Kol Ramah

Parashat Va’era [Exodus 6:2-9:35] is filled with rich material, almost too much to enumerate. At the heart of the parashah is the description of the first 7 plagues, culminating with that of hail. Its position as the 7th in a list of 10 underscores its significance. Our conversation, as is perhaps typical, meandered through the parashah. We talked about the first two verses where God is identified by three different names, the verses in Exodus 6 [6-8], which provide the rabbis with their basis for the 4 cups of wine at the seder and the cup of Elijah, the plagues, and so much more. Almost before we knew it, we had gone over our usual time allotment! We hope you enjoy it.

Words cannot capture the emotions unleashed by the return of the first hostages as they returned home. We continue to be mindful of those still in captivity, may they be speedily returned to their families, both the living and the dead, and the soldiers who defend Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces. Shabbat Shalom.

Parashat Sh’mot [Exodus 1:1-6:1] begins the Book of Exodus. In the opening verses the scene quickly shifts from the patriarchal families described in Genesis to the nation, the people Israel. The descent of Israel [the other name for the patriarch Jacob] into Egypt refers to the sons of Israel, twelve in number. By verse 10, this family has become am b’nai yisrael, the people known as b’nai yisrael, whom we will later learn number over 600,000 fighting men over the age of twenty, together with their wives and children.

The beginning chapters are episodic. The Children of Israel are enslaved by a Pharaoh who does not know Joseph, the birth of Moses is described in a few verses in chapter 2, followed by the announcement that Moses goes out to see the suffering or toils of his brothers. Moses has 3 interactions with people which force him to flee to Midian, which sets the stage for the wondrous scene at the Burning Bush. It is this scene which takes up most of our conversation.

With the news of a ceasefire/hostage release, we are ever hopeful that all the hostages will speedily be returned to their families. We continue to be mindful of the soldiers who defend Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.

Parashat Va-yehi [Genesis 40:28–50:26] is the twelfth and concluding parashah of Sefer B’reshit [The Book of Genesis]. Ephraim and Manasseh, Joseph’s two sons born in Egypt while Jacob was still in Canaan, are blessed by their grandfather, with Jacob reversing his hands so that the younger Ephraim receives the primary blessing. Jacob “blesses” his sons, though not all the sons will probably feel themselves blessed by the words Jacob addresses to them. Jacob dies and, at his request, he actually makes Joseph swear to it, he is buried in the ancestral resting place, the Cave of Machpelah; and, Joseph dies and is embalmed and placed in a coffin, but not before adjuring his brothers to take his bones up from Egypt when God takes notice of them.

Most of our conversation explored the oath Jacob makes Joseph take to bury Jacob in Canaan. Joseph asks Pharaoh if he can go perform this act of filial piety, and Pharaoh allows him. We delve into the various details of this scene: why does Jacob insist that he not be buried in Egypt? why make Joseph take an oath? what does it tell us about Pharaoh? We also talk a bit about the difference with Joseph when no one will ask Pharaoh if Joseph’s remains can be taken up to Canaan and he is left with the promise for his bones to one day be returned to Canaan. Finally, what kind of book is Genesis? Does it end with bleakness or with hope? It is customary to conclude the Torah reading when we finish a book of the Torah in the synagogue with the words חזק חזק ונתחזק [hazak, hazak, ve-nit’hazek, be strong, be strong, and let us be strengthened].

We continue to be mindful of the hostages, may they be returned speedily to their families, and the soldiers serving in the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.

Parashat Va-yiggash [Genesis 44:17-47:27] provides the denouement to the Joseph story, which formally comes to a conclusion next week with parashat Va-yehi tidying up the loose ends and concluding the book of Genesis. This week opens with Judah’s appeal to Joseph and Joseph’s disclosure of his true identity to his brothers. The family makes its way to Egypt ostensibly to sit out the rest of the years of famine in closer proximity to the food supply. We, as long-time readers of the Torah, know that this relatively short period of time becomes an extended period of indeterminate length.

Once again, we pay attention to the character of Joseph, this time in comparison and contrast with the other major characters: Judah, Jacob, and Pharaoh. We recorded on the last day of the secular year, 2024, coinciding with the 1st day of Rosh Hodesh Tevet and the 6th day of Hanukkah. May the New Year of 2025 become a year of peace.

We continue to be mindful of the hostages, may they be returned speedily to their families, and the soldiers serving in the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.

Parashat Mi-Qetz [Genesis 41:1-44:17] is the second of the four parashiyot that treat the Joseph story. At the end of last week’s parashah, Joseph has been left in prison because the recently released butler failed to mention him to Pharaoh, as he had promised to do. The parashah this week opens up with Pharaoh’s two dreams which defied interpretation by any one in Pharaoh’s court, the butler remembering Joseph, and Joseph being summoned to court to successfully interpret the dreams. The bulk of the parashah deals with the descent into Egypt by 10 of Joseph’s brothers and their encounters with him.

Our conversation focused in part on the character of Joseph, sometimes in comparison with his brother Judah who once again has a leading role, in convincing Jacob to let Benjamin return with them to Egypt, and at the end stepping forward to address Joseph, which address will begin next week’s parashah. As Eliot notes, it is difficult to limit oneself to the parashah of the week when discussing the Joseph story, so we make reference to both what happened last week and what will happen in the next two weeks. We hope you enjoy it.

We are ever mindful of the hostages, may they be speedily returned to their families, and to the soldiers defending Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. May the increasing light of the hanukkiyot [the first night of Hanukkah is Wednesday night, 12/25/24] bring increasing light to the Middle East, and may a measure of peace be restored to that region. Hag Urim Same’ach. Shabbat Shalom.

