Monday, August 24, 2015

Ki Teitzei

Deuteronomy 21:10–25:19

We Are What We Remember


D'var Torah By: Rabbi Shira Milgrom for ReformJudaism.org

The last paragraph of Ki Teitzei is the maftir reading in non-Reform congregations on the Shabbat before Purim. Its opening word, zachor, "remember," names that Shabbat.

"Zachor, Remember what Amalek did to you on your journey, after you left Egypt—how, undeterred by fear of God, he surprised you on the march, when you were famished and weary, and cut down all the stragglers in your rear. Therefore, when the Eternal your God grants you safety from all your enemies around you, in the land that the Eternal your God is giving you as a hereditary portion, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!" (Deuteronomy 25:17–19).

I was present on a Yom Kippur morning many years ago when Rabbi Harold Schulweis asked his congregation if they could name members of Hitler's SS. And the names came pouring out from all corners of the sanctuary: Himmler, Eichmann, Goering, and on. And then Rabbi Schulweis asked the community to name the people who tried to save Anne Frank and her family. Silence.

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Monday, August 17, 2015

Shof'tim

Deuteronomy 16:18–21:9

D'var Torah By: Audrey R. Korotkin for ReformJudaism.org

It Takes Two, Me and You


In many Jewish weddings I have officiated at over the years, the bride and groom have chosen to add to the traditional vows these words from the prophet Hosea: V’eirastich Li b’tzedek uv’mishpat uv’chesed uv’rachamim, “I will betroth you to Me in righteousness, and in justice, and in loving-kindness, and in mercy” (Hosea 2:21). While the traditional vows reflect the view of Jewish marriage as a legal institution, Hosea’s words reflect marriage as a sacred partnership born of mutual love and respect. Hosea, of course, was using the language of marriage as a description for the relationship between God and Israel, challenging Israel to be faithful and chastising her when she strayed. - See more at: http://www.reformjudaism.org/learning/torah-study/shoftim/it-takes-two-me-and-you#sthash.vkl5RNaF.dpuf

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Tuesday, August 11, 2015

R'eih - Rosh Chodesh 1

Deuteronomy 11:26–16:17

Looking on the Bright Side


D'var Torah By: Audrey R. Korotkin for ReformJudaism.org
Sometimes, I feel that a lot of people—including some Jews themselves—see Jews as a collective Eeyore. Take this quotation from A. A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh:

    "Eeyore," said Owl, "Christopher Robin is giving a party." "Very interesting," said Eeyore. "I suppose they will be sending me down the odd bits which got trodden on. Kind and Thoughtful. Not at all, don't mention it."

That’s us: trodden on, perpetually melancholy, laden with thousands of years of oppression, exile, pogroms, and genocide. Always letting out a big sigh. This year at Passover, supposedly our season of celebration at redemption, comedian Jon Stewart pointed out on The Daily Show that the scene-setter for our seder meal includes dips of salt water, bitter lettuce, horseradish, and matzah—not exactly a boffo sales pitch for the Tribe.

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Monday, August 3, 2015

Eikev

Deuteronomy 7:12–11:25

Getting What We Deserve


D'var Torah By: Audrey R. Korotkin for ReformJudaism.org
A baby boy born with a defective heart has multiple surgeries before his first birthday and will suffer from physical and cognitive impairments for as long as he lives. An aging matriarch, who thrives on mentoring young people and challenging them to push the boundaries of their abilities, is suddenly enfeebled by a stroke. A young mother often incapacitated by pain, is, after years of inconclusive tests, finally diagnosed with a genetic disease—but not before she passes it on to two children.

And that's just in my congregation, just this year.

We all struggle with "why bad things happen to good people," a question for which there is no answer. Is God not all-powerful? Or all-good? Or is God—if you believe in God's existence—removed from the world? More than three decades ago, Rabbi Harold S. Kushner deliberately titled his book about theodicy When Bad Things Happen To Good People, not why, because, he came to believe, pain and tragedy are simply part of the world as God created it. Kushner wrote:

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