
Who Belongs?
May 16, 2025 By Rachel Rosenthal | Commentary | Emor
Who is the Other? This question, which is asked more and more often in our world, is not often easy to answer. Can one choose to be part of a community? Are people who were once outsiders ever fully welcomed as insiders? In Judaism, these questions are especially important. While Judaism has categories to define and even praise non-Jews, opting into the Jewish community is not simple. However, the Talmud tells us that once someone converts to Judaism, we are supposed to treat them as any other Jew. Unfortunately, this is a mission in which many communities fail. This failure can have significant consequences, as we see in this week’s parashah, Emor.
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Love Beyond Grudges: Living the Mitzvah of Love Your Neighbor
May 9, 2025 By Jonah Guthartz | Aharei Mot | Kedoshim
Parashat Kedoshim begins by laying out dozens of mitzvot, including the prohibition against idolatry and the mitzvot of charity, Shabbat, honesty in business, honoring one’s parents, and the sanctity of life. Perhaps the best- known mitzvah is לֹֽא־תִקֹּ֤ם וְלֹֽא־תִטֹּר֙ אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י עַמֶּ֔ךָ וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ אֲנִ֖י יְ-הֹוָֽה׃ (Lev. 19:19) “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against members of your people. Love your fellow [Israelite] as yourself: I am the Lord” Rabbi Akiva famously names this as a fundamental value of the Torah (Sifra, Kedoshim 4:12).
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The Torah’s Prescription for Healing
May 2, 2025 By Alan Cooper | Commentary | Metzora | Tazria
Given the discomfort, discomfiture, and uncertainty that even mild skin eruptions can cause us nowadays, it should come as no surprise that they were a source of anxiety in ancient times. In this week’s parashah, that anxiety finds expression amidst an array of concerns about the human body and its functions. The purity laws in Leviticus 11 through 15, which digress from the narrative flow of the book,[i] are concerned with diet (chapter 11), reproduction (chapter 12), and bodily integrity (chapters 13 to 15, including property as an extension of the person).
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Six Takes on a Leader’s Attributes
Apr 25, 2025 By Walter Herzberg | Commentary | Shemini
Identifying the textual problem: commentators have noticed that the phrase “draw near unto the altar” seems superfluous. If Aaron is being commanded to “perform the service of the sin offering,” is it not obvious that he will need to approach the altar? This textual issue will serve as the basis for our consideration of the attributes of a leader based on our examination of the comments of the traditional Jewish commentaries.
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The Bones We Carry
Apr 18, 2025 By Abigail Uhrman | Commentary | Pesah
Consider the scene: after over 200 years of slavery, the Israelites, at long last, are preparing to depart. They are frantically gathering their belongings—gold, silver, all their earthly possessions—and scrambling to prepare food for their journey. In this urgent rush, Moses, rather than attending to the needs of the people and their immediate concerns, embarks on a singular mission: to retrieve the bones of Joseph, fulfilling a centuries-old promise. It begs the question: Why, in the midst of these epic events, does the Torah highlight this seemingly minor detail? What is the significance of Moses’s dedication to this task, his resolute commitment to honoring a promise made generations ago?
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Can We Sanctify Incivility?
Apr 11, 2025 By Gordon Tucker | Commentary | Shabbat Hagadol | Tzav
Parashat Tzav opens with instructions for the olah, the offering (primarily the twice-daily sacrifice) that is entirely burnt on the altar. The ninth chapter of the talmudic tractate Zevahim, notes that the word olah, which means “ascending,” can be understood both as denoting an ascent to heaven from earth, and equally, an ascent up the ramp of the altar to the place from which it is offered. The double meaning gave rise to a principle that is articulated in the opening mishnah of that ninth chapter. But some background is necessary before citing that principle.
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The Give and Take of Strength
Mar 28, 2025 By Eliezer B. Diamond | Commentary | Pekudei | Shabbat Hahodesh
Rituals of closure are common in both the secular and religious realms. An example of the first is the sounding of retreat and the lowering of the flag marking the end of the official duty day on military installations. An instance of the second is the siyyum, a liturgical ritual and festive meal that is occasioned by […]
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Sacred Gifts and the Holiness of Diversity
Mar 21, 2025 By Rabbi Ayelet Cohen | Commentary | Shabbat Parah | Vayak-hel
Parashat Vayak-hel demands that we notice the details, recounting with exquisite specificity the ornamentation and beautification of the Miskhan and the sacred vestments. Among all of the parshiyot detailing the construction of the Mishkan, Vayak-hel is particularly notable in lifting up the sacred contributions of women and of the artists and artisans. It also expands […]
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