2 October 2010 Genesis 1:1 – 6:8 Issue #1 Parashat Bereshit

In the opening two chapters of Genesis the reader finds two accounts of the creation of humankind. Following the insightful leads of an esteemed 20th century Torah scholar we compare Adam & Eve 1 with Adam & Eve 2. 

 9 October 2010 Genesis 6:9 – 11:32 Issue #2 Parashat Noach

You are probably familiar with Noah's Ark since childhood. This week's Torah portion is an opportunity to extend our knowledge of a familiar bible story. We close with the back page of the Light of Torah leaflet: Five Ways "to start again".

16 October 2010 Genesis 12:1 – 17:27 Issue #3 Parashat Lekh Lekha

In this famous passage of the call of Abraham, Abraham embraces a choice for God; a choice that includes a future land, a nation, and a great blessing for ‘all the families of the earth’ (12:3). Yet his decision also involves renunciation of his present life. Think about it: what is Abraham (and Sarah and...) leaving behind?

23 October 2010 Genesis 18:1 – 22:24 Issue #4 Parashat Vayera

This week we explore the passage known to Christians as the 'sacrifice' of Isaac and to Jewish readers as the Akedah, the 'binding' of Isaac. Our Torah passage speaks of a three day journey, a journey of which the text says little yet which fires the interpretative energies of the sages. 

30 October 2010 Genesis 23:1 – 25:18 Issue #5 Parashat Chayei Sarah

Our Torah portion continues the drama of Abraham's family life. Our focus of refection this week is a business deal: Abraham's purchase of a piece of land that will become the family burial plot.

6 November 2010 Genesis 25:19 – 28:9 Issue #6 Parashat Toledot

This week we explore a story from the adult life of Isaac. It is a story strikingly similar to one about his father Abraham. Like Abraham, Isaac digs wells and finds water... Our conversation with the sages leads to a final refection on 'waters of life'.

13 November 2010 Genesis 28:10 – 32:3 Issue #7 Parashat Vayetze

Our portion opens with Jacob, grandson of Abraham, fleeing to Haran having just caused a great upset in the family. In Haran he will fall in love, marry and start his own family; but for now he is on a solo journey. Our discussion will focus on Jacob’s dream of a heavenly staircase or ladder.

20 November 2010 Genesis 32:4 – 36:43 Issue #8 Parashat Vayishlah

It is hard to think of a more disturbing passage in the Torah than the rape of Dinah and the bloodbath that follows as described in Genesis 34. It seems there are no 'winners' in this story. Humble and helpless before God's Word, let us bravely enter the narrative.

27 November 2010 Genesis 37:1 – 40:23 Issue #9 Parashat Vayeshev

Our focus today is a story about Judah and Tamar in Genesis 38. It is a colorful tale indeed, containing all the themes of tabloid journalism: death, deception, prostitution, incest, accusation and counter-accusation... what on earth were our faith-ancestors thinking when they included this in the sacred scriptures?! Let's join in lively discussion with the sages.

4  December 2010 Genesis 41:1 – 44:17 Issue #10 Parashat Miketz

This week we enter deeply into the continuing family saga that is the book of Genesis. Having already lost his favored son Joseph, Jacob is determined to protect his youngest son, Benjamin. But can he do so? Is Jacob's heart about to be broken all over again?

11  December 2010 Genesis 44:18 – 47:27 Issue #11 Parashat Vayigash

This week's Torah portion appears to bring the saga of Jacob's sons to a happy conclusion. Yet as Jacob eagerly makes his way to Egypt to be reunited with his son Joseph, God speaks to him in a dream. The dream raises some disturbing questions in the minds of the sages.

18  December 2010 Genesis 47:28 – 50:26 Issue #12 Parashat Vayechi

In Gen. 48:3-4, Torah commentators note that Jacob repeats God's words of blessing from a previous passage. But he is not repeating them exactly.What does Jacob leave out? What does he add? Join the sages in interpreting this fascinating comparison of texts.

