TINW Torah Study
199 episodes - English - Latest episode: 5 months ago - ★★★★★ - 10 ratingsA Reform exploration of Torah, ancient wisdom and modern scholarship by Rabbi Jennifer Jaech of Temple Israel of Northern Westchester in Croton-on-Hudson, NY. In this podcast, Tara Keiter creates and presents a quick summary of our weekly Torah Study session. Note: Since April, 2015, this podcast has been ad-free and generates no income. Only 90 days of material is stored for free on our podcasting host. Older content can be read at https://taraskeiter.substack.com/
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Episodes
244. Prophecy After the Fact - December 4, 2021
December 06, 2021 17:00 - 7 minutes - 4.89 MBToday, Jews are in control of the State of Israel. But for much of the history of the Jewish people, we have not been the ones in control of our own land. We have been subject to outside forces that have shaped our story. As Hanukkah comes to an end, today in Torah Study Rabbi Jaech led us in an exploration of the political forces that shaped our Hanukkah celebration. (Session inspired by analysis from Professor Lawrence M. Wills of Boston University.)
243. Holiday Balance - November 27, 2021
November 28, 2021 19:00 - 6 minutes - 4.32 MBThis week Rabbi Janet Roberts led us in a discussion about the intermingling of holidays and religions by looking at a feast held in the book of Genesis where Hebrews and Egyptians dined together while still remaining separate. At this holiday season, each of us will make choices about intermingling of holidays and religions - and that is ok!
242. The Trickster - November 13, 2021
November 14, 2021 00:00 - 6 minutes - 4.34 MBJacob, the 2nd born son of Isaac and Rebekah, made some questionable choices as a young man, going so far as to deceive his father as he was lying on his deathbed. But the deceiver would soon become the deceived! Rabbi Jaech reminds us that deception is a human foible and, particularly at this time when deception seems to be the norm, we all need to be careful about the information we take in.
241. The Mighty Hunter - November 6, 2021
November 07, 2021 16:00 - 7 minutes - 5.2 MBThere are only two hunters mentioned in the Torah: Nimrod who, with the grace of the Lord, became a mighty hunter, and Esau, the older son of Issac, whose success at hunting was attributed to the grace of God. But there are many rules in the Torah about how an animal must be killed and what must be done with the animal's blood—rules which would make hunting an impossibility. Rabbi Jaech explored these diametrically opposed concepts with us.
240. The Rules of Justice - October 30, 2021
October 30, 2021 19:00 - 6 minutes - 4.5 MBGod cannot be both all-just and all-powerful. This week Rabbi Jaech continued our exploration of the Book of Job, and why bad things happen to good people.
239. Life's Tests - October 23, 2021
October 23, 2021 18:00 - 5 minutes - 4.15 MBThe patriarch Abraham was a righteous man whom God put to a heartbreaking test which might have required Abraham to kill his own son. Likewise, Job was a righteous man whose life is meddled with by Satan,—causing him to lose his wealth, his flocks, and his children. This week we began an exploration of God's tests of good people.
238. Multifaceted God
October 11, 2021 03:00 - 5 minutes - 4 MBIn the Torah, sometimes God is shown to be a strict disciplinarian, and other times he is a compassionate God who expresses very human feelings. Scholars today understand that the traditions preserved in the Torah come from different sources, which explains their different perspectives. The ancient Rabbis also saw the differences in the text, but they were creative in their interpretations and said that God is neither all mercy nor all justice. God, like us, has different sides.
237. Gods and Angels - October 2, 2021
October 05, 2021 00:00 - 5 minutes - 3.93 MBThe concept of gods coming down from the heavens to mate with humans is evident throughout the ancient world—and is even present in our Bible! The offspring of those biblical matings are called Nephilim, which were half-god/half-man beings. According the the Bible, these halflings became responsible for the fall of all mankind.
236. Messianic Age - September 25, 2021
September 25, 2021 20:00 - 5 minutes - 3.78 MBIn biblical times, the holiday of Sukkot—which began for us this week—was THE major holiday. There was a large gathering of crowds and, in a time before mass communication, it would have been an ideal time to try to get information to the most people. Over time, people used this time as a time to declare themselves the ones to usher in a messianic age. Using the research of Dr. Malka Simkovich, Rabbi Jaech led us on an exploration of three such declarations.
