This week, in Parashat Shelach, the Israelites come closer than ever before to the Land of Israel. After years of wandering through a harsh and uncertain wilderness, they stand on the threshold of promise. Moses sends twelve spies to scout the land and, as we read the verses, it almost feels like a map unfolding before us, the spies representing the first Jews to lay eyes on this place for generations. Yet these regions are not just coordinates - they are the earliest impress

Yivarechecha Adonai v’yishmerecha — May Adonai bless you and keep youYa’er Adonai panav eilecha vichunecha — May Adonai’s light shine upon you and be gracious to youYisa Adonai panav eilecha v’yasem lecha shalom — May Adonai’s face be lifted to you and may you be granted peace Fifteen words, that is all our tradition’s oldest blessing contains. And yet, these fifteen words come together to form a precise and enduring expression of blessing, one that has carried meaning for ou

A brief word of care before this week’s d’var: some of what follows touches on themes of abuse and moral wrongdoing. I am sure that, by now, many of you have encountered a widely circulated opinion piece by Nicholas Kristof in this Monday’s edition of The New York Times. In it, deeply disturbing allegations about systemic abuse in the Israeli prison system against Palestinian prisoners were presented. The claims are severe - so severe, to my mind, that they demand a response.

There is a phrase you hear often when working with young people, all of you who are parents are likely familiar with it - “That’s not fair.” It usually comes out in moments of frustration: Maybe the rules don’t go their way, or a consequence feels uneven, or life tilts just slightly off balance. And yet, beneath the complaint is something profound. What they are really expressing is an instinct that, I believe, all humans share: a demand that the world make sense morally, tha

This week we begin reading the book of Leviticus, Sefer Vayikra. Its name derives from the tribe of Levi, whose members are elevated to serve as priests, entrusted with the sacred work of maintaining the Mishkan, the portable sanctuary that accompanied the Israelites through the wilderness. Much of the book is devoted to the structure of that service—how a people draws close to God through ritual, discipline, and devotion. The opening parashah, Vayikra, immerses us in the det

In our Torah portion this week, Ki Tisa, Moses has ascended Mount Sinai to commune with God for forty days. In his absence, anxiety spreads through the Israelite camp. The people begin to fear that Moses will not return—that he has died on the mountain. In their uncertainty, the Israelites turn to Moses’ brother Aaron with a startling request: “Make us a god who shall go before us” (Exodus 32:1). Aaron gathers the people’s gold jewelry and fashions it into a golden calf. Soon

With the Exodus and the revelation at Sinai behind them, the Israelites set out on their national mission: to build a society rooted in God’s mitzvot (commandments). One of the first tasks they are given as a collective is the construction of the Mishkan (Tabernacle). This portable sanctuary will serve as God’s dwelling place within the Israelite camp and as the central site of worship and ritual sacrifice. The Israelites are instructed to bring terumah (gifts) — gold, spices

Yitro, this week’s portion, provides us one of the pivotal moments in the story of the Jewish People. Matan Torah - God bestowing the Torah to the entire Israelite people gathered at Mount Sinai. The moment of revelation that transforms the Israelites from a large family to a nation, to Am Yisrael. There is a beautiful midrash (rabbinical story) that describes the moment of revelation. It paints a picture of what the Israelites, and the mixed multitude the Torah tells us tra

This year, I have the privilege of participating in the Amplify Israel Rabbinical Fellowship . The group consists of 25 rabbis ordained in the last 15 years serving in different rabbinical roles across the United States and Canada. Since I was educated and ordained in Israel, it is a great opportunity for me to create new connections with people doing similar work. The fellowship’s primary goals are strengthening the participants' connection to the Jewish People and Israel an

The Ramban Shabbat Shalom, everyone. I hope you had a meaningful end to Hanukkah and that it was full of light and celebration for you and yours; I also hope that these weeks of transition between 2025 and 2026 bring some much needed rest and recuperation alongside quality time with loved ones. I know the winter break means time spent out of the city for many of our JCP families. This week I was fortunate to spend time with my family in Spain: the first half of the week in Ca

