Shabbat Parah ("Sabbath [of the] red heifer" שבת פרה) takes place on the Shabbat before Shabbat HaChodesh, in preparation for Passover. Numbers 19:1-22 describes the parah adumah ("red heifer") in the Jewish temple as part of the manner in which the kohanim and the Jewish people purified themselves so that they would be ready ("pure") to sacrifice the korban Pesach.

Parashat Ki Tissa 5780

Story of Purim Purim Newsletter

Parashat Tetzaveh 5780

D'var Torah Shabbat Across America and Canada Dvar Torah – February 28, 2020 Tonight is the twenty-fourth annual Shabbat Across America and Canada, sponsored by NJOP (formerly known as National Jewish Outreach Program). Tonight, Shabbat Across America and Canada is being celebrated in hundreds of locations, in 38 U.S. states, 2 Canadian provinces, and Spain! By participating in Shabbat Across America and Canada, you join in a grand celebration of Shabbat that ties together Jews from all walks of life, who are participating in synagogues and Jewish organizations of all denominations and connecting Jews all across the North American continent and beyond. This Shabbat, we read the Torah portion known as parashat Terumah, which launches the second half of the book of Exodus. Nachmanides (1194-1270 famed Spanish Rabbi) labeled the book of Exodus the “Book of Redemption.” He stresses that although the appellation’s application is obvious regarding the first half of Exodus (delivery from slavery, Revelation at Sinai), the focus of the second half of Exodus–namely, the construction of the Tabernacle–also represents a type of redemption. Erecting a physical habitat for God’s presence represents a spiritual salvation for humanity. The mystics (Nefesh Ha-Hayyim 1:4; Sefer Habahir) suggest that the construction of the Tabernacle in the Wilderness was meant to mirror God’s creation of the universe. On the first day, God created the heavens, and the Children of Israel were told to construct a “covering” for the Tabernacle. On the second day, God separated the upper waters from the lower waters. The Children of Israel were told to create a partition between the “Holy” and the “Holy of Holies.” On the third day, God “gathered the waters,” while the Children of Israel were told to construct a water basin for washing. On the fourth day God created luminaries to provide light; the Children of Israel were commanded to make the Menorah/candelabra. On day five, God proclaimed “Let there be fowl that fly over the earth,” while the Children of Israel were told to place “cherubs with wings spread upward” upon the Ark of the Covenant. On the sixth day, God created the human being, and with regard to the Tabernacle, God commanded Moses to, “Draw close Aaron your brother.” On the seventh day, the Torah states that “The heaven and the earth were finished.” As the Tabernacle was completed the Torah declares, “All the work of the Tabernacle was finished.” While Shabbat represents a weekly slice of “sacred time,” the Tabernacle describes “sacred space,” where God’s contracted Presence is manifest in this world. On every Shabbat we celebrate sacred time, and remind ourselves that, just as God ceased creative activity on the seventh night and day, we become Godly when doing the same every seventh day. In the book of Bereshith (Genesis), God created our world. In the second half of the book of Shemot (Exodus), the Children of Israel are given the task of creating an appropriate place for God’s world in the mortal realm. Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks describes this as follows: “God creates order in the natural universe. We are charged with creating order in the human universe. That means taking painstaking care in what we say, what we do, and what we must restrain ourselves from doing. There is a precise choreography to the moral and spiritual life as there is a precise architecture to the Tabernacle. Being good, specifically being holy, is not a matter of acting as the spirit moves us. It is a matter of aligning ourselves to the Will that made the world.” (The Architecture of Holiness, Terumah, 5777). For 23 consecutive years, Shabbat Across America and Canada has transformed the Divine mandate and the Divine gift of Shabbat into an international movement and phenomenon. Shabbat Across America and Canada‘s goal has always been to unify North American Jewry through the sanctity of Shabbat. NJOP has passionately endeavored to bond Jews to their Jewish birthright and heritage. Whether through Hebrew reading, Shabbat Across America and Canada, Crash Courses in Basic Judaism and Jewish History, holiday programs or a robust social media presence, NJOP has built bridges between Jews and fellow Jews, and between Jews and their Judaism. The confluence of Shabbat Across America and Canada and Parashat Terumah ought to inspire all of us to recall the role given to the Jewish people of being a beacon and leader for the world. In order to succeed in that sacred task, we need to enlist as many sister and brother Jews in this mission. These twin objectives–recognizing our special role in the world and encouraging all Jews to embrace this role–can be accomplished by simply joining together tonight and committing to these callings. Tonight is Shabbat Across America and Canada because tens of thousands of North American Jews have decided to spend Shabbat night together in fellowship with their co-religionists, engaging in Jewish life and contemplating our collective Jewish future. Each and every one of NJOP’s partners--comprised of synagogues, military bases, Hillel houses, Moishe Houses, JCCs, Federations and outreach centers--have committed to the notion that when we celebrate Shabbat together, the observance is ennobled, and becomes more uplifting, uniting us all. Thank you for attending and elevating this particular Shabbat, and transforming it into a collective one with this community and with hundreds of other communities who are celebrating with us across North America and beyond. It is NJOP’s hope to join with all North American Jews to recognize our Godliness by ceasing from “work” on Shabbat and by inspiring all others to live Godly lives. Shabbat Shalom.

