Torah Talk with Rabbi Rosenthal

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A Shabbat for the Land

In this week’s parasha, Behar, God gives the Israelites some laws for farming the land of Israel. You might ask, why does God care about the Israelites’ farming practices? Aren’t there more important things for God to care about? God tells the Israelites to farm the land for 6 years, and on the 7th year to let the land lie fallow, which means they are not allowed to farm it in any way. In the 7th year the land gets to rest, it gets its own Shabbat, just like we humans get to rest every 7 days.

Why is it important for the land to rest every seven years? First, if you talk to a farmer, it is good agricultural practice. It allows nutrients in the soil to regenerate, leading to better growing conditions for the following years. More than that, I think it teaches us something important about our relationship to our natural resources.  It reminds us that our resources are not there just for taking and taking and taking, we have to give something back to. We have a responsibility to the land that includes giving it some rest from our constant need to take more and more from it. The land needs a Shabbat too.

 Some questions for discussion:

Why do you think the land needs a Shabbat every 7 years?

Can you think of other things in Judaism that come in cycles of 7?

Even if you aren’t a farmer, how will you take care of our natural resources?

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You and God and the Way You Act

In this week’s parasha, Emor, God tells the Israelites not to desecrate God’s name, which means not to do anything that would cause people to think badly of God. The reason that God gives is because God brought the Israelites out of Egypt to be a holy people, and God does not want them to bring shame on God or on each other. God gives the Israelites lots of instructions about how to live in a way that is in accordance with what God wants, so that they have the tools they need to live in a way that makes God proud.

The rabbis expand on this, with the idea that the way that Jews act in public can reflect well or badly on the whole Jewish people. This is something that we have seen throughout Jewish history, when people take the actions of only a few people to stand in for the actions of many. However, I think the more important point is that our actions have an impact on others, whether on God or on our fellow human beings. We are almost never doing something that affects only us, so we need to remember both the impact and the consequences of what we do.

 Some questions for discussion

Why do you think God reminds them about the Exodus from Egypt when God commands the people to be holy?

What kinds of actions do you think reflect well on God?

What are some things that you do that can have a positive impact on others or on God?

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49 Fun Facts about the Omer

We are in the period between Passover and Shavuot, the holiday that celebrates the giving of the Torah. During these seven weeks, the Torah instructs us to count the Omer. Every night, we add one night to our counting. It used to be a way of marking the days until the barley harvest, but these days the Omer is used as a spiritual practice to prepare ourselves for receiving the Torah. The reasoning goes that if the Torah is the greatest gift God ever gave the Jewish people, then we have a responsibility to prepare for that moment.

In the mystical tradition (known as Kabbalah), each day is connected to a specific attribute of personality, such as loving kindness and justice. The idea is that every day, we should focus on a specific aspect ourselves and try to improve ourselves in that area. In addition to the serious side of the Omer, there are lots of fun ways that people are reminded to count the Omer, such as this Simpson’s themed counter or the sports one below.

It is not hard to count the Omer. Each day you make the blessing and count up towards day number 49. The directions are here, on the URJ Website.

Some questions for discussion:

The Omer used to be about the harvest. Why do you think the rabbis connected it to the giving of the Torah?

Usually, when we are waiting for something, we count down the days. For the Omer, we count up, beginning with day 1 and then going to 49. Why do you think we count up instead of down?

How do you prepare for a momentous occasion?

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The Corners of Your Field

This week’s Torah portion is called Kedoshim, which means holiness. There are lots of rules listed that explain to the Israelites how they can be holy, just as God is holy. One of the pieces that jumps out at me in this parasha is the commandment that anyone who is harvesting food leave the corners of their field for the poor to take. In addition, if you drop something when you are harvesting, you are not allowed to pick it up and must leave that food for the poor as well.

You might think that this has nothing to do with you, since very few of us have fields that we harvest. However, if we look at the deeper meaning of the verses, we can find a connection. You might think that, as the farmer, the person is entitled to all of his crops. However, the Torah reminds us that God had a hand in growing the food, so the farmer has an obligation to share the crops with those who are less fortunate. Even if you are not a farmer, you can take this lesson to heart. When you have an abundance of something, find a way to leave it for those who have less.

 Some Questions for Discussion

Why do you think the Torah tells us to leave the corners of the field, rather than give it to the poor directly?

