Parashat Vayigash 5768

This week's Torah portion, Vayigash, tells the remarkable tale of Joseph's older brother Judah. A story of change.

Tale One:
In Genesis 37, we learn that it was young Judah, who, in an act that I would label as "not quite evil," convinces his brothers not to kill their arrogant younger brother Joseph, but to sell him to the Ishmaelites as a slave. On the one hand, one might suggest that this is an act of kindness on Judah's part (after all, he did save his brother's life). On the other hand, you have to wonder about a man who is aware enough to know that it is wrong to kill his brother, but not motivated enough to ensure his freedom.

Tale Two:
We next encounter Judah "encountering" his daughter-in-law. We learn that Judah's oldest son dies and leaves his wife Tamar as a widow. Judah's second son then marries Tamar, but this son purposefully does not impregnate her, and he dies too. And so, Judah stalls and does not give Tamar his third son in marriage. This stalling leaves Tamar powerless in a society in which women needed marriage and sons for social security. So, Tamar dresses as a temple prostitute and Judah, not knowing who she is, lies with her. Judah leaves Tamar with his seal, cord, and staff as payment. When Judah hears that Tamar is pregnant, he calls for her to be burned. When Tamar presents Judah with his "payment," Judah sees that he is the father. Judah declares, "She is more in the right than I" (Genesis 38:26).

Tale Three:
Finally, in this week's parashah, we learn vayigash, that Judah "encounters," Joseph once again. Just as Judah did not recognize Tamar when he "encountered" her, Judah does not recognize Joseph when he encounters him (he thinks Joseph is an Egyptian official who is holding his youngest brother Benjamin "hostage"). Instead of thinking only of himself, Judah advocates for the Egyptian official to release his brother Benjamin and send him home to his father (take me instead, Judah says the disguised Joseph). Overcome by Judah's growth and the deep love he shows for Benjamin, Joseph reveals his true identity to Judah.

The Point:
Through Judah, we are reminded that life seldom offers us clear options. We make mistakes that have real consequences in others' lives. But, we also learn that Judah grows and changes. Judah comes to a place of true heart-filled empathy. With this potential for growth and change as a model, how can any one of us doubt our own capability to engage in further journeying?

For further reflection:
What journeying do you still have left to do?

Chanukah 5768

"Chanukah" means rededication.

How remarkable that each Kislev, at the darkest time of the year, the Jewish people rededicate ourselves to bringing light into the world. For eight nights, we stop and focus on lighting one match. Each night, this single match sets off a chain reaction. Slowly, slowly, we add one candle until our chanukiot are fully aflame with our kavanot, our intentions.

Chanukah is not only about kindling physical flames in our homes, but also about igniting a spiritual light within ourselves.

And so I pray...

May you ignite within your soul a light of justice.
May you ignite within your soul a light of peace.
May you ignite within your soul a light of power.
May you ignite within your soul a light of compassion.
May you ignite within your soul a light of purpose.
May you ignite within your soul a light of joy.
May you ignite within your soul a light of meaning.
May you ignite within your soul a light of gratitude.

Parashat Vayeishev 5768

In last week's Torah portion, we learned that Jacob, on the eve of encountering his estranged brother Esau, wrestled with an ish, literally translated as a "man." Our tradition explains that this ish was not a mere man, but rather an angel of God, a spirit of Jacob's brother Esau, or Jacob's own conscience. At the end of this wrestling, the ish wrenches Jacob's hip and blesses him with a new name, Israel.

But, in this week's Torah portion, surprisingly, Jacob is NOT referred to by his new name, Israel. Instead, the Torah continues to refer to our troubled patriarch as Jacob. If Jacob's name change to Israel was supposed to indicate a change in character, why didn't it stick? The answer, I believe, lies in Jacob's journey.

In this week's Torah portion, Jacob follows up his wrestling match and reunion by returning home to his father's land. While the word "home" literally refers to a physical space, I believe the word "home" also speaks of an emotional/spiritual place as well. "Home" is the place of easy actions, old habits, and safe places. When we return "home," we return to old patterns.

You see, our Torah is painting us a very real picture here. Jacob's spiritual wrestling is NOT followed by radical transformation ("poof, you're Israel and you are now perfect"), but by regression and resistance to change ("poof, you may be called Israel, but your 'home' is still Jacob"). Israel followed up his dramatic performance by returning "home" to the Jacob he had always been, leaving him with the full potential to return to "Israel" once again.

I take comfort in knowing that Torah does not expect radical transformation or quick dramatic change. Torah is a caring counselor, recognizing our human tendencies, and a loving parent, ever-embracing our potential to leave "home" and find our "promised land."

May your Shabbat be filled with reflection and compassion.

Parashat Va-Yetzei 5768

At the beginning of this week's parashah, this week's Torah Portion, Va-Yetzei, our patriarch, Jacob, leaves Beer Sheva and sets out for Haran. Along his journey, Jacob comes upon "the certain place" and stops for the night. He takes a stone from the ground and puts it beneath his head. He falls asleep. As he sleeps, Jacob dreams of angels. The angels he sees are ascending and descending a ladder that leads up to the sky.

In the dream, God promises Jacob many descendents and says to Jacob, "Remember, I am with you: I will protect you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land" (Genesis 28:14).

Jacob awakens from his dream and declares: "Why, Adonai is in this place, and I, I did not know it!" (Genesis 28:16).

