06 Jun 2018

Bones of Israel, Judaic Topics
After teaching a class on The Seven Bones of Israel (see my post in February 2017) on the Shavuot just passed I decided to take a break from the ethics project. The Seven Bones idea is an intriguing one and, having taught it twice now, it seemed to me that there is interest in it from both clergy and interested lay students. Its subject is expansive enough to support a (short) book-le...
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12 Apr 2018

Judaic Topics
The account of the deaths of Aaron’s sons Nadav and Avihu is the most frequently discussed topic in Parashat Shemini. Most comment addresses what the brothers actually did and why their action merited the punishment they received. The text is not seriously disputed to this extent: the brothers literally took their firepans, put fire in them, placed incense on the fire and brought the ...
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09 Feb 2018

Judaic Topics
In Parashat Yitro, Moses’ father-in-law advises him to create a judicial structure for the people that will reduce the burden on Moses and provide for a more efficient process of resolving disputes. The advice that Jethro gives Moses is reasonable and the text seems to suggest that it was implemented without delay. “Moses heeded his father-in-law and did just as he had said. Moses cho...
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30 Oct 2017

Ethics Project, Judaic Topics
The most commonly found of ethical statements discussed in Golden Rule context is the one I have suggested be called The Ethic of Restraint. That is found in slightly different language from culture to culture and time to time but it is generally represented in such statements as: “That which is hateful to you, do not do to another.” My suggestion that calling this The Ethic of Res...
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30 Oct 2017

Direct Path Project, Judaic Topics
The Direct Path to knowledge of our true nature, which is often called enlightenment, is not actually a path. As the modern non-dual teacher and philosopher Rupert Spira points out, if we think we are on a path we have already missed the mark. The idea of a path suggests that there is a distance to be traveled. Stand up, he suggests, and take a step toward yourself. You can no more do...
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13 Oct 2017

Ethics Project, Judaic Topics
The Five Books of Moses address the subject of the ger (the stranger) in dozens of passages. One passage among them is unusual: Deuteronomy 10:18 provides: “You (plural) shall love the stranger (singular) because you (plural) were strangers (plural) in the land of Egypt.” In this passage the injunction is love of the stranger, or the ger (spelled gimmel resh in Hebrew) This is and ...
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17 Aug 2017

Judaic Topics
In Chapter 31 of the Book of Numbers, God speaks to Moses in verse 2 saying: “Avenge the Israelite people on the Midianites; then you shall be gathered to your kin.” (In Parashat Balak at Numbers 25:1, we read that the Israelite men had profaned themselves with Moabite women while encamped in Shittim. But it is a Midianite woman who was involved in the episode at Numbers 25:6, being k...
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16 Aug 2017

Direct Path Project, Judaic Topics
Eight times in Parashat Re’eh we read of “the place where God will choose to establish His name”. This is a formulation so unusual that it would attract notice if encountered once. Finding it eight times in one parashah demands attention. The making of an image of God, as we know, is prohibited. And in this parashah the Israelites are even commanded to destroy all of the physical r...
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14 Aug 2017

Judaic Topics
Deuteronomy 8:10 reads in Hebrew: “v’achalta v’savata u’verachta et Adonai Elohecha al ha’aretz ha’tovah asher natan lach.” This verse is the proof text for the commandment to offer thanks (blessing) after a meal. That blessing is known as Birkat Ha’Mazon. It is often said that all translation is midrash and, because of its many structural ambiguities, translation from Hebrew of...
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01 Jun 2017

Ethics Project, Judaic Topics
As I write this, the Jewish Festival of Shavuot is about to begin. The Festival is rooted in a celebration of the springtime grain harvest but has also become the time Jews recall and commemorate the giving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai. It is customary to read the Book of Ruth during synagogue services on Shavuot. The custom is an old one, being mentioned in a non-canonical Talmudic work...
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