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Mizmor LeDavid (Psalm 23)鈥擳ime, Text, Melody

Oct 23, 2013 By Samuel Barth | Commentary

Psalm 23 is beloved in much of the English-speaking world for affirming a certainty of the divine presence鈥攅ven in times of dread and adversity鈥攊n the most hauntingly beautiful language. The paean to the Psalm by 19th-century American pastor Henry Ward Beecher is widely cited.鈥淭he twenty third psalm is the nightingale of the Psalms. It is small, of a homely feather, singing shyly out of obscurity; but oh! it has filled the air of the whole world with melodious joy, greater than the heart can conceive鈥� (Life Thoughts).

Ahuzah: Settling Down

Oct 23, 2013 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Hayyei Sarah

At the opening of this week鈥檚 parashah, Abraham is occupied with arrangements for the burial of his beloved wife, Sarah.

A Hand to Hold

Oct 16, 2013 By Joel Alter | Commentary | Vayera

Her beautiful 16-year-old Ishmael lying whimpering nearby from mortal thirst and her own death close at hand, Hagar鈥攊n Genesis 21:15鈥�18鈥攊s about as pitiable as one might imagine.

Prayer: Invitation and Outcry

Oct 16, 2013 By Samuel Barth | Commentary

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM), with many organizations and agencies working together to spread awareness and the understanding that this scourge is endemic in modern society鈥攁nd that no religion and no sector of society is exempt. My friend and colleague Rabbi Lisa Gelber, associate dean of The Rabbinical School of 91快活林, was invited by FaithTrust Institute to write the 鈥淯niversal Prayer鈥� for the call of unity that opened DVAM, and the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (which convened the call) then created to frame the prayer on a flyer. The prayer has found wide acceptance and recognition.

In Every Moment, the Choice Is Ours

Oct 16, 2013 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Vayera

Sight and vision play an important role in the two opening narratives of Parashat Vayera.

What’s in a Name?

Oct 9, 2013 By Daniel Nevins | Commentary | Lekh Lekha

What鈥檚 in a name? Quite a lot, but you need to know the story.

Words of Prayer: New and Old

Oct 9, 2013 By Samuel Barth | Commentary

鈥溾€� is a lighthearted song made famous by a pair of Orthodox artists in the 1980s called the Megama Duo (start at 3 minutes and 22 seconds in the linked video). The song would never have become as (in)famous as it was if the experience of 鈥渘ot being able to find the place鈥� was unfamiliar. But, on the contrary, we have all been there, and it鈥檚 good to laugh at, and with, ourselves. When we do find the place in our prayer books, we see lines and paragraphs and pages of text, and it is often hard to find ourselves in the words.

God As an Ally

Oct 9, 2013 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Lekh Lekha

A journey of four thousand years begins with God鈥檚 command to Abraham.

Why Did God Flood the World?

Oct 1, 2013 By Alan Cooper | Commentary | Noah

The end of Parashat Bereishit finds God regretting the creation of humankind and resolving to wipe it out along with 鈥渂easts, creeping things, and birds of the sky鈥� (Gen. 6:7). A note of optimism creeps into the concluding verse (6:8), however, with the statement that Noah, whose birth and naming were noted in 5:29, 鈥渇ound favor鈥� with God.

The Noah of Genesis and the Noah of the Rabbis

Oct 1, 2013 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Noah

Parashat Noah, the Torah reading for this coming Shabbat, is renowned for the annual debate on Noah鈥檚 character that is sparked by the opening verse.

Simhat Torah: Which Way When the Circle Ends

Sep 23, 2013 By Samuel Barth | Commentary | Simhat Torah

The annual celebration of Simhat Torah brings great joy to so many of us of all generations, and it is a fitting and triumphant conclusion to the long and multifaceted season of intense Jewish observance and focus that began (a little before Rosh Hashanah) with Selichot. In Israel and in congregations observing a single day of festivals, Simhat Torah is blended with Shemini Atzeret, offering the intense experience in the morning of Hallel, Hakkafot (processions with dancing) and Geshem (the prayer for Rain).

Bereishit with a Capital Bet

Sep 22, 2013 By David Marcus | Commentary | Bereishit

With this week鈥檚 parashah, we once again commence the cycle of reading the Torah from the first chapter of Genesis, which begins with the Hebrew word bereishit.

Mastery = Harmony

Sep 22, 2013 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Bereishit

This coming Shabbat, we return to the beginning of Torah with Parashat Bereishit.

The Fruits of Close Reading

Sep 16, 2013 By Robert Harris | Commentary | Sukkot

鈥淚n order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Eg测辫迟鈥�&苍产蝉辫;(Lev. 23:43).

Welcome Guests鈥擵isible and . . .

Sep 16, 2013 By Samuel Barth | Commentary | Sukkot

The sukkah is fragile and temporary, yet stands as a symbol of joy and celebration. Rabbi Reuven Hammer, in his commentary Or Hadash (Siddur Sim Shalom, 331), reminds us of a debate about the meaning of Leviticus 23:43 (鈥淵ou shall live in Sukkot for seven days . . . in order that future generations will recall that I made the Israelite People dwell in Sukkot when I brought them out of Egypt鈥�): 鈥淩abbi Eliezer said that [these sukkot] were clouds of glory and Rabbi Akiba said they were actual huts (B. Sukkah 11b).鈥�

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