91快活林

A Ladder to the Heavens

Dec 9, 2016 By Tim Daniel Bernard | Commentary | Vayetzei

As Jacob sleeps, he sees a ladder with its base on the ground and its top touching the heavens (Gen. 28:12). The seemingly unreachable realm above the earth, Jacob discovers, is actually relatively accessible, almost within our grasp. The images from the Hubble Space Telescope鈥攁nd space exploration more broadly鈥攑lay a similar role for us. One might have expected that humanity鈥檚 newly found ability to discover more about space would have blunted our sense of wonder, as more and more of the universe ceases to be so mysterious.

The Emergence of Praise

Dec 9, 2016 By Julia Andelman | Commentary | Vayetzei

Our parashah begins with Jacob鈥檚 profound, life-changing encounter with divinity: his dream of the ladder; his vision of God promising that his descendants will multiply and be blessed; and his vow that 鈥渋f God remains with me鈥�the Lord shall be my God鈥� (Gen. 28:20-21). But our parashah includes another profound, life-changing moment of connecting to God鈥攁 less famous one鈥攅xperienced by Leah. After giving birth to three sons and naming each of them in accordance with aspects of her life experience, Leah gives birth again and says hapa鈥檃m odeh et Adonai (Gen. 29:35)鈥攖his time I will praise/thank/acknowledge the Lord鈥攁nd names her son Judah (Yehudah, from odeh).

Two Nations in Your Belly

Dec 2, 2016 By Burton L. Visotzky | Commentary | Toledot

One of the most poignant and profound verses of the Bible appears early in this week鈥檚 Torah reading, Toledot. Our matriarch Rebecca, beset with a difficult pregnancy, asks God, 鈥淲hy me?鈥� (Gen. 25:22). And God replies to her with one of the most fateful verses of the Bible: 鈥淭here are two nations in your belly鈥� (Gen. 25:23). From that moment on, the die is cast: we are locked in a struggle with Esau / Edom. This week鈥檚 haftarah from the prophet Malachi teaches us the stakes: 鈥淚s not Esau Jacob鈥檚 brother? asks the Lord. Yet I have loved Jacob, but Esau I have hated鈥� (Malachi 1:2-3).

A Sibling Rivalry for the Generations

Dec 2, 2016 By Brian Smollett | Commentary | Toledot

Do the Jewish people exist because of a bowl of lentil soup? Toledot presents the story of Jacob and Esau, a sibling rivalry with cosmic implications. The twin brothers who would come to father their own nations struggled even within the womb. Different as they were, they both prized the birthright that the already elderly Isaac would bestow upon his first born.

A Venetian Ketubbah

Nov 25, 2016 By Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary | Commentary | Hayyei Sarah

This week鈥檚 parashah prominently features the mission of Abraham鈥檚 servant to find a wife for Isaac. The account includes the giving of gifts to Rebecca and her family (24:22, 53) and the assurance from Abraham鈥檚 family that they themselves are wealthy (Gen. 24:35). For thousands of years, ketubbot (Jewish marriage contracts) have established the financial responsibilities in a Jewish marriage. 

Hesed Depends on Saying No

Nov 25, 2016 By Lilly Kaufman | Commentary | Hayyei Sarah

Of all the lessons that Parashat Hayyei Sarah teaches us about hesed (kindness), perhaps its most important lesson can be summed up in the word 鈥渘o.鈥�

Rebecca, the heroine of the parashah, is both physically and ethically strong. She can lift a heavy water urn with ease, and she possesses a deep graciousness called hesed. When she gives water to Abraham鈥檚 servant, Eliezer, and his camels, she fulfills Eliezer鈥檚 eloquent prayer, in which he appealed to God moments earlier to find a fitting wife for Isaac. He names the value of hesed twice in this brief prayer (Gen. 24:12, 14), and his prayer is answered so rapidly and completely by Rebecca鈥檚 action that Eliezer is stunned (Gen. 24:21).

Itzik鈥檚 Journey

Nov 18, 2016 By David G. Roskies | Commentary | Vayera

He was our Bob Dylan and Dylan Thomas: a Yiddish troubadour and hard-drinking lyric poet who wrote in regular rhymes and rhythms about the lives and unrequited loves of the downtrodden. His name was Itzik Manger, and the Bible was the book he loved most in the world, especially those parts that told an inside, personal story.

Tears that Unveil

Nov 18, 2016 By Matthew Goldstone | Commentary | Vayera

Deep down, deep down inside, the eye would be destined not to see but to weep. For at the very moment they veil sight, tears would unveil what is proper to the eye.

鈥擩acques Derrida, Memoirs of the Blind (126)

A Land of Promise

Nov 11, 2016 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Lekh Lekha

Abraham continually inspires us, his descendants, in his ability to place trust in the journey. God鈥檚 command to 鈥淸j]ourney forth from your country, from your birthplace, and from your father鈥檚 house鈥� (Gen. 12:1) is striking: Leaving one鈥檚 country is doable. But to journey from one鈥檚 birthplace and familial connections is jarring鈥攚ith the potential to transform one into an aimless wanderer. Abraham is commanded to sacrifice his roots for an indeterminate future鈥攆or the place that God will show him. A promise. And nothing more.

What Was Promised to Abraham?