This week, in Parashat VaYishlach , Jacob finally returns to the land of his parents and grandparents after many years away. However, a great threat also awaits him there: his estranged twin brother, Esau. Decades before in their youth Jacob had schemed with his mother to steal Esau’s inheritance. The last thing Jacob knew of Esau, when he fled his parent’s camp, was that Esau sought to take his life. Jacob was full of trepidation. He had no idea how his brother, who had cre

Chayei Sara - meaning “the life of Sara” - is a bit of a misleading title for this week’s portion since it opens, instead, with Sara’s passing. The first matriarch of the Jewish people passes away and her husband, Abraham, goes about finding a proper place of burial for her in their new, shared homeland. After the period of mourning has passed, Abraham’s thoughts turn to the future and particularly to his son, Isaac. Abraham has the responsibility to make sure that the covena

The story of Noah and the ark is one of the best known in the Torah. Even if you did not grow up going to Sunday or Hebrew School, the cultural reach of the story extends far beyond the walls of supplementary Jewish education. It is easy to see why this is a beloved Torah story. There is color and whimsy. There is grand drama: great floods, a boat that can contain masses, animals walking two by two. These aspects all come together to make the story of Noah and the ark an eas

This week we observed the holiday of Simchat Torah . We sang and danced with the Torah to celebrate returning to the beginning of the Torah, starting our yearly reading cycle once again. This week in Bereshit , the Torah’s first portion, we read about the creation of the world. God encounters a universe described as tohu va’vohu - unformed and void. Each day, through the power of God’s words, a new, miraculous piece of our reality comes into being. Humanity is created on the

The High Holy Days are now behind us; Sukkot and Simchat Torah are right around the corner. This week we read the penultimate portion in our Torah before we begin the cycle of yearly reading anew. While we have already entered a new year, the Torah reading cycle, in its infinite wisdom, gives us a two week warm up in the new year that allows us to really feel that we are in a new chapter before bringing us back to the beginning again. The final portions of the Torah are all

During the course of the Jewish year, there are a handful of Shabbatot that hold a special standing and receive a special title. This Shabbat is one of them. The Shabbat between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur is known as Shabbat Shuva . This Shabbat receives its name from the Haftarah - prophetic writing - read this week in synagogues from the book of Hosea that begins with the words “ Shuva Yisrael ad Adonai Eloheicha - Return, O Israel, to the Eternal your God” (Hosea 14:2).

Our Torah portion this week, Ki Tavo , begins with a description of an ancient ritual observed by our ancestors. Each year, the Israelites living off the land waited apprehensively, wondering if that year’s fruits and crops would grow. Without the capabilities of modern technology, there was simply no way to know. This meant that the arrival of the first fruit on the tree or the vine was a source of great wonder and a reason to mark the occasion with gratitude. The Israelite

“On the first day of the second month, in the second year after the exodus from the land of Egypt, God spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai…” (Numbers 1:1). This week we begin reading the fourth book of the Torah. In English, we call it Numbers, a reference to the two censuses taken of the Israelite nation in its chapters. In Hebrew, the book is known as Bemidbar , which means “in the wilderness.” Bemidbar documents one great transition for the Israelites. It covers thir

There is a great deal of talking in the Torah. There is some dialogue between characters. There is even some conversing between humans and animals. Primarily, the talking occurs between God and Moses, the former commanding the latter about what to say or what to do next. In almost all of these cases, the Hebrew word for talking, speaking, or saying is daber . In this week's Torah portion, the use of a different Hebrew term teaches us a very deep lesson about how to use our wo

In Parashat Shmini we read a heartbreaking story. Beginning last week we read about the intricate ordination ceremony of Aaron and his four sons that elevated them as the first priests of Israel. This week’s portion opens on the eighth, and final, day of that festival. Special sacrifices were offered, Aaron blessed the entire nation for the first time as High Priest, it is even told that God made God’s presence known and seen to the entire Israelite nation. Yet what begins a