What is remarkable about this story is its ordinariness. Jacob's actions are wholly mundane. He stops for the night. He prepares for bed. He sleeps. And yet, in a moment of deep consciousness, Jacob realizes that God is in "the certain place" with him.

I notice that the Torah gives no name to "the certain place" when Jacob arrives there (it is only later we learn that Jacob changes its name from Luz to "Beit El," "the House of God"). I wonder if "the place," in a physical sense, matters at all. If Jacob would have traveled on another mile or stopped a few minutes earlier, would God not have appeared to him? No, I believe the physical space matters little. It is Jacob's "place" that matters. It is Jacob who, finally, after fleeing his parents' home and confronting himself, becomes ready to notice God. "The place" is not the land on which Jacob lies, but the emotional/spiritual space at which Jacob arrives.

We are taught that God is present in every place. But, we often fail to notice the Presence. On this Shabbat, let us attempt to open ourselves to the Divine that is around us and in us. Let us be like Jacob who dreams of angels and who has insights of holiness.

Parashat Toldot

This week's parashah, this week's Torah Portion, is Toldot. This parashah includes one of God's most profound commandments. God appears to Isaac and says: "Do not go down to Egypt; continue to dwell in the land that I tell you of, sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will give you blessing" (Genesis 25:2-3). Essentially, God tells Isaac: Don't move, stay put, and I will be with you.

What a surprising statement from the Divine! God is the master of telling people to move. God tells Isaac's father Abraham: "Go forth from your land, from your kindred, from our father's house, to the land that I will show you" (Genesis 12:2). And God tells Isaac's son Jacob: "Return to the land of your fathers, to your kindred! I will be with you."

But, to Isaac, God simply says "stay where you are."

Isaac is the biblical character best known for what is done to him. Isaac's father Abraham takes him onto a mountain to sacrifice him. Isaac's son Jacob tricks Isaac into giving him his older brother's birthright. So, what can we learn from Isaac, the classic middle-man, who God orders to stay put?

We learn that sometimes the best course of action is not to move. That there is a value in just "hanging out." That life does not always have to be so busy and so forward focused. Sometimes life is just about the here, the now, and the present.

On this Shabbat, may you and your family find moments of rest. May you cherish staying put and delight in not-moving.

Parashat Chayei Sarah 5768

This week's parashah, this week's Torah Portion, Chayei Sarah, meaning "Sarah's lifetime," begins not with tales of our matriarch Sarah's life, but with an account of her death. In the first verses of this parashah, we read how Abraham, her husband, tends carefully to the details of her burial.

Soon after Sarah's burial, Abraham begins attending to matters in his son Isaac's life, in particular, he sets out to find Isaac a suitable wife. After a series of trials, Isaac is matched with Rebekah. This first part of the parashah is a lesson in compassion and acting for the welfare of one's family.

A word on Rebekah: Rebekah is one of my favorite biblical characters and it is because of her that I look forward to Chayei Sarah each year. Rebekah is a woman of action. She takes an active role in deciding her own destiny and she is a model for the power that biblical women held and exercised in their lives.

I urge you to open up your Torah Commentary this Shabbat and read Chayei Sarah, Genesis 23:1−25:18. Delight in Rebekah's gumption, mourn with Abraham, grow with Isaac.

One of the Torah's purposes is to mirror our own emotions and experiences. May you find yourself in it always.

Parashat Lech L'cha 5768

In this week's Torah Portion, Lech L'cha, God tells Avram "go forth from your land, from your kindred, from your father's house, to the land that I will show you." This week, God reveals what will become an enduring covenant between God and the Jewish People: We will be a people as numerous as the stars in the sky and the land of Israel will be our inheritance.

What is remarkable about Avram's journey is that in order for him to go up to Canaan, he must first travel down to Egypt. And, God tells Avram that before his descendents can settle in the land of Canaan, they must endure strife.

Through this, our Torah teaches us that life includes peaks and valleys and that our journeys often include wandering. This Shabbat let us not only focus on where we are going, but celebrate the journey it takes to get there.

Parashat Noah 5768

This week's parashah, this week's Torah portion, is Noah. Noah tells the story of a man who gets an incredible directive from the Divine: "I am about to destroy humanity and the earth. Make yourself an ark of gopher wood." Noah is told that a flood is coming and is given orders to build an ark, to pack up his family, to gather two of each animal, and to float through the re-creation of the world.

This story, filled with moral entanglements, also offers us a metaphor for our own spiritual consideration:

What are the floods that seek to surround you?
What is your ark?
Who do you invite into that ark?

My blessing for this Shabbat is that we all become aware of our own arks and recognize those who enter into them with us. May we show gratitude to those who support us and may we offer thanks for the ark that carries us.

Rosh Hashanah 5768 -- Becoming THAT People

My Second Day Rosh Hashanah sermon on homelessness begins...

Last month, the TBS Program Director, April Akiva, and I attended a local meeting called the Homeless Providers’ Forum. The seats in the room were filled, so we stood together in the back, leaning against a wall. This monthly gathering is attended by people from all over Orange County who service the homeless. At the meeting’s conclusion, attendees stood up one at a time to introduce themselves.

Click here to read the rest of the sermon.

The Women's Torah Commentary

I was honored to serve as a contributing commentator, as well as an intern and assistant to the editor, in the recently published The Torah: A Women's Commentary. An article I wrote in honor of the publication, "Thirsty For Answers," appears in the September 2007 issue of 614 HBI eZINE. Click here to read.