture seeks to convey:
“[You shall surely] reprove”: If you rebuke a man, regard him as your
neighbor, as your friend and your equal, “and do not place guilt upon
him”: do not treat him like a sinner, lest he turn aside from you entirely
and you will have accomplished nothing. (Havot Yair [Rabbi Hayyim Yair
Bachrach, d. 1704, Germany])
C. What is the link between these two parts of the verse? The explanation is
that you can only truly rebuke a person that you love and whom you wish
to see mend his ways, such as the way a father rebukes his son. The
closer a person is to another, the greater the love and the more earnest
the rebuke. A rebuke that is the product of love is more effective. You
should not rebuke someone you hate, because such an action has no
effect. Only through “You shall not hate” can you come to the stage of
“Reprove your kinsman.” (Avnei Ezel [Rabbi Alexander Zusia Friedman,
1897-1943, Poland])
D. He who can restrain the members of his household [from committing a
sin] but does not will be held responsible for his household. If [he can
restrain] the people of his city, he will be held responsible for the people
of his city. If [he can restrain] the whole world – all of it – he will be held
responsible for the whole world, all of it. (Talmud Shabbat 54b)
E. We have been taught that Rabbi Tarfon said: I wonder if there is anyone
in this generation capable of giving reproof. For if anyone says to another,
“Take the chip from between your teeth,” the other retorts, “Take the
beam from between your eyes.” Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah said: I
wonder whether there is anyone in this generation capable of accepting
reproof. Rabbi Akiva said: I wonder whether there is anyone in this
generation who knows how to give reproof [without humiliating the one
reproved]. (Talmud Arakhin 16b)
This is not a simple verse. Do you think that the first and second parts are
connected, so that “you shall not hate” is a condition of “reprove your kinsman,”
or are these two separate mitzvot? If they are connected, does “you shall not
hate” mean that you should or should not engage in reproof?
How do you understand “incur no guilt?” Does it refer to the way in which
reproof is to be offered or does it mean that you will be considered guilty if you
do not try to prevent other people’s wrongdoing?
There are few greater sins in contemporary society than “being judgmental,”
condemning other people’s actions when they do not affect you directly. Have
you ever been in a situation where you thought about trying to correct
someone’s behavior? Whether or not you said anything, do you think you made
the right decision? Have you ever been the one who was reproved? How did
you respond? Do you think that Rabbi Tarfon, Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah, and
Rabbi Akiva are speaking about our generation as well as their own?
PARASHAT EMOR
May 10, 2008 – 5 Iyar 5768

Triennial Cycle: Leviticus 21:1 – 22:16 (Etz Hayim p. 717; Hertz p. 513)
Haftarah: Ezekiel 44:15 – 31 (Etz Hayim p. 735; Hertz p. 528)

Teaneck, New Jersey

God instructs Moses to teach the priests the laws that apply to their special
status. The only dead body -- the principal source of ritual impurity -- a kohen
may come into contact with is a member of his immediate family – parents,
children, siblings (and, according to the rabbis, his wife). They were not to
shave their heads or make gashes in their skin as expressions of mourning. A
kohen may not marry a harlot or a divorcee. Additional prohibitions apply to the
High Priest, who may not come into contact with any dead body, even his
immediate family, or marry a widow. A kohen with a physical defect was not
allowed to offer sacrifices, though he still would be permitted to eat the portions
of the sacrifices set aside for the priests. A priest who is ritually impure may not
eat from these sacrifices. Only priests and members of their households –
excluding hired workers and daughters married to husbands who are not priests
– may eat the food offerings given to the priests. Animals dedicated as
sacrifices may not have any physical defects, and an animal and its young may
not be slaughtered on the same day.
God instructs Moses to teach the people about Shabbat and the festivals –
Pesach, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. The priests are to
light the lamps in the sanctuary and to prepare twelve loaves of bread each
week to be displayed in the sanctuary.
A man who was the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father
committed blasphemy and was brought to Moses. God tells Moses that the
blasphemer is to be executed by stoning.
1. Speak and Say

The Lord said to Moses: Speak [emor] to the priests, the sons of Aaron and say
[v’amarta] to them: None shall defile himself for any [dead] person among his
kin. (Vayikra 21:1)
A. [Why are there two forms of the word amar – speak, say – in this verse?]
The first expression of speaking is intended to intimate that a priest may
defile himself on account of a met mitzvah [an unidentified or abandoned
body that has no one else to bury it] and the second that he may not
defile himself on account of others. (Vayikra Rabbah 26:8)
B. The sanctity of the priests derives from the fact that they are
descendants of Aaron. But simply being descended from Aaron is not
enough – they must have their own merits as well. The Torah therefore
says, Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, that they should not
remain content with being the sons of Aaron, but say to them – tell them
that I am addressing them personally, and they must do everything
possible to ascend in holiness on their own. (Rabbi Leibush Harif, d.
1833, Poland)
C. Emor v’amarta – to warn the g’dolim concerning the k’tanim. (Talmud
Yevamot 114a) Note: G’dolim and k’tanim can be translated as big and
small, great and small, or adults and minors.
D. To warn the adults concerning the minors that they should not defile
themselves in any way. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105,
France] on Talmud Yevamot 114a)
E. This is to admonish the great and righteous people to look after the small,
seemingly insignificant commandments. When a person is dressed
completely in white, even the smallest stain stands out. A person who is
truly discerning is aware of his faults even when they are the most minor.
(Yismah Yisrael, quoting Rabbi Elimelekh of Lizensk, 1717-1787,
Poland)
F. This is an admonition to the leaders of the nation to humble themselves
and not to lord it over the people. The most important concern of the
leaders of our people must be that the little ones, the children, be given a
proper education. (Likutim)
Our commentators understand that nothing in the Torah is random or

unintentional, so the two uses of the word amar – speak – in this verse are
meant to teach us something. How does Vayikra Rabbah put the importance of
the priesthood into context? How does Rabbi Harif expand our understanding of
what it should mean to be a kohen? How do you feel about a kohen who is
known to be an unsavory or nasty person being given the first aliyah or blessing
the congregation on Yom Tov?
The comment from Yevamot is fascinating because it can be translated and

understood in so many ways. How would you translate and explain it? How
might you construct a d’var Torah on our verse?
2. Her Father's Daughter

When the daughter of a priest defiles herself through harlotry, it is her father
whom she defiles; she shall be put to the fire. (Vayikra 21:9)
A. If she is profaned through harlotry, that a marriage tie of some kind

applied to her and she committed harlotry, either while betrothed or while
wedded. And our rabbis differ in this matter; however, all admit that
Scripture does not speak of one who is single (viz Sanhedrin 51). (Rashi
B. If a man is found lying with another man’s wife, both of them – the man
and the woman – shall die. Thus you will sweep away evil from Israel.
(Devarim 22:22)
C. It is her father whom she defiles: she profanes and shames his honor, for
people say regarding him: “cursed be he that begot her, cursed be he
that brought her up” (viz Sanhedrin 52). (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki,
1040-1105, France])
D. There are men who regard themselves as “priests,” as men of so great
distinction and sanctity that they consider it beneath them to concern
themselves with the training of their daughters. They are too busy with
their own studies. But while they are rapt in the mysteries of the Zohar,
their daughters have their noses in cheap books. In the end, such girls
will adopt un-Jewish ways and thus reduce the holiness of their fathers.
This is to teach us that the kind of holiness which leads men to care only
for their own training, leaving them no time to concern themselves with
the education of their children, is not holiness at all, but the opposite.
(Avnei Ezel [Rabbi Alexander Zusia Friedman, 1897-1943, Poland])
In some parts of the world, women and girls are murdered by their male
relatives because they have damaged the family’s honor by having an affair, by
dating or by flirting with a man the family doesn’t approve of, or sometimes even
if they have been raped. Read by itself, this verse might be seen as sanctioning
this sort of so-called honor killing. But the Torah permits no such thing. First,
only a court can impose a death sentence, and the rules of procedure make it
virtually impossible to do so. Moreover, in the Torah, the death penalty applies
only to willing adultery, certainly not to rape, and it applies to the man and the
woman equally. Normally, adulterers were to be executed by strangulation
(second most severe of the four methods of execution). This verse is telling us
that in the case of the married daughter of a kohen, execution for adultery is by
fire, a more severe manner of execution.
Do you believe the wrongdoing of children reflects poorly on their parents? At

what point are parents off the hook? When a child becomes a bar or bat
mitzvah? When a child goes off to college? Never? What are the most important
influences on the behavior of young children? Of tweens? Of teenagers? Of
college students? Do you think it is harder today to bring up good children than
it was in the past? Can parents take credit for their children’s good deeds and
menschlikheit?
PARASHAT BEHAR
May 17, 2008 – 12 Iyar 5768

Haftarah: Jeremiah 32:6 – 27 (Etz Hayim, p. 759; Hertz p. 539)

Teaneck, New Jersey

God tells Moses to instruct the people about the shemittah, the sabbatical year.
Once they had settled in their land, the Israelites were to plant, harvest, and
store the produce of their fields for six years. During the seventh year of the
cycle, the shemittah, they were not to plant or harvest or to store produce that
grew on its own. However, everyone was free to take and eat whatever did
grow on its own.
After seven of these seven-year cycles, the 50th year was designated the yoveil.
Not only was farming prohibited, but all Israelite slaves were to be freed and
any land sold during the previous 49 years was to revert to its original owners –
that is, land was never actually sold, but only leased until the next yoveil.
When a person had to sell all or part of his land due to financial need, his
relatives were to redeem what he had sold. Houses in walled cities could be
redeemed for a year from the date of sale and then passed permanently to the
buyer. Houses outside these walled cities and houses in the cities of the Levites
could not be sold permanently – they remained subject to redemption and
reverted to the original owners at the yoveil.
If a person became poor, he was to be loaned money at no interest. If this was

not sufficient to allow him to recover financially, he could become an indentured
servant who would be set free at the yoveil. Non-Israelite slaves were to be
considered permanent possessions.
The parashah concludes with the repetition of the commandments not to make
or worship idols and to keep Shabbat.
1. Wronging With Money

When you sell property to your neighbor or buy any from your neighbor, you
shall not wrong one another. (Vayikra 25:14)
A. This refers to wronging in matters of money. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo

B. One may not mix produce with produce, even new with new. And one
need not say: new into old. In truth, for wine they permitted mixing hard
(strong) with soft (weak) because this improves it. The sediment of one
wine may not be mixed with another wine, but one may give another the
sediment [from that vintage]. If water becomes mixed in one’s wine, one
may not sell it in a store unless one gives notice (that this has occurred);
nor may one sell it to a merchant – even though one gives notice – as
this is a set-up for deception. In a place where it is customary to put
water in wine, it may be put in the wine. (Mishnah Baba Metzia 4:11)
C. One may not paint [and thus improve the appearance of] a person, an
animal, or a utensil. For example, one does not dye the hair of an old
slave who is for sale in order to make him look younger; add bran to an
animal’s drink in order to raise its hair and thus make it look fatter; . . . or
paint old utensils in order to make them look new. One may not inflate
[an animal’s] intestines in order to make it look fatter and broader. One
may not soak meat in water in order to make it look pale and fat.
(Shulhan Arukh, Hoshen Mishpat 228:9)
D. Rabbi Yehuda says: a shopkeeper may not distribute parched corn or
nuts to children, because he accustoms them to come to him; but the
sages permit this. The merchant shall not sell at less than the market
price; but the sages say: May the merchant be remembered for good!
(Mishnah Baba Metzia 4:12)
E. It is very easy for a person to fall prey to sin in regard to deceiving a
customer. A person might consider it proper to attempt to make his
merchandise attractive and to use sales talk on his customers to make
them more receptive. But if a person is not careful, he will violate the
prohibition against wronging others. . . . If you ask: “How is it possible not
to try to influence a prospective customer to buy my merchandise?” You
should know that there is a big distinction in the methods you might use.
When you try to show a customer the true value and beauty of an article,
it is good and proper. But whatever is done to conceal the defects of an
item is deceitful and forbidden. This is a basic principle in business
integrity. (Mesilat Yesharim [Rabbi Moshe Hayyim Luzzatto, 1707-1746,
Italy])
As Rashi points out, the rabbis expand this verse, which applies to the transfer
of property between Jews, to all business dealings (including those between
Jews and non-Jews). A grocer arranges boxes of strawberries with the plump,
ripe berries on top and misshapen, unripe ones underneath. Is this wrong? A
used car dealer has the cars on his lot detailed (completely cleaned inside and
out) and puts new, inexpensive tires on them, but he doesn’t turn back the
odometer. Is this wrong? A fast food chain offers a toy based on a current move
with its kids’ meals and advertises the promotion on cartoon shows. Is this
wrong? What common business practices can you think of that fit the Torah’s
definition of wronging? Is it possible to operate a business today without
violating these laws?
2. Wronging With Words

Do not wrong one another, but fear your God; for I the Lord am your God.
(Vayikra 25:17)
A. Here it warns against wronging by words, i.e. that you should not
provoke your fellow or give him advice that is not appropriate for him...
And if you should ask, “Who knows if I intended evil?” Therefore it is said,
but fear your God; He who knows the thoughts [of human beings], He
knows... (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. For example: If a person is a penitent, you should not say to him,
“Remember the way you used to act.” If he is the son of proselytes, he
should not be taunted with “Remember the way your fathers acted.” If he
is a proselyte and comes to study Torah, you should not say to him,
“Shall the mouth that ate unclean and forbidden food, abominable and
creeping things, come to study the Torah, which was uttered by the
mouth of the Almighty?” If a person is visited by suffering, afflicted with
disease, or has just now had to bury his children, you should not speak
to him as Job’s companions spoke: “Is not your piety your confidence,
your integrity your hope? Think now, what innocent man ever perished?
When have the upright been destroyed?” (Job 4:6-7) If ass drivers ask to
buy grain from him, he should not say to them, “Go to So-and-so, who
sells grain,” knowing full well that So-and-so has never done any such
thing. Rabbi Judah said: He should also not feign interest in a purchase
when he has no money, since this is a matter turned over to the heart,
and of everything turned over to the heart, it is written, but fear your God.
Rabbi Yohanan said on the authority of Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai:

Wronging through speech is more heinous than wronging in money
matters. For of the first, it is written, but fear your God, whereas of the
second, but fear your God is not written. Rabbi Eleazar said: The first
affects a victim’s very person; the second only his money. Rabbi Shmuel
bar Nahmani said: For the second restoration is possible; but not for the
first. (Talmud Baba Metzia 58b)
C. Any words that will distress someone or hurt his feelings are forbidden.
Whatever you would not want someone to say to you, do not say to
someone else. This rule should be remembered constantly; careless
words cause much pain and suffering. (Pele Yoetz [Rabbi Eliezer Papo,
1785-1826, Bulgaria])
Rabbi Yohanan says that wronging with words is worse than wronging with
money. Do you agree? How far should a person go to avoid hurting another’s
feelings?
The rabbis prohibit a person who has no intention of buying from asking a
merchant the price of his goods. Why do you think they did this? It is not
uncommon today for a person planning to make a major purchase to visit local
retailers to test drive cars or compare different big-screen TVs or even to try on
many pairs of expensive shoes. Once the person knows exactly what he wants,
he searches the internet to find the lowest price. Is this “wronging with words?”
Do you think it is wrong?
PARASHAT BEHUKOTAI
May 24, 2008 – 19 Iyar 5768

Haftarah: Jeremiah 16:19 – 17:14 (Etz Hayim, p. 763; Hertz p. 551)

Teaneck, New Jersey

Israel will be blessed with peace and prosperity if it follows God’s laws and
obeys His commandments. However, if Israel chooses not to obey God’s laws,
its people will experience increasingly severe punishments – disease, famine,
war, and exile. God promises that even after these terrible things befall the
people, He will not destroy Israel completely but will remember His covenant
with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and will welcome Israel’s teshuvah.
God tells Moses to instruct the people about the fulfillment of vows and provides
details about how much to pay to reclaim a vow for various categories of human
beings as well as animals, houses, and land.
First-born animals are not subject to vows – they are automatically consecrated
to God. First-born kosher animals are to be brought for sacrifice and first-born
impure animals must be redeemed for money. Tithes of produce and animals
are described.
1. Study and Practice

If you follow My laws and faithfully observe My commandments... (Vayikra 26:3)
A. If you follow My laws: I might think that this refers to the fulfillment of the
commandments; but where it states and faithfully observe My
commandments, there the fulfillment of the commandments is already
stated. How, then, shall I explain If you follow My laws? That you shall
toil in the Torah. Study the Torah laboriously for the purpose of observing
and fulfilling, as it is stated, “Study them and observe them faithfully”
(Devarim 5:1). (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. If a Jew is less than scrupulous in observing the commandments but toils
in Torah study, his Torah study will eventually bring him to repent. If you
follow My laws – if you toil in Torah study, the result will be that you will
faithfully observe My commandments. (Rabbi Zvi Hirsh of Liska, 1798-
1874, Hungary)
C. Rabbi Tarfon and some elders were reclining in an upper chamber in the
home of Nitzah in Lydda when this question was raised before them:
Which is greater – study or practice? Rabbi Tarfon spoke up and said:
Practice is greater. Rabbi Akiva spoke up and said: Study is greater. All
spoke up and said: Study is greater, for it leads to practice. (Kiddushin
40b)
D. Rabbi Hiyya taught: This verse [above] speaks of one who studies in
order to practice. As for him who studies without intending to practice, it
were better if he had not been created. (Vayikra Rabbah 35:7)
Our commentators understand the outcome, if not purpose, of Torah study to be

observance of the mitzvot. Do you think that Torah study necessarily leads to
increased observance? Do you think that Torah study should lead to
observance? What other reasons do people have for studying Torah? What
inspires people to become observant?
2. Who Blesses His People Israel With Peace

I will grant peace in the land, and you shall lie down untroubled by anyone; I will
give the land respite from vicious beasts and no sword shall cross your land.
(Vayikra 26:6)
A. Perhaps you shall say: Behold there is food and there is drink; (but) if
there is no peace there is nothing. Scripture states after all this, I will
grant peace in the land. Hence (we derive) that peace is balanced
against every thing... (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105,
France])
B. I will grant peace in the land – amongst yourselves. (Rabbi Abraham Ibn
Ezra, 1092-1167, Spain)
C. In the generation of Saul there were many scholars but, nevertheless,
they did not gain victory over their enemies. This is because there were
informers among them and disputes. And then we find that in the
generation of Ahab they were all idolaters but, nevertheless, they gained
victory over their enemies. This is because there were no informers
among them but peace reigned in the camp of Israel. (Yerushalmi Peah
1)
D. So that there will be peace among you, and no man shall fight with his
brother, or “peace” may mean that I will give the land respite from vicious
beasts and no sword shall cross your land. You shall give chase to your
enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. (Ramban [Rabbi
Moses ben Nachman, 1194-1270, Spain])
E. Great is peace, for even the angels in heaven need peace, as it says:
“He makes peace in His high places” (Job 25:2) Now, can we not reason
from the less important to the more important? If peace is necessary in
heaven, a place where there is no hatred or enmity, how much more is it
necessary on earth, where so many conflicts are found! (B’midbar
Rabbah 11:7)
Ibn Ezra and many others understand the phrase I will grant peace in the land
to mean there will be peace within the Jewish community; Ramban points out
that the context of our verse seems to refer to peace from external enemies and
war. Which do you think is the greater blessing? Is one possible without the
other? How do you define the word “peace”?
PARASHAT B’MIDBAR - BIRKAT HAHODESH
May 31, 2008 – 26 Iyar 5768
Annual: Numbers 1:1 – 4:20 (Etz Hayim, p. 769; Hertz p. 568)