Parashat Va-yeshev [Genesis 37:1-40:23] begins the longest extended narrative in the Book of Genesis, the Joseph story. The parashah begins with a 17-year-old Joseph relating to his family two dreams he has had, which infuriate his brothers. When his father asks Joseph to go see how his brothers are doing pasturing the sheep, Joseph ends up being sold into slavrey. Chapter 38 is an interlude of sorts, the story of Judah and Tamar. It is perhaps intended to provide a comeuppance for Judah’s role in the sale of Joseph. Chapter 39 resumes the Joseph story. Joseph is now in Egypt. Everything he does works out well until he runs afoul of his master’s wife, who is intent on seducing him. He is sent to prison. There he interprets the dreams of Pharaoh’s butler and baker, who have been imprisoned. The parashah ends with the note that the butler, who had promised to mention Joseph to Pharaoh so he could be released from prison, did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.

Most of our conversation focused on chapter 37 as we looked for a deeper understanding of Joseph. Is he a spoiled brat? Is he a bullied younger brother who only wants to hand out with the big boys and is rejected. We touched on some other parts of the parashah as well, so listen to find out!

We continue to be mindful of the hostages, may they be returned speedily to their families, and the soldiers defending Israel as members of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.

Parashat Va-yishlach [Genesis 32:4–36:43] features the actions Jacob takes in preparation for his meeting with Esau after 20 years, the mysterious wrestling match with the מלאך [malakh, understood as a divine messenger or a human messenger], the actual meeting, the ravishing of Dinah [as Nahum Sarna entitles the episode], a theophany at Beth El, and the genealogy of Esau. It represents the concluding chapter for Isaac and Esau, as well as Deborah, the nurse of Rebecca, and Rachel, who dies shortly after giving birth to Benjamin, as he is renamed by his father.

It was just Eliot and me this week. Jeremy is in Israel for the Rabbinical Assembly convention this week, but was under the weather, and thus unable to join us. We wish him a refu’ah sh’lemah, a speedy recovery, and look forward to next week when we hope that Jeremy is at full strength, as are we! Our conversation focused on the opening chapter of the parashah, as we sought out the meaning in Jacob’s preparation, and struggled to understand the significance of Jacob’s nocturnal encounter. We hope you enjoy it!

We continue to be mindful of the hostages, may they be returned speedily to their families, and the soldiers defending Israel as members of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.

Parsha Talk with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky. Parashat Toldot [Genesis 25:19-28:9] is the sixth of the 12 weekly Torah readings in the Book of Genesis. With the death of Abraham and Ishmael last week, the story this week concentrates on the family of Isaac and some of the key events in the life of Isaac: the birth of his twin sons, the wife-sister story in the 2nd generation, and the deceiving of Isaac by Jacob [and Rebecca] to acquire the blessing of the first-born for Jacob. Our conversation concentrated on the story not directly related to Isaac, which is the acquisition of the right of the first-born for Jacob by the sale of lentil soup. The word for blessing [ברכה, b’rakhah] and right of the first-born [בכורה, b’khorah] sound nearly the same, and certainly the stories are two be seen together. Whereas Jacob is the main actor in the sale of the birth-right, in the acquisition of the blessing, Jacob is portrayed as a passive character, first driven by his mother Rebecca, and then allowing his father to draw the wrong conclusions about his identity. It is sometimes surprising that just a few verses and commentary spark so much conversation!

On the 418th day of the war, we continue to be mindful of the hostages, may they be returned speedily to their families, and the soldiers defending Israel as members of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. With the onset of the ceasefire in the north, we remain hopeful that peace may soon descend on the region. Shabbat Shalom.

Parsha Talk, with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky. Parashat Va-yetze [Genesis 28:10-32:3] was my Bar Mitzvah parashah many, many years ago! It opens with Jacob leaving Be’ersheva for Haran, fleeing for his life or looking for a wife. It ends with Jacob on his way back to the land of his birth. A lot happens between those two events, including his marriage to the sisters Leah and Rachel, and the birth of his first 11 sons and his daughter.

Our conversation focused mostly on the beginning scene and the scene at the well, though we touched upon some other matters as well as the well. Please let us know what you think.

This week’s show is dedicated to the memory of Omer Neutra z”l, my former student, whose death on October 7, 2023 was announced earlier in the week. His body has been held hostage in Gaza since then. We continue to be mindful of the other hostages, may they be speedily returned to their families, and the soldiers serving in the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.

Parsha Talk with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky. Parashat Chayyai Sarah [Genesis 23:1-25:18] begins with the death of Sarah and the acquisition of the Cave of Makhpelah from Efron the Hittite. This sale and consequent burial of Sarah establishes Abraham’s claim to the land, for he now is the legal owner of a plot of land. The largest section of the parashah is devoted to finding a wife for Isaac. Avraham sends his servant, whom the rabbis identify as Eliezer, back to his ancestral homeland to find a wife amongst his kin, with the proviso that the servant may bring the woman back to Canaan, but under no circumstances is he to take Isaac to the ancestral homeland. This story, and in particular the oath with which Avraham sends off his servant, provides the basis for our conversation this week. Chapter 25 narrates the subsequent marriage of Avraham to Keturah, whom the rabbis identify as Hagar, and the birth of 6 more sons. In turn, Avraham dies and is buried, and Ishmael dies as well, clearing the way for next week’s parashah which focuses on Isaac and his family.

On the 411th day of the war, we continue to be mindful of the hostages, may they be returned speedily to their families, and the soldiers defending Israel as members of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.