If you don’t have a field, what is a way you can fulfill this commandment

What are some other ways that you can be holy?

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Talking About Yom Kippur?

In this week’s Torah portion, Achrei Mot, we learn about the rituals that the high priest used to do on Yom Kippur. You might be thinking, Yom Kippur?!? Didn’t we just finish Passover? That’s the way the Torah works. We read a portion of the Torah each week and we take a little time out for the holidays and then go right back to where we stopped.  So even though last week we read about Passover, we return this week to where we were two weeks ago.

You may know Yom Kippur as the day we go to synagogue, wear white, and don’t eat. However, it was different in the Torah. The high priest was responsible for a number of sacrificial rituals, including the two goats. The high priest picks one goat to be sacrificed as an offering to God and then puts his hands on the second goat and transfers the sins of the people onto that goat. That goat is then sent to Azazel, and we don’t really know what that is, but someplace in the wilderness. This is a much more physical and literal ritual than we do on Yom Kippur today. There is some sense that our sins are actually being sent away, instead of us just using words to apologize.

 Some questions for discussion

Since we are coming out of Passover and reading about Yom Kippur, can you see any connections between the two holidays?

Why do you think the Torah created the ritual of the two goats?

Which rituals do you like and why? Modern day Yom Kippur or the one in the Torah?

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Family Passover Resources

Here’s the thing about Passover. We are obligated to come through the holiday feeling as though we were freed from Egypt, but so many people feel enslaved to the Seder, either to family traditions or to the words of the Haggadah. I’m giving you permission to mix it up this year. Don’t change everything but if something feels particularly onerous, ask yourself if it is really necessary to do it. Then, use some of these resources to try to change it up.

Resources:

http://tinyurl.com/creativeseder This is a fantastic, crowd-sourced website with just about any idea for any part of the Seder that you could possibly want. You could spend hours reading through this and still not make it to the end. You can also add your own ideas.

Creating Lively Passover Seders: A Sourcebook of Engaging Tales, Texts & Activities by David Arnow (you can get this book on Amazon). It has a wealth of stories and ideas for engaging people of all ages in the Seder.

The PJ Library has all kinds of Passover stories for younger kids and you can also find lots of kid-appropriate books on Amazon

The Hamilton Haggadah. ‘Nuff Said.

 Super YouTube Videos

Passover Rube Goldberg Machine

 Uptown Funk Passover Parody

You’ve Never Heard MaNishtana Like This

God Split the Ocean Passover Parody

The Maccabeats Latest Justin Bieber Parody

Dayeinu, by the Maccabeats

Passover Frozen Parody

Shalom Sesame Passover

Video Haggadah from G-dCast

 Give People Some Homework

If people have to prepare in advance, they are more likely to be invested in these Seder. Here are some ideas:

The road to freedom is paved with questions. What's at least one question you want to bring to this year's Seder? (from Mishkan Chicago)

My family asked everyone to bring an object that represents freedom to you and we shared them at different points during the Seder.

Ask everyone to bring something to the Seder that they would bring out of Egypt. Then ask people to share at various points.

Ask little kids to make something to bring to the Seder. Whether it be a Seder plate, a dish for salt water or a matzah cover, little kids get super excited to see their object in use.

Some Tips for Children the Night Of

Passover is a grand adventure story of the Jews leaving Egypt late at night. Take a little of that mystery and magic and bring it to your kids on the evening of Seder. The goal is to get them to ask questions, be excited and want to engage.

Your seder may start late if you are dealing with a mixed age group. If your Seder is going to start late, don’t be afraid to do a mini-seder and then put your kids to bed. If you do all the fun parts (songs, 4 questions, breaking the matzah, dipping, etc.) and read a great book to tell the story and then give your kids dinner and let them hunt for the afikoman, they won’t be any wiser to the fact that an adult Seder is happening after they snoozing in their beds.   

Or the opposite. Let them stay up until they can’t stay up anymore. You will have some issues the next morning (sorry!) but it can be a great experience for kids to stay up super late and experience the magic of the Seder. Just be sure to bring a stroller if you are walking home.

Get them excited before the Seder. Read books, watch fun YouTube videos, sing songs and talk about what is going to happen. The more excited they are, the longer they will participate in the ritual. If they have learned a song or made something in pre-school, be sure to give them a moment to share it during the Seder.

