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Have you heard the news? We started a new blog! Come check us out on our new Facebook page ModPop Torah or on our brand new website!

We can't wait to share this new adventure with you!

2/20/2020

Very exciting things are happening behind the scenes! Keep your eyes peeled for our new project coming soon in 2020!

B'chukotai - Jeremiah 16:19 - 17:14

Welcome back HawkTorah peoples! We apologize for our two-week hiatus - Amanda graduated from the University of Hartford and had a lot to do when she got home! Despite this absence, we are here to wrap up this year’s posts. Don’t be too sad yet - we’ll be back soon with an exciting surprise! In the meantime, this week we read B’chukotai in the Torah, so our Haftarah is Jeremiah 16:19 - 17:14

A line that we find particularly interesting reads, “I, the Lord, search the heart, test the kidneys, to give everyone according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds” (17:10). On the surface, it can seem pretty weird for G-d to search our organs to find things to give us. However, to us, this line is about G-d searching our hearts for our unsaid prayers. The prayers that are made by our actions and what we do in our lives are the ones that G-d wants to answer most. When we work for what we want, G-d will give us the extra push to make it happen. G-d will also make it come at the right time. Think about it, the longer it takes for your dream to come true, the more you want it and the more you work for it. So, dreamers, work hard for what you want and know that G-d is on your side. Just sprinkle in a little faith and you can take on the world.

“So long, farewell to you my friend. Goodbye, for now, until we meet again.” 100 points to whoever guesses where this is from. On a more serious note, it is with heavy hearts that we say goodbye to HawkTorah. When we first started this journey, we didn’t really know what we were doing, we just knew we wanted to find a creative way to bring the Torah to our peers. Thus, HawkTorah was born! Three years later, and here we are. A couple of college grads ready to take on the world (well, sort of). HawkTorah allowed us to explore Judaism and the Torah in a way we never had before. We have learned so much, and we hope you did too. Not only did HawkTorah teach us so much, but it brought us closer together.

This isn’t a goodbye, so don’t get too sad. It’s more of a see you later. We’re going to take this summer to get some much needed rest and relaxation….well as much as we can get in between work and developing our new SUPER SECRET project. That’s right folks, you can’t get rid of us that easy. We’ve got a few more tricks up our sleeves, lessons to teach, and pop culture to obsess over.

Love,

Amanda & Marissa

The Goodbye Song:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0SUEMGZU04

#haftarah #Haftarah portion #Judaism #Jeremiah #Goodbye #Out of the Box

Amos 9:7-15

Welcome back HawkTorah peoples! We hope you are doing well. For those of you taking finals, we hope they’ve been going great so far and that they go well in the coming days! Only a few more days! (And about a week and a half until graduation!)

This week is parshat Kedoshim so we are reading Amos 9:7-15. This portion gives us hope for a future of the Jewish people. One line (9), in particular, interests us: “But, I will not wholly wipe out the House of Jacob - declares the Lord. For I will give the order and shake the House of Israel through all the nations - as one shakes [sand] in a sieve, and not a pebble falls to the ground.” This line is also translated as, “For, behold I command, and I will scatter the House of Israel among all the nations; as it is shaken in a sieve, and not a coarse particle falls to the earth.”

In this portion we are promised that our people will spread throughout the earth. The portion goes on later to say that we will be restored and will rebuild ruined cities, plant vineyards, and till gardens and thrive. The portion ends with, “And I will plant them upon their soil, nevermore to be uprooted from the soil I have given them - said the Lord your G-d.”

Not only are we promised that we will spread throughout the earth, but that we will thrive and never be destroyed again. We have been attacked time after time, but each time we rise up stronger than before. This is most recently exemplified by the response to the events in Pittsburgh, Poway, and in Israel. Those who oppose us have tried to kill us, but we stand up against hate and grow stronger. We are all united, no matter where in the world we reside, and when we are united as one, we are harder to destroy. A lesson we can take from Amos is that we are all one and we should all unite against those who try to hurt us.