25  December 2010 Exodus 1:1 – 6:1 Issue #13 Parashat Shemot

This week we open the book of Exodus, that foundational story of God's liberation of the Israelites from slavery and their formation as a nation. Right from the beginning, a careful reading of chapter one reveals a fascinating confrontation between the powers of life and death.

1 January 2011 Exodus 6:2 – 9:35 Issue #14 Parashat Vaera

After a disastrous start to the mission of liberation, Moses and Aaron once again apply themselves to the task of fulfilling their commission from the Lord. Our focus today is on an interruption to an intense dialogue between God and Moses. Why the insertion of a genealogy at this point of the narrative? Let's ponder this curious detail with the sages.

8 January 2011 Exodus 10:1 – 13:16 Issue #15 Parashat Bo

Our Torah portion tells of dramatic events: three more plagues, a continuing struggle between Pharaoh and Moses as God's agent, the ritual of the Passover and liberation from Egypt. Amidst all this breathtaking activity our chosen text for reflection is surprisingly brief: just one verse, packed with meaning.

15 January 2011 Exodus 13:17 – 17:16 Issue #16 Parashat Beshalach

Two biblical masterpieces conclude the account of the liberation from Egypt, and our Torah portion this week includes both. Chaper 14 tells of the crossing of the Red Sea. Chapter 15 is a song of victory. Our focus this time will be chapter 14.

 22 January 2011 Exodus 18:1 – 20:23 Issue #17 Parashat Yitro

This week's Torah portion offers an opportunity to explore afresh a passage which is lodged in most Catholic memory banks as the 'Ten Commandments'. Our back page reflection is entitled 'Five ways to read the Decalogue'.

29 January 2011 Exodus 21:1 – 24:18 Issue #18 Parashat Mishpatim

The chapters that fill our Torah portion contain an body of ancient legislation known as the 'Book of the Covenant'. It covers a range of topics. Our focus today will be limited to nine verses (23:1-9), in particular two verses that deal with two acts of assistance given to 'an enemy'.

5 February 2011 Exodus 25:1 – 27:19 Issue #19 Parashat Terumah

Unless you are an architect with an interest in ancient temple structures, at first glance this Torah portion may test your patience. But if we stay with the text, empowered by rabbinic insight, we will unlock meaning for our lives.

12 February 2011 Exodus 27:20 – 30:10 Issue #20 Parashat Tetzaveh

Today's Torah portion is another long list of ritual instructions, beginning with the lighting of Temple lamps. Our focus will be a prayerful reading of the first two verses, and we will conclude by learning about some candle-lighting rituals which continue in Judaism to this day.

19 February 2011 Exodus 30:11 – 34:35 Issue #21 Parashat Ki Tisa

The Golden Calf episode is a critical point in the God-Israel relationship. Today we examine this passage from the point of view of the dialogue that ensues between God and Moses. Note the repetition, and the  puzzling aspects of the text... What do they reveal about the developing relationship between the characters? With whom do your empathies lie?

26 February 2011 Exodus 35:1 – 38:20 Issue #22 Parashat Vayakhel

Now that the conflict over the Golden Calf has been resolved, doubt and disobedience are replaced by willing cooperation as the Israelites proceed to build the Tabernacle with enthusiasm. Are you convinced? Not all the sages are! Let's examine the biblical picture of restored harmony more closely.

5 March 2011 Exodus 38:21 – 40:38 Issue #23 Parashat Perkudei

Our Torah portion this week concludes the book of Exodus. As the Israelites bring the completed Tabernacle components to Moses, the sages help us to reflect on the presence of the Divine amidst busy, earthly activity. 

 12 March 2011 Leviticus 1:1 – 5:26 Issue #24 Parashat Vayikra

This week we open the book of Leviticus. Compared to the action-packed stories of Genesis and Exodus, we are struck by a lack of movement in Leviticus. The entire book is set at the foot of Mt Sinai. There, God speaks, teaching the people how to worship, how to behave, how to deal with transgressions. This week we gain insight into how the sages viewed the ancient sacrificial laws described in Leviticus.