Triennial: Numbers 1:1 – 1:54 (Etz Hayim, p. 769; Hertz p.568)
Haftarah: Hosea 2:1 – 22 (Etz Hayim, p. 787; Hertz p. 582)

Teaneck, New Jersey
God instructs Moses to take a census of the men of military age, 20 years and
older. Moses and Aaron, along with a designated leader from each tribe,
conduct the census. The total for each tribe and the grand total are listed.
The Levites are not included in the general census. God tells Moses that the
Levites are to be in charge of the Tabernacle and its furnishings. They are to
carry it when the people travel, they are to set it up and take it down, and they
are to camp around it to guard it. God tells Moses and Aaron how to arrange the
camp, with each tribe given a designated place surrounding the Tabernacle.
Their order of march is also specified.
God then tells Moses that the Levites are to serve Aaron and the priests, doing
the work of the sanctuary so that the priests may perform their sacred function.
The Levites will now replace the first-born of each family as those dedicated to
God. Moses is told to conduct a census of the Levites, counting all the males
from the age of 30 days up. The specific duties of each ancestral house of
Levites are described. God tells Moses to record every Israelite first-born male
from 30 days up. The Levites are formally substituted for the first-born.
Another census is taken of the house of Kohat among the Levites, counting
those between 30 to 50 year old. The duties of this house, the transportation of
the most sacred objects, are described.
Come and Get It!
On the first day of the second month, in the second year following the exodus
from the land of Egypt, the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in
the Tent of Meeting, saying: (Bamidbar 1:1)
A. Why in the wilderness of Sinai? Our sages have inferred from this that
when the Torah was given it was accompanied by three things – fire,
water, and wilderness... Why was the giving of the Torah marked by
these three features? To indicate that as these are free to all mankind so
also are the words of the Torah free... Yet another exposition... Anyone
who does not throw himself open to all like a wilderness cannot acquire
wisdom and Torah. (Bamidbar Rabbah 1:7)
B. Why was it given in the wilderness? Because if it had been given to them
in the Promised Land, the tribe in whose territory it was given would have
said “I have a prior claim to it.” Consequently it was given in the
wilderness, so that all should have an equal claim to it. (Bamidbar
Rabbah 19:26)
C. The Torah was given in public; given openly in a free place. For had the
Torah been given in the land of Israel, the Israelites could have said to
the nations of the world: You have no share in it. But now that it was
given in the wilderness publicly and openly in a place that is free to all,
everyone who wishes to accept it could come and accept it. (Mekhilta
BaHodesh 1)
D. And so we hope in You, Lord our God, soon to see Your splendor,
sweeping idolatry away so that false gods will be utterly destroyed,
perfecting earth by Your kingship so that all mankind will invoke Your
name, bringing all the earth’s wicked back to You, repentant. Then all
who live will know that to You every knee must bend, every tongue
pledge loyalty. To You, Lord, may all bow in worship, may they give
honor to Your glory. May everyone accept the rule of Your kingship.
(Aleinu, Siddur Sim Shalom, p. 161)
According to the midrash, the Torah was given in the wilderness so no one
could claim exclusive ownership of it. How does Bamidbar Rabbah understand
this? What more radical claim does the Mekhilta make? Which of these do your
believe is closer to the truth? What is it we are praying for each time we say
Aleinu?
From time to time, a communal leader proposes that the American Jewish
community undertake a campaign to reach out to the “unchurched” and actively
seek converts to Judaism. How do you feel about this? How would the Jewish
people be different if 10 percent of our members were Jews by choice? 25
percent? 50 percent?
Everyone Counts
Take a census of the whole Israelite community by the clans of its ancestral
houses, listing the names, every male, head by head. (Bamidbar 1:2)
A. Head by head – by means of shekels, half a shekel a head. (Rashi

B. Surely this is just the opposite of what the Torah had commanded on an
earlier occasion (Shemot 30:12): When you take a census of the Israelite
people according to their enrollment, each shall pay the Lord a ransom
for himself on being enrolled, that no plague may come upon them
through their being enrolled. Rashi explains this to mean: When you
desire to discover their total number, do not number them by their heads
but let each one give a half shekel and by numbering the shekels you will
know their number. How then could the Almighty have commanded them
here to number them by their heads? (Don Isaac Abravanel, 1437-1508,
Spain and Italy)
C. I have further seen in Bamidbar Rabbah on the text listing the names . . .
head by head as follows: The Holy Blessed One ordered Moses to
number them in a manner that would confer honor and greatness on
each one of them individually. Not that you should say to the head of the
family: “How many are there in your family? How many children have
you?” But rather all of them should pass before you in awe and with the
honor due to them and you should number them. (Ramban [Rabbi Moses
D. They were not just like animals or material objects, but each one had an
importance of his own, like a king or priest, and indeed God had shown
special love towards them and this is the significance of mentioning each
one of them by name and status, for they were all equal and individual in
status. (Akedat Yitzhak [Rabbi Isaac Arama, 1420-1494, Spain])
E. The Torah uses the word rosh, literally “head,” to teach us the
importance of the Jewish people, that each is a head, each is important
in himself. Each Jew must accordingly feel the great responsibility he has
for all his actions, for every action of his can improve the condition of the
world or, Heaven forbid, make it deteriorate. (Shnei Lukhot HaBrit [Rabbi
Isaiah Horowitz, 1556-1630, Europe and Israel])
It is a well-established custom that we do not count Jews. We determine if there

is a minyan present by counting “not one, not two . . .” or by reciting a verse with
ten words. As Abravanel notes, this is supported by the verse in Shemot that
calls for taking a census by means of the half shekel in order to avoid a plague.
Why do you think counting people is so problematic? What happens when we
refer to people by numbers?
What is different about the census of Bamidbar? Why do most commentators

believe that it did not require use of the half shekel? What can this teach us
about how we relate to people whom we don’t know?
PARASHAT NASO
June 7, 2008 – 4 Sivan 5768

Triennial: Numbers 4:21 – 5:10 (Etz Hayim, p. 791; Hertz p. 586)
Haftarah: Judges 13:2 – 25 (Etz Hayim, p. 813; Hertz p. 602)

Teaneck, New Jersey
God instructs Moses to take a census of the remaining Levitical houses, the
Gershonites and the Merarites. The numbers of all the Levitical houses are
reported and the duties of the latter two are described.
People who have contracted ritual impurity from specific sources must be
placed outside the camp. A person who has wronged another by theft must
confess his or her sin, make restitution and add a 20 percent fine, and bring an
offering to complete the atonement.
When a man suspects his wife of adultery but has no evidence, he may bring
her to a priest; he is also to bring a grain offering. The priest will then have the
woman drink the “water of bitterness.” If she is guilty she will experience
unpleasant physical effects when she drinks the water, but if she is innocent
she will pass this trial unharmed.
God tells Moses that a person may make a vow to become a nazir, abstaining
from wine and grape products, from cutting his hair, and from any contact with
the dead. If a nazir is accidentally contaminated by a person suddenly dying
near him, he must undergo the seven-day purification ritual, bring a penalty
offering, and begin counting his term as a nazir again from the beginning. At the
conclusion of the term of the nazir’s vow, he or she undergoes a completion
ritual.
God tells Moses to instruct Aaron and his sons on how to perform the priestly
blessing.
On the day that Moses completes setting up the Tabernacle and anointing and
consecrating it and its furnishings, the chiefs of the tribes bring their offerings.
Although they brought identical offerings, one each day for 12 days, each
chief’s gift is described individually.
Bein Adam Lamakom (Sins Against God)
Speak to the Israelites: When a man or woman commits any wrong toward a
fellow man, thus breaking faith with the Lord [elsewhere – any sin that men will
commit to do a trespass against the Lord], and that person realizes his guilt, he
shall confess the wrong that he has done. He shall make restitution in the
principal amount and add one-fifth to it, giving it to him whom he has wronged.
(Bamidbar 5:6-7)
A. Tradition teaches that this verse refers to robbery of a proselyte, for

indeed, if one robs him he profanes the Name of his God in the eyes of
the proselyte who came to find protection under His wings. Therefore he
is called “one who trespasses against the sacred” and is required to bring
a guilt offering, as is the law regarding all who trespass against Him.
(Rabbi Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno, 1475-1550, Italy)
B. Maimonides in his Laws of Repentance states that if a person sins
against another person, he has also sinned against God. This we see in
will commit any sin that men will commit – if a person commits a sin
against his fellow man, he will do a trespass against the Lord. (Rabbi
Israel Joshua Trunk of Kutno, 1821-1893, Poland)
C. Why is the commandment to confess, which is the foundation for
repentance for every sin, mentioned specifically here, in regard to theft?
The reason is because deep down every sin is one of theft: God gave life
and power to man so that he should use them to do God’s will, and if he
uses his life and powers to transgress God’s commandments, he is
stealing from his Creator. That is why the Torah mentions the
commandments of confession and repentance here. (Hidushei HaRIM
[Rabbi Isaac Meir Alter, the Gerer Rabbi, 1799-1866, Poland])
D. Rabbi Elazar of Bartota taught: Give Him what is His, for you and yours
are His. This is also expressed by David: but all is from You, and it is
Your gift that we have given to You. (I Chronicles 29:14) (Avot 3:8)
During the Yamim Nora’im (the High Holy Days), we speak of two categories of
sins – bein adam laMakom (sins against God) and bein adam l’haveiro (sins
against another person). How does a person sin against God? Are these sins
limited to matters of ritual – eating a cheeseburger or going to the mall on
Shabbat? Are they the things that “profane God’s name” by bringing disdain on
Jews, Judaism, and therefore the God of Israel?
Hidushei HaRIM states that every misuse of the gifts God has given us is a sin
against God. Do you think this insight is sufficient to counterbalance our
tendency to rationalize our bad behavior? What “sins against God” do most of
us commit every day?
Yours, Mine, and His
And each shall retain his sacred donations; each priest shall keep what is given
to him [literally, what a man gives to the priest shall be his]. (Bamidbar 5:10)
A. And each shall retain his sacred donations: Since there have been
mentioned the gifts for the priests and Levites, I might infer that they can
come and take them by force; Scripture states, and each shall retain his
sacred donations. This tells that the owner shall determine who benefits
from them. And an aggadic interpretation (Tanhuma, Re’eh): And each
shall retain his sacred donations – He who withholds his tithes and does
not give them, “he shall retain” the tithes; eventually his field will yield
only one-tenth of what it was accustomed to yield. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo
B. Mayer Rothschild, the founder of the Rothschild dynasty, was once
asked the size of his fortune. And each shall retain his sacred donations,
he answered. All that he really considered to be his, he said, was the
amount of money he had given to tzedakah. That was the only part of his
fortune which he was sure he could never lose. All the rest could be lost,
and he therefore could not consider it his. (Mi-Ginzeinu Ha-Atik)
C. What bearing does this statement have on the portion dealing with
robbery? Fools believe that the money which they have lying in their
coffers is theirs, while the money which they give away to charity is theirs
no longer. They therefore commit robbery, filling up their coffers with the
money of others. Actually, quite the reverse is true. Only those
possessions which are given away for sacred purposes (every man’s
“sacred donations”), such as those which we give to priests and scholars
of Torah (what a man gives to the priest), remain the property of the
original owner (shall be his) forever. But those possessions that a man
greedily amasses for himself, not to speak of the money of others, are
not his at all. Such gains will not remain with him for longer than a
fleeting moment. (Binah LeIttim [Rabbi Obadiah Figu, 1579-1647, Italy])
D. The amount given [to tzedakah] – if it is within his means, he should give
according to the needs of the poor. And if it is not within his means so
much, he should give up to one-fifth of his wealth – this is the highest
level of performing the mitzvah; one-tenth is the average; less than that
is begrudging and stingy. And the one-fifth that [the sages] specified, in
the first year it is taken from principal, in subsequent years from each
year’s income. A person should not spend more than one-fifth so that he
will not need to rely on others [for sustenance and support]. This applies
during his life, but at the time of his death a person may giveas much as
he wants to tzedakah. (Shulkhan Arukh, Yoreh De’ah 249:1)
The pshat, the contextual meaning, of the verse is according to the translation.
When a person brings an offering that is to be shared with the priests, the donor
can choose which priest to give it to. However, the Hebrew words lo yihyeh
(shall be his) can be interpreted to mean “it shall belong to the chosen priest” or
“it shall belong to the donor.” The commentators, therefore, focus on the
benefits a donor derives from what he gives.
How do you feel about the statement that only what a person gives away to a
worthy cause is truly his? If tzedakah is of such paramount importance, for both
the poor and the donors, why do you think the Rabbis limited the amount that
could be given to tzedakah to 20% of one’s wealth and income?
PARASHAT B’HA’ALOTEKHA
June 14, 2008 – 11 Sivan 5768

Haftarah: Zekhariah 2:14 – 4:7 (Etz Hayim, p. 837; Hertz p. 620)

Teaneck, New Jersey
God tells Moses to instruct Aaron about lighting the menorah in the Tabernacle.
He then tells Moses how he is to purify the Levites and consecrate them to
serve in the sanctuary.
At the beginning of the second year following the Exodus, God tells Moses that
the Israelites are to offer the Passover sacrifice at twilight on the fourteenth day
of the month. Hearing this, some men who had become ritually impure through
contact with a corpse and therefore could not offer the sacrifice approach
Moses and Aaron and asked if there was a way they too could participate.
Moses brings their question to God, who says that anyone who is prevented
from offering the sacrifice at its proper time because of impurity or distance may
do so one month later.
From the time the Tabernacle was set up it was covered by a cloud that
appeared as a fire at night. This cloud would lift up to signal the Israelites to
break camp and travel and it would rest over the Tabernacle when it was time to
make camp, whether for a few days or for a year.
God instructs Moses to have two silver trumpets made. These would be used to
send messages to the Israelites, calling them to assemble or to march. In the
future, once the Israelites were settled in their land, the trumpets were to be
sounded during war and at festival times.
Shortly after they set out from Sinai, the people begin complaining. God
becomes angry and sends a fire into the camp. The lesson does not take, for
soon the people are complaining again, this time about the manna and all the
wonderful things they used to eat in Egypt. Moses in turn complains to God,
asking how he is supposed to lead the people by himself. God tells Moses to
gather 70 elders and officers to whom God will give a share of Moses’ spirit so
they may assist him. Moses also is to tell the people that God will give them
meat to eat, so much that it will sicken them. God brings huge amounts of quails
but also a plague to punish the people for their ingratitude.
Miriam and Aaron speak against Moses, ostensibly because he had married a
Cushite woman. However, their real issue is jealousy, for they believe they
should be considered equal to Moses in prophecy. God tells them that Moses is
unique and strikes Miriam with tzara’at. Moses prays for her healing.
Just the Way You Are
Aaron did so; he mounted the lamps at the front of the lampstand, as the Lord
had commanded Moses. (Bamidbar 8:3)
A. To declare the praise of Aaron, that he did not act differently. (Rashi
B. Would it occur to you to think that Aaron would change and not do as
God commanded? So why praise him for not changing? Even though
Aaron rose to the highest level, to the position of high priest, he didn’t
change his behavior but remained the man he had been: involved with
others, mixing with people, making peace between friend and friend and
between husband and wife. This is the “praise of Aaron that he did not
act differently” – he didn’t change himself. (Rabbi Meir of Premishlan,
1780-1850, Poland)
C. Although he had been privileged to attain such great honors, Aaron
never changed. He did not become conceited or arrogant, but remained
humble and meek as he had been before. (Attributed to Rabbi Simcha
Bunim of Przysucha, 1765-1827, Poland)
D. The Kotzker and the Gaon of Vilna explain that there was no difference
between the way he performed the commandment the first time and the
way he performed it thereafter for the following 39 years, day after day.
Each time, he felt the same enthusiasm and the commandment never
became a matter of rote to him. (Emet ve-Emunah [author unknown])
Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Simcha Bunim understand that Aaron’s character and
behavior were not affected by his appointment as high priest – he remained
involved with ordinary people and did not become arrogant. How common do
you think this is? We see many people who achieve success and fame in
business, politics, sports, or entertainment who then become arrogant, believing
that they are entitled to special treatment, that rules and laws don’t apply to
them. How can a person become a star without becoming a jerk?
Emet ve-Emunah takes a different tack – Aaron never lost the enthusiasm for
his position that he felt on the very first day. Do you believe it is credible that
Aaron never had a bad day, never felt sick, never had a fight with his wife and
just wanted to stay in bed and be left alone? Perhaps we should praise Aaron
for behaving as if his enthusiasm never flagged. How does a person remain
committed to a task or a relationship at those times when the enthusiasm is not
there? How do you rekindle the original fire?
Try, Try Again?
But there were some men who were impure by reason of a corpse and could
not offer the Passover sacrifice on that day. Appearing that same day before
Moses and Aaron, those men said to them, “Impure though we are by reason of
a corpse, why must we be debarred from presenting the Lord’s offering at its set
time with the rest of the Israelites?”... But if a man who is pure and not on a
journey refrains from offering the Passover sacrifice, that person shall be cut off
from his kin, for he did not present the Lord’s offering at its set time; that man
shall bear his guilt. (Bamidbar 9:6-7, 13)
A. Why must we be debarred – There is no other commandment in the

Torah that is to be performed at a certain time and for which an
alternative time is assigned should it not be able to be performed at the
assigned time. Why is the paschal sacrifice different from all other time-
related commandments? The reason is because there were Jews who
did everything in their power to fulfill this commandment, as they begged
Moses, why must we be debarred...? The redemption of the Jewish
people will be the same. If the Jews are stubborn and harness all their
powers and energy to inherit the land of their forefathers, redemption will
come. (Rabbi Shlomo Ha-Kohen of Radomsk, 1803-1866, Poland)
B. Mishnah: If one has eaten and forgotten to say grace [after meals –
Birkat Ha-mazon], Beit Shammai say that he must return to the place
where he ate and say the grace, while Beit Hillel say that he should say it
in the place where he remembered.
Gemara: If one has eaten, etc: Rabbi Zevid, or some say Rabbi Dimi bar
Abba, said: Opinions differ only in the case where one forgot, but if he
omitted willfully he must return to his place and say grace. This is
obvious! The Mishnah says “forgotten” – You might think that the rule is
the same even if he did it purposely, and the reason why it says
“forgotten” is to show you how far Beit Shammai are prepared to go.
Therefore we are told. It has been taught: Beit Hillel said to Beit
Shammai, according to you, if a man ate at the top of the Temple Mount
and forgot and descended without having said grace, he should return to
the top of the Temple Mount and say grace? Beit Shammai replied to
Beit Hillel, according to you, if he forgot a purse at the top of the Temple
Mount, is he not to go up and get it? And if he will ascend for his own
sake, surely he should do so all the more for the honor of Heaven.
There were once two disciples who omitted saying grace. One who did it
accidentally followed the rule of Beit Shammai and found a purse of gold,
while the other who did it purposely followed the rule of Beit Hillel and he
was eaten by a lion. (Talmud Berakhot 53b)
C. Rabbi Eliezer said, “Repent one day before your death.” His disciples
asked him, “But does a person know on what day he is going to die?” “All
the more reason, therefore, to repent today, lest one die tomorrow.”
(Shabbat 153a)
How do you think the men [who had been unclean and not able to celebrate
Pesach] approached Moses and Aaron? Were they diffident, asking meekly if
there was a way for them to participate, or did they loudly demand their rights?
Why was it so important to them to be part of this ritual?
Our tradition established Pesach Sheni, but not Shavuot or Sukkot Sheni. Why?
What can you deduce from the Rabbinic texts cited here about missed
opportunities and second chances?
Sometimes parents of a baby boy want to move the brit milah from the eighth
day to Sunday to make it easier for family and friends to attend. Sometimes a
family wants to postpone the Bar or Bat Mitzvah celebration of a child born in
January to April or May when the weather will be better. Do you think shuls and
their Rabbis should honor such requests? What values are in conflict in these
cases? If it were your decision, how would you mediate between them?
PARASHAT SHELAH-LEKHA
June 21, 2008 – 18 Sivan 5768

