Because we are so familiar with the story of Moses at Sinai, sometimes it’s hard for us to remember that at the top of the…
David LazarFebruary 11, 2020
We have now reached the stage in the Exodus narrative of the Israelites actually leaving Egypt. In this Black History Month, I suggest we all…
David LazarFebruary 5, 2020
With this week’s Torah portion comes the beginning of the Exodus story, including the first seven of the ten plagues. These are presented as an…
David LazarJanuary 21, 2020
As we return once again to the book of Exodus, we see the Israelites suffering in bondage under Pharaoh and the Egyptians. We are reminded…
David LazarJanuary 14, 2020
Here we are, at the end of the book of Genesis, the book of our ancestral origins. Genesis tells us the very partial stories of…
David LazarJanuary 8, 2020
As we near the end of our annual reading of Genesis, with Ya’akov finally getting to see his beloved son Yosef, with the brothers reunited…
David LazarDecember 31, 2019
So many of us grew up and still sing the words of Maoz Tzur, a hymn probably written in the 13th century, at a time…
David LazarDecember 26, 2019
You may have heard that we have multiple sources to explain why we celebrate Hanukah for eight days. The best known and most popular version,…
David LazarDecember 24, 2019
I've been writing about key words in the last few portions of the Torah. This week I would like to focus upon two key motifs…
David LazarDecember 18, 2019
That same night he arose, and taking his two wives, his two maidservants, and his eleven children, he crossed the ford of the Yabbok. After…
David LazarDecember 11, 2019
One of our rabbinic traditions (Vayikra Rabbah 7:3) stipulates that a child’s biblical education should begin with the book of Leviticus: “Let the pure ones…
David LazarDecember 4, 2019
Yitzhak pleaded with the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the Lord responded to his plea, and his wife Rivkah…
David LazarNovember 27, 2019
Genesis 23:2 Sarah died in Kiryat Arba - now Hevron - in the land of Canaan; And Abraham proceeded/came to mourn for Sarah and…
David LazarNovember 20, 2019
Last week, we saw some pretty poor behavior on the part of Sarai, Avram and even God. It was, after all, Sarai's idea to give…
David LazarNovember 13, 2019
This week’s Torah portion contains one of the more challenging tales of our ancestors and how we might NOT want to learn from them how…
David LazarNovember 6, 2019
Tucked toward the end of this week’s Torah reading, Parshat Noah, is a wonderful example of narrative artistry, the story of the tower of…
David LazarOctober 30, 2019
As we begin again the annual cycle of reading the Torah, we are reminded that our Torah, like much of the Jewish literary tradition, speaks…
David LazarOctober 24, 2019
There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge…
David LazarOctober 16, 2019
We are now rapidly approaching the end of the book of Deuteronomy, Moses' second rendition of the Torah. We read about the leader’s final days,…
David LazarOctober 2, 2019
In this week’s Torah portion, Nitzavim, Moses begins to sum up what it means to be a people of God: I call heaven and earth…
David LazarSeptember 24, 2019