Learning @MTFJC - Torah FYT
Torah For Your Table...
TORAH FYT [For Your Table]- Our Parsha Study Series devoted to Rabbi Sacks' legacy will examine commentary of the weekly Parsha as addressed in his books: Covenant and Conversation, Lessons in Leadership, Studies in Spirituality, Essays on Ethics, I Believe and Judaism's Life Changing Ideas.
This peer-Led group meets on Zoom, Thursdays 10AM. We invite you to join us.
LINKS FOR ONLINE TORAH RESOURCES:
Yeshivat Chovevei Torah (RefYCT )
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
Rabbi Shlomo Riskin
Rabbi Yitz Greenberg (Hadar)
YCT
YCT seeks to create a spiritually vibrant and intellectually open
Orthodox community whose Torah radiates outwards to help transform the entire Jewish world.
YCT's mission is to train rabbis, educators, and leaders who embody this vision in their teaching of Torah, their spiritual support of individuals, and their building of diverse and welcoming communities; and to deepen and disseminate a Torah and halakha that gives life to this vision and enables it to thrive.
Heschel
VisitRecent YCT Programon Heschel "A Modern Prophet" for insights related to Rabbi A J Heshel and those he mentored and his activities in solidarity with Dr. Martin Luther King.
Holiday Specific Learning
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Kedoshim
With Kedoshim, the laws of holiness broaden out from the world of the Sanctuary and Priests to that of the Israelites as a whole, as they are gathered together and commanded to be holy because “I, the Lord your God, am holy.”
The opening chapter contains the famous “holiness code” with its commands to love the neighbour and the stranger, as well as other laws more ritual in character. The second half of the parsha deals with forbidden sexual relations and other prohibited pagan practices. (R Sacks)
https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/kedoshim/judaisms-three-voices/
https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/acharei-mot/the-courage-to-admit-mistakes/
https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/kedoshim/from-priest-to-people/
https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/kedoshim/followership/
https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/kedoshim/in-search-of-jewish-identity/
R Soloveichik (Kedoshim) Core Jewish Values in Modern Times
The name of the Parshah, “Kedoshim,” means “holy [ones]” and it is found in Leviticus 19:2.
The Parshah of Kedoshim begins with the statement: “You shall be holy, for I, the L‑rd your G‑d, am holy.” This is followed by dozens of mitzvot (divine commandments) through which the Jew sanctifies him- or herself and relates to the holiness of G‑d.
These include: the prohibition against idolatry, the mitzvah of charity, the principle of equality before the law, Shabbat, sexual morality, honesty in business, honor and awe of one’s parents, and the sacredness of life.
Also in Kedoshim is the dictum which the great sage Rabbi Akiva called a cardinal principle of Torah, and of which Hillel said, “This is the entire Torah, the rest is commentary”—“Love your fellow as yourself.”
Learn: Kedoshim in Depth
Browse: Kedoshim Parshah Columnists
Prep: Devar Torah Q&A for Kedoshim
Read: Haftarah in a Nutshell
Play: Kedoshim Parshah Quiz
Naso
COVENANT & CONVERSATION (R Sacks)
Parshat Naso
Continuing the preparations for the Israelites’ journey from Sinai to the Holy Land, Naso contains a melange of subjects whose inner connection is not immediately obvious: the roles of two of the Levitical clans, Gershon and Merari, the census of the Levites as a group, rules about the purity of the camp, the law of the sota (the woman suspected of adultery), the Nazirite, and the priestly blessing.
The parsha concludes with a lengthy and repetitive account of the offerings brought by the tribes at the dedication of the Tabernacle.
The Courage to Engage with the World
Rabbi Soloveichik (Naso)
Chukat
Parshat Chukat
Chukat begins with the law of the Red Heifer, judged by the Sages to be the most incomprehensible in the Torah. It became a classic example of a chok, a “statute,” often understood as a law that has no reason, or at least none we can understand.
The text then shifts from law to narrative. After the death of Miriam the people find themselves without water. They complain to Moses and Aaron, who turn to God. They then respond to the people in a way that seems to suggest anger. They are judged to have acted wrongly, and both are told they will not enter the land. Aaron dies.
The people complain again and are attacked by venomous snakes. Moses, at God’s command, places a brass serpent on a pole, so that all who look up to it will be healed. The people sing a song about a Miraculous well that gave them water. Moses then leads the people into successful battles against Sichon and Og.
Kohelet, Tolstoy, and the Red Heifer
Why Was Moses Not Destined To Enter The Land?
The Torah of Conflict Resolution
R. Michael on Red HefferChabad "in a nutshell"
Web Link (R Soloveichik - chulat)
chukat R Soloveichik (Word Doc)