We are so blessed in this season because it is just so full of holidays! Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur have passed and we are now in the midst of one of my favorite holidays: Sukkot!
Sukkot, much like the American holiday of Thanksgiving, is a harvest holiday when we thank God for providing food for our tables and a roof over our heads.
Now, probably very few of us have our own sukkot ("sukkot" is the plural of "sukkah") at our homes. But we have one here at Temple that everyone can make use of, and in Israel, if you walked around Jerusalem now you would see SO many sukkot! Even restaurants have their own sukkot so people can eat out at a restaurant, but still observe the mitzvah of eating inside the sukkah.
There are a number of wonderful mitzvahs that we do on Sukkot:
(1) Shaking the lulav and the etrog
(2) Spending time in the sukkah (sleeping in the sukkah even!)
(3) Eating in the Sukkah
(4) Inviting guests into the sukkah.
I would like to fovus on that last mitzvah: Inviting guests into the sukkah. This is one of my very favorite traditions of Sukkot. This is called "Ushpizin," or "Hachnasat Orchim," welcoming guests. It is traditional to invite people into the sukkah to share a meal and a great conversation.
So my question to all of you this week, that I hope you can take some time with your family to talk about (around your Shabbat dinner table, or in your Sukkah, or just sitting on the couch on Shabbat afternoon):
If you could invite anyone, from any time period (past, present, or future), into your Sukkah to share a meal and have a conversation, who would you invite? What would you want to talk about? Why?
Or, if you have lots of ideas, there are 7 days of Sukkot. Who are your top 7 people you'd like to invite into your Sukkah?
Shabbat Shalom & Chag Sameach!
Friday, September 24, 2010
Friday, September 10, 2010
Table Talk for Haazinu, Shabbat Shuvah, September 10-11, 2010
Shabbat Shalom and Shana Tova! I hope that everyone had an uplifting, inspiring Rosh Hashanah and I wish everyone a happy, healthy year.
As our fall holidays progress, we are nearing the end of the book of Deuteronomy, and this week we have our second-to-last Torah portion in the entire Torah: Haazinu. Haazinu contains Moses's very last speech to the Israelites before they enter the Promised Land and Moses dies, and this speech is in the form of a poem or a song. (The words for poem and song are the same in Hebrew: Shira.) This poem talks about the same central theme that we find over and over again throughout the entire book of Deuteronomy: Good deeds and mitzvot will lead to blessing and life, evil deeds and disobeying God will lead to curse and death. This poem also says that in the future, when the Israleites doubt God or veer off of the path of leading a good life, they could look back at this poem and be reminded of God's power, majesty, goodness, and truth.
There is one verse in this week's Torah portion that seems particularly important to me this week. Chapter 32 verse 7 reads:
Remember the days of old, consider the years of ages past.
Ask your parent, who will inform you, Your elders, who will tell you.
This verse teaches us the importance of listening to our parents and grandparents and all those who are older than us, because they have more wisdom than we do and there is a lot we can learn from them. They have been alive much longer than we have so we should ask them to teach us.
In the spirit of this verse, this week's Table Talk questions are for children to ask their parents. Kids, please ask your parents these and any other questions that come to mind. After asking them these questions and having your discussion, let your parents (and/or grandparents) know how much you love them and appreciate them, and say "thank you" to them for teaching you.
Discussion Questions:
(1) What does being Jewish mean to you? What did it mean to you when you were a kid? When you were a teenager?
(2) Do you have memories of Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur from when you were growing up? What were they like? What were services like? Did your family have any special traditions?
(3) What is your favorite part of the High Holy Days? What is your favorite prayer (or line from a prayer)?
(4) What kind of blessings do you hope for in the year to come? What are you thankful for?
(5) Was there anything that happened in the last year that you want to let go of in the year to come?
(6) What is your New Year's resolution? Why?
As our fall holidays progress, we are nearing the end of the book of Deuteronomy, and this week we have our second-to-last Torah portion in the entire Torah: Haazinu. Haazinu contains Moses's very last speech to the Israelites before they enter the Promised Land and Moses dies, and this speech is in the form of a poem or a song. (The words for poem and song are the same in Hebrew: Shira.) This poem talks about the same central theme that we find over and over again throughout the entire book of Deuteronomy: Good deeds and mitzvot will lead to blessing and life, evil deeds and disobeying God will lead to curse and death. This poem also says that in the future, when the Israleites doubt God or veer off of the path of leading a good life, they could look back at this poem and be reminded of God's power, majesty, goodness, and truth.