Do something crazy with the table. You want their eyes to light up and for them to ask a million questions when they see the table. There are tons of ideas on the internet and little trinkets you can buy to decorate the table, or ask your kids to do it and see what wild and crazy things they come up with.

Incorporate movement into the seder. This is for kids and for adults too. Re-enact the Passover story, or do different parts of the Seder in different rooms (if your apartment allows for that). If all else fails, put a yoga or jumping-jacks break into the middle to get the blood flowing. And try not to stress if your kids are antsy. Bring them some toys or books to play with if the Seder is getting long.

Don’t be afraid to feed them. If you are the host, put out lots of snacks and appetizers after you do the karpas, so everyone can snack while they talk. You can also incorporate themed-food, like marshmallows for the plague of hail, dipping fruit in chocolate after the karpas, or giving people the chance to make their own charoset according to their liking. If you are going to someone else’s house, ask in advance if it would be ok to bring some snacks or if you can feed your kids early. I am sure they will say yes. No one likes a hangry 3-year-old. We basically relax all our food rules so that we and our kids can enjoy the Seder, so they end up eating quite a bit of candy before dinner, but it works.

Go with what your kids love. Do they love instruments? Use them during the songs. Do they love stickers? Get some Passover stickers from Amazon and let them create scenes at the table (or even put down butcher paper, so they can make scenes directly ON the table). Do they love puppets? There are tons of Passover masks and puppets out there or you can make your own before the Seder for them use. Do they building? Let them use blocks or magnatiles to build Egypt next to the table. You can bring the things they already enjoy and re-purpose them for use during the Seder.

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Skin Disease...For Your House

So last week we learned about skin disease. This week’s parasha, Metzorah, picks up where the last one left off. However, it also goes into the question of what happens if this disease spreads to your clothes or to your house. Now, it might seem kind of crazy to think that a house could get the same disease as a person, so the rabbis need to explain it so that it makes sense.

We said last week that the rabbis thought that people got skin disease because they were gossiping. Here the rabbis say that the houses get this disease (which probably looked a lot like mold) if the people inside are doing something that they are trying to hide from the rest of the community. The house knows what’s going on and announces it to the community. There is something so terrible happening inside that even the house is crying out to let you know. Judaism teaches us not to separate ourselves from the community. When we do, this parasha tells us, it leads to even our houses turning against us.

Some questions for discussion

Why do you think the Torah spends so much time talking about skin disease?

Why do you think houses and clothing can get the diseases being discussed here?

When you see someone doing something wrong, what is your reaction?

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Your Gossip is Showing

This week’s Torah portion is all about skin disease and ritual impurity, which basically means whether or not someone is allowed to participate in all areas of Jewish life, like making sacrifices in the Temple. The text goes into lots of detail about what kinds of skin diseases and exactly what the priest should look for in a person who might be sick. Then, there are a series of steps that the priest takes to make sure that the person is isolated until their skin clears up.

The rabbis wonder a bit about what to do with this Torah portion. They look for other instances of tza’ra’at, the skin disease discussed here, in other parts of the Torah. There is one instance where Aaron and Miriam are gossiping about Moses and God punishes Miriam with this skin affliction. The rabbis take this to mean that tza’ra’at is a response or a punishment for gossiping. This is a difficult idea to accept, that people get sick because of something they did. We know that is not true in the world. I think the rabbis are telling us that tza’ra’at is not a punishment but a reminder that we have done something. It is a physical reminder to look at ourselves and make sure that we are being our best selves.

Questions

Why do you think the Torah spends so much time on skin disease?

What do you think about the connection between gossip and skin disease?

Have you ever had a moment when something on your body reminded you of how to behave?  

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Vayikra and the Tiny Aleph

This week, we start a new book of the Torah, the book of Vayikra or Leviticus. Most people assume that they won’t’ find anything to talk about in this book, since it deals with archaic laws of the priests in the Temple, which we don’t have anymore. However, if you look closely, Vayikra is a great lesson that you can learn from any moment in the Torah, if you are welling to read carefully enough.

The first word in the book is Vayikra, which means and God called. The word ends with the Hebrew letter aleph which, in the Torah is written smaller than all the other letters. The rabbis have a lot to say about that little aleph. You could say that it means nothing, just a style of writing to make the words look interesting. However, the rabbis say that the little aleph is there to remind us to be humble and to remind us that one of Moses’ greatest qualities was his humility.  

