May 12, 2012 Leviticus p. 826 This is a description of the scheduling of important holidays in the Jewish calendar. 23:23 On the first day of the 7th month – a day of rest – a sacred day (New Year) commemorated with loud blasts – the announcing of holiness. The Hebrew is a series of [...]

April 28, 2012 p. 738 13:29 Skin problems and their remedy. Note that the remedy comes from the priest – not anyone identified as having medical skills. This is related in a way to the building of the mishkan and the tabernacle. Here one’s body is literally a temple. Here the priest is declaring the [...]

April 21, 2011 P. 711 Leviticus begins with a description of the priesthood and the role of Aaron and his children. There are only two stories in the entire book – the rest is God speaking to Moses. One of the stories is about the error of Aaron’s two sons and their punishment. That covers [...]

April 14, 2012 p. 1467: Haftarah – Second Samuel The reading sequence is different in Israel for about eight weeks this time of year. We could accommodate by splitting the torah portions but instead we will read Haftarah. AF: Isn’t this lack of conformity a problem for Judaism? PG: No. There is no requirement for [...]

April 1, 2011 p. 694 Leviticus 8:1 The Eternal One spoke to Moses… The first seven chapters of Leviticus have dealt with sacrifices. What has not been mentioned is who performs the sacrifices and the qualifications of the priests. Here, Aaron and his four sons are brought before the community leadership. 8:6 GT: How do [...]

NOTICE TO READERS OF THESE TORAH STUDYPOSTS: The text submitted here is unedited. Corrections and comments are welcome. Generally, the initials shown are an attempt to credit the individual who made a particular point or responded to it. “PG” is Rabbi Paul Golomb. Page references are to Plaut. It is assumed that the reader is [...]

March 10, 2011 PG: The triennial reading of Torah in the U.S. was started within the Conservative movement but is thought to have ancient antecedents in Palestine. See the Jewish Encyclopedia. Reform did fewer verses at a time so had no problem fitting them into a service. But entire Torah portions were considered too long [...]

February 25, 2012 p.550 Next week at Bethel for the Shabbaton. Visiting Rabbi Alice Goldstein will talk about the different approaches to scripture by men and woman. Last week Moses told the people that he was ascending the mountain and would be there for 40 days. He is receiving instructions for the construction of a [...]

.NOTICE TO READERS OF THESE TORAH STUDYPOSTS: The text submitted here is unedited. Corrections and comments are welcome. Generally, the initials shown are an attempt to credit the individual who made a particular point or responded to it. “PG” is Rabbi Paul Golomb. Page references are to Plaut. It is assumed that the reader is [...]