We will leave you with this quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, “Jews cannot fight antisemitism alone. The victim cannot cure the crime. The hated cannot cure the hate. It would be the greatest mistake for Jews to believe that they can fight it alone. The only people who can successfully combat antisemitism are those active in the cultures that harbour it.” (Future Tense pp. 108-109)

We’d also like to share this beautiful song by Jacob Spike Kraus that speaks to the idea of us all being united no matter where we are: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KK99wN9Oer4

Love,

Amanda & Marissa

#hawktorah #jewish #Torah #clay #united

Yom HaShoah 5779

Welcome back to another week of HawkTorah. We’ve missed you these last couple of weeks. Today is Yom HaShoah, the day the Jews remember those who were murdered in the Holocaust. Instead of writing about this week’s portion, we did some research and found two pieces of poetry that spoke to us and we decided to share.

Hannah Szenes was a Jewish parachutist who helped to rescue Hungarian Jews in Yugoslavia who were going to be deported to Auschwitz. Attached is a poem she wrote that we find particularly meaningful.

Y’all also know how much we love Six13, so here is their setting of Psalm 23: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bezjJbBkWkg

And here is Debbie Friedman’s setting of the same words: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OCIvJWXCNw

We hope you find time for a moment of silence for those who were murdered for being who they were and find the inspiration to fight to make sure this never happens again.

Love,

Amanda & Marissa

#yom hashoah #holocaust #hannah senesh #hannah szenes #alexander kimel #poems #poetry #psalm 23

Passover episode of Rugrats and chill?

Feeling those Passover blues? Check out these tweets to give you a much-needed laugh!

#twitter

Sorry we’ve been so quiet on here....

but we’ve been wicked active over on our Facebook so head over there to catch up with our Passover shenanigans!

Metzorah - Malachi 3:4-24

Hello HawkTorah peoples! This week is Shabbat HaGadol - the Shabbat before Passover!

For this momentous occasion we read Malachi 3:4-24 and we want to focus on the last couple of verses. Verses 23 and 24 read, “Lo, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before the coming of the awesome, fearful day of the Lord. He shall reconcile parents with children and children with their parents, so that, when I come, I do not strike the whole land with utter destruction” (JPS). So, Elijah will come to tell us when the Messiah is coming and will help us prepare for that day and reconcile the generations so that G-d won’t smite us. This is so awesome and makes this portion very powerful and can give us some reassurance that this day will come. However, we want to challenge ourselves, and you. Don’t wait around for Elijah to come and fix everything wrong with the world. Don’t wait for Elijah to fix our relationships with one another and with the Earth. Do it yourself and start now. Humans are capable of so many beautiful things and we can help ourselves so when the “fearful day” comes, we are prepared all on our own.

“I don't wanna be like Cinderella sittin' in a dark old dusty cellar, waiting for somebody, to come and set me free.” i5, Play, Tata Young, The Cheetah Girls, and many others have sung these lyrics and empowered people everywhere. I mean, who hasn’t danced around the room singing “Cinderella” at the top of their lungs? The song calls out two famous Disney princesses out for not taking their lives into their own hands, Cinderella and Snow White. This week, we’re focusing on Cinderella.

Hopefully, we all know the famous rags to riches story so I won’t go too in-depth with the summary. Cinderella waited on her stepfamily hand and foot and spent years in this emotionally abusive relationship. She didn’t stand up for herself, she just allowed herself to be walked all over. She wanted to go to the ball but didn’t make an effort to try and go. It wasn’t until she got outside help from her fairy godmother that she even considered going. She was the one who gave Cinderella a new dress and a carriage and the whole nine yards which then convinced her to go. Then, at the end of the movie, Cinderella is locked in the attic by her step-mother to prevent her from getting with the prince. She just sits there and cries. If it weren’t for her animal friends, she probably would still be sitting there. In fact, her animal friends helped her a whole lot throughout this movie. Cinderella just didn’t take matters into her own hands.

And then there’s the other side of the coin. In the film Moana, Moana is a young princess who saves her island. Her island is slowly dying, and she is the one who is determined to go off and save it. She goes on this whole adventure across the ocean. She faces many challenges and foes along the way. It isn’t smooth sailing, quite literally. She has to work her butt off and learn new skills in order to succeed. Yes, she has some help along the way from the other characters, but ultimately she is the driving force in this adventure.

