What just happened: Some sections are easier to relate to than others. And then there was this week’s parsha. Two years ago there wouldn’t have been much to work with here. This year it read like a practical and super…
Category: Meander
The 5 Books Meander, Week 25: Shemini
What just happened: This was a big one — the laws of kashrut (aka how to be kosher), including surprising news about bunnies and bats! Of possible note: The gestures, the rituals, the blood, the burning — I had never…
The 5 Books Meander, Week 23: Va-Yikra’
What just happened: Leviticus opens with several laws of sacrifice and the details therein which are, let’s be honest, alarming for anyone who either likes pigeons or believes blood should be dashed on the wall rarely if at all. And…
The 5 Books Meander, Week 22: Va-Yakhel and Pekudei
What just happened: The tabernacle is built and the Lord makes an appearance, as we finish Exodus. What’s a tabernacle, you ask? Wikipedia defines it thusly: According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tabernacle, also known as the Tent of the…
The 5 Books Meander, Week 16 (Yitro)
In brief: The gang brings Jethro up to speed, and God makes a memorable appearance. A couple of thoughts: Where much of Exodus thus far has hit me with a political vibe, this one seemed to be full of great…
The 5 Books Meander, Week 11 (Va-Yiggash)
In brief: Va-Yiggash starts out just as Joseph has demanded Benjamin be left behind and their father brought to Egypt, all on account of a super important stolen-but-not-really-stolen goblet that we’ll never hear about again. Trickery! After some sobbing and…
The 5 Books Meander, Week 10 (Mikkets)
In brief: Joseph gets a haircut, some new clothes, some more new clothes, a wife, two kids, and nigh-Pharaoh-like power over the kingdom. So all in all, a pretty good bounce back for this promising young man. Years of abundance…
The 5 Books Meander, Week 9 (Va-Yashev)
In brief: We meet Jacob’s second-youngest-son Joseph, who is beloved by his father, and a bit of a twerp. Speaking of Joseph’s father, despite being renamed by the Lord, which you would think would count for something, so-called “Israel” is…
The 5 Books Meander, Week 8 (Va-Yishlaḥ)
In brief: Jacob journeys back to Esau, worried, aware of the weight of what he’s done, seeking to make amends. Along the way, he wrestles with a mysterious figure and comes away with a limp to remind him of the…
The 5 Books Meander, Week 6 (Toledot)
In brief: Toledot kicks off the story of Isaac and his family of tricksters. I mean no disrespect here. But it’s hard to avoid the conclusion that everyone in this family is, well, one who tricks. Almost everyone that is.…