Parshat Vayeitzei: What’s in a Name?Genesis 22:14 וַתַּ֨הַר ע֜וֹד וַתֵּ֣לֶד בֵּ֗ן וַתֹּ֙אמֶר֙ הַפַּ֙עַם֙ אוֹדֶ֣ה אֶת־יְהֹוָ֔ה עַל־כֵּ֛ן קָרְאָ֥ה שְׁמ֖וֹ יְהוּדָ֑ה וַֽתַּעֲמֹ֖דמִלֶּֽדֶת׃ “She conceived again and bore a son, and declared, “This time I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she named him Judah. Then she stopped bearing.” A short lesson on why we are called Jews: After the twelve tribes of Israel conquered…
Parshat Toldot: FoodGenesis 27:4 וַעֲשֵׂה־לִ֨י מַטְעַמִּ֜ים כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר אָהַ֛בְתִּי וְהָבִ֥יאָה לִּ֖י וְאֹכֵ֑לָה בַּעֲב֛וּר תְּבָרֶכְךָ֥ נַפְשִׁ֖י בְּטֶ֥רֶם אָמֽוּת׃ “Prepare a dish for me such as I like, and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my innermost blessing before I die.” It should not be a surprise that Isaac needs to prepare before giving his innermost blessing…
Mazol Tov on the 80th Birthday of Steve SolomonJudy Richelson Mazal Tov on the Installation of Rabbi RotenbergHelen Pregulman In Appreciation of the B’nai Zion Social Action CommitteeElaine and Sanford Winer In Memory of Eric Richelson (con’td from October Contributions list)Michael and Jan Hanan In Memory of Lester Votava (cont. from October Contributions list) Board of Trustees- Family Promise of…
Winner of the 2020 Midwest Book Award in Autobiography/Memoir, The Color of Love is an unforgettable memoir about a mixed-race Jewish woman who, after fifteen years of estrangement from her racist great-aunt, helps bring her home when Alzheimer’s strikes. In 1970, three-day-old Marra B. Gad was adopted by a white Jewish family in Chicago. For her parents, it was love at first…
Parshat Chayei Sarah: Three Years Since Pittsburgh Genesis 24:67 וַיְבִאֶ֣הָ יִצְחָ֗ק הָאֹ֙הֱלָה֙ שָׂרָ֣ה אִמּ֔וֹ וַיִּקַּ֧ח אֶת־רִבְקָ֛ה וַתְּהִי־ל֥וֹ לְאִשָּׁ֖ה וַיֶּאֱהָבֶ֑הָ וַיִּנָּחֵ֥ם יִצְחָ֖ק אַחֲרֵ֥י אִמּֽוֹ׃ Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he took Rebecca as his wife. Isaac loved her, and thus found comfort after his mother’s death. When we lose someone tragically, the words comfort and peace…
Parshat Vayeira: Seeing is Believing Genesis 22:14 וַיִּקְרָ֧א אַבְרָהָ֛ם שֵֽׁם־הַמָּק֥וֹם הַה֖וּא יְהֹוָ֣ה ׀ יִרְאֶ֑ה אֲשֶׁר֙ יֵאָמֵ֣ר הַיּ֔וֹם בְּהַ֥ר יְהֹוָ֖ה יֵרָאֶֽה׃ And Abraham named that site “the Lord will see” which why it is said, On the mount of the LORD there is vision They say seeing is believing. This is true in more than one way: To be close to God means to see…
Parshat Lech Lecha: RoadblockGenesis 15:11 וַיֵּ֥רֶד הָעַ֖יִט עַל־הַפְּגָרִ֑ים וַיַּשֵּׁ֥ב אֹתָ֖ם אַבְרָֽם׃ Birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away At nearly 100 years old, Abraham is instructed to ritually sanctify the covenant between himself and God by sacrificing specific animals and laying out their flesh in a particular pattern. Abraham does so and prepares himself…
Parshat Noah: The Ark We’re InGenesis 8:16 צֵ֖א מִן־הַתֵּבָ֑ה אַתָּ֕ה וְאִשְׁתְּךָ֛ וּבָנֶ֥יךָ וּנְשֵֽׁי־בָנֶ֖יךָ אִתָּֽךְ׃ “Come out of the ark, together with your wife, your sons, and your sons’ wives” All of us have experienced the “ark” effect at some point this past year. It can be summed up like so: the world outside is dangerous, and here in my ark, I…
Parshat Bereshit: What’s Your Verse?Genesis 5:1 זֶ֣ה סֵ֔פֶר תּוֹלְדֹ֖ת אָדָ֑ם בְּי֗וֹם בְּרֹ֤א אֱלֹהִים֙ אָדָ֔ם בִּדְמ֥וּת אֱלֹהִ֖ים עָשָׂ֥ה אֹתֽוֹ׃ “This is the story of the generations of Adam. On the day God created Adam, God made him in the image of God.” If you had to choose one verse to describe the whole Torah, which would you choose? There is a debate…
Shabbat Sukkot: Put the Load Right On MeExodus 33:14 וַיֹּאמַ֑ר פָּנַ֥י יֵלֵ֖כוּ וַהֲנִחֹ֥תִי לָֽךְ׃ “And God said, I will go in the lead and will lighten your burden.” Being a human being is hard. Sure, there are good days. Still, we are guaranteed to experience pain, grief, and disappointment. We cannot prevent these from occurring, but we have a remedy…