We could spend our days sitting around twiddling our thumbs waiting for someone to come and help us solve our problems or we can take control of our own lives. We aren’t damsels in distress. We are strong warriors ready to take life by the horns. Go out and work for what you want, because waiting on someone else is just wasting your time.

Stay empowered and we’ll see y’all next time for some special Passover fun!

Amanda & Marissa

Here’s the song:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jro6PwOThk4

#Malachi #Torah Study #Hatarah #Judaism #Cinderella #Moana #Hercules #damsel in distress

Tazria - Ezekiel 45:16-25 & Isaiah 66:1, 23

Hello HawkTorah peoples! Welcome back to another exciting week. This week is actually pretty exciting because it’s Rosh Chodesh for the month of Nisan and Passover is only about two weeks away! This week we read Ezekiel 45:16-25 and add Isaiah 66:1 & 23 for Rosh Chodesh.

Ezekiel talks about the burnt offerings that are to be given to the temple to purify and cleanse the Sanctuary. In this case, the offering is a “bull of the herd without blemish” (Eze. 45:18). This is a common theme throughout the Hebrew Bible. We are constantly reminded that we must cleanse the Sanctuary with some sort of animal that has no imperfections. We’re here to challenge that. In its most basic form, we understand why it is necessary for us to use an animal without blemish. How does it apply today? We don’t cleanse our Sanctuaries with these unblemished creatures. I mean, we clean the Sanctuary maybe with a vacuum and Swiffer duster, but I haven’t seen any animal sacrifices. While this new practice is probably because we’ve outlawed animal sacrifice, we can also see it as a way to invite our imperfect selves into the Sanctuary. We are no longer required to be completely pure to pray. In fact, nowadays we bring our imperfect selves to services, to service projects, and to other temple and Jewish related activities to help us become pure. Instead of being perfect in order to pray or participate, we can pray or participate to work towards perfection. The world today is full of characteristics that people once thought of as impure or imperfect but are now considered beautiful. Instead of requiring perfection upon entrance, let’s advocate for entrance to be the first step to perfection.

“They have a face only a mother could love.” How many times have you heard this expression? But, what if their own mother was ashamed of their face? For Penelope Wilhern, that was her reality. The 2006 movie “Penelope” tells the story of miss Penelope Wilhern (Christina Ricci). After a series of events that happened to one of Penelope’s relatives generations ago, a curse was put on her family by a witch. According to the curse, the next female born to the wealthy Wilhern family would be born with the face of a pig. After five generations of sons, guess who was the next female born to this cursed family? Penelope.

Ashamed of her child, Penelope’s parents keep her in hiding. They never let the press take a picture of her. She doesn’t go to school. She just stays inside her home where no one else can see her. What a way to spend your childhood. I mean, going through puberty is tough enough, but can you imagine what it must have been like for Penelope? Especially when the people who are supposed to love you unconditionally are so blatantly ashamed of you. What’s worse is it’s something you can’t control. There is a way to break the curse, however, if “one of your own kind” learns to love her, then the curse will be lifted. Penelope’s parents interpret this as her marrying another noble man, and thus the matchmaking begins. I won’t go into too much more detail because I don’t want to spoil the movie for y’all. Seriously though, it’s one of my (Marissa’s) favorites and Amanda and I both enjoy this movie.

Anyway, Penelope’s parents set up this weird matchmaking thing involving one of those police mirrors. You know, the ones where you can see through one side but the other is just a mirror? And well, Penelope just isn’t having it. They put in this mirror because every time she shows a potential suitor her face, they freak out and run off. And then, the family has to chase them down and make them sign a legal document basically telling them they can’t say anything about Penelope’s face to anyone.

So lots of stuff happens and there’s some love stuff involved because duh it’s a rom-com, but we aren’t talking about that today. What we are going to talk about is Penelope. She spends her whole life being told to be ashamed of what she looked like. She was taught that it’s not normal and just plain icky. Imagine growing up like that? How can you gain any self-esteem in a household like that? It isn’t until Penelope takes her life in her own hands that she learns to love herself. She lets go of all of the bad things her parents told her. She learns to trust people. She learns to love herself.