235. Cheers & Tears - September 18, 2021
September 18, 2021 19:00 - 5 minutes - 3.91 MBOur High Holiday celebrations this year felt a little more "normal," but there were some clear changes. Today, Rabbi Janet Roberts led us on a discussion of a time when Jews returned to worship after a long absence, and the changes that awaited them.
234. Catastrophe - September 11, 2021
September 12, 2021 23:00 - 6 minutes - 4.51 MBProfessor David Sperling led our group today—on a day we were remembering the September 11, 2001 catastrophe at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the field in Pennsylvania—on an exploration of how Jewish people have recalled catastrophes in Jewish history.
233. Forgiveness - September 4, 2021
September 04, 2021 20:00 - 5 minutes - 3.84 MBYom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is almost upon us. Today we read about the reprehensible behavior of Joseph's brothers. And we also read about how Joseph was able to overcome any desire to seek revenge. Could any of us be as forgiving?
232. Tithe - August 28, 2021
August 29, 2021 13:00 - 5 minutes - 3.65 MBThe word "tithe" shares a root with the word "tenth." This week we looked at a passage from Deuteronomy that explains how the tithe goes toward the operating expenses of the temple, in order for the Levites to continue their work of bringing God's presence to the community.
231. Captive Women
August 21, 2021 19:00 - 5 minutes - 3.66 MBWhen it comes to warfare, the Torah does not hold the male members of the Jewish population to the high ideal we might prefer. The Torah recognizes that abducting women is considered part of the "spoils" of war. But, at a minimum, the Torah tries to give the woman time to grieve, as well as some protection. As we go into the High Holidays, we can all strive to hold ourselves to the high ideas we would prefer to see reflected in society.
230. Justice & Mercy (April 12, 2019 revisited)
August 14, 2021 22:00 - 4 minutes - 3.21 MBThe ancient rabbis understood that human nature inclines toward both good and evil. The rabbis understood that the evil nature—which could also be identified as self-serving—is important in humans because it gives us a drive to thrive. However, the rabbis also pointed out that—for the good of the community—there are times that individual wants must be put aside.
229. Adultery (Feb 10, 2018 revisited)
August 07, 2021 15:00 - 4 minutes - 3.1 MBThe Torah is clear, in the book of Leviticus, that a wife found guilty of adultery shall be put to death with her adulterous lover. But what if the husband only suspects his wife of adultery? The book of Numbers offers a nifty bit of sorcery to address that question. The Rabbis, whose teachings are founded in Torah—but expand upon texts and offer a wide variety of interpretations—give reasons for why a husband may want to be more forgiving.
228. Purge (April 22, 2017 revisited)
July 31, 2021 17:00 - 6 minutes - 4.31 MBPolitics and religion have always gone hand-in-hand, and whether we are open to warnings or not has a lot to do with who is in power politically. Today, Americans are on opposite sides of the debate on vaccinations, masking, and global warming. In biblical times people were on opposite sides about how to properly worship God.
227. Impalement (Sept 3, 2016 revisited)
July 25, 2021 17:00 - 5 minutes - 3.54 MBImpalement as a form of punishment meted out by conquering armies was a fact of biblical life and, according to the book of Joshua, something that the Israelites also practiced. But the book of Deuteronomy states that, "an impaled body is an affront to God." Today, we took a closer look at this strange dichotomy.
226. Founding Narrative (Feb 13, 2016, revisited)
July 17, 2021 17:00 - 6 minutes - 4.27 MBDichotomies in the Bible—slight differences, or outright contradictions—make it possible for people to use the Bible to argue positions for or against any number of issues. For example, the book of Joshua give two very different versions of the conquering of the walled city of Jericho.
225. Wine (June 20, 2015 revisited)
July 10, 2021 18:00 - 5 minutes - 3.98 MBIn this 2015 exploration of biblical references to wine, we look at the good, the bad, and the ugly.
224. Healing (May 24, 2014 revisited)
July 04, 2021 11:00 - 5 minutes - 3.95 MBThis episode is a revisiting of our very first blogging/podcasting Torah Study session. In it we look at mythology of ancient Greece and how it might have influenced some of our biblical tales.
