Category: Drasha

A joke is told about the New York man driving around desperately seeking a parking place. He can’t find one, and so in desperation, he says, “Oh God I pray that you give me a parking space, if you give me a parking space then I promise to go to synagogue every Shabbat, I promise to give more money to tzedakah and I promise to be more observant of mitzvot.” At that moment in front of him a parking space opens up and the man says “Oh never mind God I found one.”In our lives we often engage with this “If”. If this happens, then I will do such and such. We set up the negotiation, the exchange between ourselves and God or between ourselves and the fates of the universe, imagining that that gives us some element of control.In this week’s Torah Portion, we get a very strange parallel moment of “If”. Jacob, having left Be’ersheva on his way to Haran, has this amazing dream of a stairway leading up to heaven where he sees angels going up and coming down. Then God speaks to Jacob informing him that he, God, will be with his descendants, and that they will receive the land upon which he is sleeping as an inheritance. In the morning when Jacob awakes he is in no doubt about the significance of the dream. However, Jacob is then quoted by saying “If, God remains with me, If God protects me on the journey that I’m taking and gives me bread to eat and clothing to wear and If I return safely to my father’s house, then Adonai shall be God and this stone which I establish as a pillar shall be God’s abode.”After all that Jacob has just seen in that dream, after all of the promises which God gave to Jacob, Jacob feels the need to make a vow beginning with “If”. There is the “If” of uncertainty, the “If” of doubt, and possibly even the “If” of fear. And so in trying to regain some control even in this moment after all that he has seen, Jacob says “If”.We often use the word “If” without all the signs and wonders presented to Jacob. And we do it for similar reasons, because we seek to regain that sense of control. Unfortunately, our lives are not arranged around certainty and control, and from time to time we need to let things happen as they happen. It was a long learning process for Jacob to accept that most things are out of his control, too, and he struggled with God for the rest of his life, but he also understood that this is the real sense of a partnership – the partnership with God.Shabbat Shalom – Rabbi Adrian M Schell (Source: limmud.org)Torah Reading for Shabbat Vayetzei:Genesis 28:10-32:3 (Reading 28:10-29:14; Plaut p.195; Hertz p.106);Haftarah: Hosea 12:13-14:10 (Plaut p.214; Hertz p.118)The Torah Study with Rabbi Schell continues this Shabbat, 21 November at 08h45 (Rondavel).“The Prayers of our Siddur”– class with Rabbi Schell every Thursday from 18h00 to 19h30 (Foyer).Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s weekly Radio Sermons Tuesdays on Radio Today (10h30) or online: http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.

This week’s Torah portion begins with the phrase, V’eileh toldot Yitzchak ben Avraham, “This is the line of Isaac son of Abraham” (Genesis 25:19), indicating that the text is now going to focus on Isaac, the second of the Patriarchs of our tradition.And, indeed, he figures prominently in the stories of this portion. However, he still seems to play a subordinate role to his father, Abraham, and his son, Jacob. In the stories of two of the major incidents of his life, the Akeidah (Genesis 22) and the blessing of his sons (Genesis 27) he is not even the central figure. Rabbi W. Gunther Plaut notes that “Of the three patriarchs, Isaac’s personality is the least clearly defined” and he is primarily “the bridge between Abraham and Jacob, the essential link in the chain of greatness“. While it is easy to overlook Isaac and his role in the biblical narrative, we can learn quite a lot from three aspects of his life that distinguished him from both his father and his son:

• Isaac never leaves the Land of Israel
• he only has one wife and only fathers children with one woman
• his name is not changed.

What are we to make of these three differences between Isaac on the one hand and his father Abraham and son Jacob on the other? Abraham and Jacob seem to characterise the realities of this life: wandering from place to place with no place to call home; the need to reinvent oneself because of the challenges one faces; the difficulties of life when faced with realities. Abraham and Jacob represent this world, the challenges that we face as individuals and as a people, life in all of its messiness.Isaac, on the other hand, represents the ideal, the messianic world we strive to become: a person (or people) with a place to call home; the ability to be true to oneself (ourselves) and not need to reinvent oneself (ourselves) because of circumstances beyond our control; the ability to remain faithful and loyal to one person.In the midst of all the challenges of the Israelites in the ancient world, and in the midst of the all too real challenging stories of Abraham and Jacob, the Torah offers a glimpse of what it will be like some day when we have mastered the challenges we face to be able to live where we want to live and be true to who we are.Shabbat Shalom – Rabbi Adrian M Schell (Source: reformjudaism.org)Torah Reading for Shabbat Toldot: Genesis 25:19 -28:09 (Reading 25:19-26:6; Plaut p.173; Hertz p.93);Haftarah: Malachi 1:1-2:7 (Plaut p.191; Hertz p.102)The Torah Study with Rabbi Schell continues this Shabbat, 21 November at 08h45 (Rondavel).“The Prayers of our Siddur”– class with Rabbi Schell every Thursday from 18h00 to 19h30 (Foyer).Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s weekly Radio Sermons Tuesdays on Radio Today (10h30) or online: http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.

