Tzav, this week’s parsha, establishes some of the sacrificial duties of the professional high priest, the Kohanim, along with some of their perks and ends with the ritual of their consecration. There is an obvious parallel between these duties, perks and consecration and those of the modern Jewish religious leader. In Tzav, God tells Moses […]
Pharaoh dreams of seven handsome fat cows being eaten by seven ugly, skinny cows. Pharaoh dreams of seven solid healthy ears of wheat on a single stalk, being followed by seven thin sickly ears on a stalk scorched by the east wind. He is a hereditary monarch, and therefore not very bright, so he calls […]
(inspired by Arthur Green, SEEK MY FACE) Maybe God is a gerund, a verb ending in ‘ing‘, a verb that has become a noun. Always doing, always being. And Being. Never starting, never ending. But real and solid, a thing made of action. Selah: Pause and think. I want always to be in the […]
Exod 33:12-34:26 This is one of those holiday Shabbats when a special Torah portion is read. In ancient times, Succot was THE holiday, of all the festivals this was the most important one. And if that is so, then one must wonder why, out of the entire chumash, this passage was chosen. It’s from Exodus, after Moses […]
I used to refuse to bend my knee and bow during the Morning Blessings. Baruch Atah Etcetera Thank you for Etecetera…. Who was I bowing to? A male king? That’s not God. Screw that. But then I thought What if I bowed anyway? What would that feel like? So I tried it for a month. […]
It’s about 8:45 AM. Brooklyn, 15th St. stop on the F train. I buy tokens (or was it a Metro Card by then) at the booth, and the clerk says a plane had hit the World Trade Center. I don’t know why, both he and I assume it is an accident, a small plane. I […]
Ancient God of the Sumerians, Hittites, Babylonians and Hebrews, God of Noah and all who came after, We can, if we survive, imagine being philosophically grateful For this hurricane. After all, It reminds us that there are forces much bigger than ourselves And puts our lives in perspective Which is always a good thing. But […]
Praise the Before, Praise the After, Praise the Time In Between. I construct four walls and a roof and no windows.I put in only one door, open it once a year, and never go in.Inside the walls, Holy of Holies. Outside the walls, everything else.All I did was build a temple. I buy some fabric. […]
Jer. 17:12 A glorious throne, exalted from the beginning, is the place of our sanctuary I am losing my home. I love my home.I love the birds singing in the morning outside my window.I love my neighbors, we feed each others’ cats.I love the bodega on the corner.I love the Park, and my mailman. I […]
I open my mouth, I open my heart.I speak praise, hope and thanks.I speak the Ancient Prayer: 1. Praise our Ancestors!God of my childhood faith, of my adult skepticismGod of the mystics, of the philosophersGod of our ancestors, of our childrenGod of my strength and of my weaknessGod of this community, and of mine aloneGod […]
Once a year it’s the Summer Solstice,Tekufat Tamuz, And that is when the Earth prays. The Earth tilts toward the sun and bends its planetary knees, Shukling towards the its own Ner Tamid, eternal light,And says a brucha: The earth prays A prayer of remembrance of its molten youth and the winter cold, And a […]
Blessed HaMavdeel, the Divider of Time:For separating the whole into increments that we may comprehend it, we are thankful. Blessed Adonai Echad, the Uniter Of All Existence:For connecting us that we may be one, we are thankful. Blessed Ain Sof, That Which Cannot Be Known:For providing us with so many interesting questions, we are thankful. […]
We open the door for Elijah,Angry prophet of the world to come.And we ask God to pay attentionTo the fire from the sky that was Elijah’s gift, A regretted necessity.Elijah announces the MashiachWho then saves the Jews! Huzzah!!Elijah, the angry bringer of justice.It’s a little scarySo invite that in.Bring down the anger, bring down the […]