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  1. The Nazirite - DT Naso

    Jewish tradition teaches that the Torah yields 613 commandments, which are incumbent on the Jewish people. One would think that this daunting total would be sufficient for most Jews, yet this week's Torah portion, Naso, teaches of additional regulations which one could assume under the status of being a “Nazirite”, one consecrated to the service of God. The haftara (additional) reading for this Shabbat narrates the story of Sampson, who according to the Bible was himself a Nazirite. 

    https://archive.reconstructingjudaism.org/dvar-torah/nazirite

    Posted on: 2016/06/16 - 11:29am

  2. Marriage - Bemidbar/Shavuot DT

    Shabbat Bemidbar usually falls near Shavuot: the day designated as the anniversary of the revelation of Torah at Mt. Sinai. According to a midrash Shavuot is like the wedding anniversary of God and the Jewish people. In Exodus as the revelation unfolds, the position of the Israelites is described with a phrase: בְּתַחְתִּ֥ית הָהָֽר/betakhtit ha-har, which figuratively means “at the base of the mountain” but literally means “under the mountain”. To explain this the rabbis said that Mount Sinai was held over the Israelites like a wedding huppah.

    https://archive.reconstructingjudaism.org/dvar-torah/covenant-marriage

    Posted on: 2016/06/16 - 12:53pm

  3. Nachshon - Jump vs. Pushed DT Bemidbar

    At first glance this week's parashah, Bemidbar, seems rather tedious. After all, it consists mainly of the names of the heads of all the tribes, given in the context of a census of the Israelites taking place about a year after the events at Mount Sinai. However, one name in the census jumped out at me: Nachshon ben Aminadav, the head of the tribe of Judah. Nachshon is a very famous character in the Midrash even though he is barely mentioned in the Torah.

    https://archive.reconstructingjudaism.org/dvar-torah/nachshon-did-he-jump-or-was-he-pushed

    Posted on: 2016/06/16 - 1:07pm

  4. Blessings and Curses DT Behukotai

    At the end of the traditional Birkat HaMazon, the Grace after the Meal, is a verse from the Book of Psalms that reads, “Once I was young and now I have grown old but I have never seen a righteous person abandoned nor his children begging for food” (Psalm 37:25). It is one of a series of biblical verses acknowledging God as the one who sustains all. There are many ways to sing the verse but I was taught to drop my voice when I came to this passage and recite it in a whisper. Why?

    https://archive.reconstructingjudaism.org/dvar-torah/blessings-and-curses

    Posted on: 2016/06/16 - 1:12pm

  5. Land DT Behar

    Parashat Behar is primarily concerned with rules and regulations pertaining to the land of Israel. We read the description of the laws governing the sabbatical (“Shmitta”) years in which the land was to lie fallow one out of every seven years. We learn of the idea of the Jubilee year, which occurred every fifty years, when property that had passed out of a family by reason of economic necessity reverted to the original owners.

    https://archive.reconstructingjudaism.org/dvar-torah/land

    Posted on: 2016/06/16 - 1:27pm

  6. Reconstructionist Torah Blessings

    The traditional blessing before reading from the Torah contains the phrase אֲשֶׁר בָּֽחַר בָּֽנוּ מִכָּל הָעַמִּים (asher bakhar banu mikol ha’amim) — “Praised are you Lord our God, ruler of the Universe, who has chosen us from among all peoples by giving us the Torah.”  The Reconstructionist version of that phrase is rewritten as אֲשֶׁר קֵרְבָנוּ לַעֲבוֹדָתוֹ (asher kervanu la’avodato), “who has drawn us to your service by giving us the Torah.” This change preserves the notion of Torah as our unique and prec

    https://archive.reconstructingjudaism.org/video/reconstructionist-blessing-torah-reading

    Posted on: 2016/06/16 - 5:06pm

  7. Peoplehood Educational Gifts from Kaplan Center

    Rabbi Jeffrey Schein has created a suite of educational resources on Jewish peoplehood, under the auspices of the Kaplan Center for Jewish Peoplehood.

     

    The resources include:

    https://archive.reconstructingjudaism.org/video/jewish-peoplehood-educational-resources

    Posted on: 2016/06/28 - 10:41am

  8. Jewish Community of Amherst (JCA) (MA)

  9. Darchei Noam (Toronto)

    Darchei Noam, Toronto’s only Reconstructionist Synagogue, blends Jewish practice with innovative forms of Jewish expression. Within our congregation of 450 families and 70 supplementary Hebrew school students, we recognize that Jewish life and community are works of imagination, courage and devotion that evolve over time yet preserve their unique wisdom and teachings. Darchei Noam is an inclusive, egalitarian and welcoming congregation.

    https://archive.reconstructingjudaism.org/organization/congregation-darchei-noam

    Posted on: 2016/07/13 - 12:13pm

  10. Havurat Tikvah (NC)

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