223. Donkeys and Others - June 26, 2021
June 27, 2021 03:00 - 6 minutes - 4.25 MBThe Israelite army is on the march, a Moabite king seeks to curse them, a non-Israelite prophet speaks directly to the Israelite God, and a donkey talks to his rider!
222. Transgender Jews - June 19, 2021
June 19, 2021 21:00 - 7 minutes - 5.52 MBWe continued our Pride Month exploration of Jewish text that addresses non-binary people. This week we focused on transgender people and we might be surprised to find that the belief that a person might not fit their outside shell is not a 21st century phenomenon. We finished with 14th century poem by a man who seems to, heartbreakingly, wish he had been born a woman.
221. Gender Fluidity - June 12, 2021
June 12, 2021 20:00 - 5 minutes - 3.53 MBIn the United States, the movement to embrace non-binary people for who they are has received a lot of traction. Our listeners may be surprised to learn that the issue of non-binary people was a question the earliest Rabbis also grappled with. Not in the "gender identity" sense that we read about today, but it was true for the place in society of intersex people.
220. Rahab the Convert - June 5, 2021
June 06, 2021 01:00 - 6 minutes - 4.58 MBThis week we learned about a woman named Rahab who was a successful, non-Israelite businesswoman. She chose to join the Israelite people, which signified to our ancient sages that she had become a convert, and she is the ancestor to many important people in our Bible, including the Prophet Jeremiah and the Prophetess Huldah. And the Christian Bible tells us she was also an ancestor of Jesus.
219. Converts Among Us - May 29, 2021
May 29, 2021 22:00 - 5 minutes - 3.82 MBWhen the people were liberated from slavery to Egypt, a "mixed multitude" left together. The medieval sage Rashi identified this "mixed multitude" as one that included converts. This led Rabbi Jaech to look at what some of the ancient Rabbis have to say about converts - a group of people which Rabbi Jaech and I, your podcaster, are proud to be!
219. Converts Among Us
May 29, 2021 22:00 - 5 minutes - 3.82 MBWhen the people were liberated from slavery to Egypt, a "mixed multitude" left together. The medieval sage Rashi identified this "mixed multitude" as one that included converts. This led Rabbi Jaech to look at what some of the ancient Rabbis have to say about converts - a group of people which Rabbi Jaech and I, your podcaster, are proud to be!
218. Reunions - May 22. 2021
May 22, 2021 23:00 - 5 minutes - 4.14 MBThe social distancing and isolation required due to covid-19 appears to be coming to an end in the US, beginning a time of reunions. This caused Rabbi Janet Roberts to look at reunions in the Torah. Reunions can be events full of conflicting feelings. But our ancient sages taught that old friends offer an opportunity to celebrate your "aliveness."
217. Count Me In!
May 15, 2021 19:00 - 5 minutes - 3.61 MBThe U.S. recently completed a census, and this week's Torah Portion calls for a census to be taken. This is one of several biblical tales that require a counting of the Israelite people. Some of our traditions recount the census-taking as a point of fact. Other's indicate that counting the people can only lead to bad things. People are different today, just as they were different in biblical times. Our Torah stories come from different traditions and reflect a variety of beliefs.
216. Deaf-Mutes - May 1, 2021
May 01, 2021 22:00 - 4 minutes - 2.9 MBThe Greek philosopher Aristotle had a belief that hearing "contributes most to the growth of intelligence," making Aristotle dismissive of the intelligence of deaf-mutes. Many of our ancient sages seemed to agree with that assessment. But others showed more evolved thinking, and appreciation for the humanity of differently abled people.
215. Purity Laws - April 24, 2021
April 26, 2021 02:00 - 5 minutes - 3.51 MBYup - it's in there: rules about what should be done regarding menstruation are in the Bible. Rabbi Janet Roberts led us on an exploration of what is in the Bible, how those rules were changed in post-Temple times, and what they might mean to us today.
214. Mental Illness - April 17, 2021
April 17, 2021 23:00 - 6 minutes - 4.32 MBAncient thinking reflects the belief that medical afflictions were punishments from God to show his displeasure, and that displeasure had to be carefully managed lest God seek to punish the entire community! This week we looked beyond physical afflictions and took a closer look at mental afflictions. There are numerous examples of mental illness in the Bible and references to it in the wisdom of the ancient sages - so we know mental illness is as ancient as our people. However, unlike in bib...
