This is a dangerous and precarious time for God. It appears that whichever way we turn, religious and political figures are feeling emboldened to speak 'Truth' on behalf of the Almighty One. And, in many instances, the speaking of these so-called 'Truths' is leading to aggressive action. Read more...

As Jacob is dying, he calls together Joseph and his sons to bless them, and then he utters Chapter 49 of the Book of Genesis, commonly referred to in Hebrew as birkat ya'akov, "the blessing of Jacob." Unlike the blessing Jacob gives to Efraim and Menashe, what he says in this chapter is not always positive. In fact, Jacob himself tells his family that what he is about to do is not to bless them, but "I will tell you what is to befall you in days to come" (Gen. 49:1). Read more...

I was not a good child in Hebrew school. Corresponding to the plethora of ways I found to misbehave in Hebrew school, my teachers employed a potpourri of disciplinary modes as part of my Jewish education. Now that I am a rabbi, I can try to redeem some of the "difficult moments" that regularly occurred between me and the teachers of my childhood. I hope to show how my holy teachers spoke to me in the way Jacob spoke to his children in this week's Torah portion. Read more...

Put yourself in Jacob's place. Laying on his death bed, he is filled with apprehensions about the special way of understanding God and the world that his grandfather, Abraham, established. It wasn't so long ago, he must have mused, that everyone worshipped a multiplicity of deities, that people sacrificed children to their gods, that they gashed themselves with knives as part of a religious fervor, that cultic prostitution was an integral part of worship. Read more...

In this week's Torah portion, Vaï'Yehi, we complete the reading of the book of Genesis, meeting Jacob on his death bed, surrounded by his children. Having asked Joseph to take care of the details of his burial and ensure that he will be buried in Israel, Jacob summons his twelve sons, prepared to share final words with his children. Clearly a man with things on his mind and desire to share them, Jacob calls to his children saying: 'Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the end of days. Read more...