Haftarah: Joshua 2:1 – 24 (Etz Hayim, p. 857; Hertz p. 635)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses sends 12 spies, one from each tribe, to scout the land of Canaan and
bring back a report of the conditions the Israelites will find there. After 40 days
the spies return, bringing their report of the good land and samples of its
produce. However, 10 of the spies, all but Joshua and Caleb, insist that the
Canaanites are too powerful for the Israelites to conquer.
The people panic when they hear the 10 spies’ conclusion and declare that they
want to return to Egypt. Caleb and Joshua try to change their minds, pointing
out that with God on their side the Israelites need not fear the inhabitants of the
land.
God’s patience finally is exhausted. He tells Moses He will wipe out the people
and start over again. But Moses argues on behalf of the Israelites, insisting that
the Egyptians and Canaanites would interpret such an act as a sign that God is
powerless to bring the people into the land. God relents, but He declares that
the generation of the Exodus will die in the wilderness; it will be their children
who will possess the land.
When the Israelites learn their fate, they decide that they now are prepared to
fight for the land. Despite Moses’ warning that God will not be with them they
attempt an attack and suffer a crushing defeat by the Amalekites and
Canaanites.
God gives Moses more instructions about how sacrifices are to be offered once
the people have settled in the land. God also explains how amends are to be
made for accidental or unwitting sins committed by the entire community or by
individuals.
A man who is found gathering wood on Shabbat is brought before Moses and
Aaron. God tells Moses that he is to be executed.
The parashah concludes with God’s command that the Israelites attach tzitzit to
the corners of their garments as a constant reminder of all of God’s
commandments.
A Failure to Cooperate
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Send [literally, send for yourself] men to
scout the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelite people; send one
man from each of their ancestral tribes, each one a chieftain among them.”
(Bamidbar 13:1-2)
A. According to your understanding. As for Me, I do not command you; if

you desire, send. For the Israelites came and said, Let us send men
ahead, as it is stated (Devarim 1:22), Then all of you came to me. And
Moses took council with the Divine Presence; He said: I have told them
that it is good, as it is stated (Shemot 3:17), I will take you out of the
misery of Egypt... to a land flowing with milk and honey. As they live, I
shall give them an opportunity to err through the words of the spies, in
order that they will not inherit it. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-
1105, France])
B. Who were the two spies sent by Joshua? Our sages learned: “These
were Pinhas and Caleb. They went and put their lives at risk and were
successful with their mission... However, those sent by Moses were
wicked, as it states, Send men. (Bamidbar Rabbah). The difference
between the two kinds of spies related to their character traits. The spies
sent by Joshua had no personal axes to grind. They therefore “put their
lives at risk” to perform their mission to the best of their ability. Those
sent by Moses, on the other hand, were all “men,” i.e., people with their
own personal agendas, and that was why they were unsuccessful in their
mission. (Rabbi Hanokh of Alexander, 1798-1870, Poland)
C. Each tribe sent its own representative. No tribe trusted any other, and
each group chose its own person. There was no unity among them, and
they were divided into separate tribes and groups. But when Joshua sent
spies, he sent only two. That showed the unity of the nation and their
mutual trust and that was the reason for the mission’s success. (Cited in
Itturei Torah, Rabbi Aharon Yaakov Greenberg)
How did things go so terribly wrong? Was it the decision to treat entry into
Canaan as an ordinary military campaign rather than relying on God’s promise?
Did the spies deliberately sow panic for reasons of their own? (According to one
midrash, they were afraid that they would lose their positions of leadership
when the Israelites left the wilderness and settled in the land.) Was it the
Israelites’ inability to trust each other?
All too often projects that are worthwhile, even innovative, planned but never
implemented, sometimes because “we never did it that way before,” sometimes
because “we tried it once and not enough people came.” Why do you think
there is so much resistance to change and trying new things? What can be
done in the initial planning to make success more likely? How can we convince
people to give something new and different a fair chance?
Through Others' Eyes
We saw the Nephilim there – the Anakites are part of the Nephilim – and we
looked like grasshoppers to ourselves, and so we must have looked to them.
(Bamidbar 13:33)
A. The Holy One said to the spies: You don’t know what you have just let
your mouths utter. I am ready to put up with your saying we looked like
grasshoppers to ourselves. But I do take offense at your asserting, and
so we must have looked to them. Could you possibly know how I made
you appear in their eyes? How do you know but that in their eyes you
were like angels? (Tanhuma, Sh’lah)
B. This was one of the sins of the spies. We looked like grasshoppers to
ourselves, okay, it is possible to understand [why they thought that], but
and so we must have looked to them. What of it? What does it matter to
you how you appear in the eyes of others? (Rabbi Menachem Mendel of
Kotzk, 1787-1854, Poland)
C. A person who worries about how others view him will have no rest.
Regardless of what he does or does not do he will always be anxious
about receiving the approval of others. Such a person makes his self-
esteem dependent on the whims of others. It is a mistake to give others
so much control over you. Keep your focus on doing what is right and
proper... (Rabbi Zelig Pliskin, Growth Through Torah, 1988, p. 330)
All the commentators understand how a group of recently freed slaves would be
terrified by the idea of fighting for their land and why they might consider
themselves incapable of doing so. However, they define the assumption that the
Canaanites shared that perception a sin. Why?
Is this simply a matter of self-esteem, how a person feels about him- or herself?
Rabbi Zelig Pliskin says, “It is a mistake to give others so much control over
you.” How much control does the opinion of other people (whether actual or
projected) have over your behavior? Has “what will the neighbors think” ever
caused you to do (or not do) something you might not have done otherwise? Do
you believe other people’s opinions of you are likely to be positive or negative?
Why? How do you judge other people?
PARASHAT KORAH - BIRKAT HAHODESH
June 28, 2008 – 25 Sivan 5768

Haftarah: I Samuel 11:14 – 12:22 (Etz Hayim, p. 877; Hertz p. 649)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Korah and his followers challenge the authority of Moses and Aaron – and
indeed of God Himself. Moses responds by asking isn’t it enough that God has
given you and the other Levites special status? Do you want to be a priest as
well? Datan and Aviram, members of Korah’s faction but from the tribe of
Reuben, challenge Moses from another direction, claiming that he has brought
the Israelites from a land of milk and honey to die in the wilderness.
Moses tells the rebels they are to be tested by God. They and Aaron are each
to bring a fire pan with incense to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. God tells
Moses to instruct the rest of the community to stand back from the tents of
Korah, Datan, and Aviram. The earth opens and swallows them and their
households, and a heavenly fire consumes the 250 Levites’ offering of incense.
God has made His position clear, but the Israelites continue to blame Moses
and Aaron for their problems, claiming they are responsible for the deaths of
Korah and his followers. Once again, God angrily threatens to wipe out the
Israelites. At Moses’ direction, Aaron runs into the community and offers
incense, putting an end to the plague that had broken out, killing more than
14,000.
God instructs Moses to offer one more demonstration. Each of the tribal
chieftains is to bring a staff inscribed with his name. These, along with Aaron’s
staff, representing the tribe of Levi, are to be placed in the Tent of Meeting. On
the following day, it is discovered that Aaron’s staff has produced flowers and
almonds, confirming that he is God’s chosen priest.
God speaks to Aaron, confirming the role of the priests and the Levites. The
gifts and tithes to be given to the priests and Levites are described.
It All Depends on the Woman
Now Korah, son of Izhar son of Kohat son of Levi, betook himself, along with
Datan and Aviram sons of Eliav, and On son of Pelet, descendents of Reuben.
(Bamidbar 16:1)
A. Rav said: On son of Pelet [who is not mentioned again after this verse]
was saved by his wife. She said to him, “What does it matter to you?
Whether the one [Moses] remains master or the other [Korah] becomes
master, you are still no more than a follower.” He replied, “But what can I
do? I have taken part in their counsel, and I have sworn to be with them.”
She said, “Sit here, and I will save you.” She gave him wine to drink until
he became intoxicated and put him to bed within the tent. Then she sat
down at its entrance and loosened her hair. Whoever came [to summon
him] saw her and retreated.
Meanwhile, Korah’s wife joined them [the rebels] and said to him [Korah],
“See what Moses has done. He himself has become king; his brother he
appointed High Priest; his brother’s sons he has made deputy High
Priests. If terumah is brought, he says, ‘That belongs to the priest.’ If the
tithe is brought, which belongs to you [a Levite], he orders, ‘Give a tenth
part thereof to the priest.’ Moreover, he has had your hair cut off, and
makes sport of you as though you were dirt, for he was jealous of your
hair.” [The name Korah means “bald,” so this must have been a
particularly touchy point.] He said to her, “But he has done the same to
himself!” She replied, “Since all the greatness was his, he said also, ‘Let
me die with the Philistines.’”... Thus it is written, The wisest of women
builds her house – this refers to the wife of On son of Pelet – but the
foolish tears it down with her own hands (Mishlei 14:1) – this refers to
Korah’s wife. (Sanhedrin 109b-110a)
B. The story of a pious man who was wed to a pious woman, and they did
not beget children. Both said, “We are of no use whatever to the Holy
One.” So he went ahead and divorced her. The husband then married a
wicked woman, and she made him wicked, while the divorced wife went
and married a wicked man, whom she made righteous. This proves that
it all depends on the woman. (Bereisheit Rabbah 17:7)
C. The Holy One said to Moses, “Go speak to the daughters of Israel [and
ask them] whether they wish to receive the Torah.” Why were the women
asked first? Because the way of men is to follow the opinion of women.
(Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer, chapter 41)
These texts suggest that even though women (at that time) had no public role in
the community or its religious life, nevertheless they had great moral authority
and influence over their husbands. How do you feel about this? Do you believe
this was true in previous generations? Do you believe it is true today? What
determines the moral and religious character of a family?
Mrs. On’s argument to her husband appears to be, “Do not get involved in
politics unless you will benefit personally.” Do you think she said this only
because her husband was involved in a rebellion or was it meant as a general
rule? Do you agree with her? Do you think most people involved in politics have
ulterior motives?
Cardiac Judaism
They combined against Moses and Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too
far! For all the community are holy, all of them, and the Lord is in their midst.
Why then do you raise yourselves above the Lord’s congregation?” (Bamidbar
16:3)
A. [Korah meant] All of them heard the commandments at Sinai from the
mouth of the Mighty One. If you yourself have taken the kingship, you
should not have selected for your brother the priesthood; not you alone
have heard at Sinai, “I am the Lord your God;” the entire congregation
heard it. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. Note that they do not say: “all the congregation is holy” – as a unit, but:
“all the congregation are holy,” “all of them” – each one taken
individually... God demanded of them: “You shall be holy,” that is to say:
Show yourselves holy by your deeds!... Instead we are faced by the
brazen assertion, all the community are holy, all of them so unsupported
by realities, as we know it only too well from the previous sidrot.
(Nehama Leibowitz, Studies in Bamidbar, p. 183)
C. Rabbi Shlomo Riskin suggests that “the conflict between Moses and
Korah reflects a tug of war within the human spirit. . . . Korah denies the
importance of the laws. He says, ‘Who needs this system of do’s and
don’ts, you shalls and you shall nots? We’re holy already!’ Certainly this
perspective was attractive to every Israelite who wanted to be left alone.
Who wants to be told what to do and what not to do? If I want to commit
adultery, who are you to tell me I shouldn’t?” (Jerusalem Post, July 1,
1989) (Cited in A Torah Commentary for Our Times, Harvey Fields, vol. 3,
p. 50)
D. Often, when someone criticizes a Jew for not observing the
commandments, he retorts: “I have a Jewish heart, and deep inside I am
a good Jew.” That was what Korah claimed: “Even though the behavior
of my people is not exactlyin accordance with the law, nevertheless ‘the
Lord is among them,’ and deep within them my people are good Jews.”
(Divrei Eliezer)
A “cardiac Jew” says, “I may not keep kosher or come to shul on Shabbat or get
involved in Jewish causes, but in my heart I am a Jew.” But just as a person
needs to exercise and follow a proper diet to keep his or her physical heart
healthy, a Jew needs to work to have a healthy Jewish heart.
Some people explain their lack of observance by saying, “I am not religious, but
I am spiritual.” What do these words mean to you? What are the benefits of
spirituality without religion? What are the dangers? Can there be a Jewish
future without Jewish religion?
PARASHAT HUKKAT
July 5, 2008 – 2 Tammuz 5768
Annual: Numbers: 19:1 – 22:1 (Etz Hayim, p. 880; Hertz p. 652)

Triennial: Numbers: 19:1 – 20:21 (Etz Hayim, p. 880; Hertz p. 652)
Haftarah: Judges: 11:1 – 33 (Etz Hayim, p. 910; Hertz p. 664)

Teaneck, New Jersey
God instructs Moses and Aaron about the ritual of the red cow, whose ashes
were to be used to purify people who had become ritually impure through
contact with a corpse.
Miriam dies and is buried at Kadesh. Once again, the Israelites lack water and
turn to Moses and Aaron with complaints and recriminations. God tells Moses to
take his rod, and then, with Aaron, assemble the community and order a rock to
produce water. Moses strikes the rock with his staff and the rock produces
enough water for the Israelites and their animals. But God is displeased and
tells Moses and Aaron that they will not enter the land He is giving to the
Israelites.
Moses sends messengers to the king of Edom, asking for permission to cross
his territory. The king refuses and sends an armed force to prevent the
Israelites from entering his land. The people take a different path and come to
Mount Hor; Aaron dies there, on Mount Hor, and Moses invests Aaron’s son
Eleazar as the new high priest. The people mourn for Aaron for 30 days. The
Canaanite king of Arad attacks the Israelites and is defeated at Hormah.
The people begin complaining yet again and God sends poisonous snakes to
punish them. The Israelites approach Moses saying they realize they have
sinned and they ask him to intercede with God for them. God tells Moses to
make a copper serpent and place it on a pole so that anyone bitten by a snake
could look at it and be cured.
The Israelites continue their journey through the territory east of the Jordan.
They ask Sihon king of the Amorites for permission to cross his land, but he
refuses and attacks. The Israelites defeat the Amorites and take possession of
their land. The Israelites also defeat King Og of Bashan and his people, taking
their land as well. The Israelites camp in Moab, across the Jordan from Jericho.
Why? Because I Said So!
This is the ritual law [hukkat ha-Torah] that the Lord has commanded: Instruct
the Israelite people to bring you a red cow without blemish, in which there is no
defect and on which no yoke has been laid. (Bamidbar 19:2)
A. Because Satan and the nations of the world taunt Israel, saying, “What is
this commandment and what reason is there in it?” Therefore [Scripture]
terms it a “statute” (hukkah) – it is a decree from before Me; you do not
have permission to criticize it. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105,
France])
B. Inasmuch as Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge: My
commandments [mitzvotai], My laws [hukkotai], and My teachings
[torotai] (Bereisheit 26:5) Mitzvotai – Those matters which even if they
were not written are worthy of (being regarded as) commandments, such
as robbery and bloodshed. Hukkotai – matters which the evil inclination
and the gentiles of the world criticize, such as eating swine’s flesh and
the wearing of a material of mixed wool and linen, for which there is no
explanation (given), but the decree of the king and his statutes for his
servants. Torotai – This includes the Oral Torah, the laws (revealed) to
Moses on Sinai. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France] on
Bereisheit 26:5)
C. An idolater asked Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai: “These rites that you
perform look like a kind of witchcraft. You bring a heifer, burn it, pound it,
and take its ashes. If one of you is defiled by a dead body you sprinkle
upon him two or three drops and you say to him, ‘you are clean!’” Rabbi
Yohanan asked him: “Has the demon of madness ever possessed you?”
“No,” he replied. “Have you ever seen a man possessed by the demon of
madness?” “Yes,” he said. “And what do you do in such a case?” “We
bring roots,” he replied, “and make them smoke under him, then we
sprinkle water upon the demon and it flees.” Rabbi Yohanan said to him,
“Let your ears hear what you mouth utters! Precisely so is this spirit a
spirit of uncleanness. . . . Water of purification is sprinkled upon the
unclean and the spirit flees.” When the idolater had gone Rabbi
Yohanan’s disciples said, “Master! You have put off this man with a mere
makeshift but what explanation will you give to us?” He said to them, “By
your life! It is not the dead that defiles or the water that purifies! The Holy
One merely says ‘I have laid down a statute, I have issued a decree. You
are not allowed to transgress My decree.’” (Bamidbar Rabbah 19:7)
D. Deviance from Torah observance is often the result of the attempt to
apply human reasoning to the mitzvot This is fraught with great hazard.
One may make assumptions which are plausible, but may not be true.
For example, one might think the reason we are forbidden to eat pork is
to prevent trichinosis. On this assumption, one might argue that if pork
can be treated to eliminate the trichina parasite, the prohibition is
removed. This is, of course, not the case. Pork is absolutely forbidden,
independent of the hygienic factor.
The mitzvot of Torah are to be observed as Divine decrees. Although we

can easily understand the prohibition of theft and other social ordinances,
we must observe them because they are the will of God, rather than
because we understand their practicality. (Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski,
Twerski on Chumash, p. 323)
The rabbis understand the word hukkah to mean a law that has no logical
explanation, neither a reason that can be deduced by reason (e.g., do not steal)
nor one that is given in the Torah (e.g., eating matzah on Pesach). Do you think
that all Torah laws (or at least the ones we obey) should be logical? What do
you think of Rabbi Twerski’s concern that this would undermine the entire
halakhic legal system? Should we be free to ignore the laws we do not consider
reasonable? If religion is completely logical and rational, why do we need
religion?
Been There, Done That
But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust Me enough to
affirm My sanctity in the sight of the Israelite people, therefore you shall not lead
this congregation into the land that I have given them.” (Bamidbar 20:12)
A. A table, meat, and a knife before us but no mouth to eat with – the
commandment of God is clearly outlined, the deed that was performed is
not concealed from us, and the subsequent wrath of God astonishes us,
but no satisfactory explanation emerges. (Akedat Yitzhak [Rabbi Isaac
Arama, 1420-1494, Spain])
B. For if you had spoken to the rock and I had brought forth (water), I would
have been sanctified in the eyes of the congregation, and they would
have said: If this rock which does not speak and does not hear and does
not require sustenance fulfills the word of the Omnipresent, then how
much more so (should we). (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105,
France])
C. His whole sin lay in erring on the side of anger and deviating from the
mean of patience when he used the expression, “listen, you rebels.” The
Holy One censured him for this, that a man of his stature should give
vent to anger in front of the whole community of Israel, when anger was
not called for. .. . When they [the Israelites] saw him thus in anger, they
must certainly have concluded that he was not displaying personal
animus or pique but, on the contrary, had not God been angry with them
at their demand for water, Moses would not have been provoked.
(Shemonah Perakim, [Rabbi Moses ben Maimon, 1135-1209, Spain and
Egypt])
D. Moses made the fatal mistake of saying “shall we get water for you,”
instead of saying, “shall God get water for you,” as in all the other
miracles where the authority of God is always explicitly stressed. The
people might have been misled into thinking that Moses and Aaron had
extracted the water for them by their own skill. Therefore they failed to
affirm My sanctity in the sight of the Israelite people. (Ramban [Rabbi
Moses ben Nachman, 1194-1270, Spain])
E. And others say it was because they did not sing a song like “Spring up, O
well, sing to it” [which they sang at the well of Be’er in verse 21:17].
(Rabbi Abraham Ibn Ezra, 1092-1167, Spain)
As Akedat Yitzhak says, “the subsequent wrath of God astonishes us!” Rashi,
Rambam, and Ramban provide the three most common explanations for God’s
decree – Moses struck the rock rather than speak to it; Moses spoke angrily to
the people, who were simply asking for the water they needed to sustain
themselves and their animals; Moses spoke as if he and not God were the one
performing the miracle. If you had to choose, which of these do you think is the
best explanation for God’s anger? Does the punishment fit the crime?
Ibn Ezra brings a different explanation – it was not what Moses and Aaron did
but what they did not do – they didn’t celebrate the miracle that provided water
for some two million human beings and tens of thousands of animals in the
manner in which they had once celebrated the crossing of the sea. Apparently,
they had begun to take God’s miracles for granted. Do you think this is a better
reason for God’s anger? Is there a lesson for us in this?
PARASHAT BALAK
July 12, 2008 – 9 Tammuz 5768
Annual: Numbers: 22:2 – 25:9 (Etz Hayim, p. 880; Hertz p. 652)