There is one verse in this week's Torah portion that seems particularly important to me this week. Chapter 32 verse 7 reads:
Remember the days of old, consider the years of ages past.
Ask your parent, who will inform you, Your elders, who will tell you.
This verse teaches us the importance of listening to our parents and grandparents and all those who are older than us, because they have more wisdom than we do and there is a lot we can learn from them. They have been alive much longer than we have so we should ask them to teach us.
In the spirit of this verse, this week's Table Talk questions are for children to ask their parents. Kids, please ask your parents these and any other questions that come to mind. After asking them these questions and having your discussion, let your parents (and/or grandparents) know how much you love them and appreciate them, and say "thank you" to them for teaching you.
Discussion Questions:
(1) What does being Jewish mean to you? What did it mean to you when you were a kid? When you were a teenager?
(2) Do you have memories of Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur from when you were growing up? What were they like? What were services like? Did your family have any special traditions?
(3) What is your favorite part of the High Holy Days? What is your favorite prayer (or line from a prayer)?
(4) What kind of blessings do you hope for in the year to come? What are you thankful for?
(5) Was there anything that happened in the last year that you want to let go of in the year to come?
(6) What is your New Year's resolution? Why?
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Table Talk for Shabbat Nitzavim-Vayeilech, September 3rd-4th, 2010
This week we are blessed with a double Torah portion, Nitzavim-Vayeilech. These portions often appear as a pair on the Shabbat that falls right before Rosh Hashana, as it does this year. Why do we have double portions sometimes? In the Jewish calendar, different years have different numbers of weeks, and different numbers of Shabbatot, so there is a kind of flexibility built into the schedule of Torah readings to make sure that we always get through the entire Torah ever year. In a year with fewer weeks, we have double portions like this one, but in a year with more weeks, Nitzavim and Vayeilech could each have their own week.
Yet another fun fact that has to do with this week's Torah portion is that when it stands alone, Vayeilech is the very shortest Torah portion that there is!
As we have mentioned in the past few weeks here on our Shabbat Sha-blog, we are in the book of Deuteronomy which is the last book in the Torah. And the book of Deuteronomy is mainly made up of a string of very long speeches given by Moses to the people of Israel right before Moses dies and the Israelites enter the land of Israel, the Promised land. This week's Torah portion is no different.
The very first words of this week's Torah portion are, "Atem Nitzavim Hayom Kulchem..." "You stand this day, all of you." The wording of the Hebrew, which we can see in translation in the phrase "all of you," lets us know that Moses is not just addressing a few leaders of the people of Israel, but rather he is speaking to the entire people of Israel as one big group.
But interestingly, the verse continues to say, "and those who are not with us here this day." It seems like the words of God, being spoken by Moses, are intended not only for all the people to whom Moses is talking at that very moment, but also to the descendants of those people. Meaning, not just them, but their children, and their children's children. The laws that God gives the people through Moses, the teachings and rules--all of these are not just meant for the ancient Israelites, but they also apply to the generations to follow--including us!
In fact, Midrash Tanchuma takes this a step further to say that not only were the ancient Israelites physically present, not only were they actually there, both at Sinai and then hearing this series of speeches by Moses at the entryway to the Promised Land. But that we, too, were there. The children of those people at Sinai and hearing Moses, then their children, and their children... all the way down to us. You were. Your brothers and sisters were. Your parents, your grandparents. Even people who are not born Jewish but convert to Judaism later in life, they were there because they have Jewish souls just like people who were born Jewish. And everyone with a Jewish soul was there.
This can remind us that we still have a responsibility to learn the Torah, to live righteous and ethical lives, and to do mitzvot. Not just because our parents tell us to, and not just because our religious school teachers and cantor and rabbis tell us to. Because we were there, our souls were there, listening to Moses. Shaking because of the powerful moment. With butterflies in our stomachs because we are so eager and nervous and excited to enter the promised land. Because this is a big responsibility we are being given by God through Moses--to take care of the earth. To live peacefully and help bring justice and righteousness into the world. We were there.
Discussion questions:
(1) How do you think the Israelites felt as they were listening to Moses? How did they feel at Sinai when they were given the Torah? How did they feel right before going into the Promised Land?