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Parashat Terumah 5780

Parashat Mishpatim 5780

Newsletter for 2/12/20

Parashat Yitro 5780

Sermon In India there is the tradition of the Vedas. Although this knowledge is associated with Hinduism, they also stand alone as a profound body of Knowledge. These are ancient books, texts and treatises that talk about the Reality of the Universe and are a guide to Enlightenment. Enlightenment, as espoused by the Vedas, is that state of consciousness in which one is attuned to the mechanisms of the Universe and all of his or her actions are correct from that standpoint. There are gurus in India who live in the Himalayas and practice this body of knowledge all their lives. People go to learn and study from these gurus. They spend a great deal of time serving these wise men (usually) and by almost osmosis, gain enlightenment in that service. From the Vedas, we get “yoga”. This Sanskrit word means “yoke”, as in the center of an egg, and the connotation is “union”. The idea of practicing yoga, then, is to gain union with the Cosmos and thus gain enlightenment, that state of consciousness in which one performs right action spontaneously. There are different forms of yoga. Many of us hear that word and think of Hatha Yoga, the various poses that are practiced in succession to gain a state of relaxation or more commonly as a workout. Other forms of yoga exist, such as meditation. Another form of yoga is Karma Yoga, the practice of right action. In our flow of Torah, we are now reading from the book of Exodus. Hashem has dispatched Pharaoh and his minions and made the Egyptians impotent to harass the Israelites. The Torah now focuses on the course of building up and developing this beautiful philosophy and heritage that we now call “Judaism”. As Genesis talked about the origins of our culture with key figures who recognized the Oneness and Omniscience of the ever-present G-d (gurus, sort of), we now focus on the principles that will forever drive our new culture as it builds into a new religion. Moses, our main guru, now starts to introduce the Israelites to our own Karma Yoga, which are, of course, the commandments. He is given by G-d to give to the Israelites at first the Ten Commandments. These are the base of our lives, and the other 603 commandments will build on them and emanate from them. Torah is our Veda and the commandments are our Karma Yoga, our right action. People say, “I wish there was a rule book on life”. There is. We are studying it. When you perform right action, or “mitzvot”, you live a good life. The second paragraph of the Shema is called by our sages/gurus as the paragraph of justice, or, you guessed it, karma. As you do, so do you receive. If you diligently perform the commandments in accord with the b'rit or covenant, good things will happen. If you don’t, bad things will happen. The rabbis call this “measure for measure” as in eye for eye, tooth for tooth, life for life. It is very easy in Judaism to perform right action and thereby live a righteous life. Just follow the commandments and everything will fall into place and you will live an enlightened life. Well, not really. We all know that reality is a little different than that concept. Theory doesn’t always play out in reality. That doesn’t mean the concept is wrong and you shouldn’t strive to be righteous. Things happen on their own accord and in their own time. As the third paragraph of the Shema states in telling us to put tzitzit in the corners of our garments and mezuzot on the doorposts of our houses and gates, we should not follow our hearts or our eyes, but stick to these commandments. This is the reminder that righteousness is a constant and lifelong process and why we study Torah. What happens when you do good? You create a goodness around you. Sure there will be bad around you and people who don’t have your best interests, and situations that are not to your liking, but the point of this Jewish Karma Yoga is show you the path as to how to deal with things as they come up. As we practice Judaism and live these commandments, we see our lives surround us with good influence more and more. When we encounter challenges that may either be a result of previous not-so-good actions or maybe a test to sharpen our resolve, we always revert back to G-d’s Law. And that way, we know that we’re doing right and getting closer and closer to enlightenment.