Triennial: Numbers: 22:2 – 22:38 (Etz Hayim, p. 880; Hertz p. 652)
Haftarah: Micah: 5:6 – 6:8 (Etz Hayim, p. 915; Hertz p. 682)
PPrepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Teaneck, New Jersey
Balak, the king of Moab, sees that the Israelites have defeated the neighboring
Amorites and he is afraid. He joins forces with the Midianites to hire the prophet
Balaam, asking him to curse the Israelites to insure their defeat. Balaam
receives the delegation from Moab and Midian and asks them to spend the
night so that he can receive God’s instruction. God tells Balaam that he may not
go with them; he must not curse the Israelites, who are already blessed.
Balaam sends the delegation away. Balak sends a second delegation,
promising Balaam great riches for his services. Once again Balaam asks them
to wait over night, and this time God tells him that he may go if he wants to, but
he will only be able to do what God commands.
Balaam sets out, riding on his ass. An angel appears and blocks the road.
Balaam doesn’t see it but his ass does and refuses to move. Balaam beats the
animal, but it still refuses to move. After three beatings, the ass speaks and
complains that it doesn’t deserve this treatment. God then allows Balaam to see
the angel, who rebukes him for beating the ass but permits him to continue on
his journey with the warning that he may only say what God tells him.
Balaam asks Balak to build seven altars and to provide animals for sacrifices.
After he makes his offerings he speaks the words God gives him, praising and
blessing Israel. Balak is furious, but Balaam explains that he can speak only as
God commands him. Twice more Balaam offers sacrifices and then praises and
blesses Israel. Balak sends Balaam away; he leaves after describing the defeat
of several other nations.
While the Israelites are camped at Shittim, Moabite women incite Israelite men
into illicit sex and worshiping their god, Baal-peor. God tells Moses to have the
ringleaders executed publicly. An Israelite man brings a Midianite woman to the
entrance of the Tent of Meeting and engages in public sex. Pinhas, the son of
Eleazar the High Priest, grabs a spear and stabs them both, ending the plague
that had resulted from God’s wrath.
Curses, Foiled Again
Come then, put a curse upon this people for me, since they are too numerous
for me; perhaps I can thus defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I
know that he whom you bless is blessed indeed, and he whom you curse is
cursed. (Bamidbar 22:6)
A. Because Balak knew that he whom you bless is blessed indeed, why did
he hire Balaam to curse Israel? Would it not have been better for him to
hire Balaam to bless Moab so that it would be victorious in war? This is
proof that the essential intention of the enemies of Israel is not to benefit
their own people but to do evil to Israel, and all their rage against Israel is
not a result of their love of their own people but out of hatred for Israel.
As a result of the great hatred they spoil everything and bring a curse
upon their people and their land. (Beit Ramah)
B. Behold, his power was not in blessing but in cursing, by reminding [God]
of iniquity or by anticipating the time ]of God’s anger]. Therefore [Balak]
did not ask him for a blessing to be victorious, or that he might be able to
stand up to them; but he said, for I know that he whom you bless is
blessed indeed for Balaam’s honor, to demonstrate that he does not
consider him to be one who only does damage. (Rabbi Ovadia ben
Jacob Sforno, 1475-1550, Italy)
C. Why did God prevent Balaam from cursing the Israelites? Why should
they have cared about his curse, as long as the Lord blessed His people
with peace? Balaam’s sorcery was world-famous. Balak referred to his
renown when he said: For I know that he whom you bless is blessed
indeed, and he whom you curse is cursed. Had Balaam cursed Israel,
the surrounding nations would have plucked up courage and gone to do
battle with Israel on the strength of his curses. But when they heard how
God had turned them into blessings, they would then realize who was
Master... and would lose all desire to fight His people. From this point of
view, the turning of Balaam’s words into blessing served a very useful
purpose. (Don Isaac Abravanel, 1437-1508, Spain and Italy)
D. The curse of Balaam has no objective potency in terms of either the
author or the deed. Its effect must be considered only from the point of
view of those at the receiving end – the Israelites. Balaam was a
renowned sorcerer and people were impressed then as they are now by
sorcerers and diviners... in particular women and children, who would be
greatly affected by the maledictions of such a renowned sorcerer. A true
friend will save his colleague any pain, even if he knows that no danger
will ensue. Similarly, the Almighty, out of the abundance of His love for
Israel, prevented Balaam from cursing them, though He was aware that
his curses were impotent. (Tirat Kesef (Rabbi Joseph Ibn Kaspi, 1278-
1340, France))
Why did Balak hire Balaam to curse the Israelites rather than to bless his
own people? Was he blinded by hatred? Or, as Sforno suggests, was
Balaam’s power limited to cursing? Do you think most people are happy
for the success and good fortune of others or do they look for reasons to
tear them down? Does that change if the person having the good fortune
is a friend? An enemy?
Abravanel and Ibn Kaspi both make the point that Balaam’s curses would
have no actual power but God still prevented him from uttering them.
Why? Was it because they might embolden Israel’s enemies or because
they might distress the Israelites? How do you react when someone
“curses” you?
Making an Ass of Himself
Then the Lord opened the ass’s mouth and she said to Balaam, “What
have I done to you that you have beaten me these three times?”
(Bamidbar 22:28)
A. This was done in order to make known to him [Balaam] that the
mouth and the tongue are in His power and that if he wished to
curse, his mouth was in His power. (Bamidbar Rabbah 20:14)
B. This was to bring it home forcibly to Balaam that he had no cause
to consider himself great because he had been endowed with
prophetic vision. Why, even the donkey, which certainly could not
be considered fit to look upon an angel or to speak, was enabled
to do both because it was for the good of the children of Israel.
Balaam was no more fit to be a prophet than the donkey and was
given the gift of prophecy only in order that the children of Israel
might benefit thereby. (Klei Yakar [Rabbi Solomon Ephraim ben
Aaron of Lunchitz, d. 1619, Poland])
C. When the mind of a man who was given the ability to utter words
of superior intelligence becomes unhinged by passion or base
cupidity, he becomes unworthy of the mental abilities granted him.
At that moment God will make it possible even for an animal,
under the stress of unjustified abuse, to utter words like a human
being. By so doing, God prepares the man of superior oratorical
skill – no matter how unworthy he himself may be of this talent
and no matter how much he may have misused it – for the
moment when he will have to use his gift of speech as a vehicle
for the word of God and when – albeit reluctantly – he will be
forced to lend his mouth to proclaim the truths of God. He who can
make an animal speak can use the mouth of even one such as
Balaam as an instrument to proclaim His word. (Rabbi Samson
D. The other nations had heard that Moses’ power was derived from
his utterances. They did not realize that this referred to his prayer
and instead believed that his power lay in his tremendous
oratorical powers. They therefore went to hire Balaam, who was
known as a great orator and who had exceptional powers to curse
people, in order to vanquish Moses. As a result, the Lord opened
the ass’s mouth – He showed them that even an ass can be a
good orator. (Imrei Kohen [Rabbi Meir Warshawick, 20th century,
Poland])
What do you make of this episode of the talking ass? Was it meant as
comic relief? Did it really happen or was it simply Balaam having a dream
or vision? Was it to teach us a lesson about the use of our power of
speech (and our other powers as well)? What do the commentators want
us to understand about style and substance? Particularly in an election
year, how can we guard against being carried away by oratory and not
paying sufficient attention to the message?
PARASHAT PINHAS
July 19, 2008 – 17 Tammuz 5768

Haftarah: I Kings 18:46 – 19:21 (Etz Hayim, p. 938; Hertz p. 699)

Teaneck, New Jersey
God rewards Pinhas for his zealous action by granting him His pact of
friendship (or covenant of peace) and His “pact of priesthood for all time.” God
then tells Moses to attack and defeat the Midianites for their role in enticing the
Israelites into sin.
After the plague that killed some 24,000 Israelites, God tells Moses and Eleazar
to take a census of the Israelite men who are 20 and older according to their
ancestral houses. This census was to be used to apportion the land. The
Levites are counted separately because they would not receive a share of the
land.
Five sisters, the daughters of a man named Zelophehad, approach Moses and
the other leaders. They explain that their father died without sons and they want
to claim his share of the land. Moses asks God what to do, and God tells him
that the women have made a just claim. Moreover, whenever a man dies
without a son, his property shall be inherited by his daughters. If there is no
daughter, the property will be inherited by other male relatives.
God tells Moses to ascend Mount Avarim, from which he will be able to see the
land before he dies. Moses asks God to select a worthy successor and God
tells Moses to appoint Joshua as the one who will lead the people after his
death.
God instructs Moses concerning the daily sacrifices and the additional (musaf)
offerings for Shabbat, Rosh Hodesh, and festivals.
Zealous for God?
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Pinhas, son of Eleazar son of Aaron the
priest, has turned back My wrath from the Israelites by displaying among them
his passion for Me, so that I did not wipe out the Israelite people in My passion.
Say, therefore, ‘I grant him My pact of friendship. It shall be for him and his
descendents after him a pact of priesthood for all time, because he took
impassioned action for his God, thus making expiation for the Israelites.’”
(Bamidbar 25:10-13)
A. Mishnah: One who cohabits with an Aramean woman, the zealous may
attack him. Gemara: But the sages do not look with favor upon this. Now,
was Pinhas regarded unfavorably by the sages? Rabbi Yuda ben Pazzi
said: “They were ready to excommunicate him had the Holy Spirit not
sprung forward and said, ‘It shall be for him and his descendents after
him a pact of priesthood for all time.’” (Yerushalmi Sanhedrin 9:7)
B. Such a deed must be animated by a genuine, unadulterated spirit of zeal
to advance the glory of God. In that case, who can tell whether the
perpetrator is not really prompted by some selfish motive, maintaining
that he is doing it for the sake of God, when he has actually committed
murder? That is why the sages wished to excommunicate Pinhas, had
not the Holy Spirit testified that his zeal for God was genuine. (Torah
Temimah (Rabbi Baruch Epstein, 1860-1942, Russia) on Yerushalmi
Sanhedrin 9:7)
C. Rav Hisda said, if [a zealot] comes to consult, we do not instruct him to
do so... Moreover, if Zimri had separated from her and Pinhas had killed
him, he [Pinhas] would have been executed because of him [i.e., the
killing was only justified because Zimri and Cozbi were actively engaged
in their offense at the moment they were killed]. And if Zimri had turned
and killed Pinhas, Zimri would not have been executed because Pinhas
was a rodef [a pursuer, one who is pursuing another person in order to
commit murder]. (Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 82a)
D. The law is that a person who first asks whether he can act as Pinhas did
is told that he may not follow that example. Only if he acts without asking
in advance, because of an internal drive to rid the world of this aberration,
is he considered blameless. From this we see that the only true zealotry
is that which burns in a person because he is unable to tolerate evil. A
person who is “zealous” because he was “fired up” by another person –
even if that person is his rebbi – is not a true zealot. (Rabbi Y.L. Maimon,
1875-1962, Lithuania and Israel)
Today we are all too familiar with those who claim it is permitted, even
admirable, to kill in the name of God. The rabbis enacted legal barriers to
prevent others from emulating Pinhas. According to the Babylonian Talmud, if
Pinhas had not acted at the precise moment he did, he would have been
considered a murderer. The Torah Temima adds that Pinhas was held
blameless only because his intentions were absolutely pure. Do you think it is
ever possible for a human being to act from completely pure motives, with no
hint of hatred, greed, desire for fame and glory, or the hope of Heaven? Is it
even possible for a human being to be completely sure of his or her own
motives?
Pinhas, Eleazar’s son and Aaron’s grandson, was already a kohein, a priest.
How do you understand God granting him “a pact of priesthood for all time”?
Was this, in fact, meant as a reward? Was it intended as a counterbalance to
Pinhas’s zealotry? Is Pinhas meant to serve as a role model or a warning?
Lost Sheep
The Lord said to Moses and to Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, “Take a census
of the whole Israelite community from the age of twenty years up, by their
ancestral houses, all Israelites able to bear arms.” (Bamidbar 26:1-2)
A. A parable. This may be likened to a shepherd into whose flock wolves

entered and killed some of them, and he counted them to know the
number of the remaining sheep. Another explanation: When they went
forth out of Egypt and were given over to Moses, they were given over to
him numbered; now when the time approached for Moses to die and to
return his flock, he returned them numbered. Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo
B. Parshat Pinchas recounts the very first time God spoke to Elazar after
his father Aaron passed away. As his first order of duty he was instructed
to count all the Jews over the age of 20. Is there any significance to this
being his very first task?... Rashi compares this counting to a shepherd
counting his beloved flock after a disaster. The counting therefore
symbolizes God’s concern for his people after a recent plague. But it
could also be teaching the newly instated leader a critical lesson: Care
about each and every one of your people, because they all count. (Rabbi
Shlomo Ressler, LeLamed, Inc., 2004)
C. When Moses our teacher was tending Jethro’s flock in the wilderness, a
lamb scampered off and Moses followed it until it approached a shelter
under a rock. As the lamb reached the shelter, it came upon a pool of
water and stopped to drink. When Moses caught up with it he said, “I did
not know that you ran away because you were thirsty. Now you must be
tired.” So he hoisted the lamb on his shoulder and started walking back
with it. The Holy One then said: Because you showed such compassion
in tending the flock of a mortal, as you live, you shall become shepherd
of Israel, the flock that is Mine. (Shemot Rabbah 2:2)
Every community, shul, or school has a few members who do not quite fit in,
whether because of age, family status, income, disability, or just personal quirks.
What can the leaders of the community do to help these outsiders feel included
and to help the “insiders” be more welcoming? What can individuals do to help
outsiders fit in? When, if ever, is it acceptable for a community to stop trying to
make accommodations for those who do not fit?
PARASHAT MATTOT - BIRKAT HAHODESH
July 26, 2008 – 23 Tammuz 5768

Haftarah: Jeremiah 1:1 – 2;3 (Etz Hayim, p. 968; Hertz p. 710)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses instructs the heads of the Israelite tribes about vows and oaths. When a
woman makes a vow, it can be annulled by her father or her husband on the
day he learns of it. If this is not done, a woman’s vow is binding and must be
fulfilled completely, just like a man’s vow.
Twelve thousand men, one thousand from each tribe, are picked to form the
force that will wage war against Midian. The Israelites kill the Midianite males
and take the women and children captive. Moses becomes angry that the
women – the very ones who enticed the Israelites to sin – were spared. He
orders the soldiers to kill the women and male children, leaving only the girls
alive. Moses then tells the soldiers they must undergo a purification ritual.
Eleazar instructs them about purifying objects seized as booty. The captured
property is divided among the warriors and the rest of the Israelites.
The tribes of Reuben and Gad ask to be allowed to settle on the east side of the
Jordan, where there is ample land for their animals. They, along with the half-
tribe of Manasseh, are given permission to do so once they promise to join the
rest of the Israelites in the battle for the land of Canaan, on the other side of the
Jordan.
Swear to God
Moses spoke to the heads of the Israelite tribes, saying: This is what the Lord
has commanded: If a man makes a vow or takes an oath imposing an obligation
on himself, he shall not break his pledge; he must carry out all that has crossed
his lips. (Bamidbar 30:2-3)
A. All of the Torah depends on “this is what the Lord has commanded,” this
being the most fundamental of all principles, namely that a person should
not violate that which he has accepted upon himself as a vow or oath.
Without this, there is no basis for the entire Torah, which we accepted as
a covenant. (Hatam Sofer [Rabbi Moses Schreiber, 1762-1839,
Pressburg, Hungary])
B. God said to Israel, “Be careful what you vow, and do not become
addicted to making vows, for whoever is so addicted will, in the end, sin
by breaking his oath, and he who breaks his oath denies Me without
hope of pardon. (Tanhuma Mattot 79a)
C. Rav Dimi the brother of Rav Safra said: He who vows, even if he fulfills
his vow, is called a sinner. Rav Zevid asked: And the proof? ‘You incur
no guilt if you refrain from vowing’ (Devarim 23:23); hence, if you do not
refrain, you do incur guilt. (Nedarim 77b)
D. We have been taught that Rabbi Nathan said: He who vows is as though
he built a high place [for an idol] and he who fulfills his vow [rather than
seeking to be released from it] is as though he brought an offering upon it.
(Nedarim 22a)
E. When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. For He has no
pleasure in fools; what you vow, fulfill. (Kohelet 5:3) The verse states that
the Lord has no pleasure in fools who imagine they are doing His will by
making many vows in order to spur themselves to fulfill a precept.
Lacking prudence and understanding, they do not stop to think that
perhaps it may turn out impossible for them to fulfill them all. On the
contrary, they imagine they will be credited with the good intention that
they had at the time of the vow. (Ramban [Rabbi Moses ben Nachman,
1194-1270, Spain])
The vows and oaths described here are not merely promises or pious wishes.
Once a person made a vow in the prescribed form, his vow – e.g., not to eat
apples – took on for him the force of halakhah and eating an apple would be no
different from eating a ham sandwich. Halakhah does provide a procedure for
annulling vows.
Why do you think people would choose to make vows? Why do the
commentators have such a negative view of vows? What is their concern? Why
does Rabbi Nathan equate fulfilling one’s vow with a great sin? What can we
learn from this about the promises we make to God, to other people, and to
ourselves?
But She Made Me Do It!
Yet they are the very ones who, at the bidding of Balaam, induced the Israelites
to trespass against the Lord in the matter of Peor, so that the Lord’s community
was struck by the plague. (Bamidbar 31:16)
A. They also put Balaam son of Beor to the sword (Bamidbar 31:8) What
was Balaam doing there? He came to take his reward for the slaughter of
the 24,000 Israelites he caused to die [by the plague]. (Bamidbar Rabbah
22:4)
B. On his way back home Balaam passed through Midian and heard how
the Israelites had committed harlotry with the daughters of Moab and had
thereby been led into idolatry. He then realized that this was the only
sure method of undermining Israel. He therefore advised the Midianites
to send their choicest maidens to seduce the Israelites into idolatry. In
this way they would forfeit the Almighty’s protection. (Rabbi Shmuel
David Luzzatto, 1800-1865, Italy)
C. Now let us try to understand why the Torah deferred mentioning
Balaam’s complicity in the matter of Peor till after his death at the hands
of the Israelites... Evidently the Torah wanted to teach us a special
lesson. Though it was Balaam who instigated the daughters of Midian to
strike a blow at the purity of Jewish family life, though he was the evil
genius who thought out the plan, the moral responsibility ultimately
rested on the Israelites themselves... Every individual is responsible for
his own acts. Provocation does not free the victim of responsibility.
(Nehama Leibowitz, Studies in Bamidbar, p. 377)
As Nehama Leibowitz reminds us, each person is responsible for his or her own
acts. Even if Balaam was behind the plot to entice the Israelites into harlotry
and idolatry, no Israelite could claim that it was not his fault, he was just minding
his own business until a Midianite woman came along and seduced him. He
had the power and the responsibility to refuse. This is why 24,000 Israelites
died by a plague.
If this is the case, why did Balaam (and the Midianite women) deserve death?
Couldn’t he claim that while he had come up with the plan, the Israelites could
have said no – he hadn’t forced anyone to sin? What, if any, responsibility do
those who tempt others to sin bear? Is a person who tries to entice another to
sin guilty if the object of his temptation refuses to go along?
PARASHAT MASEY - ROSH HODESH AV
August 2, 2008 – 1 Av 5768