Our parashah for this Shabbat continues with report of Abraham’s and Sarah’s journey. Both welcome the three unknown visitors and learn from them that Sarah will soon bear a son, despite of her old age. As the visitors had predicted, Sarah bears her son whom she names Isaac. The narrative then focuses on the lives of the two sons of Abraham. Sarah persuades Abraham to send Ishmael away, (together with his mother Hagar), which he only does, after God tells him that he “will make a nation of him [Ishmael].” Several years later, God tests Abraham’s faith by ordering him to sacrifice Isaac on Mount Moriah. Isaac is saved at the last moment by an angel, sent by God.The stories of Sarah’s request to send away Ishmael, and Abraham being called by God to sacrifice his son, Isaac, are considered as one of the most important events in the Torah, because they raise the questions of faith and loyalty to God and to the people we share our lives with. How far can we go, if we are asked to do something that is wrong in our eyes; at which point turns faithfulness into religious fanaticism?Rabbi Harvey Fields gives us a helpful guideline: “Loyalty to God does not mean ‘blind faith.’ Sometimes it means asking difficult questions about what it is that we should or should not be doing. Sometimes it means being willing to take risks for what we believe is just and right. Sometimes it means delaying action until the facts are analysed carefully. Sometimes it means being willing to reconsider opinions and to make changes when presented with new evidence or better perspectives.” And sometimes it means to say no, and to stand for it.Shabbat Shalom – Rabbi SchellTorah Reading for Shabbat VayeraGenesis 18:1-22:24 (Reading 18:1-22; Plaut p.123; Hertz p.63)Haftarah: Second Kings 4:1-37 (Plaut p.149; Hertz p.76)NEW: The Prayers of our SiddurContinuing this Thursday (29 October), Bet David offers an additional weekly learning opportunity for adults. Rabbi Schell will be leading Shiurim every Thursday evening (18h00-19h30) discussing the Prayers of our Siddur. He will explore with you the history of the prayers, their context and meaning, including the Hebrew original. This Shiur; is open for everyone; no background or Hebrew knowledge is needed.  The Torah Study with Rabbi Schell continues this Shabbat, 07 November at 08h45.Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s weekly Radio Sermons on Radio Today, follow http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.

Have you asked yourself how life would be for you if you were born into a different time? Somewhere in the past or in the future? Would you be a different person? In this week’s Torah portion, as we read about Noach, we’re introduced to him as an “ish tzaddik tamim hayah bedorotav. He was a righteous man, he was blameless in his generation.” For the rabbis, this led to a great debate as to how righteous, how blameless he really was. Many commentators read this “in his generation” as if had Noach been born in another time, he might not have been that special person, suggesting that if Noach was born to a different generation, God wouldn’t have perhaps even noticed his righteousness. This leads into the comparison between Noach and Abraham that takes place contrasting these two biblical figures in the way that they behaved. Ultimately the rabbis seem to conclude that Abraham was the more righteous person and that’s why the covenant of the Jewish people started with him.But I think this misses the important point about saying “in his generation”. Noach was born in a generation which was so bad, so wicked, so evil that God decided to destroy the whole earth, but to save Noach, who was worthy of being described as tzaddik righteous and tamim blameless. Perhaps we should therefore elevate Noach even further, because in the situation in which he found himself, to be righteous and blameless was a very impressive state.Noah therefore comes as a reminder to each one of us, that it doesn’t matter how we would have behaved had we been born 50 years earlier, or how we would have behaved had we been born 50 years later, we’re born into the context in which we are born and we have to make the best of it, living our lives in a way which can be described as righteous. We don’t choose when we are born but we choose how we live our lives and what we do with that birth. In his context, Noach was the one man worthy of saving the world and for that, he was righteous then and we should still consider him righteous today.Shabbat Shalom – Rabbi Schell (Source: Rabbi Burkeman on Parashat Noach)Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s weekly Radio Sermons on Radio Today, follow http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.