213. Alien Fire - April 10, 2021
April 11, 2021 02:00 - 6 minutes - 4.28 MBReform Judaism is a religion of innovation. We looked at the innovations over the years that attempt to provide meaning to followers in an effort to remain relevant. And the innovations continue even today!
212. Song of Songs
April 03, 2021 23:00 - 6 minutes - 4.73 MBAt first glance, the poetry in the biblical book the Song of Songs appears to be erotic love poetry. Some claim that the poems were actually meant to be allegories of the love between God and the Israelite people. Today we had a group discussion, led by one of our Torah Study regulars, which looked at the words, the debates of the ancient Rabbis, and what scholarship has revealed about these extraordinary passages.
211. Clothes Make the Man
March 29, 2021 02:00 - 3 minutes - 2.48 MBPriests in biblical times were instructed to wear special clothing when they entered the Holy of Holies to perform a sacrifice to God. The clothing identified the priests, possibly giving them a form of protection, and, at the very least, honoring God by their beautiful vestments. The clothing we chose to wear reveals much about us, and about the community of which we are part.
210. Passover Wine - March 20, 2021
March 20, 2021 21:00 - 5 minutes - 3.78 MBThe Torah tells us that on Passover we should eat unleavened bread and bitter herbs. But the Torah makes no mention of drinking four cups of wine. Four! That's a lot of wine. The ancient Rabbis said drinking the wine was an obligatory part of the Passover celebration. Rabbi Jaech led us on an exploration of where that tradition might have started.
209. All Whose Hearts Moved Them
March 14, 2021 19:00 - 7 minutes - 5.26 MBAs the Israelites traveled through the wilderness, their hearts were moved to create a place for God to dwell among them. And, because they were still traveling, it had to be portable. Everyone in the community was involved in its innovative construction, making it the ultimate community-building event. The priests were able to meet the needs of their community, no matter where they went. This is what we still look for from our leaders - an ability to meet our needs. Since the beginning of ...
208. Holy Cow!
March 06, 2021 22:00 - 7 minutes - 5.37 MBThe story of Aaron creating a golden calf for the Israelites to worship is considered a great sin of the people. But, was the original story so sinful? We looked at ancient stories and archeological finds along with the biblical passages to examine how this might have once been a positive tradition that later became frowned upon. Customs change and people change with it and, sometimes, what was once deemed appropriate is denigrated. (Please excuse the loud cheers in the background - there wa...
207. Shtupping Contest! - February 27, 2021
February 28, 2021 13:00 - 8 minutes - 5.93 MBLast week we celebrated the holiday of Purim, which is typically (in non-covid times) a holiday for laughter and merrymaking. Rabbi Jaech lead us in a closer inspection of the story which starts with the premise of rounding up the virgins to see which could pleasure the king the most. This is very disturbing to our modern minds. The ancient Rabbis were also disturbed by this story - but not for the same reason!
206. Temple Lottery - February 20, 2021
February 22, 2021 03:00 - 5 minutes - 4.04 MBThe holiday of Purim will be celebrated this week. In the story of Purim, the evil Haman determined by lot - or the throwing of dice - the day of destruction of the Jews. This led Rabbi Janet Roberts to wonder more about the use of lots in biblical times. We learned that the throwing of dice has been around since the 3rd millennium BCE, and was sometimes used to try to divine the will of God. The throwing of lots also became useful in Temple times to determine which priests had the honor of...
205. The Goring Ox - February 13, 2021
February 14, 2021 03:00 - 7 minutes - 5.12 MBThere are laws that address the possible goring to death of a person by an ox that date to the 18th century BCE, long before the Israelite dating of the passage we read in Exodus 21. Penalties in other Near Eastern cultures required a monetary payment, but the ox was allowed to live and continue to provide value to the owner. In the Israelite law, an ox that gored a human must be killed. And maybe the owner would be, too!
