Claiming Our Ancestors: The Case of Terah
Oct 31, 2014 By Eliezer B. Diamond | Commentary | Lekh Lekha
For all of us, there is no going without leaving; and so it was for Abraham: “Go forth from your land, your birthplace, and the house of your father to the land that I shall show you” (Gen. 12:1) [emphasis added]. And when we leave places, we leave people as well. When Abraham departed for Canaan he left behind, among others, his father Terah. And it was always thus: “Therefore shall a man leave his father and mother” (2:24).
Read More
How We Can Build the Synagogue of the Future
Feb 13, 2013 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Terumah
If you care deeply about the present and future state of the synagogue, as I do, it’s difficult to resist the temptation to draw lessons from the remarkable vision of communal worship set forth in this week’s Torah portion. I do not intend to resist. Three aspects of the divine plan for the Tabernacle strike me as particularly relevant to our contemporary situation.
Read More
When God Said “No” to Moses
Feb 26, 2013 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Ki Tissa
It must have been a great comfort to Moses—and not only a disappointment—that God turned down his request to see God’s glory. The wind was presence enough, on top of the mountain, much of the time—the wind, and the voice in the wind. Every visit of divine speech exhausted him now. Even the words that did not demand that he do battle, climb higher, challenge Pharaoh, rebuke the Israelites yet again, or simply—on some days the hardest—endure.
Read More
The Family Story
Mar 20, 2013 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Shabbat Hagadol | Pesah
I asked what part of the seder you most enjoy; whether any aspect of it bothers you; which piece of the Exodus story, if any, means a lot to you personally; and how, or if, you relate to the seder as a religious ceremony. Here’s what I learned from what you told me.
Read More
The Spirit of Jewish Leadership
Apr 23, 2013 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Emor
Two themes in this week’s Torah portion strike me with particular urgency and force: how Israelites should mourn the dead, and the qualifications required for the priesthood.
Read More
A People Dwelling Apart
Jun 19, 2013 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Balak
Balak’s mix of poetry, narrative, and prophecy raises questions about Israel’s status as “a people dwelling apart” that are still with us today—questions that, in my view, make Balak one of the most troubling portions in the entire Torah.
Read More
Blessing and Curse
Aug 21, 2013 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Ki Tavo
This week’s portion contains some of the highest highs and lowest lows in the entire Torah—or in any other work of literature, for that matter. At the start of the parashah, Israelites in the wilderness are asked to picture what it will be like to testify, from inside the Land of Israel, that they have seen God’s promises of blessing fulfilled. At the end of the parashah, those same Israelites are subjected to 54 verses of terrifying curses detailing the punishments awaiting them “if you fail to observe faithfully all the terms of this Teaching” (Deut. 28:58).
Read More
Jacob’s Fear
Nov 13, 2013 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Vayishlah
The Torah wants us to identify with the ancestors we meet in the book of Genesis; indeed, Abraham and Sarah and their children become our ancestors when we agree not only to read their stories, but to take them forward. Abraham “begat” Isaac in one sense by supplying the seed for his conception. He “begat” him as well by shaping the life that Isaac would live, setting its direction, digging wells that his son would re-dig, making Isaac’s story infinitely more meaningful—and terrifying—by placing him in the line of partners with God in covenant. So it is with us.
Read More
