Chanukah and Envy
December 23, 2019
Vayeshev 5780 - Rav Barry Leff Envy is at the heart of this week’s parsha. We’re told, And Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was a son of his old age; and he made him a fine woolen coat (aka “coat of many colors” – the Hebrew “ktonet passim” is a little obscure). How did the brothers respond? And his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, so they hated him, and they could not speak...
The Holiness of Jacob
December 10, 2019
Vayetze 5780 – the Holiness of Jacob Rav Barry Leff In the birkat hamazon, the grace after meals, there’s a curious phrase: Kedoshenu kadosh Yakov Our holiness is the holiness of Jacob. Why Jacob? Why not Abraham, the first Jew? Or Moses, the lawgiver? Or King David, author of the sublime psalms? It’s because Jacob’s holiness is a holiness that encapsulates the approach of the Jewish people. An approach to holiness that is rooted on earth but reaches the heavens. That connects heaven and earth, God...
Science and Creation
November 4, 2019
Bereshit 5780 – Science and Creation Sermon by Rav Barrry Leff Bereshit bara El-him et hashamayim v’et ha’aretz, “in beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” The Torah tells us that God created the world in six days. On the first day God said “let there be light” and there was light. On the second day God created Heaven to separate “the waters above from the waters below.” On the third day God created dry land and plants. On the fourth day God created the sun, the...
Nationalism versus Patriotism
October 3, 2019
Rosh Hashanah 5780 – Nationalism versus Patriotism There is a rising tide of nationalism around the world. And that’s bad news for Jews. Over 65 years ago, Martin Luther King Jr. gave a sermon on “The False God of Nationalism.” He said that nationalism was a “new religion,” and that it was causing people to turn away from the eternal God of the universe. He said that the religion’s preachers included Hitler, Mussolini, and McCarthy, preachers with great homiletic skill drawing astronomical...
The Oneness of God
August 22, 2019
Vaetchanan 5779 Shema Yisrael … Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God, the Lord is One …Deuteronomy 6:4 This is one of the most powerful, mystical verses in the entire Torah. And it’s in this week’s Torah reading. This is the first prayer Jewish children learn. Words we are commanded to say in the morning when we get up, words we are commanded to say when we lie down at night, words that are often the last words on a dying Jew’s lips. We’ll be reciting...
Capital Punishment
August 1, 2019
Pinchas 5779 Should someone be rewarded for acting as judge, jury, and executioner and killing a criminal? Everyone here, I hope, would say “of course not!” That’s lynching. It’s a terrible thing. It brings up memories of some of this country’s darkest days. Reward someone for lynching someone? And yet that’s exactly what happens in this week Torah portion, Pinchas. At the end of last week’s Torah portion Pinchas ben Eleazar, the late high priest Aaron’s grandson, ran a spear through a Jewish man...
Can You Separate the Art from the Artist
July 25, 2019
Balak 5779 Is it OK to appreciate art that comes from very flawed artists? Knowing what went on at Neverland, should we still listen to Michael Jackson’s music? Knowing about the accusations against Woody Allen, should we still watch his films? Should we spend money to see movies produced by Weinstein Films, knowing about Harvey Weinstein and how that triggered the #metoo movement? Click to continue reading...