Some questions for discussion

Why do you think the scribes wrote the aleph small in the word Vayikra

Do you have any examples of a time Moses was humble?

Do you think humility is an important quality? Why or why not?

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Pillars of Cloud and Fire

This week, we read Parashat Pekudei, the last portion in the book of Exodus. Over the course of this book, the Israelites have been enslaved, been freed with miracles, gotten the Torah built the golden calf and built the mishkan, the wandering sanctuary in the desert. The last acts in this book of the Torah is for Aaron (Moses’ brother) and his sons to be appointed and installed as the high priests. Finally, God comes to rest on the mishkan, promising to lead the Israelites in a pillar of cloud and a pillar of fire.

 The Israelites have spent all this time constructing a structure, but, in the end, God isn’t going to be confined to that building. God will be the leader wherever the people are, and will ensure that they are safe and going in the right direction. This teaches us that God doesn’t need a place to live. God is wherever we need God to be.

 Some Questions for Discussion

Why do you think the Israelites needed to construct the mishkan?

What do you think the Israelites felt when they finished the construction?

When have you felt God leading you where you need to go?

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In this week’s Torah portion, Vayakel, God asks the Israelites to bring gifts to construct the tabernacle. There are two criteria. The first is “every person whose heart moves him” and “all who are skilled.” There are two ways to contribute to the building of the mishkan, the traveling sanctuary in the desert. First, you can be a skilled artist, who can contribute with very specific skills and talents, such as metal work or fabric weaving or working with wood. The other option is that you are just a regular person, someone with no special artistic talent, who probably can’t actually help build the mishkan, but you can still bring the gifts of your heart.

This parasha is trying to teach us two lessons. One is, not every job is for every person. We all have special skills that we bring to the table, and all our skills are needed at different times. The second is that, when constructing a place for God to dwell, everyone can pitch in, even if you are not the expert. We all have to figure out the balance. When are we needed to be the experts, and when should we be part of the group and bring the gifts that move our hearts?

Some questions for discussions

What do you think the two different groups bring to the construction of the mishkan?

What do you think moved the peoples’ hearts to bring gifts?

When have you been the skilled worker? When have you given because your heart was moved?

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Fear and the Golden Calf

In this week’s parasha, Ki Tisa, we read the famous story of the Golden Calf. When Moses is up on the mountain getting the Ten Commandments, the people are afraid. They think that Moses is never going to return to them and that they are going to be stuck in the desert forever. Out of that fear, they ask Aaron, Moses’ brother, to build them a golden calf so that they have a God to lead them in the wilderness. After seeing what the people have done, God gets very angry and threatens to destroy them but Moses is able to convince God to stick with the people.

One of the things that has always struck me is how little compassion God shows the people in this moment. They have just come out of Egypt and left everything they have known and their leader has been up on a mountain for 40 days. Of course they are nervous! Maybe they didn’t react to their fear in exactly the right way (God did just tell them not to build idols after all), but I can understand why they would want something in front of them to lead them on this journey. Maybe if God could put Godself in their shoes for just a moment, God may have reacted different.

Some questions for discussion

Why do you think the people built the Golden Calf? What were they feeling?

Do you think God should have had a different reaction? Why or why not

Can you think of a time when you were really scared? What did you do?

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Clothes Make the Man

In this week’s parasha, Tetzaveh, God instructs Moses in how to make the High Priest’s clothes. The Torah goes into great, great detail about what he should be wearing when he does the sacrifices, leaving out nothing in the creation of the clothing. These items are luxurious – using precious stones and beautiful, rich colors to convey the status of the High Priest.

The text gives us a clue as to why the clothing is so important to God. The Torah says that the priests are being “consecrated” to God to serve. Consecrate is just a fancy way of saying to make something sacred or holy. So, does this mean that God needs us to be super fancy in order to be holy? I don’t think so. I think God cares so much about the clothing of the High Priest because we, as human beings, care. When we look at someone dressed in beautiful garments, we automatically think that they are doing something special. And what could be more special than serving God?

 Some Questions for Discussion

Why do you think God made such fancy clothing for the high priest?

How do you think Aaron and the other priests felt when they wore this clothing?

When do you wear special clothing? How do you feel? What messages are you sending when you wear special clothing?

