I’m thrilled you are exploring Society Hill Synagogue and have found your way to the page of Divrei Torah, words of Torah, which are part of a generations-long Jewish practice of refracting sacred Jewish teachings through the light of our own day and age.
For me, Judaism is an opportunity to nourish ourselves, grounded in the Jewish story: a story that has unfolded throughout the generations, with twists and turns, tragedy and triumph, serving as a source of life to those who engage with it.
The Jewish People are known as B’nei Yisrael: the people who wrestle with the Divine. The name comes from that moment in our tradition in which it is understood that our ancestor Jacob “wrestled with a figure,” a figure understood to be a manifestation of that very Divine Being (see Genesis 32).
That moment produced a legacy of sacred wrestling; grappling; seeking to make meaning of, and find purpose in, our time on earth.
These Divrei Torah are my efforts, in conversation with the community of Society Hill Synagogue, to make meaning and to find purpose, seeking to serve this community, our broader world, and the Divine.
I hope you find meaning in them yourself, and I encourage you to reach out to me if you would like to discuss their contents or to discuss becoming a part of the Society Hill Synagogue community. Welcome!
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In Kindness We Trust
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar This past Shabbat we studied the weekly portion called Hayyei Sarah, meaning “the Life of Sarah,” which begins, notably, with the passing of that foremost matriarch. After her death we encounter a series of episodes in the lives of our ancestors, including
Dealing with Uncertainty
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar This past Shabbat we read that perhaps most famous of all parshiyot (Torah portions): vayera. Vayera means “and he appeared,” referring to the divine presence appearing before our foremost ancestor Abraham, communicating to him and his wife Sarah that they would indeed have a son, their
Our Democracy
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar I have always loved Election Day. The ideal of having an engaged citizenry collectively come together—millions of us, across the states—recognizing that our well-being is wrapped up in one another’s; that our lives are, for better or for worse, in one
Joy and Sorrow in Our Communities
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar This past week we celebrated our first Bat Mitzvah since the start of the pandemic with a beautiful service led by our Bat Mitzvah, Emma Salzman. Her Torah portion was Noah, perhaps one of the most well-known narratives in the history
The Strangest Book in the Bible
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar This past week at our weekly Torah study together in the midst of our Shabbat services, we studied the book of Ecclesiastes. (Yes, Ecclesiastes, or, Kohelet, its Hebrew name, is indeed in the Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible. It is located in the third
Sukkot: A Reflection on Our Transience and Impermanence
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar With the High Holidays behind us, we are going to return to our minhag (custom) of sending out weekly summaries of our Shabbat morning Torah conversations. As a reminder, each week during our Shabbat morning service, we engage with a text from our
Kehillah Kedoshah: Sacred Community
Yom Kippur Sermon 5781 By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar Al shlosha d’varim ha’olam omed. On three things the universe stands. Al ha’torah, va’al ha’avoda, v’al gemilut chasadim. On Torah; on Avodah, worship or service, and on gemilut chasadim, acts of lovingkindness. So says pirkei avot, the
Avodah: Service
Kol Nidre Sermon 5781 By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar Tonight for my sermon I want to talk about a makhloket, so first I have to define what that term means. A makhloket is that component of a dialogue where a disagreement is discovered. It’s not necessarily
Lifting the Sparks
Rosh Hashanah Sermon 5781 By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar For my first of three sermons this year, I figured I’d get right to it. The state of the world today. Humanity’s role in a broken cosmos. We’ve got about 10 minutes. Let’s figure this out. In
To Return Or Not To Return
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar As we do each week, we reflect back on our communal Torah discussion from this past Shabbat (held each week Saturday mornings at 10 am at this link). This past Shabbat we studied a passage from our weekly parshah (Torah portion) called Shoftim, meaning “Judges,”
See The Choices Before You
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar This past Shabbat, we studied Parashat Re’eh, the Torah portion known as Re’eh, which means literally, “See!” Moses is speaking to the Israelites on the precipice of the Promised Land, and he presents them with one of the most stark choices in all of
When Tradition Says To Give Thanks (Hint: Always)
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar As we do each (or, most) weeks, we reflect back on what we learned in our Torah discussion this past week, reflecting on how this Etz Chayiim, Tree of Life, as the Torah is sometimes called, extends into our generation, offering us learning, helping us to
Memory, History, and our Invitation Therefrom
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar This past week we began the fifth and final book of the Torah, titled D’varim in Hebrew, which translates in this context to “words” as in, “These are the words Moses addressed to all Israel,” from the first verse of the book; and Deuteronomy in English,
The Power of Speech, and The Journey Through Exile, Together.
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar Each week, we rehash and reflect upon our Torah study discussion from this past Shabbat as a means of inviting us all into the conversation; injecting a little Torah, i.e., both ancient and modern Jewish wisdom, into our weeks; and getting
“Divine Wrath” And Our Relationship To It
By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar This past week we read Parashat Pinchas—the Torah portion known as Pinchas, so named after a religious zealot who carries out a violent act of vigilante justice on a fellow Israelite and his Midianite partner in order to stave off a plague that