Nov 11, 2016 By Hillel Ben Sasson | Commentary | Lekh Lekha

In this week鈥檚 parashah, Abraham makes his dramatic first appearance on the stage of the Torah, when he follows the command to go forth to an unknown land, relying on the promise of an unknown God. His moving story, along with that of his sons and grandsons, has captivated readers from all three large monotheistic religions. Generation after generation wished to read these patriarchal and matriarchal stories into their lives, their time and place.

Building a Boat and a Tower

Nov 4, 2016 By Daniel Nevins | Commentary | Noah

Does it feel lately that the fate of the world is at stake? If so, the Torah seems intent to validate and deepen our concern. Here we are just days before one of the most disconcerting elections in American history, and we have also arrived at Parashat Noah, the original dystopian tale. 

Seeing the Faces of Noah鈥檚 Neighbors

Nov 4, 2016 By Anne Lapidus Lerner | Commentary | Noah

I am a farmer, I love my wife,
My sons are many and strong, my land is green.

鈥攆rom 鈥淔lood鈥� by Irving Feldman (Collected Poems 1954-2004)

With these words, the narrator of Feldman鈥檚 poem characterizes himself as a hardworking family man鈥攏ot perfect, but not a sinner. Of Noah he says, 鈥淛ust like the drunk, the fool, that slut- / Chaser to think of no one else.鈥�

Reading and Rereading

Oct 28, 2016 By Avi Garelick | Commentary | Bereishit

There’s a good quip about the Jewish people: we’re the longest running book club on the planet. This week, in synagogues and study halls across the world, Jews are rolling the scroll of the Torah back to the beginning and starting again.. This is a different kind of reading than we do in other spheres of our lives. We read books, articles, and stories at specific times. They could be life-changing鈥攚e might return to those texts and re-read them鈥攐r they could quickly be forgotten. Some people will do that more than once, at which point they have become either fans or scholars, giving those texts a place of privilege in the formation of their individual identity.

Aleph: The First Breath

Oct 28, 2016 By 91快活林 Alumni | Commentary | Bereishit

By Joshua Hooper (DS ’17)

My artwork is inspired by the opening verses of Bereishit, when God’s first breath calls forth light (讬讛讬 讗讜专) out of the darkness (Gen. 1:3). This holy light (shown in blue) is timeless鈥攖he first manifestation of God’s will. The Aleph is depicted as emerging out of the darkness surrounding it while the holy light is concealed within it. The essence of this light radiates outwards (towards the lower worlds, which are expressed by the three colors that surround the Aleph’s form). The light transcends all levels of Creation.

Face to Face

Oct 21, 2016 By Stephanie Ruskay | Commentary | Sukkot

We鈥檝e lost touch with how to speak with one another. How else can we understand our current political reality?

Seemingly overnight, our national conversation has sunk into a morass of racism, classism, Islamophobia, and misogyny. And yet it didn鈥檛 happen overnight. We created鈥攁nd allowed to be created鈥攁 system that encourages each of us to demonize anyone from a different background and with a different perspective. We got used to interacting only with people who agree with us.

Adele Ginzberg鈥檚 Sukkah

Oct 21, 2016 By Shuly Rubin Schwartz | Commentary | Sukkot

Such a luscious array of branches and gourds proudly displayed by Adele Ginzberg鈥攚ife of 91快活林 Talmud professor Louis Ginzberg鈥攁s she prepared to once again adorn the 91快活林 sukkah!

This photo from The 91快活林 Library evokes for me the loving care with which many early twentieth-century 91快活林 faculty wives cultivated religious spirit and community.

Making Every Word Count

Oct 14, 2016 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Ha'azinu

Ha鈥檃zinu is remarkable in two respects: what it says, and how it chooses to say it. My focus here will be the latter, but let鈥檚 note with regard to the former that in this, his final address to the Children of Israel before a set of farewell blessings, Moses reviews all of his people鈥檚 past, present, and future. He begins by calling on the God who had called Israel into being and called him to God鈥檚 service. He reminds Israel that God has chosen them and still cares for their well-being. He prophesies that despite all that God and Moses have said and done, Israel will abandon God, as they had in the past. God will punish them, as in the past, but never to the point of utter destruction. In the end, God and Israel will reconcile.

Parts That Are Left Behind

Oct 14, 2016 By Sarah Diamant | Commentary | Ha'azinu

As we approach the end of the Torah and read Moses鈥檚 parting words, we share with you this work which was created as part of 91快活林鈥檚 Artist-in-Residence program, and is on display at 91快活林 as part of the Corridors exhibition.

The Art of Fly Fishing and Teshuvah

Oct 11, 2016 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Yom Kippur

I went fly fishing this summer with my son and a very patient instructor, and came away with three lessons directly relevant to the work of teshuvah.

First, fly fishing is hard, very hard, and if my skill at casting that day is any indication, it鈥檚 unlikely I will ever be very good at it.

Is This the Fast I Desire?

Oct 11, 2016 By Julia Andelman | Commentary | Yom Kippur

When I was a congregational rabbi, my practice was to offer a sermon on Yom Kippur morning relating to social justice. I would raise an issue of ethical concern in the world; share my reading of what Jewish texts and tradition had to say on the matter; and suggest actions for individuals and for the community.