Ta Shma

R. Avi Strausberg on Parashat Vayera: A Place Without Words

Prayer in Jewish tradition is most commonly expressed in spoken words.  But in Parashat VaYera, Avraham, Hagar, and Yishmael each have a moment of being heard and seen in

R. Aviva Richman and R. Ethan Tucker: The Akeidah on Trial: Did Abraham Pass the Ultimate Test?

Join Hadar's rashei yeshiva, R. Aviva Richman and R. Ethan Tucker, for a unique debate as they spar with the text — and with one another. Was the binding of Isaac th

R. Avi Strausberg on Parashat Lekh Lekha: On That Day: When the Present and Future Become One

A core thread running through Jewish tradition is a continuous yearning toward a promised future.  In our holy texts, the Prophets preach to a people in exile of a day in

R. Avi Killip on Shofar, So Good! Podcast: For Heaven's Sake

In this episode of the Shofar, So Good! podcast, host Kate Mishkin delves into havruta learning, the Jewish tradition of studying Torah in pairs. The goal of this paired

R. Avi Strausberg on Parashat Noah: After the Worst Happens

Where there is order, there is the potential for disorder.  Where forces are held back, there is the potential for them to break free. Last week, in Parashat Bereishit,

R. Jason Rogoff: Cooperation and Competition: Israel and Babylonia as Centers of Torah

This class explores the competing claims to religious authority in the Talmudic era between the Land of Israel and Babylonia. Through close reading of selected stories an

R. Avi Strausberg on Parashat Bereishit: A Song of Rising Up

In the beginning, God lifted the world out of chaos. The Torah paints a dramatic scene.  A wasteland.  A darkness covering the surface of the tehom, the great depths.  G

R. Avi Killip: The Long and Winding Road to Redemption

We long for a better world. Judaism teaches us to yearn and pray and work to bring the messiah, reach redemption, and earn our place in the world to come. But what does t

A Festival About Nothing: Dr. Tsivia Frank Wygoda on Shemini Atzeret-Simhat Torah

In Israel, Shemini Atzeret-Simhat Torah feels like the busiest day of the year.  So many prayers; so many different atmospheres.  Year after year, juggling back and forth

R. Avital Hochstein on VeZot HaBerakhah: Journey Summary

R. Simlai taught: Torah—its beginning is kindness and its end is kindness. Its beginning is kindness—as it is written, “God made leather garments for Adam and his wife a

R. Dena Weiss: Language As a Lens: Silence (Part 5)

Explore the role that language plays in our personal, religious, and spiritual lives, by challenging assumptions about core areas of speech like prayer (is it supposed to

R. Avital Hochstein on Parashat Ha'azinu: A Topography of Distance

“I will hide My face from them” (Deuteronomy 32:20)—so declares the Holy Blessed One in Parashat Ha’azinu.  This is one of the most painful and jarring statements in the

R. Dena Weiss: Language As a Lens: Prayer (Part 4)

Explore the role that language plays in our personal, religious, and spiritual lives, by challenging assumptions about core areas of speech like prayer (is it supposed to

R. Avital Hochstein on Parashat Nitzavim-VaYeilekh: On Mutual Responsibility

At this time of year, as the High Holidays approach, we are used to thinking about our own personal responsibility.  In the Yom Kippur Vidui, we worry not only about our

R. Dena Weiss: Language As a Lens: When Is It OK to Lie? (Part 3)

Explore the role that language plays in our personal, religious, and spiritual lives, by challenging assumptions about core areas of speech like prayer (is it supposed to

R. Avital Hochstein on Parashat Ki Tavo: Clearing the Holy from the Home

Our parashah describes a ceremony known as vidui ma’aser.  The word vidui here from the root י.ד.ה. probably means something like “declaration of thanks” (like the prayer

R. Dena Weiss: Language As a Lens Part 2

Explore the role that language plays in our personal, religious, and spiritual lives, by challenging assumptions about core areas of speech like prayer (is it supposed to

R. Avital Hochstein on Parashat Ki Teitzei: Three Contemporary Readings of the Rebellious Son

One of the most emotionally charged and provocative legal passages is found in our parashah: the case of the rebellious son.

R. Dena Weiss: Language As a Lens Part 1

Explore the role that language plays in our personal, religious, and spiritual lives, by challenging assumptions about core areas of speech like prayer (is it supposed to

R. Avital Hochstein on Parashat Shoftim: The Torah of Military Service

The preoccupation with the question of who goes to war is not new. It is a question that meets us, Israeli society, in our day-to-day lives. There is an acute sense here