Numbers 24:5 מַה־טֹּ֥בוּ אֹהָלֶ֖יךָ יַעֲקֹ֑ב מִשְׁכְּנֹתֶ֖יךָ יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ How fair are your tents, O Jacob, Your dwellings, O Israel! One of the few compliments given to the Israelites as they wander the wilderness comes from the unusual character of the prophet Bilam. This prophet, not Jewish but dedicated to God, was hired by Balak to curse the Israelites. Upon seeing them…
Numbers 21:10 וַיִּסְע֖וּ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַֽיַּחֲנ֖וּ בְּאֹבֹֽת׃ The Israelites marched on and encamped at Oboth. When I drove from Los Angeles to Chattanooga three years ago I stopped at a few noteworthy places. Phoenix and New Orleans for example – these are famous cities, and my driving companion and I enjoyed our stops there tremendously. We also stayed in little…
Numbers 16:9 הַמְעַ֣ט מִכֶּ֗ם כִּֽי־הִבְדִּיל֩ אֱלֹהֵ֨י יִשְׂרָאֵ֤ל אֶתְכֶם֙ מֵעֲדַ֣ת יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל לְהַקְרִ֥יב אֶתְכֶ֖ם אֵלָ֑יו לַעֲבֹ֗ד אֶת־עֲבֹדַת֙ מִשְׁכַּ֣ן יְהֹוָ֔ה וְלַעֲמֹ֛ד לִפְנֵ֥י הָעֵדָ֖ה לְשָׁרְתָֽם׃ Is it not enough for you that the God of Israel has set you apart from the community of Israel and given you direct access to perform the duties of the Lord’s Tabernacle and to minister to the community…
Special edition of the Weekly Versewhile Rabbi Rotenberg is at Camp Ramah Darom (Pictured above: BZ campers Isaac, Meir, Della, Hazel, Eliza, Mirabelle, and Orly and Staff members Max, Rachel, and Levi) As I sit down to write this message, the clock ticks behind me – a reminder that Shabbat is coming in within the hour. The campers and staff have…
Special edition of the Weekly Versewhile Rabbi Rotenberg is at Camp Ramah Darom There were two incidents this past week that gave me pause. The first: Upon hearing the news about the successful rescue of four hostages, the mishlachat, Israeli emissaries and counselors, hosted a ceremony where a heart was put over their pictures in our camp library. There, every hostage…
Leviticus 26:3 אִם־בְּחֻקֹּתַ֖י תֵּלֵ֑כוּ וְאֶת־מִצְוֺתַ֣י תִּשְׁמְר֔וּ וַעֲשִׂיתֶ֖ם אֹתָֽם׃If you follow My laws and faithfully observe My commandments… Following this verse is a list of blessings if one follows the Torah, and curses if one does not. At first glance, one thing becomes clear. There are only a few blessings, as opposed to many, many curses. Torah, our Rabbis say, was written…
Leviticus 25:4 וּבַשָּׁנָ֣ה הַשְּׁבִיעִ֗ת שַׁבַּ֤ת שַׁבָּתוֹן֙ יִהְיֶ֣ה לָאָ֔רֶץ שַׁבָּ֖ת לַיהֹוָ֑ה שָֽׂדְךָ֙ לֹ֣א תִזְרָ֔ע וְכַרְמְךָ֖ לֹ֥א תִזְמֹֽר׃ But in the seventh year the land shall have a sabbath of complete rest, a sabbath of the Lord. You shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. According to the Torah, the land of Israel is worked for six years, and rests…
Leviticus 24:10 וַיֵּצֵא֙ בֶּן־אִשָּׁ֣ה יִשְׂרְאֵלִ֔ית וְהוּא֙ בֶּן־אִ֣ישׁ מִצְרִ֔י בְּת֖וֹךְ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַיִּנָּצוּ֙ בַּֽמַּחֲנֶ֔ה בֶּ֚ן הַיִּשְׂרְאֵלִ֔ית וְאִ֖ישׁ הַיִּשְׂרְאֵלִֽי׃ There came out among the Israelites a man whose mother was Israelite and whose father was Egyptian. And a fight broke out in the camp between him and a certain Israelite. While the Torah is sparse on details, the midrash fills in the…
Leviticus 18:5 וּשְׁמַרְתֶּ֤ם אֶת־חֻקֹּתַי֙ וְאֶת־מִשְׁפָּטַ֔י אֲשֶׁ֨ר יַעֲשֶׂ֥ה אֹתָ֛ם הָאָדָ֖ם וָחַ֣י בָּהֶ֑ם אֲנִ֖י יי׃ You shall keep My laws and My rules which a person will do and live in them, I am the Lord. My grandfather’s voice always wavered when he said kiddush. I can hear him chanting the words of that Friday night prayer from what must be a memory of over…
הָשַּׁתָּא עַבְדֵי, לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בְּנֵי חוֹרִין This year we are slaves, next year we will be free Last year we sat down at our seders and said these opening words, “This year we are slaves, next year we will be free.” Yet this year, a year later, we will begin the seder with these words again. In fact we begin…