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,” in which Moses, in preparation for the Israelites’ arrival into […]
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 biblical tradition: “See, this day I set before you blessing […]
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 reveal the holiness with which all life is infused. This […]
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, which comes from the Greek for “second law,” i.e, deuteros + […]
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 ourselves in sync with the rhythms of the enduring Jewish […]