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Finding God Among You

In this week’s Torah portion, Terumah, God instructs all the Israelites “whose hearts move them” to bring gifts for the construction of the mishkan, the traveling sanctuary in the desert. This is a beautiful image. Israelites who are moved by their connection to God and their love of community coming forward to build the sanctuary together.

Following this command/request for gifts, God says, “Make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them.” Many commentators have seized on this word b’tocham, among them, when you would think that God would say, “make Me a sanctuary and I will dwell within it.” Instead, it is clear that the sanctuary is only the vehicle for creating a place where God can dwell among the Israelites. They may need the physical place, but God only needs the community to be together.

Some questions to consider:

Why does God want them to build a sanctuary?

What do you think would move the people to bring gifts to God?

When have you been in a community where you have felt God’s presence?

Bonus question:

Above is a clip of Cantor Cadrain singing this verse. How does it make you feel?

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Stumbling Blocks: Real and Metaphorical

This week’s Torah portion, Mishpatim, has 53 of the 613 mitzvot (commandments) in the Torah. That’s a lot! The first time you read it, it just sounds like a list of laws, and no real rhyme or reason to why they are put together, but as you read them, you see how many of them are laws about the way we treat one another.

One of the laws that I find most interesting is the one that says, don’t put a stumbling block before the blind. What does that mean? Does it mean literally don’t put a block in front of a blind person because they might fall? I think that most of us can agree that that would be a pretty easy law to follow. So I (and the rabbis) think that it means something more. Don’t put a stumbling block before the blind means don’t create a situation where you know another person will fail. That might mean not designing a game that you know is too hard for your younger sibling, or a teacher not giving a test on material she knows she hasn’t taught yet. We all have moments of blindness and we all have chances to place stumbling blocks. In those moments, let’s strive to remember this mitzvah, this commandment from Parashat Mishpatim.

Some questions for discussion:

Why do you think the Torah is looking out for the blind person?

What kind of stumbling blocks do you imagine the Torah is thinking about?

When have you stumbled because of a stumbling block? When have you placed a stumbling block?

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Getting Your Torah at Mount Sinai

In this week’s parasha, Yitro, the Torah continues along at a breakneck dramatic pace. The story of the Israelites being brought to freedom is only one part of the story. In this week’s parasha, we begin to understand the reason that they were freed. When Moses goes up on Mount Sinai to receive the Torah, we realize that we were not brought out of Egypt to do whatever we want, but to serve God and follow God’s commandments.

 The rabbis have a lot to say about the moment at Mount Sinai when Moses gets the 10 commandments. One idea that runs throughout rabbinic literature is that all Jews, past, present and future, stood at Mount Sinai and received the Torah together. This means that you were there, and I was there, and our ancestors were there, and your future grandchildren were there too. Even people who are Jews by choice, meaning they were not born Jewish but converted later in life, were at Mount Sinai. And all of us heard and accepted the Torah as our own and now it is our job to figure out how to live with it.

 Some questions for discussion:

When God gives the Torah to the people, does that make them more or less free than before they had the Torah?

Why do you think it was important to the rabbis to say that every Jew, across time, was there when God gave the Torah?

How do you make the Torah yours? How do you make Judaism personal?

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Freedom and Celebration

This week’s parasaha, Beshallach, is the dramatic conclusion to the exodus story, when the Israelites escape from Pharaoh, cross the sea on dry land and the water swallows up the Egyptian army. The Israelites celebrate by singing Shirat HaYam, the song of the sea, where they celebrate their freedom and praise God.

The rabbis feel uncomfortable with the idea that the Israelites are celebrating when so many Egyptians die. On the one hand, they are free after so many years of slavery. On the other hand, many had to die so that they could gain that freedom. The rabbis create a midrash, a story that fills in some of the gaps in the Torah, about this moment. In the midrash, the angels are celebrating along with the Israelites. God tells the angels that the Israelites are entitled to celebrate, but that the angels should not because the Egyptians are still God’s creatures and they are drowning. In this way, the rabbis acknowledge the balance between celebration and tragedy in this moment. We acknowledge it as well during the Passover seder when we take wine out of our cups during the recitation of the 10 plagues.

 Some questions for discussion

Do you agree with the midrash, that the Israelites should celebrate, but not the angels?

How do you think God felt during the crossing of the sea? What is your midrash?

What does freedom mean in your life today?