What we learn from Penelope’s story is that it’s okay to be different. Our differences make us unique. They make us special. They make us...well, us. There is nothing wrong with blemishes and imperfections. Our society today tells us otherwise and instead of teaching us how to love ourselves, it tells us how to fix ourselves to fit this societal standard of beauty. It’s downright awful. We need to learn to love ourselves and prove these societal standards wrong. It’s time we make a few changes around here.

Until next time,

Amanda & Marissa

#haftarah #Haftarah portion #judaism #torah study #ezekiel #Isaiah #Penelope #beauty standards

Shemini - Ezekiel 36:22-36

Hello HawkTorah peoples and welcome back to another exciting week of HawkTorah! Sorry we missed you last week, we figured we’d take a little break since it was UHart’s Spring Break! This week we read Ezekiel 36:22-36.

This week’s Torah portion is about the Red Heifer whose ashes were combined with water to ritually purify those who came into contact with a dead body. Cleansing had to take place because only pure people could eat of the Passover sacrifice, and the Israelites were about to make the Passover pilgrimage to Jerusalem. This haftarah portion also deals with the issue of being cleansed from impurity - in this case, of human sinfulness.

G-d says, “I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean: I will cleanse you from all your uncleanness and from all your fetishes. And I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit into you: I will remove the heart of stone from your body and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:25-26). This is yet another example of how G-d has forgiven the Israelites of their transgressions and has renewed them. Passover is a time of redemption and self-renewal. However, will self-renewal comes integrity and taking responsibility for one’s actions. G-d has been there to purify us and renew us time and again. Every year we repent for our sins and hope to be written in the Book of Life at Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. This process of repenting requires us to recognize our wrongdoings and plan to change our behavior. While G-d has been there throughout the Bible to clean up our messes, we also have to fix our behavior to prevent any messes from forming in the first place and to clean up our own messes. People and God will be there for us, but there comes a time when we need to take personal responsibility for bettering ourselves.

What happens when your kids are out of control and you’re just a single dad trying to support his family? You hire a nanny. But, what happens when your children scare away 17 nannies? You bring out the big guns, Nanny McPhee.

This 2005 film tells the story of widow Cedric Brown (played by fan favorite Colin Firth) and his 7 children. They constantly act out and scare away every nanny that is sent for them. Enter Nanny McPhee (played by the wonderful Emma Thompson). She is, by society’s beauty standards, not the best looking woman. However, she straightens up the children with a firm hand...and a little magic.

There’s lots more to the plot, but we’re just going to focus on the children this week. They’re used to getting away with whatever they want. They’re presumably acting out over the loss of their mother, and this is just how they’re dealing with this new stage in their life. However, that doesn’t justify their actions. They constantly fight one another, they don’t go to bed on time, they pull pranks on others, and that’s only the tip of the iceberg. They need someone to help straighten them out and show them that this kind of behavior isn’t okay. Nanny McPhee does just that, but better.

Remember, this week we’re learning all about how to not rely on others to clean up our messes. So, Nanny McPhee doesn’t just fix all of their problems and gives them a little pat on the wrist when they do something wrong. In one scene, a group of kids are fighting. Nanny McPhee uses her magic to make the kids fight themselves instead of each other (i.e. pull their own hair instead of someone else’s). This will only stop if the kids apologize to each other and promise to stop fighting. After a while, they give in. In another scene, she tried to reform their poor bedtime habits. The kids are notorious for not going to bed when they are supposed to. So, how does Nanny McPhee fix this problem? She makes it so the children are unable to get out of bed. She’s firm, but her methods work.

This continues for the movie. The kids learn that there are consequences for their actions. But most importantly, they learn how to correct their own behaviors. They start acting like well-behaved kids. Nanny McPhee made sure they understood her lessons so they can continue this good behavior when she’s gone. Because one of her final lessons is that she’s not going to be around to clean up all of their messes. They need to learn to do that for themselves.

Shabbat Shalom y’all,

Amanda & Marissa

#Haftarah portion #ezekiel #Judaism #Torah Study #Nanny McPhee

Vayikra/Shabbat Zachor - I Samuel 15:2-34

Hello and welcome back HawkTorah peoples! We hope your week has been fabulous and that you’re getting ready for a relaxing Shabbat. This week is super fun because it is Shabbat Zachor! Shabbat Zachor is the Shabbat right before Purim. With that, did you know that Purim starts at sundown next Wednesday, March 20th? If you did, I’m sure you already have your costume picked out. If not, well… you better get to it! This week we read I Samuel 15:2-34 which is all about Amalek and the Amalekites.

