Parashat Ha Shavua Commentaries

Abraham has just buried his wife, Sarah. Linked from their youth, his separation must have felt like a severe loss, and indeed, just after concluding his mourning for her Abraham turns to the task of finding a wife for his son, Isaac, as though the impact of his loss made him realize what was still missing from his son’s life. The Torah let’s us know that his will be the last act of the patriarch, introducing this topic with the words, “Abraham was old, well along in days, and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all (ba-kol) (Gen 24:1).   Read more...

"Now Israel loved Joseph best of all his sons, for he was the child of his old age; and he made him an ornamented tunic. And when the brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of his brothers, they hated him so that they could not speak a friendly word to him."  (Genesis 37:3-4)   Read more...

Idolatry is the practice of treating something of relative importance as though it were of ultimate significance.  In our idolatrous age, we often act as though money, careers, sex appeal or prestige are of ultimate importance, when in fact, they are only worthwhile to the degree that they can contribute to our becoming better, more compassionate and more responsible people.   Read more...

One of the most passionate divides the separates today’s Jews is the question of the authorship of Torah. According to some groups of Jews, God gave each and every word of the Torah through Moses. Yet other Jews see the Torah as inspired by God’s vision and presence, but with a significant contribution by the people the Torah percolated through. Still others see it as purely a human work – glorious and deep, but human through and through. Read more...

Surely one of the most well known of the Torah’s stories involves Noah and the flood. A righteous man living in a lawless and violent age, Noah is commanded to build an ark and to gather representatives of all the species of animals into the ark so they can survive a flood that will wipe out errant humanity and allow mankind to begin anew through Noah. As the rain waters fall and the floodwaters storm, Noah, his family, and his herds are safe inside. Read more...