„I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse; therefore choose life, so that you may live, you and your children.” – Deuteronomy 30:19One of the most profound statements in the Torah is found near the beginning of this week’s parasha. Moses tells the Israelites that heaven and earth bear witness that Moses has given the Israelites a choice. The ultimate choice. They can choose life or they can choose death. Then, in dramatic fashion, the people are instructed to choose life. Choose life! This is the essence of Judaism. Life is a gift, and we have to use it well. The life we are given is a life of choices. And we are instructed to make the choices that are the choices of life. It is so simple, yet so profound. Choose life means choose to live a life engaged in the world, and living a life of Torah, Jewish ethics and the pursuit of justice. Because, it is not just life, it is our way of life that counts.The verse of our last Torah reading before the High Holy Days is an example of the best of the Bible. Its dramatic overtones staking out the all-encompassing issues of the human experience. It is the highly visible signpost for our ways throughout the year and echoes the prayers of Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur that asks us about our choices of the last year. Have we chosen life all the time? Have we put ourselves in danger? Physically – spiritually? What is with others? Have we helped others on their way? How many stumbling blocks have we put in front of others, and how many have we put away? If we stand in front of the Great Judge, can we argue that our choices and deeds were the right ones? This self-analysis over the next 10 days will hopefully inspire us to refine our goals where needed and to make the right choices in the coming year.Chayim joins me in wishing you and your families a blessed New Year filled with love, peace, joy, health, prosperity and Yiddishkeit

May you be inscribed and sealed for a good new year

Rabbi Adrian M Schell

The Torah Study Breakfast Shiur with Rabbi Schell continues on Shabbat, 19 September at 08.45.Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s weekly Radio Sermons on Radio Today, follow http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.Torah Reading for Shabbat Nitzavim and Rosh HaShanahShabbat Nitzavim: Deuteronomy 29:9-30:20Haftarah: Isaiah 61:10-63:091st day of Rosh HaShanah: Genesis 22.1-24 – Maftir Numeri 29.1-6Haftarah: Jeremiah 31.12nd day of Rosh HaShanah: Genesis 21.1-21 – Maftir Numeri 29.1-6Haftarah: Samuel 1

In Ki Tavo the Israelites are commanded to bring their first fruits as an offering: “When you come into the land that the Eternal your God is giving you for an inheritance and have taken possession of it and live in it, you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from your land that the Eternal your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket, and you shall go to the place that the Eternal your God will choose, to make his name to dwell there. And you shall go to the priest that shall be in those days and say to him, ‘I declare today to the Eternal your God that I have come into the land that the Eternal swore to our fathers to give us.’ Then the priest shall take the basket from your hand and set it down before the altar of the Eternal your God.”In this brief passage we see the past, present and future, as the text attempts, in its day, to secure the future by means of its being embedded in the past. It envisions a future in which the Israelites will have inherited the land promised to them by God. In a commentary on this portion, Nehama Leibowitz reminds us of the passage in the Haggadah that says that in every generation every Jew is obligated to see him or herself as if he or she personally had gone out of Egypt. Similarly, this passage concerning first fruits seeks to secure the future through attachment to a narrative about a shared past. It would not be enough for the Israelites of the future to complacently consider the land merely an inheritance from long dead ancestors. They would have to behave as, and therefore come to believe themselves to be, one with the very generation that had been so dramatically redeemed. Thus, the bringing of first fruits was not only a ritual of recollection but also of re-enactment.Only a few days separate us from the Days of Awe – they offer each and every one of us the possibility to review our past, to see where we are, and to create a vision for the future. By doing so, we make sure that our decisions and acts are based on solid ground, and are strong enough to carry us into the next year.  Shabbat Shalom – Rabbi Adrian M Schell (Source: Cantor Gershon Silins, Ki Tavo)

The prayers of the High Holy Days – Workshop. The first session will be this Thursday,3 September @ 18.00 in the Rondavel. This study session is open for all. Please bring your Machzorim.The Torah Study Breakfast Shiur with Rabbi Schell continues on Shabbat, 05 September at 08.45.Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s weekly Radio Sermons on Radio Today, follow http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.

