New Season Starting Torah Studies is a series of stimulating text and discussion-based classes that take place on a weekly basis. Each class introduces ideas and issues from the current weekly Torah portion and, through discussion and debate, creates a meaningful connection between the timeless wisdom of the Torah and modern-day living. Please feel free to contact us with any questions. Hope to see you there, ![]() Wednesday, January 5 2022 The Real Reality When Keeping Your Commitments Gets Rough, Remember What’s Real In days of old, the Jewish calendar was determined by the High Court based on the sighting of a new moon. In a radical and extremely counterintuitive law, we read that the court had the power to proclaim a new month even when the moon wasn’t yet seen; in other words, the courts could dictate reality. Discover how you, too, can dictate the “real” reality. ![]() Wednesday, January 12 2022 You Are in G‑d’s Hands: Can You Believe It? You Are Not Entirely the Product of Your Own Success Who doesn’t worry about finances? In an ever-changing economy with so much uncertainty, even those with “stable” jobs are being forced to reckon with a queasy sense of worry. By looking to our ancestors who harvested miraculous manna in the desert, we can find much-needed stability: trust in G‑d. ![]() Wednesday, January 19 2022 All Access Exploring Judaism’s Approach to Mitzvah Observance for the Disabled Judaism is rich with values, teachings, and . . . practices. Many don’t even think about their physical ability to fulfill those practices, but what about those who physically cannot? Is the mitzvah of tefilin not for someone without an arm? Is someone with impaired hearing denied access to the beauty of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah? Of course not! Discover how. ![]() Wednesday, January 26 2022 Put on the Blinders Keep Your Eyes on the Prize and Don’t Stop Moving A dry, legal, and highly technical clause of Jewish finance law is picked apart in a psychological/religious analysis. We emerge with powerful lessons for maintaining the sense of dignity and perseverance we need to power through our intended mission in life. ![]() Wednesday, February 2 2022 Judaism: A Religious or National Project? Three Sides of the Same Coin There’s much chatter on this question. Throw in the mix the many other possibilities of what “Judaism” may or may not be. So, what is it, after all? The story of the nascent Jewish nation emerging from Egypt, entering the Holy Land, and finally building a Temple for G‑d has some answers. ![]() Wednesday, February 9 2022 When’s Your REAL Birthday? Your Birthday Celebrates Realized Potential. Go Ahead and Realize Even More Your Birthday Celebrates Realized Potential. Go Ahead and Realize Even More People love celebrating; yahrtzeits not so much. Surprisingly, while the birthday and yahrtzeit of our first leader, Moshe, occurred on the same date, it is technically only his passing that is commemorated. Why? Because your true birthday is more about what you’ve done than about what you can do. ![]() Wednesday, February 16 2022 Embracing Opposition How to Look Adversity in the Face and Declare, “I’m Not Afraid of You!” Are you experiencing any opposition lately? Are things just not working out? What do you tell yourself to power through? From the tragic story of the Jews sinning with the Golden Calf to a fascinating tale about a bull talking to Elijah the prophet, widen and deepen your perspective to embrace those challenges and emerge all the better. ![]() Wednesday, February 23 2022 I’ll do It For You The Secret Glue to Sustainable Relationships What, really is the secret to long-lasting and committed relationships? All human relationships are but a mirror of our relationship with G‑d, and so, we arrive at this simple conclusion: when you’re doing it for each other, and not so much with each other, that’s when you know your connection has lasting power. ![]() Wednesday, March 2 2022 There’s a Temple Inside of You. Go Ahead and Find It Discovering the Meaning of the Deepest Parts of Your Soul The Temple and its predecessor, the Tabernacle, hold a very prominent place in Judaism. But they were destroyed millennia ago. What relevance do they have today? A fascinating story of a stubborn sage, who refused to budge until he received an answer from G‑d, furnishes the answer. ![]() Wednesday, March 9 2022 When It Comes to Judaism, It’s Personal You Did a Mitzvah? Time to Throw a Party! Some throw parties when they graduate college, others for a promotion, while others for their birthday. But when was the last time you attended a party that celebrated, say, finishing a Torah study course, or a year of lighting Shabbat candles? An obscure celebration of wood donations in the Temple by a select few families shows the way. ![]() Wednesday, March 16 2022 Going the Extra Mile When You Care, It Makes All the Difference No one likes being forced into doing things, and when we are, the results are always a bit lackluster. As this class reveals, the Purim story brings the Jewish story full circle, exposing just how important it is to not only do what you must, but to really care about it, too. ![]() Wednesday, March 23 2022 So You Think You’re Perfect? Think Again. There’s Always Something to Repair Apologizing and acknowledging our own shortcomings is always hard, and if we’re honest with ourselves, sometimes we’re just not willing to go through the pain of that acknowledgment. The always-available purification ashes in the Temple tell a very different story—one of empowerment and positivity. ![]() Wednesday, March 30 2022 The Case for Spiritual Adrenaline Understanding the Unnatural Nature of Time Itself Rosh Hashanah is in the autumn, right? Well, sort of. There’s a case to be made for the month of Nissan, just before Passover, being considered the “beginning of the year.” What’s the point of this alternate beginning? It’s about mapping an unnatural and miraculous way of being onto the very course of time itself. Surprisingly, for a Jew, it’s a happy partnership. ![]() Wednesday, April 6 2022 Redemption Is Never Over Reliving the Exodus in Real Time Family and friends gather around the seder table, and once again, we do the same thing we’ve been doing for millennia. Is there anything interesting or personal about this ritual that can elevate it to stardom? A closer look at the language used in the Haggadah exposes the secret of the Exodus: It never really finished. It’s waiting for you. |
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