(2) We just learned that each of us were there at Sinai and there listening to Moses's final speeches. Close your eyes and imagine yourself there. What is it like? Use all of your senses. What do you hear? What do you see? what do you smell? What do you taste? Think about reaching out--what do you touch and what do you feel with your hands?
(3) Do you believe that you were there, or your soul was there? Why or why not?
(4) If Moses was speaking to all of us, to all the generations of Israelites and Jews, what does it change? How would it be different if Moses was only speaking to the ancient Israelites at that moment?
(5) Is it fair that the speech Moses gave told not just the Israelites what their responsibilities were, but also tells us what ours are, too? Tradition teaches that when the Israelites accepted the covenant, they accepted it for future generations too, meaning us. Is that fair? Did anyone ever agree that you would do something without checking with you? Is that okay? How did it feel? How would it feel?
(6) Is there anyone who decides things for your or tells you what to do? Who? Why? What do they decide for you? Is it fair? How does it make you feel?
Yet another fun fact that has to do with this week's Torah portion is that when it stands alone, Vayeilech is the very shortest Torah portion that there is!
As we have mentioned in the past few weeks here on our Shabbat Sha-blog, we are in the book of Deuteronomy which is the last book in the Torah. And the book of Deuteronomy is mainly made up of a string of very long speeches given by Moses to the people of Israel right before Moses dies and the Israelites enter the land of Israel, the Promised land. This week's Torah portion is no different.
The very first words of this week's Torah portion are, "Atem Nitzavim Hayom Kulchem..." "You stand this day, all of you." The wording of the Hebrew, which we can see in translation in the phrase "all of you," lets us know that Moses is not just addressing a few leaders of the people of Israel, but rather he is speaking to the entire people of Israel as one big group.
But interestingly, the verse continues to say, "and those who are not with us here this day." It seems like the words of God, being spoken by Moses, are intended not only for all the people to whom Moses is talking at that very moment, but also to the descendants of those people. Meaning, not just them, but their children, and their children's children. The laws that God gives the people through Moses, the teachings and rules--all of these are not just meant for the ancient Israelites, but they also apply to the generations to follow--including us!
In fact, Midrash Tanchuma takes this a step further to say that not only were the ancient Israelites physically present, not only were they actually there, both at Sinai and then hearing this series of speeches by Moses at the entryway to the Promised Land. But that we, too, were there. The children of those people at Sinai and hearing Moses, then their children, and their children... all the way down to us. You were. Your brothers and sisters were. Your parents, your grandparents. Even people who are not born Jewish but convert to Judaism later in life, they were there because they have Jewish souls just like people who were born Jewish. And everyone with a Jewish soul was there.
This can remind us that we still have a responsibility to learn the Torah, to live righteous and ethical lives, and to do mitzvot. Not just because our parents tell us to, and not just because our religious school teachers and cantor and rabbis tell us to. Because we were there, our souls were there, listening to Moses. Shaking because of the powerful moment. With butterflies in our stomachs because we are so eager and nervous and excited to enter the promised land. Because this is a big responsibility we are being given by God through Moses--to take care of the earth. To live peacefully and help bring justice and righteousness into the world. We were there.
Discussion questions:
(1) How do you think the Israelites felt as they were listening to Moses? How did they feel at Sinai when they were given the Torah? How did they feel right before going into the Promised Land?
(2) We just learned that each of us were there at Sinai and there listening to Moses's final speeches. Close your eyes and imagine yourself there. What is it like? Use all of your senses. What do you hear? What do you see? what do you smell? What do you taste? Think about reaching out--what do you touch and what do you feel with your hands?
(3) Do you believe that you were there, or your soul was there? Why or why not?
(4) If Moses was speaking to all of us, to all the generations of Israelites and Jews, what does it change? How would it be different if Moses was only speaking to the ancient Israelites at that moment?
(5) Is it fair that the speech Moses gave told not just the Israelites what their responsibilities were, but also tells us what ours are, too? Tradition teaches that when the Israelites accepted the covenant, they accepted it for future generations too, meaning us. Is that fair? Did anyone ever agree that you would do something without checking with you? Is that okay? How did it feel? How would it feel?
(6) Is there anyone who decides things for your or tells you what to do? Who? Why? What do they decide for you? Is it fair? How does it make you feel?
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