Wearing the Crowns of Heaven

Feb 27, 1999 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Tetzavveh | Purim

Many a busy street corner of Manhattan has served on occasion as the stump of a preacher who speaks in the name of God. With the countdown to the millennium, the scene will only occur with greater frequency. Yet most passersby don’t tarry for a moment. The mere claim to revelation carries no weight.

The Necessity of Inclusion

Feb 15, 2003 By Joshua Heller | Commentary | Tetzavveh

The latter part of the book of Exodus describes the construction of the Mishkan, the portable tabernacle that served as the focus of God’s presence during the Israelites’ wanderings in the desert and beyond. These sections are characterized by a love of regularity and order. The same carefully selected few carry out the same intricately prescribed rituals the same way each day, using sacred objects, which have been standardized down to the last detail. Each aspect is described twice, first as God commands Moses, and then in its actual implementation, which matches the plans almost to the letter. In contrast, extemporaneous religious expressions, like the Golden Calf, are hazardous at best. There is no room for the novel amid the routine.

Why Jews Light Candles

Feb 19, 2005 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Tetzavveh

Judaism is hard to imagine without candles.

How We Wear Our Judaism

Apr 6, 2004 By Lewis Warshauer | Commentary | Tetzavveh | Purim | Shabbat Zakhor

The more we know about animals, the more they seem to have what we consider to be human capabilities. Beavers build dams and porpoises communicate in sophisticated ways, while apes use tools and may even reason on some level. But, human beings are the only species to make their own clothes. The wasp’s nest has no garment district.

What God Wants From Us

Apr 7, 2009 By Benjamin D. Sommer | Commentary | Tetzavveh

What is the book of Exodus about? At first glance, the answer seems easy. As the English title states, it tells the story of the exodus from Egypt, the story of how God rescued the Israelites from slavery by defeating Pharaoh and his armies. A second glance, however, shows that this answer cannot be right.

What We Are Asked to Remember

Mar 11, 2006 By JTS Alumni | Commentary | Tetzavveh | Shabbat Zakhor

By Rabbi Yehoshua Aizenberg

Two Sabbaths ago, we celebrated Shabbat Shekalim, the first of four special Sabbaths preceding Pesah. This coming Shabbat, Shabbat Zachor, always comes right before the Purim celebration.

“Do Not Forget.”

Apr 3, 2007 By Marc Wolf | Commentary | Tetzavveh | Purim | Shabbat Zakhor

“It is evident that we live in an age of violence and terror. There is not a continent on the globe that is not despoiled by terror and violence, by barbarism and by a growing callousness to human suffering.”