Yoel H. Kahn
The Special Responsibilities of a Nation of Priests
Parashat M'tzora is about otherness. It describes skin conditions that required an ancient Israelite to live temporarily outside the camp. Reading this portion makes many of us uncomfortable. We are uncomfortable because of its topic, skin diseases and their remedies; we disagree with its basic premise that ritual acts of
The Tabernacle of the Wise-Hearted
Focal Point Moses said further to the whole community of Israelites: This is what Adonai has commanded: Take from among you gifts to Adonai, everyone whose heart so moves him [or her] shall bring them—gifts for Adonai: gold, silver, and copper; blue, purple, and crimson yarns, fine linen, and goats'
B'haalot'cha: This Passage Is Out of Place
This week’s Torah portion, B’haalot’cha, begins with the instructions for the lifting up of “the lamps,” haneirot, to illuminate the Tabernacle. The initial letter of the word , “lamp,” neir, is nun. This same letter, nun, also marks the portion’s most distinctive passage in Numbers 10:35–36. These two hard-to-understand verses
Whence Our Inheritance
Parashat Pinchas, one of the last parashiyot in the Book of Numbers, includes not just a diverse set of stories, but also different genres of material. It advances the narrative of Numbers, reports on (yet another) census, and details the offerings to be brought on a variety of sacred occasions
Mah Tovu--From Torah to Prayer
The Rabbis of old are collectively referred to by subsequent generations as chachameinu zichronam livrachah ( c hazal), "our teachers of blessed memory." When I take the time to fully appreciate their creativity and imagination, I too am always inspired by their memory and experience their blessing. In this teaching
