Torah Study Date Saturday, July 27, 2024 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 25:27-25:40 Next Session Saturday, August 3, 2024 Starting at Exodus 26:1 Despite jet lag from her recent trip, Rabbi Sara guided our detailed discussion last week. We discussed the gold rings being for the gold-plated poles of acacia wood that are used to carry […]
About Deborah Achtenberg
Posts by Deborah Achtenberg:
Ark, Cover and Cherubim
Torah Study Date Saturday, July 20, 2023 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 25:9 – 25:26 Next Session Saturday, July 27, 2024 Starting at Exodus 25:27 Thank you to Rabbi Myra for leading and guiding our discussion. We discussed the acacia wood prescribed for the mishkan being a common wood in the area. We discussed it being […]
Glory, Fear and Awe
Torah Study Date Saturday, July 13, 2024 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 24:13-25:9 Next Session Saturday, July 20, 2023 Starting at Exodus 25:9 Last week, Rabbi Ben led us in discussing Moses going up the mountain with Joshua. We noted that Joshua was not mentioned in the previous account of Moses going up in which it […]
Seeing God?
Torah Study Date Saturday, July 6, 2024 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 24:9-24:12 Next Session Saturday, July 13, 2024 Starting at Exodus 24:13 Rabbi Ben led us again last week. We discussed Exodus 24:9-12 beginning with different views of what Torah means by saying that Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu and the seventy elders “saw the God […]
A Second Ascent?
Torah Study Date Saturday, June 29, 2024 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 24:1-24:8 Next Session Saturday, July 6, 2024 Starting at Exodus 24:9 Ben led us in another fascinating discussion last week, beginning with the question of how this ascent of the mountain (Ex. 24:1) relates to the previous one (Ex. 19:9). We noted first that […]
Driving Out Enemies
Torah Study Date Saturday, June 22, 2024 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 23:24-23:33 Next Session Saturday, June 29, 2024 Starting at Exodus 24:1 Last week Rabbi Sara described much of what the Israelites are being commanded to do under the heading of “Don’t assimilate!” That made it somewhat easier to digest passages like the first […]
Treaty with an Angel
Torah Study Date Saturday, June 15, 2024 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 23:18-23:23 Next Session Saturday, June 22, 2024 Starting at Exodus 23:24 Last week we discussed YHVH’s prohibition on offering the blood of my sacrifice on leavened bread and the prohibition on letting the fat of YHVH’s festival remain until morning. Commentators assume the first […]
More Mishpatim
Torah Study Date Saturday, June 8, 2024 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 23:8-23:17 Next Session Saturday, June 15, 2024 Starting at Exodus 23:18 Last week we discussed the prohibition on oppressing the stranger or sojourner (ger) for you know the feelings (nefesh) of the stranger since you were strangers in the land of Egypt (Exodus 23:9). […]
What is Justice?
Torah Study Date Saturday, June 1, 2024 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 23:2 – 23:8 Next Session Saturday, June 8, 2024 Starting at Exodus 23:9 Last week we returned to discussion of what “you shall be holy (kadosh)” means. R. Sara told us that it means set apart. For example, the bride and groom are set […]
Law and Compassion in Mishpatim
Torah Study Date Saturday, May 25, 2024 Verses Covered Exodus (Sh’mot) 22:25-23:1 Next Session Saturday, June 1, 2024 Starting at Exodus 23:2 Last week we had an interesting discussion about the law requiring that a garment taken as a pledge be returned before sunset. We assumed it means that, if you lend money (or an […]