We had a guest scholar giving the Derasha last week, which meant that I did not begin by marking the 31st time I’ve been here for Parashat Para. As it happened, the way things went that year, I also spoke on Parashat HaChodesh. I returned a week later at the request of the search committee. That was, as it turned out, a much more dramatic weekend than the one before, a sign that EB would never lack for...Read more...
When one begins this Parasha, one can barely suppress the urge to quote, “And now for something completely different.” Architecture. Interior design. Artisans. All well and good, but we were just at the foot of the mountain, following a story which obviously reached its peak. Everything from Avraham Avinu ends with that scene at the mountain, first at the foot and then with Moshe Rabenu climbing...Read more...
Even in the Shabbat Zmirot which commemorate the giving of the Torah, one phrase comes to represent the whole experience: “Na’ase V’nishma” (we will do and we will hear). A rabbi in Israel once called Na’ase V’Nishma the most famous phrase that wasn’t said. Not that it doesn’t appear in the Torah but that it’s not where anyone would look for it. If you asked a group, they’ll probably tell you...Read more...
The whole book is called Shemot. That is among the first words of the Parasha last week but the significance of names goes beyond that. Later in last week’s Parasha, how to name Hashem plays a significant role. And how to deal with Hashem’s name continues this week as a major theme.
The first question Paro asks Moshe is, “who is this Hashem?” This is not because he is...Read more...