Torah Reading for Shabbat Ki Tavo:Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8 (Reading: 26:1-27:5 – Plaut p.1350; Hertz p.859)Haftarah: Isaiah 60:1-22 (Plaut 1368; Hertz p.874)

Our parashah this week, “Ki Teitzei”, offers us yet another opportunity to be inspired by Moses’ review of what God demands of our ancestors in order that they fulfil their national destiny to become a holy people, a Godly people. This parashah is distinguished as delineating the largest concentration of commandments of any portion; 74 out of the traditional 613 commandments are found in it. Moses reiterates for the people of Israel how this set of laws shall shape the ethical fibre of their lives: laws dealing primarily with domestic life and yet including prescriptions about the treatment of war prisoners, animals, debtors, criminals and workers.The coincidence of Parashat Ki Teitzei, always coming as it does in proximity to the High Holy Days, challenges us to evaluate the world in a new way. During the month of Elul, we are given an opportunity to prepare ourselves for the New Year ahead. It is a chance for introspection, personal growth, and a heightened spirituality, during which we review our purpose, our relationships with one another, and our connection to God, to Israel, and to our world.As we continue to struggle with the myriad of our daily decisions about how to act with kindness and decency, we are strengthened, indeed inspired by a continuum of three and half millennia of Jewish historical experience to fall back upon for wisdom and guidance. Let’s use this coming days to its best advantage and judge ourselves and others for who we authentically are, without pretence, excuse, or rationale. Our parashah teaches us, “You must have completely honest weights and completely honest measures if you are to endure long on the soil that God is giving you” (25:15). If we can measure ourselves as God measures us, as a loving parent and guardian, we will certainly emerge renewed, regenerated and ready to take on every situation we encounter in the New Year with confidence and a revitalised faith in who we are and who we can become. – Rabbi Adrian M Schell (Source: Rabbi Klein-Katz; Ki Teitzei)The Torah Study Breakfast Shiur with Rabbi Schell continues on Shabbat, 29 August at 08.45. Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s weekly Radio Sermons on Radio Today, follow http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.Torah Reading for Shabbat Ki Teitzei Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19 (Reading: 24:20-25:19 – Plaut p.1333; Hertz p.853) Haftarah: Isaiah 54:1-10 (Plaut 1345; Hertz p.857)

The pursuit of justice is one of the most frequently repeated concerns, and not only of the Torah, but of Jewish tradition. Any society, so the teaching, is to pursue justice in dealing with social, political, and international matters.  In addition, Jewish tradition teaches, “speak up for those who are silent, for the rights of the unfortunate. Speak out, judge justly, champion the poor and the needy.”Several commentators ask the question: Why does Moses repeat the word Tzedek, or “justice,” in his statement: “justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may thrive and occupy the land that Adonai your God is giving you?” – Pointing out that the commandment could stand without the repetition since the Torah does not often repeat words, interpreters offer a number of explanations:Some say that by repeating the word Tzedek Moses underscores the importance of pursuing justice as a means of community survival. Others argue that the term is repeated to convey the idea that the pursuit of justice is not only the responsibility of government, of judges within the society, but also an imperative for each individual.  This may have been what Rabbi Acha meant when he quoted Rabbi Tanchum, who said, “though a person may be a scholar of Torah and a teacher of greater renown, careful in observing all the ritual commandments, if such a person is able to protest wrongdoing neglects to do so, he is to be considered cursed.” Or in the words of Rabbi Chijah: “if a person is neither a scholar, nor a teacher, nor known for observing all the ritual commandments, but stays up to protest against evil, such a person is called a blessing.”For rabbinic interpreters the pursuit of justice in society was paramount. Correcting the evils originated by human beings was considered the highest ethical priority.  Moses’ repetition of “justice, justice” was understood to mean: “don’t be satisfied with observing wrongdoing. Stand up and protest against it!” Obviously, the pursuit of justice is critical and of central concern for any society.  Within the Bible and imbedded within rabbinic commentary, the accomplishment of justice is a requisite for truth in peace.  We are commanded to pursue justice because no human community can survive without it.– Rabbi Adrian M Schell (Source: Fields, Parashat Re’eh)The prayers of the High Holy Days – Workshop on two evenings. On 27 August and 3 September @ 18.00 in the Rondavel. Just before the High Holy Days Rabbi Schell invites you to dive into the liturgy of the High Holy Days and to learn more about the history and ideas of these wonderful prayers – a special opportunity to prepare yourselves for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. This study session is open for all. Please bring your Machzorim (Gates of Repentance High Holy Day prayer books).The Torah Study Breakfast Shiur with Rabbi Schell continues on Shabbat, 29 August at 08.45.Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s weekly Radio Sermons on Radio Today, follow http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.Torah Reading for Shabbat ShoftimDeuteronomy 16:18-21:9 (Reading: 20.4-21.9 – Plaut p.1302; Hertz p.831)Haftarah: Isaiah 51:1-52:12 (Plaut 1316; Hertz p.835)

