It Remains a Dream (Ki Teitzi)
Fifty seven years ago today, Martin Luther King Jr. stood at the Lincoln Memorial, and delivered a speech that is indelibly woven into our ideals and our hopes.
But unfortunately, it *still* remains a dream.
What Does it Mean to be Free?
Tomorrow, we celebrate America’s independence; our freedom. Whereas July 4 is by no means a Jewish holiday, its themes of independence and freedom are central to Judaism.
The first time we are called Israelites is by the enslaving Pharoah. And so, our identity stems from the fact that we were slaves and then we became free.
At almost every prayer service, we celebrate our freedom when we sing Mi Chamocha, which recalls the climactic moment when the Israelites walked safely thorough the middle of the Red Sea.
But just what does it mean to be free?
Count Each Person. Each Person Counts.
This week’s Torah portion is a continuation of the first census. At the beginning of the book of Numbers, God says, Take a census of the whole Israelite community by the clans of its ancestral houses, listing the names, every male, head by head.
Several months ago, I was at a meeting of the Athens-Clarke County Census Complete Count Committee, and was asked to share a religious teaching that might connect to the then upcoming American Decennial Census. My mind immediately went to this verse.
In the summer
In the summer of 1992, I had just graduated High School. I was excited to start college as a music student at Florida State University (I transferred to UF after one year), but I was pretty nervous about living in the dorms. I knew about Camp Coleman because my cousin and some good friends went every summer, and I thought to myself that going there for a summer as a counselor would be a good experience before I transition to college.
After Death Comes Life
There are some people that know the Torah memorized. These individuals know where each verse begins and ends, and are aware of each and every trope. But even these individuals read the Torah portion every week, even though they know it completely; chapter and verse so to speak …
Yom HaShoah 2020
Earlier this morning, I was a guest on a radio show earlier this morning with a colleague and we talked about exactly this, faith during these times. I’ll hopefully have a link to share with the congregation in the next few days, but one thing I want to share from our conversation is that that both of us noted that attendance, albeit over the internet, is up. We are all craving spiritual and social connection with one another.
What day is Today?
What day is today?
I feel like that question has been asked more and more in these recent weeks. With kids staying home from school, and many adults working from home, it’s possible that there hasn’t been much to differentiate one day from another.
But Judaism teaches that our days are not the same. And tonight, I want to share two lessons from our Jewish calendar that reinforce this inspirational idea. It also so happens that both of them occur tonight and in the days ahead.
Hear One Another’s Prayers
This passage from the early part of Exodus suggests that God does indeed hear prayer. And God does not only listen. God reacts. God mentors a young shepherd named Moses. God performs 10 acts of miracle and might in the land of Egypt, culminating in the splitting of the mighty waters of the Red Sea. God frees the Israelites.
But, God frees the Israelites only after God has heard their prayer.
It is Time to Stop
And Moses gave commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, ‘Let neither man nor woman do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary.’ So the people were restrained from bringing. For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it.
It was time to stop.
Publicizing the Miracle of Judaism
A few weeks ago (in December), I was a participant in the Union for Reform Judaism’s Biennial Conference. During one of the sessions, the president…