The Torah portion, or parasha, this week is Lech Lecha and is found in Genesis 12:1-17:27. In this parasha, God calls Abram and tells him to leave his homeland and go to a land God will show him. There he will become a great nation and God will bless him. Abram, his wife Sarai, and his nephew Lot travel to Canaan. After […]
The Torah portion for this week is Noach and is found in Genesis 6:9-11:32. In this parashah, people have grown so corrupt that God decrees that He will destroy all of civilization with a flood. Noah – who has demonstrated moral stature for his generation – and his family are saved. Noah builds an ark according to God’s instructions […]
The Torah portion, or parasha, this week is for Sh’mini Atzeret and is found in Deuteronomy 14:22-16:17. In this parasha, Moses reminds the people of the importance of taking care of those who are in need, including those whose are fatherless or widowed, owed debts, are enslaved, or poor. The parasha then discusses the three Pilgrimage Festivals and the […]
The Torah portion, or parasha, this week is Ha’Azinu and is found in Deuteronomy 32:1-32:52. In this portion, Moses recites the poem God had instructed him to write down and teach to the people. This passage is often referred to as the Song of Moses, which is his last message to the people before he dies and Joshua […]
The Torah portion, or parasha, this week is a special one for Rosh HaShanah and is found in Genesis 21:1-34. In this parasha, God blesses Sarah even though she and Abraham are past child-bearing age and she gives birth to Isaac. When he was weaned, Sarah asked Abraham to send Hagar, the slave-woman and her son, […]
The Torah portion, or parasha, this week is Nitzavim-Vayelech and is found in Deuteronomy 29:9-31:30. It is the passage traditionally read before the High Holy Days and prompts us to reflect on our actions and choices. In this parasha, we hear Moses’ last message to the people. Moses reminds the people that they are entering into a covenant with God […]
The Torah portion, or parasha, this week is Ki Tavo and is found in Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8. In this parasha the people are reminded that, 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 […]
The Torah portion, or parasha, this week is Va’etchanan and is found in Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11. In this parasha, Moses continues his speech to the people, 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 again exhorts the people to study […]
The Torah portion, or parasha, this week is Matot-Masei and is found in Numbers 30:2-36:13. This torah portion first talks about vows made by women (vows made by men were addressed in an earlier Torah portion). If a women makes a vow but her father (while she is living at home and too young to leave) or her husband […]
The Torah portion, or parasha, this week is Pinchas and is found in Numbers 25:10-30:1. In this passage, we have two primary stories. In the first, Midianite women have entered the Israelite community to encourage the men to engage in idol worship and related sexual practices. God responds by sending a plague upon the people. Pinchas, the grandson of Aaron, stops […]