Sermon This week’s Torah parashat is “Bo”. In this portion we see the climax of the plagues inflicted on Pharaoh to get him to finally relent and allow the Israelites to leave Egypt and the house of bondage. These are the final three plagues culminating with the killing of the first-born. Pharaoh has now realized that he is up against the force of the Universe and he cannot overpower Hashem. He is defeated. This parashat has also raised some questions about the morals and ethics about what G-d allegedly did to Pharaoh to “harden his heart” and make him rigid to Moses’ and Aaron’s requests to release the Israelites, thus setting him up for disaster. One of the main concepts in Judaism is the idea of free will. Although G-d creates, maintains and sustains, we can always choose our own path. In Kabbalah, in the Zohar, it is stated that someone who pursues good will be shown the way; for those who pursue evil, the way is opened for them. As you seek, so shall you get. Pharaoh had decided what he wanted to do, G-d merely obliged him and in a very real sense, made his own decisions. Pharaoh was prideful. As the ruler of Egypt, and considered a god by his people, Pharaoh had never been challenged. As Pharaoh stood over the Nile, which was considered an Egyptian god, so he felt he “stood” over all the other Egyptian gods. The idolatry of Egypt was such that these kings sought to control their gods and make them bend to their will and thus increase their power. While most modern-day humans don’t believe in gods, there is still this tendency for some people to have that monumental pride and rule over people as sort of a god. Think of some politicians, corporate heads, heads of various groups who feel that they are in charge and it’s their word. They are enmeshed with their own power. What happens when their power is challenged either by other people or situations? For sensible people, who are not imprisoned by their ego, it’s about making the best choice. They derive the best option by evaluating the components of the situation, viewing various solutions and considering the outcome of those various solutions, and thus settling on the what appears to be the most efficacious course of action. Many of these people will also seek out the advice and counsel of others whom they respect for their wisdom and common sense. They reach the best solution. If that solution doesn’t work out, they try another. This is a very simple and practical method, very much like a computer program. If the action works out, great, they’re done. If it doesn’t, try another strategy. Cold, hard logic. For others, the process of solving a problem becomes contaminated by ego. If a solution doesn’t work out, it’s not their fault. Maybe others ruined it for them, or the environment became distorted and hostile. Instead of taking a practical course of action, they get worried that they’ll look bad or that people won’t respect them. Heaven forbid they lose their power. This was Pharaoh. It was obvious after the first few plagues that he was out of his league. Not only couldn’t he or his wise men and magicians stop the plagues, but Moses was able to show him the exact time, per Pharaoh’s request, when the plague would end. In fact, it got to a point where even his counselors were advising him to relent, that they were up against something the was much more powerful than they. Pharaoh wouldn’t listen. His advisors telling him to give up would have saved his pride. How does that saying go? Discretion is the better part of valor? No one would have criticized Pharaoh for allowing the Israelites to leave in the face of such overwhelming power. It was clear, and all of Egypt saw it, that they were outmatched. Pharaoh’s reputation would probably have remained intact. The sad part is that people would have probably respected him for knowing when to quit. He was so used to having people bend to his will that he didn’t know any other way. He couldn’t give up. Pharaoh was a prisoner of his own pride. In a way, he was addicted to power and couldn’t give it up. He had indeed, sealed his own fate. How many of us are victims of our own ego? In some of our prayers, we acknowledge humility in the face of Hashem. We surrender our egos and just favor doing what is right. That doesn’t mean that pride and ego are completely bad. It’s important that we take pride in what we do and who we are. There is, however, a context. We take pride in doing what is right. We take pride in striving for excellence. But part of that ego is to know when it’s time to relent. It can be a tough lesson, but worthwhile. Next time we get in our pride, let’s think of Pharaoh.