B”H Parashat Vay’ehi 5778 Rabbi Daniela “May God make you like Ephraim and Menashe” In this week’s parashah, the last parashah of the Book of Genesis, you may find the blessings Jacob gave to each of his sons before he passed away. Before that, he had specifically called his grandsons, Ephraim and Menashe, who were
During the cold month of February, we look forward to keeping warm around the hearth of Torah’s fire together on Thursday nights. Led by Dr. Ken Firestone, this series is entitled “Touching Heaven – Touching Earth”.
There are various goals for Torah study. Some are more pragmatic, as we consider ways to apply Torah to our daily lives. Other goals are less pragmatic, such as learning “for its own sake” (Torah lishmah). Together, these aspects of Torah address matters of “heaven and earth.”
This series of classes will expose adult learners to both types of Torah wisdom from diverse genres and periods of the Jewish religious tradition. Texts will be presented from rabbinic literature (Talmud and Midrash), medieval philosophical literature (Maimonides), mystical literature from later periods (Kabbalistic and Chassidic text and tales) and modern Jewish thought.
The program will be held on Thursdays in February 1, 8, 15, and 22 at 7:30 pm. The program is FREE and open to the public.
B”H Tora Thoughts: Parashat Vayigash 5778 Rabbi Rami Pavolotzky The Most Important Task: Educating our Children The parasha for this week begins with the famous speech by Judah to his brother Joseph. At that moment, Joseph’s brothers (including Judah) had not recognized him as their long-lost brother, and only saw him as the second most
B”H Parashat Miketz – Hanukkah 5778 Rabbi Daniela “Thoughts about the Dreidel” One of the famous customs of the Festival of Hanukkah is to play with the dreidel (in Yiddish) or sevivon (in Hebrew). What is the dreidel? The dreidel is a four-sided spinning top that children play with during Hanukkah. Each side is imprinted
B”H Tora Thoughts: Parashat Vayeshev 5778 Rabbi Rami Pavolotzky Do not favor one child over the others This week we begin to read the story of Jacob’s sons, especially focusing on the life of Joseph. At the beginning of our parasha, the Torah already tells us that Joseph was the preferred son of Jacob (Genesis