Torah Commentaries
Parashat Vayishlach: Honoring the Best of Jacob
This Torah portion interperses multiple momentous encounters with the divine realm with a series of fraught incidents between humans.
Parashat Vayetzei: Leah’s Hidden Blessing
Why does the Torah specifically mention the "weak eyes" of the matriarch Leah?
Parashat Toldot: Opening the Conversation
This portion records the first instance in the Torah of someone initiating a dialogue with God.
Chayei Sarah: The Reverberations of Familial Violence
The lingering trauma of Isaac’s near-sacrifice is felt in his relationship with his wife Rebecca and in the generations that follow.
Parashat Vayera: The Uniqueness of the Binding of Isaac
Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son should be seen as a unique situation never to be repeated.
Lech-Lecha: In Praise of Holy Discomfort
A lesson in the role of discomfort in fomenting social change.
Parashat Noach: How Societies Collapse
The story of the flood is an object lesson in the kinds of crimes that pose existential social threats.
Parashat Bereshit: Being Like God
The banishing of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden marks the beginning of humanity’s path to fulfilling its destiny.
Parashat Ha’azinu: Paradigm Shift
Moses' final dramatic message to the Israelites introduces some new names and characteristics of God.