19 March 2011 Leviticus 6:1 – 8:36 Issue #25 Parashat Tzav

Our focus of reflection this week in one particular kind of sacrifice described in Leviticus 7:11-15: 'the sacrifice of thanksgiving'. 

In addition to this focus we learn more about the Jewish festival of Purim which is celebrated this week.

26 March 2011 Leviticus 9:1 – 11:47 Issue #26 Parashat Shemini

Ancient dietary laws are our subject matter for reflection this week. Note the rhythm, the drumbeat, created by a single repeated phrase. With the sages, let's ponder this. 

2 April 2011 Leviticus 12:1 – 13:59 Issue #27 Parashat Tazria

Today's Torah portion continues the theme of ritual purity. Particularly jarring to contemporary ears are the opening verses that declare a woman who has just given birth to be in a state of ritual impurity. How are we to understand this, when Judaism holds procreation to be a great blessing? Let's listen to the sages as they wrestle with this text.

9 April 2011 Leviticus 14:1 – 15:33 Issue #28 Parashat Metzorah

Where the Torah deals with purity laws concerning people with tzara'at ('scaly skin', 'leprosy'), midrashic preachers discovered an opportunity to preach against the evils of gossip! While exploring this ancient biblical text with the sages, we can be aware of our own need to be purified from the defilement of gossip and negative speech. 

16 April 2011 Leviticus 16:1 – 18:30 Issue #29 Parashat Aharei Mot

What does it mean to be holy as God is holy? What does it mean to live life in partnership with the Divine? This week's Torah portion shows Israel establishing a code of conduct that makes it 'different' in belief and custom to the surrounding cultures.

We also pause to focus on the festival of Passover as Jewish communities prepare to celebrate it this week.

23 April 2011 Special Issue for Easter (Issue #30)

This week's Light of Torah leaflet departs from the Jewish cycle of readings in order to accommodate the highpoint of the Christian liturgical calendar: Easter. As our focus we take the passage of the Crossing of the Red Sea in Exodus 14, a story which is central for both Jews and Christians at this time of the year.

30 April 2011 Leviticus 19:1 – 20:27 Issue #31 Parashat Kedoshim

Even before we come to the Gospel teachings about love, forgiveness and mercy, already we find their roots in the Torah. Today we explore one such passage: 'You shall love your neighbour as yourself' (Lev. 19:18).

7 May 2011 Leviticus 21:1 – 24:23 Issue #32 Parashat Emor

The 'eye for an eye' verse which appears in today's Torah portion is surely one of the most widely known biblical verses, and also the most misunderstood. With attention to rabbinic interpretations of this verse, as well as to Vatican documents concerning Jewish-Christian relations, let's learn how Judaism has long interpreted such difficult texts in ways congruent with an understanding of a loving God.

14 May 2011 Leviticus 25:1 – 26:2 Issue #33 Parashat Behar

This week we learn about the 'Sabbatical Year' described in Leviticus 25. We notice how our Torah portion finds resonance with aspects of contemporary ecological movements. In God's design there is a harmony that arises from the sabbath rest of the people, and that of the land.

21 May 2011 Leviticus 26:3 – 27:34 Issue #34 Parashat Behukotai

Our final portion from the book of Leviticus includes a series of blessings and curses. Why, asked the sages, are there more curses than blessings? Surely the God we know and love is a God characterised by blessing rather than cursing. Why the imbalance here? Join them in pondering this question.

28 May 2011 Numbers 1:1 – 4:20 Issue #35 Parashat Bamidbar

This week we commence the book of Numbers. Our focus is the Lord's instructions concerning how the Tabernacle should be handled when the Israelites dismantle it in order to move camp. We find the sages puzzling over the strict rules about who does what... does it really matter? Join them in a creative and prayerful consideration of this question.

