Weekly Torah Reading, Shofetim, August 18, 2018

Kings, Think Twice!    “The ancient Near East,” wrote the Egyptologist Henri Frankfort, “considered kingship the very basis of civilization. Only savages could live without a king. Security, peace, and justice could not prevail without a ruler to champion them. …

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Weekly Torah Reading, Re’eh, August 11, 2018

The Children of God   This week’s reading contains an odd injunction: “You are children of the Lord your God,” it says, “You shall not gash yourselves or shave the front of your heads for the dead” (Deut 14:1). Ancient …

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Weekly Torah Reading, ‘Ekev, August 4, 2018

Three for One   King David, according to tradition, was the author of all 150 psalms in the book of Psalms. In one of these, Psalm 27, he addressed God with a particular request:    “One thing I ask of …

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Weekly Torah Reading, Va-etḥannan, July 28, 2018

The Eternal Shema   This week’s reading includes the Torah’s most famous declaration, “Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord alone” (Deut 6:4). Throughout Jewish history, these words have been Israel’s unceasing proclamation of faith, recited both …

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Weekly Torah Reading, Devarim, July 21, 2018

The Coming Surprise     The Shabbat that precedes the fast of the Ninth of Ab, Tish‘a Be-Av, always features the same haftarah reading, from the first chapter of the book of Isaiah. At first glance, this seems odd. That …

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Weekly Torah Reading, July 14, 2018

Weekly Torah Reading, Mattot-Mas‘ei, July 14, 2018 The Lex Talionis   One of the most widespread legal principles in the ancient world was the lex [or “ius”] talionis, the law [or “right”] of retribution. A person who, for example, injured …

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Weekly Torah Reading, , July 7, 2018

The Kohen Who Never Died   Last week’s Torah reading ended with a certain Israelite hero slaying a flagrantly offending couple, thereby turning aside God’s wrath. The name of the hero is somewhat confusing. In English, it’s sometimes written as …

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Weekly Torah Reading, Balak, June 30, 2018

A People All Alone   In this week’s Torah reading, the pagan seer Balaam is hired to curse the people of Israel, but every time he tries, he ends up blessing them instead. In the first of these blessings he …

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