On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Shof’tim: Demanding Justice
At the core of being Jewish is a fundamental demand for justice. Demanding justice involves asking others to work toward a more just world, but it also involves asking ourselves to do that work.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Ki Teitzei: The Morality of War
Ki Teitzei translates to “when you go out,” but it doesn’t mean going out to dinner or the movies.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Ki Tavo: Spiritual Centering
Hasket, which translates to silence or stillness, is a word that appears in the Torah only once, during this week's Parasha, Ki Tavo.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Vayeilech: The Sacred Art of Letting Go
Parashat Vayeilech is read between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, a time of transition for all of us. We've brought in the new year with hopes, prayers, and the shofar, and we look toward Yom Kippur, where we are tasked with letting go of the last year and moving forward.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Nitzavim: Standing for What Matters Most
At the beginning of Parashat Nitzavim, we hear the phrase, "Today you are all standing." This phrase isn't referring to people simply standing, it means that the Jewish people stood together and entered into a Covenant, affirming the things that matter most.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Haazinu: Between a Rock and Hard Place
Parashat Haazinu includes the word tzur, or rock, eight times. But in this case, tzur isn’t referring to just any rock; it’s referring to God, as the rock of Israel. Sometimes, a rock can have a positive connotation, like our friends that are always there for us.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Sukkot and the Fragility of Life
Five days after Yom Kippur, we turn our gaze out to the world around us and take notice of the harvest season. Sukkot is a holiday that teaches us to appreciate what we have, while reminding us that life is fragile.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - B'reishit: Creationism vs Science: Which is the Truth?
This week we enter the beginning of a brand new cycle of Torah reading with a parashah that has become controversial in today’s political climate: B’reishit (in the beginning).
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Noach: Electing a Righteous Leader
Almost everybody knows the story of Noach. God tells Noach that there is going to be a flood that will destroy all living things, and it’s up to Noach to build an ark in order to save his family and repopulate the Earth.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - B’haalot’cha: Is the Torah Colorblind?
In this episode of On The Other Hand, Rabbi Jacobs is joined by April Baskin, URJ Vice President of Audacious Hospitality, to discuss the provocative text in Parashat B’haalot’cha when Miriam and Aaron talk behind Moses’s back about Moses marrying Tziporah, a Kushite woman.