Our Torah reading for this week is found in the middle section of Moses’ parting sermons to the Israelites before his death and their entry into Canaan.  In the opening readings of the Book of Deuteronomy, Moses has concerned himself with a fundamental review of the journey to the Promised Land. His sermons are filled with criticism of the disloyalty the People displayed to God throughout their journey through the Sinai wilderness, and the many times Moses had to plead with God not to destroy them because of their lack of trust in Him and their tardiness in demonstrating their commitment to embrace His commands. When we arrive at the opening verse of our parashat Re’eh, behold or look, it appears that Moses is pausing before continuing his discourse to the people. He presents himself as God’s messenger and says: “Behold I place before you blessing and curse.”There is a special significance in Moses’ turning from reflection on the people’s past to the present generation of the people standing in front of him.  “Look” he tells the People of Israel: “you do not need to look to the past to find out what your responsibility is.  It is placed here right in front of you!  It is down to each of us today to prevent the society we are part of sliding into becoming accursed; it is down to each of us today to turn it instead into a source of blessing.”Our parashah, is read in the slow build up to the Yamim Nora’im, the High Holidays with the New Year and the Day of Atonement, during the concluding weeks of the Jewish year.  There is a parallel between the People of Israel preparing for their entry to a new, enticing land with hope but also anxiety about what to expect, and our own annual preparation for the arrival of the New Year with a mixture of hope and uncertainty about what that New Year might bring.What parashat Re’eh teaches is possibly the most important perception we take with us into the Yamim Nora’im.  The best that we can bring into our Rosh Hashanah services and prayers is not to dwell on what shaped the year now ending, nor on what the future might bring.   Rather, we should preoccupy ourselves with what is “right in front of us”. We should focus on what we personally can achieve today in “turning into blessing” the life we share with our loved ones, family, friends, colleagues, fellow Jews, and all humanity.This coming Saturday and Sunday is the beginning of the last month of the current Jewish year 5775. May it be a good month for us, may it be a month that brings us closer, closer to our community and to God.– Rabbi Adrian M Schell (Source: Fields, Parashat Re’eh)Torah Reading for Shabbat Re’eh – Rosh Chodesh ElulDeuteronomy 11.26 – 16:17 (Reading: 15:19-16:17 – Plaut p.1272; Hertz p.814)Haftarah: Isaiah 54:11-55:5 (Plaut 1290; Hertz p.818)The Torah Study Breakfast Shiur with Rabbi Schell continues on Shabbat, 29 August at 08.45.Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s weekly Radio Sermons on Radio Today, follow http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.

Deuteronomy 7.12 – 11.25 Haftarah: Isaiah 49:14-51:3Parashat Ekev continues the speeches of Moses to the Israelites. He tells them, if they maintain their covenant with God by observing all the commandments, God will make them fruitful and victorious over their enemies. Reminding them of their 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, Moses tells them: “God subjected you to the hardship of hunger … then gave your manna … in order to teach you that human beings do not live on bread alone.“ He then wants them that after settling in the land and enjoying its fruits, they should not arrogantly assume: “My own power and the might of my own hand have one this wealth for me.” Nor, continues Moses, should they conclude that it is for their virtue that God allows them to defeat their enemies and conquered their land. Rather, it is punishment of the inhabitants for idolatry, and it is god’s fulfilment of the covenant made with Abraham Isaac and Jacob.Moses raises important ethical considerations in this speech. Recalling the difficult years of wandering through the desert, he tells them that God has tested them with hunger, long days of hot sun, and long cold nights. The years were filled with harsh trials. Moses, however, does not focus only on the past. He worries about the future. He foresees a time when the Israelites will be comfortable, prosperous, and secure in the land.  They will have defeated their enemies and will be enjoying flourishing economy.  He wonders what the state of being spiritual health will be in such a future time of victory and abundance.Modern commentator Nachama Leibowitz points out that Moses’ observations focus on the tendency of human arrogance and the resulting danger in forgetting human reliance upon God.  In blindness, she writes, human beings tend to detect the guiding hand of God only when it is visible in miracles.  They fail to see the hidden miracles performed for them continually, even when the world around them … seems to be going on as usual.  Moses’s words are against such blindness.Nearly all the commentators of Moses words see in them a significant lesson. They single out arrogance and pride is dangers that lead to moral insensitivity, corruption, and the denial of God.Moses is suggesting that the anti-dot for arrogance is both gratitude and the power of recollection.  Rabbis have extended his view, concluding that the appreciation of history puts all human accomplishments into perspective. It roots us in gratitude and a sense of obligation for the gifts of God.                                                               – Rabbi Adrian M Schell (Source: Harvey Fields, Torah commentary)Podcast of Rabbi Schell’s Radio Sermons on Radio Today, follow http://betdavid.podomatic.com/.