After the Jews escaped Egypt and crossed the Red Sea they stopped to rest in the Rephidim, a barren area in the Sinai Desert. The Amalekites attacked the Israelites as they were resting for no apparent reason. Since then, we have been commanded to remember the Amalekites. In particular, we use Purim as a time to hear this story again and to take the time to remember what they did to us. How does this relate to Purim? Well, Haman (boooo) is actually a descendant of King Agag who was involved in that original attack and spared by King Saul. So, these two stories are very connected.

We are commanded to remember the Amalekites and what they did to us. Why remember such a terrible event in our past? To prevent recurrence, of course. This goes for everything else in our lives. It’s perfectly fine to forgive someone who wronged you and move on, but you should always keep their actions in the back of your mind. That way, if it happens again, you can try and prevent the same hurt you felt before. With that, you should not let what happened in the past completely control your future. Do not let a serious car accident prevent you from driving forever and do not let one bad relationship or friendship prevent you from forming others. Pay attention to the Amalek level evil, and do not let that evil take over again like it did in these stories.

This week, we’re going to talk about one of Pixar’s newest films, Coco. Coco tells the story of Miguel and his family and revolves around the Mexican holiday Day of the Dead. Miguel’s great-great-grandmother Imelda was abandoned by her husband to pursue a career in music. Heartbroken, she banned music from her life.

She starts up a shoemaking business and supports her 3-year old daughter Coco on her own. The business is passed down from generation to generation, and so was the ban on music. This becomes a problem, for Miguel has a passion for music. He dreams of being a famous musician like his hero Ernesto de la Cruz.

For the rest of the movie, Miguel goes on a journey of self-discovery. He learns about himself and his values. In addition, this is a movie that focuses on family. Miguel and his family have their differences, and it is these differences that almost drove them apart. That is all I’ll say about the plot because I don’t want to spoil anything. Seriously, if you haven’t seen Coco you must watch it. It is an amazing movie with wonderful animation, a captivating plot, and a heartwarming message.

Imagine, something like music being the thing to tear your family apart. Listen, what Imelda went through was horrible, and if that is what she needed to do to heal from the immense heartbreak, then so be it. However, passing down that fear from generation to generation, it’s a little extreme. It’s okay to be cautious, it’s okay to remember the things that hurt you so you can learn from it. But don’t be overly cautious. Don’t live a life of fear.

Shabbat Shalom y’all,

Amanda & Marissa

P.S. Happy Purim!

#Torah #Haftarah #Judaism #Torah Study #Purim #Coco #Family

Pekudei - I Kings 7:51-8:21

Welcome back HawkTorah peoples! We hope your week is going well. Also, Happy Rosh Chodesh! This week’s portion, Pekudei is the first for II Adar - a month we only have in leap years. This portion just so happens to be Amanda’s Bat Mitzvah portion, so it has special meaning. With that, we have a d’var Torah to share with you that we found particularly interesting and meaningful for parshat Pekudei written by Rabbi Beth Kalisch of Beth David Reform Congregation in Pennsylvania. We hope you find it meaningful and enjoyable.

https://reformjudaism.org/learning/torah-study/pkudei/wholeness-found-little-details

Until next time,

Amanda & Marissa

#Haftarah #Judaism #torah study #torah

Vayakhel - II Kings 12:5-16

Hello HawkTorah peoples! This Jewish year is pretty exciting - it’s a leap year!! This means we add an entire extra month to the calendar. This week is one of those that’s affected by this leap year. Every non-leap year we read Vayakhel and Pekudei on one week, but this year we split them up! With that, this week we read Vayakhel with an associated haftarah portion of II Kings 12:5-16.

In this portion we come across Jehoash who discovered that the donations that the priests were collecting for the repairs to the Temple. When he discovers this, he creates a tzedakah box by placing a hole in the top of a chest so people can put their donations directly in there. Only two people are allowed to count the money and the directions for what types of donations go to what causes are very specific. We can learn a couple of things from this. First, be careful who you hand your donations over to. Make sure that when you are donating money to an organization the money is going to a charity that will actually use the money for good instead of paying its CEOs.

