Hineni (Here I Am)

The Cloud is a guiding force for the Israelites and for all of us 

On November 1, 2018 I gave a talk on Authentic Identities at Elon University, where I serve as the Campus Rabbi. The talk was shortly after the horrible events in Kentucky and Pittsburgh. I shared my story and journey of becoming a Jew and a rabbi. I talked about the racism I face in the Jewish community, antisemitism and our current political rhetoric. I hope you enjoy this special episode. 

In honor of Rosh Hodesh. I am dedicating this week's Minutes of Torah to all the women who have felt silenced 

Welcome to Episode 59 of Hineni Jewish Prayer. Today we will focus on the prayer that is often called the bathroom blessing. Thanking God for allowing one to do their business in the morning. I don't see this blessing as simple a bathroom blessing. I see it as a blessing thanking God for creating me exactly who I am

Welcome to this episode of Minutes of Torah. This past week has been hard for many of us and I am dedicating this podcast to speak about the violence in our country. Olam Hesed Yibaneh -We will build this world of love

This week we are in the Torah Portion Vayeira. My plan for today was to continue our conversation on faith but something jumped out at me as I was reading this week’s torah portion. So today we will talk about faith and Justice.

This week we have another story about going out on faith. This week we read Torah portion Lech Lecha which means to Go forth or let’s Go.

This week we enter into the Torah Portion Noach where God tells Noah to build an enormous Ark. God instructs Noah to build this Ark because God is going to destroy the world with a massive flood. Now keep in mind that Noah probably lives nowhere near water and I’m sure he thought “This is a Crazy idea!” but on faith and faith alone Noah builds the Ark as God has instructed him to do so. 

So, What is Faith?

This week’s torah portion is all about creation; creation of the world and all things that dwell on the earth. We learn that Human beings are created B'tzelem Elohim, in the image of God.

In this week’s Torah portion Balak.  Fear of the other is alive and well. The text opens with a fearful king dreading the arrival of the Israelites to his land of Moab. He tells the elders in Number 22:4 what he believes about the Israelites he says “Now this horde will lick clean all that is about us as an ox licks up the grass field”

One of the things that I love about the weekly  Torah portion is that so often when I need a passage to speak to me about what is happening in our world today the words are there on the page and they jump out out at me.  This week we are in the Torah portion Chukat. 

Every Spring we begin counting the Omer on the second night of Passover. What is an Omer? The Omer is a sheaf or a measure of barley or wheat. The Omer is also the name for the 7 week period of time between Passover and and the holiday of Shavuot. On Passover we celebrate our freedom from slavery and bondage and on Shavuot we celebrate receiving the Torah on Mount Sinai as free people. In ancient times, the Omer period was significant agriculturally as it marked the period of time between planting and the spring and summer harvests. Over time, Jewish mystical tradition connected the Omer period with spiritual practices, about refining the soul, so we are ready to receive the Torah at Sinai

So, Why do we count?