4 June 2011 Numbers 4:21 – 7:89 Issue #36 Parashat Naso

Our focus this week is the poetic rhythms of the priestly blessing in Numbers 6:24-26, sometimes referred to as Aaron's Blessing. 'May the Lord bless you and keep you...' Just as we teach our children the Lord's Prayer as a normal part of Christian upbringing, we can also teach them Aaron's Blessing from the Torah.  

11 June 2011 A special issue for Shavuot and Pentecost

This week's issue falls a few days after the Jewish festival of Shavuot and the day before the Christian feast of Pentecost... an opportunity to consider the links between the two festivals. For this reason we depart slightly from our usual Torah reading format.

18 June 2011 Numbers 3:1 – 15:41 Issue #38 Parashat Shelach Lekha

Our Torah portion this week contains the famous story of the spies ('scouts'). We read how the Israelites are ready to re-enter the promised land. But something goes terribly wrong. The tragic result is that they will have to continue wandering for forty years. Here we explore some of the details by which the sages have interpreted this text. We close with 'Five ways to heed the lessons of the spies'. 

25 June 2011 Numbers 16:1 – 18:32 Issue #39 Parashat Korach

No sooner has the crisis of the spies been resolved when Moses is confronted with two further rebellions among the Israelites.Korah (a cousin to Moses and Aaron) objects to the priesthood of Aaron, while Datham and Abiram criticize Moses' civil authority. Let's join the sages in delving into the subtleties and complexities of the sacred text. 

2 July 2011 Numbers 19:1 – 22:1 Issue #40 Parashat Chukat

A recurring theme about death emerges in this week's Torah portion. In particular we take up the brief, terse verse that tells of the death of Miriam. 

Mourning the death of a loved one is a precious task which religions and cultures prescribe in various ways. Our Light of Torah leaflet includes mention of five customs found in contemporary Judaism. 

9 July 2011 Numbers 22:2 – 25:9 Issue #41 Parashat Balak

In today's Torah portion the Israelites are threatened by a Moab king who employs a pagan sorcerer(Balaam) to curse his enemy, Israel. Our Light of Torah reflection this week opens with the question of a 15th century Torah scholar: Since the Torah has no faith in sorcery, Abravanel wonders why should God care about Balaam's futile attempt to curse Israel? Wouldn't it be better just to ignore him? Why does God bother to intervene? 

16 July 2011 Numbers 25:10 – 30:1 Issue #42 Parashat Pinchas

Our focus this week is the story of five sisters (Zelophehad's daughters) who find themselves in a perilous economic situation. Without husbands or any living male relatives they cannot inherit their father's land. Through a successful appeal to Moses, they draw attention to the injustice and bring about a permanent change to the legal code. In Jewish storytelling traditions these five women are held in high esteem. 

23 July 2011 Numbers 30:2 – 32:42 Issue #43 Parashat Matot

This week's Torah portion plunges us into a shocking biblical scene: a massacre of Midianite men, women, children. How are we to understand such violence as part of God's inspired Word? Our reflection this week will be guided by the contemporary Jewish Torah commentator, Richard Friedman.

30 July 2011 Numbers 33:1 – 36:13 Issue #44 Parashat Masei

As we conclude the book of Numbers, we ponder the marches of the Israelites as described in 33:1-49. Commentators have long been fascinated by the detailed itinerary and apparent tedium of the text. We explore this text through the voices of two of the greatest Torah scholars in Jewish history.

6 August 2011 Deuteronomy 1:1 – 3:22 Issue #45 Parashat Devarim

In the opening chapters of the book of Deuteronomy, we pay particular attention to Moses' account of a repeated divine command to refrain from warfare as the Israelites crossed through foreign lands. Remember: in traditional Jewish approaches repetition in the text is a signal to pause, to creatively ponder the spiritual depths of God's word.