Second, and we learn this in the Torah portion Vayakhel, not all donations have to be monetary. Yes, it is wonderful when you give with a willing heart, but it’s equally as wonderful, if not more, to give of your time to help a cause. The Israelites donated money, time, and goods to the construction and rebuilding of the Temple. When they did this, they became a part of a strong community and built love between them. Donating your money, time, hard work and love all help contribute to a better society and community. So, be cautious of who you give to, but do not be so cautious that you do not give anything. Whether it be money, time, or labor, donate what you can and you’ll feel connected to others who do the same.

“Dragonzord! Mastodon! Pterodactyl! Triceratops! Saber-Toothed Tiger! Tyrannosaurus!" That’s right y’all, it’s morphin time!

This week we’re headed to sunny Angel Grove to talk about the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. If you know me (Marissa), you know I’ve been obsessed with Power Rangers since I was a kid. I started casually rewatching the show a few years ago, starting at the beginning with the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. I took a break but recently have been bingeing it, and once I saw this portion I knew this gang would be the perfect people to talk about this week.

This group of “teenagers with attitude” was hand picked to become rangers, not because of their physical strengths, but because of what was on the inside. They are kind and just and true, they put others before themselves. They are the perfect ones to save the world. And save the world (or at least Angel Grove) they do, time and time again. They make sure that their community is safe from danger, which, in a way, is a form of tzedakah if you think about it. They are performing selfless acts to better their community.

But, that’s not what we’re talking about today. We aren’t talking about the “Power Rangers”, we’re talking about Zack, Trini, Billy, Kimberly, Jason, and Tommy...oh and later on Rocky, Aisha, and Adam. They prove that you don’t need to have powers to be heroes. The fact that they do have powers, is just a bonus. This crew proves time and time again that they love their community and are constantly volunteering to help in many different ways.

A lot of the characters are trained in martial arts, and are really stinking good. They take the time to teach classes and mentor the local children. They not only teach them techniques, but the importance of discipline, never giving up, to believe in yourself, and to add your own little flair to things.

In one episode, the teens of the town organize a Halloween volunteer program. The teens volunteered to bring groups of kids safely trick or treating. It was organized by the teens, including the power rangers, and was a big success.

In one of the holiday specials, Aisha and Kimberly help organize a Holiday Pageant which includes a children’s concert. They work with the kids to get them ready.

Kimberly even helps a little girl who is feeling down because she wishes her dad would spend some more time with her.

The power rangers even go to the north pole in this episode to help Santa and the elves defeat some evil aliens (as weird as that sentence sound, the only abnormal part of it is Santa and the elves believe it or not). The rangers even get to bring back a sack of toys for the kids at the pageant.

Before I wrap things up, there are a few honorable mentions I want to talk about. Bulk and Skull. These two started out as stereotypical bullies, but they didn’t end up that way. In the third season, the two decide to become junior police officers (to impress girls).

This pair of unlikely do-gooders put their all into trying to impress their boss and keep their community safe. They run in to try and save a group of kids who they thought were drowning...who were actually just faking. They helped get Kimberly’s car back from a car thief. Also, in the Christmas episode, while the rangers were with Santa, Bulk and Skull dressed up as a reindeer and Santa for the kids and ended up loving it.

It doesn’t take a power ranger to be a hero. By being kind and lending a helping hand, you can make a big difference in your community. Tzedakah isn’t just giving money, it’s also giving donated goods or time to help others. This week, try and do some good.

See y’all next week!

Amanda & Marissa

#Haftarah #Haftarah portion #mighty morphin power rangers #Power Rangers #Tzedakah #Judaism #Torah #Torah Study

Ki Tisa - I Kings 18:20-39

This week we read I Kings 18:20-39. In this portion Elijah rebukes the people of Israel for hopping back and forth between which god to believe in stating, "How long will you hop between two ideas? If the L-rd is G‑d, go after Him, and if the Baal, go after him." The portion goes on and says, "Give us two bulls and let them [the Baal prophets] choose one bull for themselves and cut it up and place it on the wood, but fire they shall not put; and I will prepare one bull, and I will put it on the wood, and fire will I not place. And you will call in the name of your deity, and I will call in the name of the L-rd, and it will be the G‑d that will answer with fire, he is G‑d." The people felt like they were stuck between a rock and a hard place - unable to decide which to follow. In this case, divine intervention decided for them.

