The Nazirite Vow: Connecting to a Higher Power
Jews are not ascetics – or at least, so we tend to think.... Parashat Naso gives us laws that lead us to focus on priestly rules and the purity of the Israelite camp. The adjacent appearance of laws on the sotah (adulteress) and the Nazirite invite us to consider the relationship between these two subjects.
Bringing Up Israel: Parenting a New Nation
Recently, my daughter and I had an exchange that felt like we were enacting an ancient script between parents and teenagers. It left me wondering where on earth this script comes from, and how I ended up with the parental role.This week’s parashah, B’haalot’cha, provides some answers. God and the people of Israel struggle: the people are tired of manna, yearn for the food of Egypt, and cry out for meat.
The Evolving Role of the Tallit
When I was speaking with a 95-year-old congregant this week, she shared with me the uncomfortable feeling of having her synagogue change around her. “We used to be properly Reform. Now, when I come, I see people wearing a tallit..... " For her, seeing fellow congregants wearing a tallit feels like a betrayal of the Reform principles she holds dear.... The commandment to wear tzitzit, the fringes on the corners of the tallit, comes from this parashah.
The Call of Parashat Vayikra
As the Book of Exodus concludes with the completion of the Tabernacle, logic dictates that the laws applicable in that holy site be delineated.
Sacrifices are Alive and Well!
An Offering of Thanksgiving
Both The Torah: A Modern Commentary1 and The Torah: A Women's Commentary2 offer the following midrash for this week's portion pertaining to the sacrifice of the sh'lamim given as an offering of thanksgiving:
Smoke Signals: Sacrifices as a Ritual Vocabulary
Annie LaMott, who writes on Christian spirituality, says that the two best prayers she knows are "Help me, help me, help me" and "Thank you, thank you, thank you" (Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith [New York: Random House, 2000], p. 82).
The Sacrifice of Drawing Closer
The portion Tzav in Leviticus describes the rituals of the burnt offering, the meal offering, the reparation offering, and the offering of well-being.