sh'mot

Stop Making Excuses and Step Up to the Plate

Moses' excuses at the Burning Bush parallel three great human fears.

A Burning Within

We must find the causes that make us most passionate--and work for change.

The Book of Names

Our names are our essence.

Symbolic Names

The name Gershom, and the word for Hebrew, Ivri, carry a message about what it means to be Jewish.

Shemot

Exodus 1:1-6:1

Seeing The Broader Picture

The differences between the midwives' encounter with Pharaoh and the officers' and taskmasters' encounter teach us to appreciate the context of biblical narratives.

Pharaoh Didn’t Know Joseph

The reference to forgetting Joseph raises questions about how oppression is linked to a group's commitment to the larger society.

The Life Of The Oppressed

The antidote to the terror of living in a dangerous world is to participate in the liberation of others.

The Bumpy Road To Redemption

The complicated beginnings of the Exodus from Egypt establish the expectation that redemption is often not a smooth process.

The Evolving Name Of God

The divine name that God tells Moses at the burning bush expresses the different and evolving relationship that God has with every individual.