Sometimes we need to be the ones to decide for ourselves from our own reasoning. Other times something could happen that convinces us to believe one thing or another. If you come across a difficult decision, take a step back and think about it for a little. Weigh your options. If waiting to see if something happens that could sway you is what you want, then go for it. If not, get advice from people you trust and make that decision. Either way, once you make the decision, you’ll feel better.

“I want to be where the people are, I want to see, want to see 'em dancin'.” That’s right folks, we’re traveling under the sea this week to hang out with our favorite little mermaid. Also, I’ll take any excuse to quote Part of Your World. It’s one of my absolute favorites and it has always been one of my (Marissa) go to songs to sing in the shower (Circle of Life being the other). Also I absolutely adore Jodi Benson (the voice of Ariel).

Ariel spends her life under the sea longing to live up on land. That feeling only intensifies after she meets (and saves) Prince Eric. She then does whatever it takes to get to land to be reunited with her prince. She sells her soul (well, mainly her voice) to the sea witch Ursula in order to sprout some legs. Thus begins her adventures gallivanting on land trying to get a kiss from her true love...who has no idea who she is or that she was the one who saved him.

By the end of all these adventures on land, (SPOILER) Ariel runs out of time and turns back into a mermaid. She helps save the day and is then faced with a big choice. Does she live out the rest of her life under the sea and forget about Prince Eric, or does she abandon her life under the sea and her family to follow her dreams and begin a new chapter of her life on land? Can you guess what Ariel chose? What would you choose?

Some people claim Ariel is foolish. She’s only 16 and claims to be in love with a stranger. While this may be true, there is so much more to Ariel. She is strong and determined. She knows what she wants and goes after it. She doesn’t let other hinder her confidence in herself. She’s a dreamer and a go-getter. Here is what Jodi Benson had to say about Ariel:

When you’re faced with a tough decision, don’t fret. You know what’s best for you, be like Ariel and follow your heart (and sometimes your head). Everything is a learning experience and a growth opportunity. It will all turn out okay in the end. If indecisive Marissa can make decisions, then you can too.

Love,

Amanda & Marissa

#Torah #Judaism #Torah Study #Kings #The Little Mermaid #Disney #Ariel #Jodi Benson #The Notebook #New Girl #Parks and Rec #decisons

Tetzaveh - Ezekiel 43:10-27

Hello HawkTorah peoples! Welcome back to another week of HawkTorah. This week’s Torah portion is Tetzaveh, whose accompanying Haftarah portion is Ezekiel 43:10-27. There’s a lot more talk about the specifics of the Temple, but we happened to find a pretty awesome lesson through all of those specifications.

This portion reads, “Now you, O mortal, describe the Temple to the House of Israel, and let them measure its design. But let them be ashamed of their iniquities: When they are ashamed of all they have done, make known to them the plan of the Temple and its layout, its exits and entrances - its entire plan, and all the laws and instructions pertaining to its entire plan.” This sounds pretty harsh, doesn’t it? If you can get past the harshness of it, there is actually a beautiful lesson to be learned. G-d tells Ezekiel to tell the people about the plans for the Temple only after they have realized their wrongdoings and have felt shame for those sins. G-d wants the people to learn from their mistakes so they can move on and build this beautiful Temple. We can learn from this that in order to go on to make something beautiful, meaningful, and good for everyone we must first learn to forgive others, realize what we have done wrong, and fix our ways. In order to move forward we must take a deep look at our actions and decide what we can fix in order to better ourselves and contribute to our communities and the world.

“December 24th, 9 pm Eastern Standard Time from here on in, I shoot without a script”. Any guesses where this is from? Go ahead, take a guess. We’ll wait. Did you guess? If you guessed RENT then you are right, and if you didn’t well...better luck next time. This week, our lesson reminded us of the hit Broadway musical RENT. It’s one of our favorites and we love any opportunity we get to talk about it.

