Seven Minute Torah

This week's parashah is about various kinds of leaders in ancient Israel. It's also about the way Judaism is constantly evolving - and our ongoing responsibility to find new meanings in ancient traditions. (An encore of our 2022 podcast for Shoftim.)

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.

This parashah describes the dietary laws - what Jews traditionally may and may not eat. We'll talk about a liberal Jewish approach to keeping kosher. (An encore of our 2022 podcast on Re'eh)

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.

An encore presentation of last year's popular episode about Judaism and the earth.

This week's parashah, Ekev, contains the middle paragraph of the Shema - a challenging passage that speaks of God as Source of "reward and punishment." Should this passage be in our prayerbook? How might we read it through modern eyes. Turns it out can also be read as an ecological text.

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.

When Moses repeats the Ten Commandments, he makes some changes - including to the wording around Shabbat. His changes teach us something very important about the reason(s) for Shabbat, and what we're supposed to learn from it.

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.

As the book of Deuteronomy opens, Moses retells some of the stories of the Israelites' desert wanderings - but with major changes. We explore why he changes the story, and we explore the possible origins of Deuteronomy in the religious reform of King Josiah centuries later.

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.

As the Israelites are about to cross over into the Promised Land, the tribes of Reuven and Gad step forward and say that they've decided to stay where they are. What happens next teaches us a lot about what it is to be a Jew in diaspora but still care about - and have a stake in - the land of Israel.

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.

Among other things, parashat Pinchas lists the festivals - and the sacrifices associated with them. We talk about how the Rabbis crafted a Judaism of ritual and prayer out of a sacrifice-based system, and what it shows us about Judaism's capacity to evolve.

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.

The ritual of the Red Heifer is perhaps the most obscure, confusing practice in the entire Torah. In this episode we talk about whether Jewish rituals need reasons - and how that debate plays out traditionally and in liberal Judaism.

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.

Korach's argument seems like a reasonable one: all of the people are holy. So why does his movement/rebellion end so badly? We take a look at what the Rabbis have to say about where Korach went wrong.

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.

In Sh'lach Lecha, the scouts - and the people of Israel - are punished for not having a wide enough view to see their power and their responsibility. I talk with Rabbi Andy Kahn, editor of The Sacred Earth (CCAR Press, 2023) about how this relates to the climate crisis and the current moment.

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• Seven Minute Torah is a production of LAASOK. For info on our weekly Zoom Torah study groups or other learning opportunities go to https://laasok.org/.