Triennial: Numbers 33:1 – 49 (Etz Hayim, p. 954; Hertz p. 714)
Maftir: Numbers 28:9 – 15 (Etz Hayim, p. 930 Hertz p. 695)
Haftarah: Isaiah 66:1 – 24, 66:23 (Etz Hayim, p. 1220; Hertz p. 944)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses records all the stages of the Israelites’ journey through the wilderness,
from Egypt to the steppes of Moab.
God tells Moses to instruct the people that when they enter the land, they are to
destroy the Canaanites’ idols and cult places. They are to remove the
Canaanites themselves from the land lest any who remain become a source of
trouble in the future. God describes the borders of the Promised Land. Moses
tells the Israelites that this is the land that will be given to the nine and one-half
tribes (excluding Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh). God names the men
who will join Joshua and Eleazar in apportioning the land.
God tells Moses to instruct the Israelites to set aside 48 towns for the Levites.
Six of these are to be designated cities of refuge to which a person who
commits unintentional manslaughter may flee and be safe from the victim’s
family. Intentional murder is to be punished by death.
Leaders of the tribe of Manasseh express concern that when the daughters of
Zelophehad, who were to receive their father’s share of the land, married, the
land they inherited would pass to their husbands’ tribes. Moses relays God’s
instruction that women who inherit land must marry within their own tribes to
preserve the integrity of the land.
On the Road Again
These were the marches of the Israelites who started out from the land of Egypt,
troop by troop, in the charge of Moses and Aaron. Moses recorded the starting
points of their various marches as directed by the Lord. (Bamidbar 33:1-2)
A. Why are these stations recorded here? In order to publicize the loving
acts of the Omnipresent; that although He had decreed to move them
about and make them wander in the wilderness, you should not think
they wandered and moved about from one stage to another the whole 40
years and that they had no rest, for you see that there are only 42
stages... [After deducting the 14 stages mentioned during the first year
and the 8 mentioned during the last], all 38 years they journeyed only 20
stages. And Rabbi Tanhum offered another interpretation: To what may it
be compared? To a king whose son was ill and whom he took to a
distant place to cure. As soon as they returned home the father began to
enumerate all the stages, saying to him: Here we slept, here we caught
cold, here you had a headache. So the Holy One said to him: Moses!
Enumerate all the places where they provoked Me to anger. (Rashi
B. Since the Holy One brought them out of Egypt till they arrived at the
gates of the land of promise, much had befallen them, both favorable and
unfavorable. This short listing of the stages of their wanderings was
designed as reading material for them after they settled down in their
homeland. Each stage that they noted in the reading would enable them
to recall what had befallen them at that place. They would accordingly
take to heart the kindness shown to them by the Omnipresent and the
sufferings they endured for their disobedience so that in future they
would act rightly and not sin. (Be’er Yitzhak [Rabbi Yitzhak Horowitz of
Yaroslav, d 1864, Poland], supercommentary to Rashi)
C. The Lord desired that the stages of the Israelites’ journeyings be written
down to make known their merit in their going after Him in a wilderness,
in a land that was not sown, so that they eventually deserved to enter the
land. (Rabbi Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno, 1475-1550, Italy)
D. Why were all these stations privileged to be recorded in the Torah? In
return for their having received Israel, the Holy One will in the future give
them their reward; as it is written, The arid desert shall be glad, the
wilderness shall rejoice and shall blossom like a rose. It shall blossom
abundantly, it shall also exult and shout. (Isaiah 35:1-2) Now if the
wilderness will be thus rewarded for having received Israel, is it not
certain that one who receives scholars into his house will be rewarded all
the more? (Bamidbar Rabbah 23:4)
The Torah devotes 49 verses to the list of the stages of the Israelites’ journey in
the wilderness. Why? About half of the places listed are not mentioned
elsewhere in the Torah and we do not know what happened there. What can we
infer about the wilderness years from this list? What questions do you wish the
Torah had answered?
Life is a Journey
These were the marches of the Israelites... (Bamidbar 33:1)
A. Whatever happened to the people as a whole will happen to each

individual. All the 42 journeys of the children of Israel will occur to each
individual between the time he is born and the time he dies. (Israel ben
Eliezer Ba’al Shem Tov, 1700-1760, Poland)
B. The Torah commentaries say that the enumeration of the journeys and
encampments was to review all that had transpired during the 40 years in
the desert. A person who had a purpose and goal in life will pause every
now and then to assess how much he has accomplished toward reaching
his objective... So it was with Moses at the end of the 40 years in the
desert. The Israelites were about to enter the Holy Land, and he was
about to turn over the leadership to Joshua. The period of his
stewardship had come to a close. It was time to see what he and the
Israelites had achieved during the past 40 years, hence the meticulous
review of the journeys and encampments and what had happened in
each.
If we are serious about achieving a goal in our lives, we must periodically

take inventory. Each night, each week, at the beginning of a new year,
and perhaps on our birthdays as well. A segment of time has passed.
What do we have to show for it? How can we make the next segment of
time more productive? (Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski, Twerski on Chumash,
pp. 348-349)
The Ba’al Shem Tov suggests that each individual Jew’s journey through life will
replicate our ancestors’ journey in the wilderness. How do you understand this
observation? What can we as individuals learn from the journey through the
wilderness? Do you find this analogy encouraging or depressing? Why?
PARASHAT DEVARIM - SHABBAT HAZON
August 9, 2008 – 9 Av 5768
Annual: Deuteronomy 1:1 - 3:22 (Etz Hayim, p. 981; Hertz p. 736)

Triennial: Deuteronomy 1:1 – 2:1 (Etz Hayim, p. 981; Hertz p. 736)
Haftarah: Isaiah 1:1 – 27 (Etz Hayim, p. 1000; Hertz p. 750)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Sefer Devarim takes the form of Moses’ farewell speech to the people he has
led for forty years. It contains an overview of the history of the wilderness years,
a review and elaboration of the statutes and ordinances of the Torah, Moses’
final blessing, and his death.
This parasha’s subject is history. Moses begins by describing how he appointed

judges and officers to help him lead the people, and then he reminds the
Israelites about what happened the first time they were about to enter the land.
After the spies’ report caused the people to panic and refuse to continue, God
grew angry and decreed that the generation of the Exodus would die in the
wilderness. God also decreed that Moses would not enter the land.
Moses then reviews recent events – the conquest of Sihon, king of Heshbon,
and Og, king of Bashan. He describes how their territory was given to the tribes
of Reuben and Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
1. Lost in Translation
On the other side of the Jordan, in the land of Moab, Moses undertook to
expound this teaching... (Devarim 1:5)
A. In seventy languages he explained it to them. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo

B. Why did Moses consider it necessary to explain the Torah in all the
seventy languages of the ancient world? In every nation there are forces
that oppose the Torah. Knowing that the Children of Israel would have to
dwell among the nations, Moses wanted to enable them to defend and to
observe the Torah wherever they might be. Wherever they would dwell,
the Jews would have to be able to overcome any resistance that their
environment might offer to the Torah. It was to equip the Jewish people
to assert the views of Judaism wherever they might be scattered that he
explained the Torah to them in the languages of the seventy nations of
the ancient world. (Hidushei HaRIM [Rabbi Isaac Meir Alter, the Gerer
Rabbi, 1799-1866, Poland])
C. There are those unbelievers who claim that the Torah was meant to be
observed only in the wilderness far away from the settlements of other
groups and nations or in the Holy Land, where the Jews dwelt among
their own, and where no one would interfere with their customs. They
insist that when the Jews dwell among other nations, when they live in
the midst of another culture and civilization, they must not keep aloof
from their neighbors by clinging to the observance of the Torah and its
commandments.
It was to refute this argument that Moses explained the Torah to the
Children of Israel in all the seventy languages of the world before they
entered the Promised Land. He wanted to impress upon his people that
they were duty-bound to observe the Torah regardless of what lands they
might dwell in, because the Torah was valid for all time and for all
countries and was not subject to change. (K’tav Sofer [Rabbi Abraham
Samuel Benjamin Schreiber, 1815-1875, Hungary])
Rashi makes the remarkable claim that from the very beginning Torah was
taught in all of the world’s languages. Why? Was it so that Jews could defend
their beliefs and practices to non-Jews? Was it to enable Jews to maintain their
traditions and practices in all the lands of the Diaspora? Was it meant to counter
the pull of assimilation?
Today, nearly all of the Jewish classics – Bible and Talmud, midrash and
mysticism, law codes and liturgy – are readily available in English and other
languages. The benefits are obvious, but are there drawbacks as well? What is
lost in translation? Do tzedakah and charity mean the same thing?
Tefillah and prayer? Why do we continue to conduct our services primarily in

Hebrew?
2. Equal Justice Before the Law
You shall not be partial [elsewhere, respect persons] in judgment: hear out low
and high alike. Fear no man, for judgment is God’s... (Devarim 1:17)
A. Let a case involving a small coin be as dear to you as a case involving a

maneh; that if (the former) came before you first, do not postpone it until
the last. Another interpretation: Understand it as the Targum [an Aramaic
translation] has it: You shall not say, “This is a poor man and his
opponent is rich and is commanded to support him. I will find in favor of
the poor man and thus he will be supported in dignity.” Another
explanation: You should not say, “How can I tarnish the honor of this rich
man because of a dinar; I will favor him now, and when he goes outside
(the court) I will tell him: Give it to him (the poor man) because you in fact
owe it to him.” (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105, France])
B. A judge may not judge based on the appearance of a person, because
that is no proof as to his innocence or guilt. Only the arguments and facts
may play a role in a judge’s decisions. (Rabbi Leibush Harif, d. 1833,
Poland)
C. How do we know that if two litigants come to court, one dressed in rags
and the second in a garment worth a hundred maneh, the second should
be told, “Dress like your opponent, or see to it that he is dressed like
you?” Because the Torah says, Keep far from a false charge. (Sh’mot
23:7) (Shevuot 31a)
D. If you have in a trial before you a wicked man and a pious man, do not
say, “Since this man is wicked I will turn the judgment against him.” It is
with reference to this that it is said: You shall not subvert the rights of
your needy in their disputes (Shemot 23:6) – of one who is poor in
mitzvot. (Mekhilta Kaspa 3)
The court must make decisions solely on the facts of each specific case; it may
not consider any outside circumstances. The Talmud even insists that the
parties be dressed alike so that there is no subliminal influence on the judges. Is
this fair and just?
In our society, many people believe that fairness requires considering special
circumstances – members of historically disadvantaged groups may benefit
from affirmative action in hiring or government contracting, students with certain
learning disabilities are given extra time on standardized tests, veterans receive
bonus points on civil service exams. Lawyers for criminal defendants may point
to a client’s family circumstances, addictions, or mental health problems as
mitigating factors. Is this fair and just?
Many jurisdictions have enacted hate crimes laws that mandate harsher
sentences for people who commit crimes motivated by racial, religious, or other
biases. Suppose a thug assaults another man, beating him and causing serious
injuries. In one case, the two men are of different races and the thug shouts
racial epithets while he beats his victim. In the second case, both men are of the
same race and the thug shouts obscenities. Should both cases be treated
exactly alike or should the hate crime be punished more severely? Why? What
does it mean to be fair and just?
PARASHAT VA’ETHANAN - SHABBAT NAHAMU
August 16, 2008 – 15 Av 5768
Annual: Deuteronomy 3:23 - 7:11 (Etz Hayim, p. 1005; Hertz p. 755)

Triennial: Deuteronomy 3:23 - 5:18 (Etz Hayim, p. 1005; Hertz p. 755)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses continues his review of the history of the wilderness years, describing
how he pleaded with God to be allowed to enter the land and how God rejected
his plea.
Moses then speaks to the Israelites, giving them the first of several exhortations
in this parasha about the importance of obeying God’s commandments, with
particular emphasis on the prohibition of idolatry.
Moses sets aside three cities of refuge on the east side of the Jordan. If a
person committed manslaughter, he could flee to one of these cities and be
safe from the relatives of the person he killed unwittingly.
Moses again exhorts the people to study and observe all of God’s laws and
rules. He reminds them of the revelation at Sinai and reviews the Ten
Statements. He recalls their reaction to hearing God’s voice and encourages
them to retain that feeling of reverence so that they may thrive in the land.
Moses teaches the first paragraph of the Shema. He tells the people yet again
that they must keep God’s commandments and shun idolatry. They are to teach
their children about the covenant – that God brought Israel out of Egypt and into
the land so that they might worship God and keep His commandments. Finally,
Moses warns the people against intermarriage, pointing out the danger that it
might lead to idolatry.
1. Simple Arithmetic
You shall not add anything to what I command you or take anything away from
it, but keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I enjoin upon you.
(Devarim 4:2)
A. You shall not add: For example, five [instead of four] passages in the
tefillin, five species in the lulav, or five tzitzit, and similarly, or take
anything away [using three rather than four]. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo
B. From where do we learn that a kohen who goes up to the duchan should
not say since the Torah has given me permission to bless Israel I will add
a blessing of my own, for example, may Adonai the God of your
ancestors add to you one thousand times? The Torah says, “you shall
not add anything.” (Talmud Rosh Hashannah 28a)
C. When murderers increased in number, the rite of breaking the heifer’s
neck [performed when a murder victim was found and the killer was
unknown] was abolished... When adulterers increased in number, the
ritual of the bitter waters [performed when a husband suspected his wife
of adultery] ceased. (Mishnah Sotah 9:9)
D. A Jew has to find the golden, middle path, as Maimonides refers to it, in
his fear of God and in his observance of the commandments. Just as a
wicked person is liable to violate the prohibition of You shall not... take
anything away, a righteous person is liable to violate the prohibition of
You shall not add anything, and can thereby bring tragedy upon the
world. (Rabbi Alexander Moshe Lapidot, 1819-1906, Lithuania)
The rabbinic interpretation of this verse, as found in Rashi and the Talmud, is
that adding or subtracting numbers is prohibited here. Was that your initial
understanding of the verse? How else might it be understood? Why do you
think the rabbis chose to interpret it the way they did?
Rabbi Alexander Lapidot makes the startling statement that violating the
prohibition of You shall not add may bring tragedy upon the world. What do you
think he means by this?
2. Whose Life Is It, Anyway?
But take utmost care and watch yourselves scrupulously [elsewhere: only take
heed to yourself and guard your soul diligently], so that you do not forget the
things that you saw with your own eyes and so that they do not fade from your
mind as long as you live... (Devarim 4:9)
A. Look after your body and ensure that it remains healthy, for then it will be
easy for you to guard your soul. (Likutei Yesharim)
B. Anything that is a potential danger, it is a mitzvah to remove it and be
very careful of it, as it states, take heed to yourself and guard your soul
diligently. If a person does not remove it, but leaves the dangerous thing
in its place, he transgresses a positive commandment, and also
transgresses the negative commandment of do not bring bloodguilt on
your house (Devarim 22:8). (Shulhan Arukh, Hoshen Mishpat 427)
C. The body being healthy is of the ways of the Lord, for it is impossible to
understand or know the knowledge of the Creator while unwell.
Therefore, one should keep away from things which destroy the body,
and accustom oneself to healthy and curing matters... (Rambam [Rabbi
Moses ben Maimon, 1135-1209, Spain and Egypt], Mishneh Torah,
Hilchot Deot, 4:1)
D. The Torah brings these issues in the name of guarding the soul and not
guarding the body or guarding oneself in order to teach us that when one
is engaged in matters of the welfare of the body, such as eating and
drinking or business, one must be very careful not to do anything that will
be harmful to the soul... For a person is not under his own authority but
was sent into this world by God to do His will and this should be his
motivation in all he does. And even when a person is occupied with the
needs of his body he needs to be aware that this is also part of his
mission, that this is also the will of God, that he should guard his soul.
(Hafetz Hayim [Rabbi Israel Meir HaKohen, 1835-1933, Poland])
E. I have a fiduciary relationship with God with respect to my body – that is,
God entrusts it to me for the duration of my life on the condition that I
take care of it. So, for example, I may not eat a half gallon of ice cream
every night of the week even if I want to do so and do not care about the
pragmatic results – that I will gain 100 pounds in no time and thereby
endanger my health and cease to look good or feel good. Conversely, I
have a positive duty to God to practice habits of proper diet, exercise,
hygiene, and sleep, whether or not I want to do so. (Rabbi Elliot Dorff,
“Body: Jewish Choices, Jewish Voices,” pp xii-xiii)
Caring for your own health is a mitzvah, one of God’s commandments, and not
just a matter of good sense and pragmatism. What does this mean? How might
you respond to someone who says, “Why shouldn’t I smoke or participate in
dangerous sports as long as I’m not hurting anyone else?” Are there
circumstances under which you believe it is acceptable to endanger your health
or life? Should Jews outside of Israel become police officers, firefighters, or
soldiers? Why?
PARASHAT EKEV
August 23, 2008 – 22 Av 5767
Annual: Deuteronomy 7:12 – 11:25 (Etz Hayim, p. 1037; Hertz p. 780)


Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses tells the people that if they obey the commandments God will reward
them. With God’s help they are to destroy the Canaanite nations, paying
particular attention to wiping out all their idols.
Moses calls on the Israelites to remember both the hardships of the wilderness
years and how God provided for them during that time. Be very careful that
once you enter the good land you do not forget that God is still the source of all
you have, he tells them. Abandoning God’s commandments can only lead to
tragedy.
Moses reminds the people that all that God has done and will do for them is not
a reward for their virtue and merits. He speaks about the many times when they
defied and angered God, most notably the sin of the Golden Calf. Moses
describes how he prayed for mercy for the people, so that God ultimately
responded by inscribing a second set of tablets to replace the ones that Moses
shattered.
Moses again charges the Israelites to keep God’s commandments and teaches
them the second paragraph of the Shema.
1. There's No Such Thing as a Self-Made Man
Beware lest your heart grow haughty and you forget the Lord your God... and
you say to yourselves, “My own power (kochi) and the might of my own hand
have won this wealth for me.” (Devarim 8:14, 17)
A. Rich man and poor man meet; the Lord made them both. (Mishlei 22:2)
The rich man generally thinks that he amassed his wealth because of his
brilliance, while the poor are generally looked down upon as ne’er-do-
wells who cannot succeed because of a lack of ability. However, when
the “rich man and poor man meet,” when they happened to be in the
same place at the same time, we can in most cases see that the poor
man is no less intelligent than the rich one. Rather, “the Lord made them
both” – it is God’s will that matters should be as they are. (Rabbi Tzvi
Hirsh Berliner)
B. Koach, everything, all that makes your creative personality and your
capacity to earn, the intelligence, the skill, the considering foresight, the
physical and mental health, every factor of your existence, of what you
wish for and are able to accomplish, is not the result of the food you eat
but is given to you directly from God. And so also the combination of
external circumstances which bring about the possibility and the success
of your work and endeavors, is dependent on Him and Him alone. He
gives you the koach, the power to make your fortune. The very smallest
part of your good fortune can be ascribed to your own merit... (Rabbi
Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888, Germany)
C. This verse is usually quoted in reference to having an awareness of the
power of the Almighty and not becoming conceited due to financial
success or success with an enemy in time of war. I heard from Rabbi
Shalom Schwadron in the name of the Brisker Rav, Rabbi Yitzchok Zev
Soloveitchik, that this verse also applies to someone who says, “It was
due to my personal spiritual merits that we were victorious.” We should
always realize that what the Almighty does for us is due to His kindness
and compassion and we should not feel that it was our own
righteousness and merits that brought success. (Rabbi Zelig Pliskin,
“Growth Through Torah,” p. 406)
It is human nature to believe that we are responsible for our successes, while
others are to blame for our failures. The Torah sees this as a very dangerous
attitude. Why? How should a person acknowledge God’s role in his or her
success? What do you do to express gratitude to God? How do you
acknowledge or express gratitude for the contributions of other people – parents,
teachers, colleagues, etc.? Are there people to whom you owe a thank you (and
perhaps a nice bottle of wine)?
2. This is a Test
[The Lord your God] who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your
fathers had never known, in order to test you by hardships... (Devarim 8:16)
A. Whether they will keep the commandments which are associated with it,
that they should not leave any of it over and that they should not go out
on the Sabbath to gather. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, 1040-1105,
France] on Sh’mot 16:4)
B. ...whether you would do His will when He grants you sustenance without
pain (without effort). (Rabbi Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno, 1475-1550, Italy)
C. The situation in which the Israelites were placed regarding the manna
represented a great trial for them since they entered a desert without
food of any sort and with no way out. They were totally dependent on the
daily portion of manna which rained down and melted in the heat of the
sun. They hungered for it greatly, but bore all their suffering in obedience
to God who might have led them through an inhabited route. He chose,
however, to confront them with this trial in order to test their eternal
loyalty to Him... Ramban [Rabbi Moses ben Nachman, 1194-1270,
Spain])
D. [God said] it is essential that I find men for whom it suffices to be
provided for wife and family for each day by itself. Men who can
cheerfully and happily enjoy today, carry out their duties for today and
leave the worry for tomorrow to Him Who has provided for today and
Who can be trusted for tomorrow. Only such unreserved confidence in
God ensures the fulfillment of His laws against infringement out of
supposed or actual concern about material necessities. (Rabbi Samson
E. Everyone knows that life is a test. We struggle to make a living, to raise
our children, to build up our communities. Nothing comes easy, and our
test is to deal with the hardships and frustrations in the best way possible.
But what if our livelihood were served up to us on a silver platter? How

wonderful that would be! No more worries about how to pay for the
children’s tuition or the new roof. What if everything we needed came to
us like manna from heaven? Would we consider this a test? Hardly. We
would consider it a blessing. The Torah, however, seems to say
otherwise...
[The Lord your God] who fed you in the wilderness with manna... in order
to test you. Sforno explains that the test is to see if the Jews would still
follow the Torah when they do not have to worry about their livelihood.
Yes, there is a great test in “bread raining down from heaven.” Affluence
without effort is a dangerous thing. It comes with a great amount of
leisure time and freedom of action. What do we do with that leisure time
and that freedom of action? Do we use our leisure time and freedom of
action to taste the forbidden? This is the great test of the manna.
We are all aware of the test of poverty. We are all aware of the trials and
tribulations of being poor. However, says Sforno, affluence also comes
with great temptations. It puts a tremendous responsibility on a person.
This is the test of the manna, and it is the test for many Jews in these
affluent times. (Rabbi Yissocher Frand, “Rabbi Frand on the Parsha”)
In what way was the manna a test? The commentators offer several
suggestions for what was being tested – obedience, faith, dealing with poverty
or affluence. How do you understand the test of manna? Is it possible that it
tested different people in different ways – some struggled with faith, others with
obedience? How do you think the test of manna would challenge you?
Do you believe that God tests human beings? How? When God does test
people?, is He gathering information about us or trying to teach us lessons
about ourselves?
PARASHAT RE’EH - BIRKAT HAHODESH
August 30, 2008 – 29 Av 5768

Triennial: Deuteronomy 11:26– 12:28 (Etz Hayim, p. 1061; Hertz p. 799)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses tells the people that they are being given a choice – they can have a
blessing if they obey God’s commandments and a curse if they do not. When
they enter the land they will reaffirm this at a covenant ritual at Mounts Gerizim
and Ebal.
Moses now begins to review the commandments that God has given to Israel.
He begins by telling the people that they must obliterate all the sites and objects
tied to Canaanite idolatry. Even after they have done this, they are not to
worship God in these places but must bring their offerings and tithes to the
central sanctuary in the place God will designate. Animals intended for food
need not be brought to the sanctuary to be slaughtered.
The people are warned about false prophets. Even if such a person is able to
produce signs and wonders, if he urges the people to turn away from God he is
a false prophet and must be put to death. Similarly, any person, even family and
close friends, who urges a Jew to worship “other gods” must be executed. If an
entire town has turned away from God, all its inhabitants must be put to death
and all the property within it must be destroyed.
The people are warned against extreme mourning rites and against eating non-
kosher animals. The remission of debts in the sabbatical year and the obligation
to support the poor are taught. The three pilgrimage festivals are reviewed.
1. The Month of Elul
See, this day I set before you blessing and curse: blessing, if you obey the
commandments of the Lord your God that I enjoin upon you this day; and curse,
if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God... (Devarim 11:26-
28)
A. Rabbi Hanina bar Papa explained: The angel in charge of conception is

called “Lailah.” He takes the drop of semen and brings it before God and
says: “Master of the universe, what shall be the fate of this drop? Will it
develop into a strong person or a weak one? A wise person or a fool? A
wealthy person or a poor one? Whether the person will be wicked or
righteous, this he does not ask. (Talmud Niddah 16b)
B. If God decreed that a person should be either righteous or wicked, or if
there was some force inherent in his nature which irresistibly drew him to
a particular course... how could God have commanded us through the
prophets, “Do this and do not do that, improve your ways, and do not
follow your wicked impulses,” when, from the beginning of his existence,
a person’s destiny had already been decreed?... What room would there
be for the whole of the Torah? By what right or justice could God punish
the wicked or reward the righteous? (Rambam [Rabbi Moses ben
Maimon, 1135-1209, Spain and Egypt], Mishneh Torah, Hilchot
Teshuvah 5:4)
C. The Hebrew word for “see,” re’eh, is in the singular. This is to teach us
an important lesson. Should a person say to himself, “As everyone else
is wicked, why should I be any better?” he is told, “See!” Do what is
proper and ignore what everyone else does. If he then says, “How am I
to resist all the temptations placed before me by the Evil Inclination?”
know that “I” – God – will help you... Furthermore, a person should not
think to himself, “Since I once chose an evil path, there is no hope for me
any longer.” The Torah therefore stresses “I set” in the present, to teach
us that man always has the choice of doing good or evil... “Before you” –
If a person says: “How am I to know which path is good and which is
not?” the answer is “before you” – if you study carefully the history of the
Jewish people, it will become clear to you. Should a person say: “What
hope is there for me, for I am a sinner, and what about all my sins until
now?” the Torah states, “This day” – that each day should be to you as a
new experience, and each day you have the opportunity of a fresh start.
The Gaon of Vilna [Rabbi Elijah ben Rabbi Shlomo Zalman, 1720-1797,
Lithuania])
What does the Talmud mean by, “Whether the person will be wicked or
righteous, this he does not ask?” Do you believe that people are truly free to
choose to do good or evil? What motivates a person to choose one or the
other?
This year, as in most years, we read parashat Re’eh on Shabbat M’varakhim

Elul; the Shabbat when we announce the beginning of the new month, Elul. We
prepare for the Yamim Nora’im, the High Holy Days, during Elul. For many
people, this means reserving synagogue seats, buying new clothes, and doing
lots of cooking.
But there’s more to it. The Gaon of Vilna used the opening words of our
parasha to create a spiritual handbook for the month of Elul (and the rest of the
year). How might you implement his teachings?
2. American Idol?
And curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn
away from the path that I enjoin upon you this day and follow other gods, whom
you have not experienced. (Devarim 11:28)
A. Here you learn that whosoever worships idols turns aside from the entire
way which the Israelites were commanded. Hence our rabbis said: One
who acknowledges idolatry is as one who denies the entire Torah. (Rashi
B. Our masters taught: Some philosophers asked [the Jewish] elders in
Rome, “If your God has no desire for idolatry, why does He not have it
cease to exist?” The elders replied, “If what was worshiped were
something the world had no need of, He would have made it cease to
exist. But people worship the sun and the moon, the stars and the
planets. Should He, on account of fools, make the world cease to exist?”
(Talmud Avodah Zarah 54b)
C. Under the category of idolatry we must include a form which is
particularly virulent today – the devoting of all energies and thoughts to
the accumulation of wealth and achievement of worldly success. These
are the mighty gods on which they rely, to which they pay allegiance, and
for which they repudiate the Lord on high and forsake His Torah, leaving
it deserted and forlorn in a remote corner. This is the very essence of
idolatry. (Akedat Yitzhak [Rabbi Isaac Arama, 1420-1494, Spain])
D. From Judaism’s perspective, idolatry occurs when one holds any value
(for instance, nationalism) higher than God. Thus, a person who, on the
basis of “my country right or wrong,” performs acts that God designates
as wrong is an idolater; his behavior makes it clear that he regards his
country’s demand to do evil as more binding than God’s demand to do
good. Such a person’s claim to worship God – an assertion that was
actually made by some S.S. officers who worked in concentration camps
– is plainly false; the person is an idolater, not a follower of God. (Rabbi
Joseph Telushkin, “Biblical Literacy,” p. 425)
A major theme in this week’s parasha is the threat represented by idolatry and
the need to obliterate all traces of it from Israel. How serious was this threat to
the Jewish people in its earliest years? Is it still a threat today? Our
commentators make it clear that idolatry is not limited to worshiping statues and
images. Idolatry is choosing any god but God. What forms of idolatry threaten
us today?
PARASHAT SHOFTIM
September 6, 2008 – 6 Elul 5768


Teaneck, New Jersey
The Israelites are to appoint judges and officers in all their communities to
insure the administration of justice.
It is forbidden to set up a sacred pillar like those used in idol worship, even if it
is dedicated to God. Idolaters are to be put to death, but only after being
convicted by the testimony of at least two witnesses.
There is to be a central higher court to hear cases deemed too difficult for local
judges. Its decisions are binding.
If and when Israel establishes a monarchy, the king must make a copy of the
Torah and keep it with him at all times, for the king also is subject to God’s laws.
The priests and Levites have no territory of their own and so must be supported
by the agricultural dues paid by the members of the other tribes.
Sorcery in all its forms is forbidden. True prophets are to be obeyed but false
prophets must be put to death.
After the Israelites have conquered the land and settled in it, they are to
designate three cities of refuge to which a person who commits accidental
manslaughter may flee and be safe from the relatives of the person he killed.
These cities will provide no safety for the intentional murderer.
Rules of war and the treatment of enemies are given. The ritual of breaking the
heifer’s neck – to be performed when a murder victim is found and the killer is
unknown – is described.
1. Hekhsher Tzedek
Justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may thrive and occupy the land the
Lord your God is giving you. (Devarim 16:20)
A. This means that you must pursue justice with justice. The means by
which you seek to attain justice must be righteous also. You must not
allow yourself to be guided by the Godless principle that the end justifies
the means. (Rabbi Yaakov Yitzhak of Przysucha, 1765-1815, Poland)
B. Hekhsher Tzedek has formulated its principles and standards in terms of
five primary areas of corporate practice: wages and benefits, employee
health and safety, product development policies, environmental impact,
and corporate transparency and integrity. With the exception of the
matter of transparency, which is material only in terms of the trust that
can be given to the corporate responses and representations, each other
area represents a substantial concern of the halakhah. While the details
of the measurements imposed to assess any area are closely related to
the data that are available to monitor that area, and will not necessarily
correspond to the measures used in antiquity, the goals are clearly set
out in halakhic materials from the Bible and throughout the development
of Jewish law...
In addition to insisting that kosher food manufacturers abide by the

fullness of halakhic demands, Hekhsher Tzedek is also conceived as a
tool for the Jewish consumer to be able to make righteous choices about
their kosher eating which were never possible before. Like consumer
ingredient and health information labeling, this is one more step toward
putting into action the goals that God and the Torah have set for us, and
toward which we strive.
The first psalm begins and ends with these words: “Hurray for one who
has not walked in the company of the wicked nor stood in the path of the
sinful. . . for the Lord recognizes the path of the righteous.” We have a
right, and we are right, to expect our coreligionists, our kosher food
purveyors, to sanctify God’s name by their business practices and to
allow, even to aid us in, the pursuit of righteousness. (Rabbi Avram Israel
Reisner, “Hekhsher Tzedek Al Pi Din”)
C. The government says we can add non-meat fillers. We can’t. We’re
kosher and have to answer to an even higher authority. (Hebrew National
meats commercial, 1975)
D. What does the Holy One care whether one ritually slaughters cattle and
eats or whether one slaughters cattle by stabbing and eats it? Will some
such thing benefit Him or harm Him?... Thus the commandments were
given only to purify human beings. (Tanhuma Shemini 7)
Do the ends ever justify the means? Should a notorious violent criminal be sent
to prison based on partially fabricated evidence? Should a doctor invent a
diagnosis to get an insurance company to pay for a poor patient’s necessary but
uncovered treatment?
The Conservative movement’s Hekhsher Tzedek initiative is based on the

principle that producers of kosher food should follow kosher business practices.
Do you believe that Jewish institutions and business involved in providing for
Jewish needs should answer to a “higher authority”? Why? Some critics of
Hekhsher Tzedek point out that raising wages and providing additional benefits
to workers will raise the price of kosher food. That is likely, although some of the
cost increases might be offset by more energy-efficient plants and processes
and better training. Would you pay more for food that meets the standards of
Hekhsher Tzedek? How much more – 5 percent? 10 percent? 20 percent?
2. Ordinary People
Moreover, he [the king] shall not keep many horses or send people back to
Egypt to add to his horses, since the Lord has warned you, “You must not go
back that way again.” And he shall not have many wives, lest his heart go
astray; nor shall he amass silver and gold to excess. (Devarim 17:16-17)
A. Said Rabbi Isaac: Why were the reasons of some Biblical laws not
revealed? Because in two verses, reasons were revealed and they
caused the greatest in the world [Solomon] to stumble. Thus it is written:
And he shall not have many wives, lest his heart go astray, whereupon
Solomon said: “I will have many wives and yet not let my heart go
astray.” Yet we read in 1 Kings 11:4: “In his old age, his wives turned
away Solomon’s heart after other gods.” Again it is written: He shall not
keep many horses or send people back to Egypt to add to his horses.
Concerning this Solomon said: “I will keep many horses, but will not
cause Israel to return to Egypt.” Yet we read (1 Kings 10:29): “A chariot
imported from Egypt cost 600 shekels of silver, and a horse 150.”
(Sanhedrin 21b)
B. You shall appoint [literally, appoint for you] magistrates and officials...
(D’varim 16:18) For you, for yourself. First judge yourself and, using the
same yardstick, judge others. Do not be lenient with your faults while
judging harshly the same faults in others; do not overlook sin in yourself
while demanding perfection of others. (Toldot Ya’akov Yosef [Rabbi
Ya’akov Yosef Katz of Polonya, 1710-1782, Poland])
C. A favorite saying of the rabbis of Yavneh was: I am a creature of God
and my neighbor is also a creature of God. I work in the city and he
works in the country. I rise early for my work and he rises early for his
work. Just as he cannot excel in my work, I cannot excel in his work. Will
you say that I do great things and he does small things? We have
learned that it does not matter whether a person does much or little, as
long as he directs his heart to heaven. (Berakhot 17a)
According to the passage from Sanhedrin, Solomon was tripped up by his belief
that he was somehow not subject to the rules that applied to ordinary people.
We all like to think that we are above average, that our superior knowledge,
skills, and abilities will allow us to avoid dangers that would entrap others. For
example, some people think that they can drink and drive because they are
excellent drivers and know how to hold their liquor; perhaps you know people
who believe rules are not made for them. What would happen if each person
got to decide what laws, regulations, and mitzvot applied to him or herself? Is
there anyone who is not ordinary?
PARASHAT KI TETZE
September 13, 2008 – 13 Elul 5768


