by Kim Troup | Aug 31, 2023 | Shabbat Shalom
First Fruits of the Land of Israel This week’s portion opens with the ceremony of first fruits that is performed in the Temple, after the Children of Israel have entered the Land of Israel. When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you for an...
by Kim Troup | Aug 24, 2023 | Shabbat Shalom
Slavery from a Biblical Perspective This weeks Torah portion includes the largest number of commandments of any other weekly portion. Beginning with Chapter 21 verse 10 and proceeding through Chapter 25, verse after verse is filled with situations and the rules of...
by Kim Troup | Aug 17, 2023 | Shabbat Shalom
Annointed Leaders must be Righteous In this week’s Torah portion, we read about the restrictions placed on a king of Israel. “But he shall not have many horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt in order to obtain many horses since G-d...
by Kim Troup | Aug 10, 2023 | Shabbat Shalom
Rejecting False Prophets This week’s portion includes a number of laws pertaining to people who exert an undue influence over others in order to sway them away from obeying God’s commandments. The first refers to a false prophet, the second to an individual who...
by Kim Troup | Aug 3, 2023 | Shabbat Shalom
Resisting Canaanite Influence This week’s portion is part of Moses’ second long speech to the nation, referred to as the speech of the commandments. It includes a great deal of instruction, both with regard to specific commandments and with regard to the...