Taste of Torah

Are there questions that should not be asked? Even asking why they should not be asked generates conversations well worth having.

Constitutions must all be interpreted. Torah no less than the Constitution of the United States. The Bible is not a read-it-and-do-it document. There are problematic elements in it -- several examples are in parshat Shoftim -- and the Rabbis begin the process of interpretation to resolve them.

Parents who live vicariously through their children, expecting their children to fulfill their parents’ fantasies, are sacrificing their children’s wellbeing, independence, and passions to their own needs.

If the wilderness experience is a “test,” then all life is a test. Of what? How can viewing life as a test help us, especially when the going gets tough?

: If making images of God is prohibited by the second commandment, what do we say about the very human images the Rabbis paint with words?

Moses begins his final speeches to the Israelites with stinging criticism. Was he following Torah’s requirement to rebuke one who is off the tracks? Is there an effective and appropriate way to criticize others so we don’t insult and hurt them? Is there a way to talk so that our words are not heard as unintended criticism?

Vengeance seems to be in our blood, but if it’s at all sweet, it leaves a very bitter aftertaste. It doesn’t help that Torah presents God as the Comic Avenger. The Sages help us find a better way in our lives.

With the end of life in sight, God treats Moses with compassion and affords him the dignity to review and sum up his life, prepare for a successor, and know that his legacy is intact. Doesn’t everyone deserve the same treatment? The myth of “Death Panels” did our society a great disservice by injecting fear rather than fact into our political conversation of the health care bill.

Words are powerful, but not all great speakers deserve our attention and respect. We need to listen carefully and discriminate. The story of Balak -- and particularly his talking donkey -- helps us see the issue clearly.

Anger is unavoidable but we have a choice concerning how we will deal with our own anger. Moses’ example warns us of the possible dire consequences of uncontrolled anger. God provides an example of how to rein it in.

Korach’s rebellion is not an argument for the sake of heaven; it is an egotistical power grab. We see that all the time masquerading as “debate,” both in our personal lives, and in the society-at-large, especially during a campaign season.

Many have said that religion is responsibility for much violence and many deaths. No so, it is those who use religion, and sacred texts, as a bludgeon who are responsible.

The menorah, composed of separate individual branches, is a unity made of one piece of hammered gold. For the Kabbalists, this represents the sublime truth of the unity of all, a truth as important to rationalists as it is to mystics.

We often need to create community, and sometimes to re-create community and culture. What’s important? How do we do that? Parshat Naso provides wisdom about attending to what is important.

There is a deep connection between B’midbar and Shavuot. From the Wilderness which abounds with question, to the mountaintop where we receive the means to find answers, we live our lives in the cycle of questions and answers about purpose, meaning, and ethics.