Teaneck, New Jersey
Differing systems of enumeration find 72 or 74 of the Torah’s mitzvot – more

than 10 percent of the 613 – in this parasha. It opens with three difficult laws –
the treatment of a woman captured in war, the rights of a firstborn son of an
unloved wife, and the punishment of a “wayward and defiant” son.
A person must return lost property to its owner and must help someone trying to
raise a fallen animal. Men and women may not wear clothing associated with
the other gender. A person must shoo away the mother bird before taking eggs
or chicks from her nest. The roof of a house must have a parapet or railing.
Mixtures – of different types of seeds in a single field, of an ox and an ass
yoked together, or wool and linen in a single cloth – are prohibited.
A man who marries a woman and then falsely claims she was not a virgin is
flogged, fined, and forbidden to divorce her. If the claim is true, the woman is
put to death. Adulterers, both male and female, are to be put to death. Laws
concerning rape are given. The Torah names those who may not be “admitted
into the congregation of the Lord.”
Laws concerning impurity and hygiene in military camps are given. A runaway
slave must not be returned to his master. Cult prostitution is forbidden. Jews
may not take interest on loans made to fellow Jews. A person must fulfill his or
her vows. A man is permitted to divorce his wife. Laws concerning collateral on
loans are given.
No one may oppress the powerless – poor laborers, strangers, widows, and
orphans. The rituals of yibum, Levirite marriage, and halitzah, the ritual carried
out by a man who does not wish to marry his dead brother’s childless widow,
are given. A person may use or own only completely honest weights and
measures.
We are commanded to remember Amalek.
1. Finders Keepers, Losers Weepers?
If you see your fellow’s ox or sheep gone astray, do not ignore it; you must take
it back to your fellow. If your fellow does not live near you or you do not know
who he is, you shall bring it home and it shall remain with you until your fellow
claims it; then you shall give it back to him. You shall do the same with his ass;
you shall do the same with his garment; and so too shall you do with anything
that your fellow loses and you find: you must not remain indifferent. (Devarim
22:1-3)
A. If someone returns the beast and it runs away again, and when he once
more returns it, it runs away a second time, even if this goes on five
times, he must return it each time, as it is said, you must take it back to
your fellow [hasheiv t’shiveim, with the verb doubled]. If he [the finder]
brings it back to a place where others can see it, and it is stolen or lost,
the responsibility is still his. The responsibility remains his until he
restores it to the possession of its owner. (Sifre [a collection of Midrash
halakha], Piska 222)
B. A man who finds Torah scrolls must read them at least once every 30
days – if he cannot read, he must roll them open and reroll them... A man
who finds a garment must give it a shaking at least once every 30 days,
and spread it out [to be aired] to preserve it, but not to enhance his own
status. Silver and copper vessels may be used, so that they [do not
tarnish but] remain fit – not, however, in such a manner as to wear them
out. Gold and glassware may not be touched until Elijah comes. If a man
finds a sack, a basket, or any other object it is beneath his dignity to pick
it up, he need not pick it up. (Baba Metziah 29b)
C. [Y]ou must not remain indifferent [literally, you may not hide yourself].
Why did the Torah not use here the imperative form, as with all the other
commandments? Why does it use “may”? A person without integrity who
finds a lost article could say: It is beneath my dignity to deal with
restoration of the lost article to its owner. I will pretend that I have not
seen it. Be it known, therefore, that “you may not hide yourself.” Even if
you hide yourself from other people, you may not hide yourself from the
Holy One before Whom all mysteries stand revealed. (Simcha Raz, “The
Torah’s Seventy Faces: Commentaries on the Weekly Sidrah, edited by
Rabbi Dov Peretz Elkins, p. 363)
D. Rabbi Yohanan said, “there are three whose merit the Holy One
proclaims every day... and a poor person who returns a lost object to its
owner. (Pesachim 113a)
E. The root reason for this precept is evident, because in this lies a useful
benefit for all and harmony for the land, since forgetfulness is common in
all [humans]; moreover, all their domestic and other animals always run
off hither and thither. With this mitzvah, which exists among our people,
animals and objects would be kept wherever they might be in our holy
land as though they were under the hand of the owners. (Sefer HaHinukh
[attributed to Rabbi Aharon of Barcelona, 13th century, Spain])
The mitzvah of returning lost property is not passive. One must care for the
property actively (whether it is living creatures or objects) and actively try to find
the owner. Why is it important that people make an effort to return lost property?
Sefer HaHinukh sees in this mitzvah “a useful benefit for all and harmony for the
land.” What does he mean by this? How would it affect society if people were
diligent about returning lost property? If, alternatively, everyone practiced
“finders, keepers”? Have you ever happened upon a lost object? What did you
do about it? In what ways would everyone returning lost property affect the
land?
2. I’ll Fly Away
If, along the road, you chance upon a bird’s nest, in any tree or on the ground,
with fledglings or eggs and the mother sitting over the fledglings or on the eggs,
do not take the mother together with her young. Let the mother go, and take
only the young, in order that you may fare well and have a long life. (Devarim
22:6-7)
A. If (as a reward for the observance of) an easy commandment connected

with which there is no monetary loss the Torah has said, in order that you
may fare well and have a long life – how much greater will be the reward
(for the observance) of commandments that are more difficult. (Rashi
B. Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai taught: The Holy One has revealed the reward
for heeding two precepts in the Torah: one of these precepts is the least
onerous, and the other is the most onerous. The least onerous concerns
letting the mother go when chancing on a bird’s nest – with regard to it,
the Torah promises in order that you may fare well and have a long life.
The most onerous concerns honoring one’s father and mother – with
regard to it also, the Torah promises “that you may long endure and that
you may fare well.” (D’varim 5:16) So the two precepts are alike in the
reward received in this world for their observance. (Tanhuma [a Midrash
collection] Eikev 2)
C. Why should the reward for the observance of this one commandment be
so great?... Because the observance of this commandment symbolizes
the repudiation of selfishness. The root of all evil and sin in this world, be
it in the rearing of children, in the worship of God, or in the relations
between man and man, is egotism, the failure on the part of the
individual to set aside his own concerns and personal interests for the
sake of the common welfare, of an ideal, or of spiritual perfection.
Financial considerations on the part of parents may deprive children of
an education in the spirit of the Torah, and lust for honor or gain make for
strife, jealousy, hate, and many other evils. But once men will be able to
set aside their personal interests for the sake of an ideal, of a great
cause, there will be a thoroughgoing change for the better in all aspects
of life... This is the moral lesson taught us by the observance of the
commandment to send away the mother bird before taking the young
from their nest. You may have captive in your hands the large mother
bird and could use her for food or other personal gain. But the law of the
Torah commands you to consider the welfare of others and send her
away so that she should be able to produce more young and the species
should not become extinct. (Avnei Ezel [Rabbi Alexander Zusia Friedman,
1897-1943, Poland])
D. This also is an explanatory commandment of the prohibition “No animal
from the herd or from the flock shall be slaughtered on the same day with
its young” (Vayikra 22:28), because the reason for both is that we should
not have a cruel heart and be without compassion, or it may be that the
Torah does not permit us to destroy a species altogether, although it
permits slaughter [for food] within that group. Now, he who kills the
mother and the young in one day or takes them when they are free to fly
is considered as though he cut off that species. (Ramban [Rabbi Moses
Rashi and Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai (in the Tanhuma) draw different conclusions
from the reward promised for sending away the mother bird – Rashi learns that
the reward for other mitzvot must be even greater; Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai
concludes that the reward for all mitzvot is the same. With whom do you agree?
Why? Do you believe that we are or will be rewarded for the mitzvot we do?
Avnei Ezel believes that the underlying reason for this commandment is to
combat selfishness. He also mentions that it promotes the welfare of others by
preventing the extinction of species. Ramban makes the same point about
preserving species. Can you think of other ways in which the Torah urges us to
care for the environment? Are you making an effort to become more “green” in
your home, workplace, and shul? Is there a reason beyond self-interest that we
must care for the world around us?
PARASHAT KI TAVO - SELIHOT
September 20, 2008 – 20 Elul 5768


Teaneck, New Jersey
Once they are settled in the land, each Israelite farmer is to bring a portion of
his first fruits to the central sanctuary. Standing before the priest, he recites the
declaration expressing gratitude for all the gifts God has given.
In the third year of the agricultural cycle, farmers are to give the second tithe of
their produce to the poor rather than bringing it to Jerusalem. Once this is done,
the farmer is to recite a declaration acknowledging that he had done as God
commanded.
Moses reminds the Israelites that they have affirmed their covenant with God,
that they have promised to obey Him, and that in return God has affirmed that
Israel is His treasured people.
Moses tells the people that as soon as they cross the Jordan, they are to set up
large stones inscribed with the words of the Torah on Mount Ebal. They are
then to enact a covenant ritual on Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim.
Moses then tells the people that if they observe God’s commandments they will
experience many blessings. If they do not obey God, however, they will
experience many curses, culminating in war, famine, plagues, and exile.
Moses concludes by reminding the Israelites of all that God has done for them
in the 40 years since He redeemed them from Egypt.
1. Please Come Join Us
You shall then recite as follows [literally, and you shall respond and say] before
the Lord your God: “My father was a fugitive Aramean... (Devarim 26:5)
A. These may be recited in any language – the portion of the Sotah, the
declaration of the tithe, the Shema, the Prayer (Amidah), the Grace After
Meals... And these must be recited in the Holy Tongue [Hebrew] – the
declaration of the first fruits... (Mishnah Sotah 7:1-2)
B. “Responding” . . . means in the holy tongue. Hence the sages have said:
Originally all those who knew how to make the declaration did so, while
those who did not know how to do it had it recited to them [so they could
repeat it]. When people consequently refrained from bringing [first fruits],
it was decided that both those who knew how and those who did not
would have the declaration recited to them. For this they relied upon the
verse “And you shall respond,” since responding implies prompting to
respond by someone else. (Sifre, Piska 301)
C. A tanna recited before Rabbi Nahman bar Isaac: He who shames his
fellow man in public is as though he shed blood. Rabbi Nahman replied:
Well put! Because we see ruddiness depart and paleness take its place
[in the face of the man who is humiliated]. (Baba Metziah 58b)
D. Rabbi Elazar Ha-Modai taught: A person who profanes the sacred,
despises the festivals, shames a fellow human being publicly... though
he be learned in Torah and perform good deeds, shall have no share in
the world to come. (Avot 3:15)
The Sifre makes the extraordinary statement that Jews who were unable to
recite the declaration of the first fruits properly in Hebrew chose to abandon this
Torah commandment rather than suffer the public humiliation of having to
repeat it after the priest. The ritual was changed so that everyone repeated it
after the priest and no one was humiliated. Elsewhere, the Talmud tells us that
the rabbis decreed that all Jews were to be buried in simple coffins and shrouds
to prevent humiliating the poor, who could not afford the elaborate burial clothes
and coffins used by the rich.
All of our communities include Jews who feel left out because they are
unfamiliar with the various services, they cannot read (let alone understand)
Hebrew, they do not know what to do when offered an aliyah, or they do not
understand the Hebrew and Yiddish expressions they hear around them. Do
you agree that the goal should be to help them learn? What might your
community do to help these Jews participate more fully in shul and other
rituals? Were you ever embarrassed because you did not know or understand
what was going on in services? Can you learn from that experience how you
might help someone else feel more comfortable without embarrassing him or
her?
2. Half Empty or Half Full?
And you shall enjoy, together with the Levite and the stranger in your midst, all
the bounty that the Lord your God has bestowed upon you and your household.
[Alternate translation: You shall rejoice in every good thing that the Lord your
God has bestowed upon you...] (Devarim 26:11)
A. If you are in the same situation as the Levite and the stranger – and they
are generally poorer than the average person – “you shall rejoice in
every good thing,” namely in the joy of a person who is satisfied with his
lot. Many times, a person is consumed with jealousy at those who have
more than he does. However, if he looks at those who have less than he
rather than at those who have more, he will be joyful and satisfied with
what he has. (Likutei Yehoshua)
B. This is a mitzvah. We are obligated to feel joy with what we were given
by the Almighty. Why do we need a directive to rejoice since we should
automatically be happy when we have good things? Man’s nature is to
constantly want more than he presently has. “He who has one hundred
wants two hundred” (Kohelet Rabbah 1:34) Our moments of joy are
mixed with sadness over what we lack. The Torah, therefore, commands
us to rejoice with what we have. We should strive to feel a joy that is
complete. Lack of joy with what we have is destructive both physically
and spiritually. (Rabbi Mordechai Gifter, Pirke Torah, vol 2, p. 107.)
C. “All these curses shall befall you . . . Because you would not serve the
Lord your God in joy and gladness over the abundance of everything
(Devarim 38:45-47). The Torah does not specify the sins for which the
Jewish people will be punished. The only one that it mentions specifically
is “Because you would not serve the Lord your God in joy and gladness.”
(Rabbi Simcha Bunim of Przysucha, 1765-1827, Poland)
D. Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be. (Abraham
Lincoln)
Does the Torah actually command us to feel happy? Surely there are times
when happiness would be irrational. What do you think the Torah means by
“You shall rejoice in every good thing that the Lord your God has bestowed
upon you?” Is this an achievable goal? How would you define joy? What is its
opposite? What point was President Lincoln trying to make? Do you agree?
PARASHAT NITZAVIM
September 27, 2008 – 27 Elul 5768

Triennial Cycle: Deuteronomy 29:9 – 30:20 (Etz Hayim, p. 1165; Hertz p. 878)

Teaneck, New Jersey
According to tradition, Moses is speaking on the last day of his life. He reminds
the people that they are entering into a covenant with God and that those who
violate that covenant will be punished severely.
Moses also tells the people that even as God punishes their disobedience He
will not abandon them. When they learn from what has happened to them and
return to God in repentance, God will welcome them lovingly and bring them
back from their exile.
Moses encourages the people, telling them that God’s commandments are not
too difficult or beyond reach. Rather, they are very close, so that every Jew has
the ability to observe them.
Moses concludes: “I have put before you life and death, blessing and curse.
Choose life – if you and your offspring would live.”
1. NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS
No, the thing is very close to you, in your mouth and in your heart, to observe
[literally, to do] it. (Devarim 30:14)
A. You do not fulfill your obligation by that which is in your mouth and in
your heart. That which is in your mouth and your heart is for you to do.
(Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk, 1787-1854, Poland)
B. The people of Israel said to Moshe “You have said to us that ‘it is not in
heaven and neither is it beyond the ocean’ – so where is it?” Moshe said
to them “It t is very close to you -- in your mouth and in your heart, to
observe [literally, to do] it – it is very near to you.” (Devarim Rabbah 8)
It happens very often that people think that keeping the Torah and
mitzvot are beyond their capabilities – beyond their reach. Thus the
concise answer comes to teach us “It is in a very close place.” A person
might think that the greatness in Divine attributes is that they are
impossible to achieve. Such a person looks heavenwards longingly
toward things that seem beyond all grasp, thinking: “I wish I could go up
to the sky and bring down these Divine attributes.” But this is not the
case. We learn that the greatness in these Divine attributes is in the fact
that they are in fact attainable for a person willing to have an open heart
with which to receive them. (Simcha Raz, “The Torah’s Seventy Faces:
Commentaries on the Weekly Sidrah,” edited by Rabbi Dov Peretz Elkins,
p. 381)
C. The rabbis say: The fool enters the synagogue, and seeing there people
occupying themselves with Torah he asks: “How does a man begin to
learn Torah?” They answer him: “First a man reads from a scroll [with
selections from the Torah], then the sefer Torah, and then the prophets
and then the writings; when he has completed the study of the scriptures
he learns the Talmud and then the halakhah and then the aggada.” After
hearing all this [the fool] says to himself, “When can I learn all this?” and
he turns back from the gate. . . . But the man who is wise – what does he
do? He learns one chapter every day until he completes the whole Torah.
God said: “[It] is not too baffling for you, but if [you find it] too difficult, it is
your own fault, because you did not study it.” (Devarim Rabbah 8:3)
D. Rabbi Chayim Shmuelevitz commented on this that the Torah tells us
that regardless of how far away one is, if he is sincerely resolved to
become a better person, he will be able to make an immediate
transformation of himself. When you make a verbal commitment to the
Almighty and to yourself to become a changed person, your very words
put you into a different place than where you were before.
Of course, if you just say that you will change without actually improving
your behavior, you have not sincerely changed. But the words you tell
yourself have a major influence on your behavior. In whatever area you
wish to improve, if you keep repeating over and over to yourself how you
will act from now on, you will notice practical changes. Your verbal and
mental suggestions are very close to you, all you need is a firm decision
to make this effort. Once you have made this decision, you will be
successful as long as you keep up that original resolve of yours.
There are some people, however, who keep making pledges and
resolutions to make positive changes but do not actually carry out their
plans. They have created a credibility gap for themselves. Since they
have already said they would change and have not done so, they are
likely not to really believe themselves. To overcome this, one needs
action and consistency. Just as you should keep your word when you
give it to someone else, so too you should keep your word to yourself.
(Rabbi Zelig Pliskin, “Growth Through Torah,” p. 456)
We always read Nitzavim on the Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah. During the
Yamim Nora’im [the High Holy Days], many people will resolve to change their
ways, to improve their relationships with God and with other people. When
people make their resolutions, they are heartfelt. People do want to change. But
too often, nothing changes and people repeat the same resolutions on the
following Rosh Hashanah.
Do you believe that people can change? Why do you think that some people
insist that real change is impossible? How do these commentaries teach that a
person should go about making changes in his or her life? Is this realistic? What
changes do you intend to make in the coming year?
2. A Good Person
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day [ha-yom]: I have put
before you life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life – if you and your
offspring would live. (Devarim 30:19)
A. Why did Moses stress that he was placing these choices before the
people “today”? Perhaps this word’s message is that each and every day
of our lives, the same choices Moses described stand before us to be
confronted anew. Certainly someone whose behavior has been improper
until now is obligated to choose the path of good for the future. But even
someone who has already chosen that path and remained firmly on it
may not rely on his past performance to guarantee that he will continue
to do good, and must make his choice afresh “today” and every day,
because every day the path of evil and death also stands before him.
Every day, therefore, he must once again consciously choose the good.
(Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, “Darash Moshe,” p. 323)
B. Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai said: Even if a man is perfectly righteous all his
life, but rebels in the end, he annuls the [good] deeds he had previously
performed, as is said, “The righteousness of the righteous shall not save
him when he transgresses” (Ezekiel 33:12). And conversely, even if a
man was completely wicked, but then resolved on penitence, his
wickedness is never mentioned to him again, as is said, “nor shall the
wickedness of the wicked cause him to stumble when he turns back from
his wickedness” (ibid.). (Kiddushin 40b)
C. [Moses] returns to exhort them yet again, to tell them that there are two
courses in their hands and it is in their power to walk in whichever they
desire, and there is no power below or above that will withhold them or
stop them... (Ramban [Rabbi Moses ben Nachman, 1194-1270, Spain])
D. Rabbi Eleazar ben Rabbi Shimon said: The world is judged by the
majority [of its deeds], and an individual is likewise judged by the majority
[of his deeds]. A man should therefore always regard himself and the
world as half meritorious and half guilty. If he performs one good deed,
happy is he, for he has tilted the scale both for himself and for the entire
world, all of it, toward the side of merit; if he commits even one
transgression, woe to him, for he has tilted the scale both for himself and
for the entire world, all of it, toward the scale of guilt. (Talmud Kiddushin
40b)
The word ha-yom, today, appears 12 times in the 40 verses of Nitzavim. What
is the significance of this word? Do you consider this hopeful or worrisome?
What does ha-yom teach us about how we should live a good life?
It is not uncommon to hear the friends and relatives of someone who has done
something terribly wrong – perhaps struck and killed a pedestrian while driving
drunk – say, “oh, but he’s really a good person.” Might you consider the drunk
driver a good person? Would your opinion change if he had previously been
arrested for drunk driving? What does it mean to be a good person?
PARASHAT VAYELEKH - SHABBAT SHUVAH

Triennial Cycle: Deuteronomy 31:1 – 31:30 (Etz Hayim, p. 1173; Hertz p. 887)
Haftarah: Hosea 14:2 – 10; Joel 2:15-27; Micah 7:18-20 (Etz Hayim, p. 1235,
1236, 1239; Hertz p. 891, 893, 892)

Teaneck, New Jersey
On the last day of his life, Moses tells the people that it is now time for Joshua
to succeed him. They should not be afraid, because God will continue to be with
them as they conquer the Canaanites as they already conquered the Amorites.
Moses then charges Joshua in the sight of all Israel.
Moses writes down the Torah (or, perhaps, parts of Sefer Devarim) and gives it
to the priests and the elders. He tells them that every seventh year, at Sukkot,
they are to assemble the people and read the Torah to them.
God now calls Moses and tells him it is almost time for him to die. He instructs
him to bring Joshua to the tent of meeting to hear God’s instructions. God tells
Moses that in the future the people will break the covenant and turn to alien
gods, so that God will become angry and “hide His countenance” from them.
Therefore, Moses is to write down a poem (found in Ha-azinu) and teach it to
the people. It will remind them of God’s promise and their disloyalty and prompt
them to repent.
1. And Bring the Kids
Gather the people – men, women, children, and the strangers in your
communities – that they may hear and so learn to revere the Lord your God and
to observe faithfully every word of this Teaching. (Devarim 31:12)
A. Why did [the children] come? For no other purpose but that a reward
should be given to those who bring them. (Rashi [Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki,
1040-1105, France])
B. If the men and women all had to come, it would stand to reason that they
had to bring the children with them, for there would be no one with whom
to leave them. Why, then, did Scripture have to state explicitly that the
children were to come also? Scripture made the specification “for no
other purpose but that a reward should be given to those who bring
them.” Although the children would come in any case, the Torah made a
separate commandment so that it should represent a good deed in its
own right and make those who bring their children eligible for a reward.
(Yalkut HaUrim [Rabbi Moshe Uri Keller, Sanz, Poland])
C. By going to the trouble of bringing their little ones into the Temple, the
parents demonstrate their sincere desire and firm resolve that their
children should remain true to Judaism and heed the sacred words of the
Torah. This show of sincerity on their part will cause the Lord to reward
their efforts with success, so that their children will become imbued with
the spirit of the Torah and grow up to become good Jews. (Sefat Emet
[Rabbi Judah Aryeh Leib Alter, 1874-1905, Poland])
D. Young children have a tendency to make noise and can easily disturb
older people who are trying to listen. Therefore one might think that it is
better not to bring them. But even though they do not understand what is
being said, just being there when the king reads the Torah in the
presence of the entire nation will have a major influence on the child for
the rest of his life. He gains an experience of how important the Torah is
for the entire people. This teaches us even today to do all we can that
children should learn at an early age the extreme importance of Torah.
Every experience makes an impression; make sure to give your children
many positive Torah experiences. (Rabbi Simcha Zissel of Kelm, 1824-
1898, Lithuania)
What is the nature of the reward that parents receive for bringing young children
to shul? Do they receive additional “mitzvah points” in their accounts or is the
reward seeing their children begin to grow as Jews? Is your shul a place where
young children feel welcome? If not, what might you do to make it so? How else
might parents (and grandparents and aunts and uncles) bring young children to
God and Torah? Do the children in your family see the celebration of Shabbat
and holidays in their homes? Do they have Jewish toys, books, and videos?
What do you think they are learning about being Jewish?
2. Links in the Chain
Therefore, write down this poem and teach it to the people of Israel... [alternate
translation: And now, write for yourselves this poem] (Devarim 31:19)
A. It is a positive commandment for each and every man in Israel to write a

