Dear WRJ Friends. How wonderful it was to be together at the Fried Leadership Conference in Charleston, South Carolina, last weekend!

This week's Torah portion is Parashat T'rumah, Exodus 25:1-27:19, which gives specific instructions for the building of the Mishkan, also known as the Tabernacle.

Rules…rules…rules….Why so many?

This week’s parasha Mishpatim contains 23 positive and 30 negative commandments, the most mitzvot found in any single Torah portion.

What are the key aspects of a Jewish identity? That can be a very tough question. There are at least three different elements that might be incorporated into a person’s self-description of being Jewish: peoplehood, religion and culture.

As with any Torah Study, we each bring our own experiences and learning to the table. This Torah portion is one that we all know well, but each of us has different reactions to different parts of the text as well as different experiences, with the text.

Bas

This week’s Voices is written by Deena Gottlieb who is a 2nd year rabbinical student at HUC-JIR in NY. Deena is one of 6 students who are receiving YES Fund scholarships this year from WRJ.

This week’s Torah portion, Parashat Bo, continues the narrative of.

Reading through this week’s Torah portion, Va-eira, brought back memories of growing up in Apartheid South Africa, where ‘Non-Whites’ had to carry ‘passes’, were banned from attending movies and theatre, eating in restaurants, had their own buses and special..

Much occurs in this Parashah, which begins the book of Exodus, among the best known and widely taught stories of our history.

Joseph and his generation are gone. The Israelite population had increased greatly and Pharoah enslaved them.

This week begins the final portion of the book of Genesis, Parashat Va-y’chi, which deals with Jacob and his final blessings for his son Joseph and burial wishes preceding his death. We find Jacob in failing health, concerned with his legacy. Jacob makes...