Dvar Torah given at Stora Synagogan in Stockholm August 2026 Parashat Ki Teitze (Dvarim 22:1-3) contains a curious law:  If you see your fellow Israelite’s ox or sheep gone astray, -והתעלמת מהם- do not ignore it; you must take it back to your peer. If your fellow Israelite does not live near you or you do not know who [the owner] is, you shall bring it home and it shall remain with you until your peer claims it; then you shall give it back. You shall do the same with their donkey; you shall do the same with their garment; and so too shall you do with anything that your fellow Israelite loses and you find: לא תוכל להתעלם- you must not remain indifferent.  While this translation of the last phrase preserves the intent of the text, in an effort to not sound redundant it translates the root ע.ל.מ earlier as do not ignore it and then at the end as you must not remain indifferent. While duplicate use of a word is common in biblical text, it’s also an invitation to look more closely.  עלם means to cover or hide, the hitpael (reflexive) form here means to ignore, to

Continue readingParashat Ki Teitze

Dvar Torah given at Ramah Darom April 2026 Are you someone who has primary responsibility for packing in your household? When did you start packing? This question was prompted by a close reading of Exodus 12:39: וַיֹּאפ֨וּ אֶת־הַבָּצֵ֜ק אֲשֶׁ֨ר הוֹצִ֧יאוּ מִמִּצְרַ֛יִם עֻגֹ֥ת מַצּ֖וֹת כִּ֣י לֹ֣א חָמֵ֑ץ כִּֽי־גֹרְשׁ֣וּ מִמִּצְרַ֗יִם וְלֹ֤א יָֽכְלוּ֙ לְהִתְמַהְמֵ֔הַּ וְגַם־צֵדָ֖ה לֹא־עָשׂ֥וּ לָהֶֽם׃ And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had taken out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, since they had been driven out of Egypt and could not delay; nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves. Often times, this verse is cited as an explanation for why we eat matzah: Because when our ancestors left Egypt the dough didn’t have time to rise… we read this every year at our seder. But this year, I was focused on the last clause in the verse: וְגַם־צֵדָ֖ה לֹא־עָשׂ֥וּ לָהֶֽם׃ nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves. After 9 plagues they still weren’t ready to go? They hadn’t packed anything? Perhaps because I started preparing this d’var torah when I was at the stage of packing where I had started my mental checklist of things that I wanted to bring, this clause really stood

Continue readingShabbat Hol Hamoed Pesah

Dvar Torah given at KH/SZ March 2025 אלא פקודי- “These are the records of the Tabernacle, the Mishkan Haeydut, which were drawn up at Moses’ bidding—the work of the Levites under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest. Now Bezalel, son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, had made all that ה had commanded Moses; at his side was Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, carver and designer, and embroiderer in blue, purple, and crimson yarns and in fine linen.” Parshat Pekudei opens as you might expect from a parshah describing how the Mishkan was built, by lifting up the names of the men who directed and led the project: Ithamar ben Aharon the priest, and the two master craftsmen, Bezalel ben Uri ben Hur, and Oholiav ben Ahisamach.  But in Vayakhel, which we read last week – and is often appended to Pekudei as a double parshah – there was a different account of how this project was approached, here’s an abridged summary: Take from among you gifts to God; everyone whose heart is so moved shall bring them… And let all among you who are skilled come and make

Continue readingParashat Pekudei

Published April 29, 2021 by the JCC Association Since the pandemic, I’ve heard many people remark on how time itself feels different. Sometimes it feels that things that happened recently feel longer ago, and sometimes things that took place a year ago feel like they only just happened. Whatever markers we use for our sense of the passage of time seem not to be working as well for us as they were in the “before times.” There’s a passage in Parashat Emor (Leviticus 21:1-24:23) that can help us understand why we might feel this way. Leviticus chapter 23:1 talks of the annual holidays as both fixed in time and needing to be proclaimed by Israel Read More

Dvar Torah given at Ramah Darom March 29, 2021 Hag Sameah! It is so good to be here together! Two years ago, when those of us who were here at Ramah Darom said goodbye to one another we had little idea of what the past year would be like. Given everything, to be able to stand here, in this place, at this time feels miraculous. ברוך הטוב והמטיב- Blessed is the one who is good and who causes good to happen. Thanks also to the excellent staff at Ramah Darom who persisted in finding a way for us to be together. And thanks to each of you who for taking the decisions and following the protocols so that we could be part of this special Passover at Ramah Darom community  together. I’ve been thinking a lot recently about the formative communal experiences that shape whole generations. I suspect that this time of pandemic is such an experience. For our ancestors, the experience of slavery in Egypt and the liberation of our people was another such experience for their generation and its influence has endured until today. As just one example, more than a couple dozen times in the Torah we

Continue readingPesah 5781

Published June 2, 2020 by The Jewish Theological Seminary Naso opens up with a census of the Levites, who will be responsible for transporting parts of the Mishkan. Num. 4:3 specifies that those who will be engaged in this work are to be between the ages of 30 and 50 and fit for service when the Mishkan is operating. At first glance, the details of which family is to carry which piece of equipment seem trivial at best. Read More