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Independent Jewish Spirituality Online

Parshah Vayechi – Oh, Smack! Karate Kid, Red Lobster and Fiddler on the Roof

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The Friday night blessing in traditional communities includes the phrase “may you be like Ephraim and Manasseh.” Here’s what I’m wondering: why do we mention Ephraim and Manasseh? I mean, most prayers mention Abraham, Isaac and Jacob…so what the heck are Ephraim and Mannaseh randomly doing in this prayer?

In Parsha Vayechi, Jacob “elevates” the status of Joseph’s sons to that of his sons, in effect, making Ephraim and Manasseh inheritors of the patriarchal lineage and an equal member of the Jewish clan. Traditional commentators say that Ephraim and Manasseh showed themselves worthy by being moral people in the land of Egypt, when they could have been all depraved …like Charlie Sheen!

But Robert Alter in The Five Books of Moses suggests something different. It is not so much that Ephraim and Manasseh were so special. Rather, it is because Reuben and Simeon were such failures, that in a sense, Joseph’s sons [Read more…]

Did God Cause the Sandy Hook School Tragedy? Parsha Vayigash + Torah Video Mashup

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There’s an old saying that everything happens for a reason.

In this week’s Torah portion, Vayigash, Joseph finally reveals his identity to his brothers.

The brothers are overcome by shame and remorse for what they did to Joseph. But Joseph says something very interesting to them. Joseph says, “It was not you who sent me here, but G‑d. It has all been ordained from Above.”

Some people believe that God is in control of everything. To them I ask, “where was God at Sandy Hook elementary school?” Was it God’s plan that children be murdered? What it God’s plan that a young man be mentally ill?

If it is part of God’s plan, then what could this possibly say about our God?

And if this wasn’t part of God’s plan, then does God have a plan at all?

And if God doesn’t have a plan, then what does it mean for God to be God?

Some people [Read more…]

Parsha Vayishlach and Wrestlemania (Torah Video Mashup)

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There are lots of different ways we wrestle. Some of us wrestle with difficult decisions. Some of us wrestle with the weight of our family and our friends, and some of us wrestle in other ways. In this week’s Torah portion, Vayishlach, Jacob wrestles with a mysterious figure. Some say it was an angel. Some say it was God. Others say it was his brother Esau. We do know that after this event, Jacob’s name becomes Israel. Struggling changes us; sometimes it changes our very identity, just like it did for Jacob.

We all wrestle. And we all change. The question is: are you changing for better, or worse?

Judaism: the real Wrestlemania.

LucasFilm, Gays, Chingy, Snoop Dog and a Cool Way of Looking at Sodom and Gammorah

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Parshah Vayeira mashed up with your favorite YouTube videos. All videos licensed under Creative Commons/Fair Use. Visit our YouTube channel by clicking here.

 

Mashup: Parsha Noach, Double Rainbow, 90’s Video Games & Pen and Teller

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Well Charlie Brown, sounds to me like you never heard the stories in Parsha Noach, this week’s Torah portion…because a whole lotta people got killed in the rain.

Parsha Noah tells the story of a man named Noah (there’s the surprise of the century) who was a holy man in his time. Now, the whole world was corrupt and filled with evil, so when the Bible says that Noah was righteous “in his time”, that doesn’t mean he was a saint or anything…he was just better than all the crummy people he was around.

So we all know the story: Noah builds a big ol’ boat, puts a bunch of animals on it, and survives the flood.

It looked a lot like the video game Wolfenstein 3D, but that’s because old things always look like 90’s video games.

Once the waters recede, Noah comes off the boat, builds an altar to God, makes a sacrifice, [Read more…]

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