204. Jethro & Justice - February 6, 2021
February 06, 2021 21:00 - 6 minutes - 4.56 MBJethro, the father-in-law to Moses, has a surprisingly important role in Jewish tradition. Surprising because Jethro was not an Israelite at all - in fact he was a priest of the Midianite religion. Even so, Moses respected Jethro and accepted his advice on the organization of a judicial system for the Israelites. This week we looked at the midrash, or traditions meant to fill in the gaps in biblical stories, that try to explain how a non-Israelite came to be so important in the Israelite sto...
203. Poetic Prayer - January 30, 2021
January 31, 2021 03:00 - 5 minutes - 3.57 MBMuch of the Bible is historical narrative text, but there is also poetry which sometimes repeats the narrative. The poetry may not elaborate on the historic facts, but it does convey a sense of emotion and it allows readers to experience the story in a different way. Many of the prayers in our prayer books are taken from lines in biblical poetry. The prayers do not reflect life as we know it, but offer something aspirational for us to strive toward, and a way to connect to something bigger...
202. Build Back Better - January 16, 2021
January 16, 2021 22:00 - 5 minutes - 3.94 MBPharaoh does not want to hear the words of God as delivered by Moses and Aaron. Similarly, the people in the Bible rarely listen to the words of God as delivered by a prophet (with the exception of Jonah). Because they do not listen, devastation often rains down. God seems to expect this. As he tells Isaiah, the people will "Hear, indeed, but do not understand. See, indeed, but do not grasp." God may even be content with the devastation brought on his people. God believes that, out of the wr...
201. Justified Killing - January 9, 2021
January 10, 2021 03:00 - 6 minutes - 4.32 MBOne of the Ten Commandments states that You Shall Not Murder. But there are many stories of killings in the Bible. We looked at two killings that were specifically ordered by God and carried out by prominent members of the community. Our modern minds may struggle with this dichotomy. Today we looked at both modern and ancient text that also struggle with it.
200. Interfaith Marriage Part 2 - January 2, 2021
January 02, 2021 20:00 - 7 minutes - 4.93 MBIn the story in Genesis, the biblical hero Joseph is married to a non-Jew. Apparently, this interfaith marriage was not a concern for the author of the original tale. But, we can see from later midrash by the Rabbis, that the interfaith marriage did cause concern to people. The Rabbis created midrash, not found in the Torah but based upon the same characters, that give reasons why Joseph's wife was acceptable. Is interfaith marriage really a threat to Judaism today? Some people might think s...
199. Interfaith Marriage - December 19, 2020
December 19, 2020 23:00 - 5 minutes - 3.71 MBIn our biblical traditions there are instances of interfaith marriage. In our own Temple Israel community, about one third of our congregants are in interfaith marriages. This week we looked at the policy of the seminary where Rabbi Jaech was ordained and found that they will not accept as students anyone in an interfaith marriage. Given our traditions, we pondered this policy. What are your thoughts about it?
198. Jewish Evergreen - December 12, 2020
December 12, 2020 19:00 - 5 minutes - 3.85 MBToday we reviewed the traditional Hanukkah story, and the historical Hanukkah story, and what more we know about Hanukkah, the Maccabees, and winter celebrations of light and greenery. Rabbi Janet Roberts led our discussion today, concluding with a question of where the use of evergreen trees might be for the Jewish people, say, 200 years from now.
197. Wrestling - December 5, 2020
December 06, 2020 20:00 - 4 minutes - 3.23 MBIn this week's Torah portion, Jacob prepares to meet with his brother, Esau, who he has not seen in 20 years. Jacob wonders if Esau still want to kill Jacob. Already anxious the night before his meeting with his brother, Jacob is confronted by a man who wrestles with Jacob all night long. As the dawn breaks, we learn that the man is really an angel who wrestled with Jacob. The angel gives Jacob a new name, Israel, which means "God is just." Maybe this story will turn out all right. Or maybe ...
196. Contradictions - November 28, 2020
November 29, 2020 02:00 - 6 minutes - 4.71 MBThis week our scholar in residence, Professor David Sperling, led us on an exploration of the patriarch Jacob. At one point during his narrative, Jacob left his home to travel toward Haran. There are two different traditions at work in the Bible that provide two different possible reasons for why Jacob left home. Along the way, Jacob made a stop at Bethel, where he dreamed of angels going up and down a staircase (known as Jacob's Ladder). Jacob realized that Bethel is a sacred place. In othe...