For those who are unfamiliar with the show, here is a very, very, very brief synopsis. It is the story of a group of young adults living in New York during the AIDS epidemic. They are all connected one way or another, their lives and paths intertwining. It showcases the highs and lows of life.

Today, we’re going to focus on those highs and lows, but especially the lows. Life is messy, relationships are messy, and the relationships in this show are no exception. We have Mark and Maureen who we are introduced to as exes whose relationship recently ended. Maureen is now dating Joanne. Maureen also has a history of not being faithful which causes problems. There’s also the relationship between Roger and Mimi which runs hot and cold throughout the whole show. But don’t forget to add in the fact the Mimi is a junkie and Roger is a former junkie. Then there’s Benny. “What happened to Benny? What happened to his heart? And the ideals he once pursued…” Benny used to be roommates with Mark and Roger, but he seems to have forgotten where he came from which causes riffs in his relationships with his former friends. Things aren’t going great for these guys, and, as the show goes on, bridges get burnt.

But then things change. *SPOILERS* Angel dies and suddenly life is put into perspective a bit. It was said from the beginning that Angel has AIDS. But Angel is just a larger than life character, you would never think she’s going to die...and yet, she does.

And everyone is distraught. Even though they’ve been bickering and estranged, they come together. They push aside their differences because it is what Angel would have wanted.

But this isn’t the only time we see this. At the end of the movie *SPOILERS* Mimi is found near death. We just aren’t sure if she’s going to pull through. But, once again, everyone comes together to be by her side. We hold our breaths and hope. Will we have to sit through another death of a beloved character? And well, the other characters are wondering the same thing, if they’ll have to endure the death of another of their friends. Differences are once again put aside. All that matters is Mimi and making sure she makes it.

You can feel the love radiating off both of these scenes. Nothing that happened in the past matters anymore. Like they say in the show, “no day but today”. Don’t let the actions of the past keep you from moving forward and creating a better future.

Until next time,

Amanda & Marissa

#Ezekiel #haftarah #Haftarah portion #RENT #judaism #torah #torah study

Terumah - Kings I 5:26 - 6:13

Hello HawkTorah peoples! Welcome back to HawkTorah! We took a bit of a break for UHart’s winter break and then extended it a little bit so Amanda didn’t lose her mind during her student teaching.

Anyways, we’re back and we’re ready to learn. This week’s Torah portion is one of Amanda’s favorites, Terumah, whose accompanying Haftarah portion is I Kings 5:26-6:13.

This Haftarah portion details the manpower (both Jewish and non-Jewish) that was recruited to to help build the Tabernacle. While we ended up with a beautiful Tabernacle, the exact wording of the portion is, “King Solomon imposed forced labor on all Israel…” We don’t like this idea very much. There has been a long history all over the world, and especially in America, of someone in power forcing those not in power to do some sort of work. Slavery comes in all shapes and forms and is still occurring today. Whether it is obvious, outright slavery or less obvious forms of everyday oppression and abuse of privilege, it is all wrong and should cause us to question much like Marissa and I questioned this detail in I Kings. A beautiful end does not justify cruel means.

It’s good to be nice. We are told to treat others with kindness and respect. It’s something that both of us have taught the kids we work with countless times (If I had a nickel every time I told a kid to “use kind words”...). But, we don’t always talk about some of the potential consequences that can happen. Now, before we go any further, we aren’t telling you to NOT be nice, you should still do that. But, be careful. In this portion, people are forced to do things they might not have wanted to do in the first place. In our everyday life, if we aren’t too careful, people may take advantage of our kindness and push us around.

It’s hard to find the balance between wanting to be nice and to be there for others and putting yourself first. You want to help the people around you and be a kind person, but it’s okay to say no. In fact, it’s more than okay to say no. Self care is important. You know yourself better than anyone, and you know when enough is enough. Don’t let people take advantage of you. If there are people in your life who are walking all over you and making you do things you don’t want to do, ditch them. Cut them out of your life, they aren’t worthy enough to be a part of it.

See ya next week,

Amanda & Marissa

#Judaism #haftarah #Haftarah portion #kindness #full house #ludacris #starkid #a very potter musical

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