13 August 2011 Deuteronomy 3:23 – 7:11 Issue #46 Parashat Va’etchanan

Our Torah portion contains a repetition of the Decalogue (Ten Commandments) given at Mt Sinai. As you read, place yourself in the biblical story: you are one of a new generation of Israelites preparing to enter the promised land. Your parents are dead, and Moses will soon die. Here on the plains of Moab an unknown future awaits you. How does Moses' recitation of the Sinai teaching impact upon you?

20 August 2011 Deuteronomy 7:12 – 11:25 Issue #47 Parashat Ekev

Our Torah portion this week abounds with insights as Moses urges his people to gird themselves with spiritual and moral strength. In particular we focus on the reference to the miracle of the manna, a story we first heard about in Exodus. We conclude with 'Five ways to learn the lessons of the manna'.

27 August 2011 Deuteronomy 11:26– 16:17 Issue #48 Parashat Re’eh

How do you distinguish a true prophet from a false one? This is the subject that arises in today's Torah portion. The sages, and the Torah itself, acknowledge that there is no simple test. Discernment can be difficult.

3 September 2011 Deuteronomy 16:18– 21:9 Issue #49 Parashat Shofetim

Today's Torah reflection concerns an unsolved homicide - a corpse in a field, no suspect, no witnesses. Deuteronomy 21 goes on to describe  a ritual involving a heifer which atones for the sin against the slain man. Join the sages in askinbg: how are we to understand this puzzling, even disturning, religious ritual?

10 September 2011 Deuteronomy 21:10– 25:19 Issue #50 Parashat Ki Tetze

The challenge of balancing diverse needs and interests is felt every day by families, businesses, nations, the global community. This week’s Torah reflection speaks to this challenge.

17 September 2011 Deuteronomy 26:1– 29:8 Issue #51 Parashat Ki Tavo

‘Blessed shall you be in your comings and blessed shall you be in your goings’ (28:6). In this week’s Torah portion we follow the rabbinic thought-patterns regarding a single verse. We are drawn to ponder the ‘arrival’ and ‘departure’ points of our lives in terms of blessing.

24 September 2011 Deuteronomy 29:9– 31:30 Issue #52 Parashat Nitzavim-Vayelekh

In this week’s Torah portion we reflect on the great challenge facing Moses as the wilderness journey draws to a close. The time has come for Moses to let go of everything: his authority, his ‘job’, his Israelite family, his dream of entering the promised land, and even his life.

1 October 2011 Deuteronomy 32:1-52 Issue #53 Parashat Ha’azinu  [Shabbat Shuvah]

The bulk of our Torah portion is often referred to as 'the Song of Moses'. As an example of biblical poetry it is rich indeed. Join us in listening to the rhythm, patterns, repetitions and imagery of the sacred text.

This week's Torah portion is read in synagogues on the Sabbath which falls between Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur ('Day of Atonement'). In Hebrew, shuvah means 'return'. From here comes the Hebrew word for 'repentance': teshuvah. 

8 October 2011 Special Issue for Yom Kippur

This week Jewish communities enter into the festival of Yom Kippur ('Day of Atonement'), the holiest and most solemn of all the holy days of the Jewish liturgical calendar. We depart slightly from our usual Torah-reading format to focus on the meaning of this festival and how it reveals the God of mercy and compassion.

15 October 2011 Special Issue for Sukkot

This week, commencing sundown on 12 Oct 2011, Jewish communities are celebrating the seven-day festival of Sukkot. We depart slightly from our usual Torah reading format to focus on the meaning of this festival and what it can teach us about living trustingly under the shelter of divine providence.

This issue concludes a whole year of Torah reflection. If you have travelled with us through all five books of the Torah, well done!

And next week? The Torah cycle begins all over again. Genesis 1:1 In the beginning... Join us with a new series of Light of Torah leaflets, focusing on different passages and further insights from the sages.

In the 2011-12 cycle we will also offer a haftarah page. Haftarah refers to the reading, usually from the prophets, which accompanies the Torah portion of the week (similar to the way our Christian liturgical calendar has readings which accompany the Gospel each week).