Torah scroll for himself, as it says, And now, write for yourselves this
poem. This means to say, Write for yourselves a Torah that contains this
poem, because one does not write the Torah in separate sections. And
even if his ancestors left him a Torah scroll it is a commandment to write
his own. If he wrote it with his own hand, it is as if he received it at Mount
Sinai; but if he does not know how to write, others write for him. Anyone
who corrects a Torah scroll – even one letter – it is as if he wrote all of it.
(Rambam [Rabbi Moses ben Maimon, 1135-1209, Spain and Egypt],
Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Tefillin, Mezuzah, and Sefer Torah, 7:1)
B. Rabbi Avraham Binyamin Wolf Sofer commented: From this verse, our
sages, of blessed memory, deduced that every Jew is commanded to
personally write a Torah scroll, as we have learned in the Talmud
(Sanhedrin 21b): Even if a person’s parents have left a sefer Torah, it is
proper that the person should personally write one, as it is written: And
now, write for yourselves this poem. This teaching of the sages, says
Rabbi Sofer, is to teach us not to take the Torah for granted. Each and
every one of us has to accept it anew as though we ourselves stood on
Mount Sinai. The commandment is, therefore, that everyone should
personally write a Torah scroll rather than make do in this respect with
the legacy of one’s parents. (Simcha Raz, “The Torah’s Seventy Faces:
Commentaries on the Weekly Sidrah,” edited by Rabbi Dov Peretz Elkins,
p. 389)
C. Finally, the Conservative movement likes to emphasize that the halakhah
developed from generation to generation and from country to country.
There is no better proof of this assertion than the holiday of Simhat Torah.
A holiday which began in Babylonia in the tenth century spread to the
entire Jewish world, with each ethnic group contributing new customs
which were then absorbed by klal Yisrael (the collective Jewish people).
The Jews of Babylonia invented the holiday and its name and began to
dance on Simhat Torah. In France, they added the Attah Horeita verses
in the twelfth century. The Jews of Spain began to recite the beginning of
Bereishit by heart at the beginning of the twelfth century while the Jews
of France instituted at that time that a Hattan Bereishit should read the
beginning of Bereishit. In Ashkenaz, they added a hakafah in the evening
in the early fifteenth century while the Ari and his students in sixteenth-
century Safed instituted that there should be seven hakafot around the
bimah. (Rabbi David Golinkin, “The Four Faces of Simhat Torah,”
Ask.com)
Rabbi Sofer explains that even a person who has inherited a sefer Torah must
write his or her own “rather than make do in this respect with the legacy of one’s
parents.” How do you understand this? How does a Jew take ownership of his
or her Judaism? Rabbi David Golinkin describes how generation after
generation of Jews added something of their own to the holiday of Simhat Torah
and by doing so enriched all of us. What treasures of Judaism have you
inherited from your parents, grandparents, and teachers? What have you added
to the legacy you received?
PARASHAT HA’AZINU

Haftarah: II Samuel 22:1 – 51 (Etz Hayim, p. 1197; Hertz p. 904)

Teaneck, New Jersey
Moses recites the poem God had instructed him to write down and teach to the
people. It begins with words of moral teaching contrasting the virtue of God to
the wickedness of Israel. It then tells of God’s goodness to Israel, Israel’s
prosperity and rebellion, and God’s punishment for Israel’s breaking the
covenant. Finally, the poem recounts God’s mercy, promising that God will save
His people from their enemies.
Moses reads the poem to the people and warns them to take it to heart.
God tells Moses to ascend Mount Nebo. He will be allowed to see the Promised
Land from there before he dies.
1. Those Were the Days
They sacrificed to demons, no-gods, gods they had never known, new ones,
who came but lately, who stirred not your fathers’ fears. (Devarim 32:17)
A. The younger generation is always a little weaker in religious conviction

than the older. But in the past these differences were well within normal
limits. There were differences between young and old such as could be
expected and readily understood. But the gulf existing between the
generations today is wide beyond belief. Indeed, the younger generation
bears no resemblance at all to its parents. It is almost like a new people,
with new ideals – and new idols – that were altogether unknown to the
generation which went before. New ones, who came but lately – a new
generation has arisen who stirred not your fathers’ fears, of which your
fathers could not even have conceived. (Attributed to the Hatam Sofer
[Rabbi Moses Schreiber, 1762-1839, Pressburg, Hungary])
B. “Ask your father, he will inform you, your elders, they will tell you”
(Devarim 32:7). In earlier generations, it was possible to say that all were
learned in the Torah. In our times, though, the people are unlearned and
ignoramuses. If a child asks his father anything about Judaism (“ask your
father”), the father will answer: Go to “your elders, they will tell you” – go
and ask your grandfather, because I don’t know the answer. (Y. Yefet,
quoting the Magid of Kelm [Rabbi Moses Isaac of Kelm, 1828-1900,
Poland])
C. Rabbi Zera said in the name of Rava bar Zimona: “If the former were as
angels, we are as mortals; and if the former were as mortals, then we are
as asses – and not as the asses of Rabbi Hanina ben Dosa or Rabbi
Pinhas ben Yair [animals that appeared to understand the requirements
of halakhah], but as common asses. (Talmud Shabbat 112b)
D. Rabbi Yohanan said in the name of Rabbi Yehudah bar Elai: “Come and
see how the latter generations are unlike the former ones. In former
generations people made Torah their vocation and their trades their
avocations, and they succeeded in both; in latter generations, when
people made their trades their vocations and Torah their avocation they
did not succeed in either... (Talmud Berakhot 35b)
E. Shalom bayis [peace in the home] in a family whose members are at
different levels of observance is possible, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy.
In my own journey, hundreds of questions and concerns have arisen
along the way, on both sides. My family and I have hurt one another’s
feelings, made one another angry, and questioned one another’s values,
commitments, and priorities. But at least we are still very much a family,
all of us doing our parts to maintain family harmony. There are plenty of
days when I wish they would “see the light” and come along on my
journey with me. On just as many days, they wish that I would calm down
and return to their level of observance so that I could eat in their home
without all the advance planning, join them in their synagogue, and stop
doing weird things like wearing a wig all the time. (Azriela Jaffe, “What
Do You Mean, You Can’t Eat in My Home? A Guide to How Newly
Observant Jews and Their Less-Obsesrvant Relatives Can Still Get
Along,” p. xviii)
The Hatam Sofer was famous for his vehement opposition to the early Reform
movement in Germany and to any innovation in Judaism. His claim that each
generation is less religious than its predecessor is an old one. Why do you think
the rabbis of the Talmud regarded earlier generations as more learned and
observant than later ones?
In the mid-1900s, it was generally accepted that each generation of Jews in

America would be less observant than their parents. It was believed that
Orthodoxy would soon disappear and the process of assimilation would
continue unabated. That is not what happened. In fact, today it is not unusual
for Jews to be more observant and traditional than their parents. Are you more
or less observant than your parents? Than your children? Why? Has your family
experienced conflicts due to different levels of observance? How have you
resolved (or tried to resolve) them?
2. It's All Torah
For this is not a trifling [elsewhere: empty, vain] thing for you: It is your very life...
(Devarim 32:47)
A. For it is no vain thing – and if it is vain, it is your fault [mikem – from you].
Why? Because you do not labor in the Torah. (Jerusalem [Yerushalmi]
Talmud Peah 1:1)
B. Why was the Torah compared to a fig? Because all fruits have waste:
dates have pits, grapes have seeds, pomegranates have peels, but the
entire fig is fit to be eaten. Similarly, there is no waste in the words of
Torah, as it is said: “It is not an empty matter for you.” (Yalkut Shimoni,
Joshua 2)
C. The lesson contained in these concluding verses of the Torah is the
importance of each detail. There is nothing superfluous in the Torah and
no sliding scale of values between its different portions. The seemingly
most insignificant and prosaic detail hidden in the folds of a story is of
equal importance to its philosophy and fundamental laws. All goes under
the name of “Torah.” If we can find no significance in a particular detail, if
it is “a vain thing,” then the fault is ours, and due to our lack of
understanding, our failure to labor to discover the meaning. (Nehama
Leibowitz, “Studies in Devarim,” p. 354)
D. Ben Bag-Bag taught: Study it and review it: You will find everything in it.
Scrutinize it, grow old and gray in it, do not depart from it. There is no
better portion in life than this. (Pirkei Avot 5:24)
The rabbis insist that if you find something in the Torah that seems irrelevant,
worthless, trivial, or obsolete, that is only because you do not yet understand it
properly. Why do they say this? Do you agree? Are there limits to
interpretation? What do you imagine might happen if we were to skip over the
“boring” parts in our Torah reading and study?
Might the same approach be applied to Jewish practice? If there is a mitzvah

you find irrelevant, worthless, trivial, or obsolete, might that be because you
have not yet approached it properly? Are you willing to give God the benefit of
the doubt?
READING FOR SHABBAT HOL HAMOED
SUKKOT
Annual: Exodus 33:12 – 34:26 (Etz Hayim, p. 538; Hertz p. 362)

Haftarah: Ezekiel 38:18 – 39:16 (Etz Hayim, p. 1260; Hertz p. 979)

Teaneck, New Jersey
After the sin of the Golden Calf, God tells Moses to lead the people to the land
He has promised, but that God Himself no longer will be in their midst. Moses
once again steps forward on behalf of the people and God relents. Moses asks
to see God, but God refuses, saying, “man may not see Me and live.” Moses
ascends Mount Sinai and receives the revelation of God’s Thirteen Attributes.
God tells Moses that He will drive the Canaanites out of the land He has
promised to Israel. For their part, the Israelites must destroy the Canaanite holy
places and shun idolatry.
God speaks to Moses about Shabbat and the three pilgrimage festivals,
including “the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year.”
After 40 days, Moses descends the mountain with the second set of tablets.
The maftir reading describes the offerings that were to be brought to the Temple
on Sukkot.
1. A Temporary Dwelling
You shall live in booths seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in booths.
(Vayikra 23:42)
A. Throughout the seven days a person must make his sukkah his principal
abode and his house a temporary dwelling. (Mishnah Sukkah 2:9)
B. Another reason may be that it should remind us of our forefathers’ long
wanderings in the depths of the desert, when at every halting-place they
spent many a year in tents. And indeed it is well in wealth to remember
your poverty, in distinction your insignificance, in high offices your
position as a commoner, in peace your dangers in war, on land the
storms on sea, in cities the life of loneliness. For there is no pleasure
greater than in high prosperity to call to mind old misfortunes. But
besides giving pleasure, it is a considerable help to the practice of virtue.
For people who, having had both good and ill before their eyes, have
rejected the ill and are enjoying the good necessarily fall into a grateful
frame of mind and are urged to piety by the fear of a change to the
reverse, and also therefore in thankfulness for their present blessings
they honor God with songs and words of praise and beseech Him and
propitiate Him with supplications that they may never repeat the
experience of such evils. (Philo of Alexandria, 20 BCE-50 CE, Egypt)
C. Why do I command you to do this?... Do not say in your hearts, “My own
power and the might of my own hand have won this wealth for me.
Remember that it is the Lord your God who gives you the power to get
wealth” (Devarim 8:17-18). Therefore, the people leave houses filled with
good at the harvest season and they dwell in sukkot as a reminder that
they had no property in the desert or homes to inhabit. This is why God
designated Sukkot at the harvest season, so that a person’s heart should
not grow haughty because of houses filled with everything good, lest they
say: “Our hands made all of this wealth for us.” (Rashbam [Rabbi Shmuel
ben Meir, 1080-1158, France, grandson of Rashi])
D. When the sages said in the tractate of Sukkah: “Go out from your
permanent dwellings and live in a temporary dwelling,” they meant that
the commandment to dwell in the sukkah teaches us that a man must not
put his trust in the size or strength or conveniences of his house, even
though it be filled with the best of everything; nor should he rely upon the
help of any man, even though he be the lord of the land. But let him put
his trust in Him whose word called the universe into being, for He alone
is mighty and faithful, and He does not retract what He promises.
(Menorat Hama’or [Rabbi Isaac Aboab, 14th century, Spain])
What do you experience when sitting in the sukkah – vulnerability, gratitude,

humility, faith? Why? Does it make you more conscious of those who are less
fortunate? Does it increase your concern for the environment? How might the
experience of Sukkot spur people to action?
You shall rejoice in your festival... you shall have nothing but joy. (Devarim
16:14-15)
A. The expression of rejoicing occurs three times in connection with Sukkot:

“You shall rejoice in your festival” (Devarim 16:14), “you shall have
nothing but joy” (Devarim 16:15), and “you shall rejoice before the Lord
your God seven days” (Vayikra 23:40). But no such expression occurs
even once regarding Pesah. This is because the fate of man’s crops is
still in the balance on Pesah, and he does not know whether there will be
a yield or not. Similarly, on Shavuot, only one expression of rejoicing is
mentioned... This is because the grain has already been harvested and
gathered in the barn. Two expressions of rejoicing are not mentioned
because the fruit of the trees has not yet been picked and their fate is still
in the balance. On Sukkot, however... when both the grain and fruit are
already stored inside, three expressions of rejoicing are justified. (Yalkut
Shimoni)
B. Another interpretation of akh sameah [“nothing but joy,” understood as a
limitation]: A person rejoices in this world. The festival comes, and he
takes himself meat to cook in his home, to rejoice on the holiday. No
sooner has he done so, he sits down to eat and begins serving each
person, when one of his sons says, “My brother received a bigger portion
than I,” and he finds himself saddened even in the midst of his rejoicing.
But in the World to Come, the food will cook in the pots and people will
see it and their souls will rejoice. (Pesikta de-Rav Kahana)
C. Why do we read Kohelet on Sukkot? Because it is “the season of our
rejoicing.” Perhaps you will say that rejoicing means meat and wine;
therefore we read Kohelet who says “utter futility” to all the pleasures of
this world. We find that the essence of this rejoicing is that we know that
the concerns of this world are “utter futility.” (Rabbi Hanoch of
Aleksander, 1798-1870, Poland)
D. “On the 15th day of the seventh month” (Vayikra 23:34), of just this
month, the first day of which was a Day of Loud Blasts, a day of
shatteringly shaking us up out of ways of life displeasing to God, and
whose 10th day made us appear before God, “poor” in every justification
for further living and working, the 15th of just this month brings to us, as
the fruit of the atonement obtained on the 10th, the Festival of the
building of our homes on earth in full trust in God, and the “taking” of the
produce of the earth to gain the joy of living and working in happiness
before God. Our past has made us lose the right to “living and doing,”
Yom Kippur has eradicated this past, Sukkot sets us up afresh in living
and doing on earth to achieve the highest earthly possession: joy and
happiness before God.
One day for the Teru’ah (loud blasts) mood, one day for the atonement
fasting, but seven days, a whole cycle of days, for the joyful building of
our huts and for enjoying our possessions before God. This is what is
most characteristic of the Jewish Torah of Truth, which teaches that the
normal mood of one’s life to be not the bowed-down broken feeling, but
the erect happy joy of life that runs equally throughout the year of a life
faithfully devoted to duty. (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888,
Germany)
Sukkot is a time for rejoicing. Why? Is the source of our joy material, spiritual, or
both? Rabbi Hirsch says that the Torah teaches us that joy should be “the
normal mood of one’s life.” Do you agree? How do we learn to live a life of
normal joy?

Torah Sparks 5768

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PARASHAT BERESHEIT - BIRKAT HAHODESH

October 6, 2007 – 24 Tishrei 5768

Annual: Genesis 1:1 – 6:8 (Etz Hayim, p. 3; Hertz p. 2)

Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Torah Portion Summary

1. Does "Torah" Mean "Law"?

Sparks for Discussion

2. The First Shabbat

Sparks for Discussion

Annual: Genesis 6:9-11:32 (Etz Hayim, p. 41; Hertz p. 26)

Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Torah Portion Summary

Pervasive human wickedness causes God to despair of His creation and to

1. And God Repented That He Had Made Man

A. Hamas is variously translated as “lawlessness” (Etz Hayim), “violence”

Sparks for Discussion

2. Silence is the Equivalent of Agreement

A. The entire flood episode was a direct result of Noah’s behavior.

Sparks for Discussion

Today we are often asked to attend rallies or to write to newspapers and

Annual: Genesis 12:1-17:27 (Etz Hayim, p. 69; Hertz p. 45)

Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Torah Portion Summary

A. In the previous parashah, dealing with Noah, the Torah begins by

Sparks for Discussion

The notion of chosenness makes many contemporary Jews uncomfortable. It

Sparks for Discussion

We think of peer pressure in connection with teen-agers who engage in foolish

Annual: Genesis 18:1 - 22:24 (Etz Hayim, p. 99; Hertz p. 63)

Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Torah Portion Summary

1. To Serve God and Man

Sparks for Discussion

2. Life is Not Fair

Sparks for Discussion

When misfortune strikes – serious illness, financial setbacks, the loss of

Annual: Genesis 23:1 -- 25:18 (Etz Hayim, p. 127; Hertz p. 80)

Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Torah Portion Summary

1. Count Your Blessings

Sparks for Discussion

Which explanation of Abraham’s blessings do you prefer? How do you define

2. Intermarriage and the Jewish Future

Sparks for Discussion

Annual: Genesis 25:19-28:9 (Etz Hayim, p. 146; Hertz p. 93)

Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Torah Portion Summary

Sparks for Discussion

2. Why the Jews

Sparks for Discussion

Annual: Genesis 28:10-32:3 (Etz Hayim, p. 166; Hertz p. 106)

Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Torah Portion Summary

1. Let's Make a Deal

Sparks for Discussion

2. Be Fruitful and Multiply

Sparks for Discussion

Many of our synagogues place great emphasis on pre-schools, religious

[This section presents examples of Conservative Jewish practice and their

Annual: Genesis 32:4-36:43 (Etz Hayim, p. 198; Hertz p. 122)

Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark

Torah Portion Summary

Returning to Canaan after 20 years away, Jacob nervously prepares for a

Sparks for Discussion