- Finding Purpose -
| Finding Purpose: Bereishit |
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Journey into the Soul of the Weekly Torah Portion
The Book of Genesis: A 12 Part Journey
In the Beginning
G‑d created meaning and purpose
for humanity, for every blade of grass,
for every existence, for all time.
Encounter the birth of the Jewish people
through the stories of our ancestors,
revolutionaries who blazed new trails
so that we can blaze our own.
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Bereishit: The Purpose of the Light
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| Near the very beginning of the Torah, G‑d’s first proclamation in creating all that exists was “Let there be Light” We learn from midrashim that nearly all of this primordial light was suddenly withdrawn and stored away for the righteous to enjoy in the World to Come. ‘Light’ has been a key metaphor and theme in Jewish thought throughout our history. In this class we will examine the initial, ongoing and ultimate purpose of G‑d’s first creation: The Light of Day One. |
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| Noach: Envisioning a New World |
| Responding to the consistently destructive choices that a barbaric mankind was making, G‑d decided to begin anew. But He did not recreate the world, nor did He take away mankind’s ability to choose between good and evil behavior. Instead, G‑d chose to remove all of the evil from the planet. We will see why G‑d did not do so instantly, but instead covered the world with water for 40 days. We will see how both the purifying waters of the Flood, and the experiences of man and beast while living in Noach’s Ark fundamentally altered the nature of Creation, brought the world to a new state of spiritual potential, and gave it a new purpose. Earth would now be a place where it would be possible to find G‑dliness in physicality itself. |
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| Lech Lecha: The Secret of True Success |
| Avraham was the first human being to become a paragon of selflessness, the one who G‑d called “ohavi”, “the one who loves Me.” Yet G‑d promised Avraham that he would be blessed with fortune and fame. In fact, Avraham desired wealth and honor. In this lesson we will examine the Torah’s attitude to material prosperity, showing how material affluence is acceptable, even praiseworthy, as long as one’s intention is to utilize one’s wealth and celebrity for the sake of Heaven. |
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| Vayeira: The Holiest Spot on Earth |
| The Akeda, the binding of Yitzchak, was a defining moment in Jewish time, and the Beis HaMikdash, the Holy Temple, was the most significant structure in Jewish space. What is the connection between the two? In this lesson we examine the spiritual significance of Mount Moriah in Jersusalem, the location of both the Beis HaMikdash and the Akeda. |
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| Chayei Sarah: The Hidden Miracles of Everyday Life |
| Before dispatching his servant Eliezer to find a wife for Yitzchak, Avraham gave Eliezer a special blessing for success. Eliezer then prayed to G‑d that he should choose the right girl, and he immediately met Rivkah. What were the crucial elements in shaping the outcome of this, or any situation? What is the relationship between material results and a person’s individual efforts, his “good luck”, his blessings, his prayers, and “Divine Providence.”? |
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| Toldot: The Challenging Child |
| When most of us think about Esav, we imagine a wild, bloodthirsty and evil man who was the diametric opposite of his scholarly, mild-mannered twin brother, Yaakov. But Esav was raised in the same holy home, by the same divinely inspired parents as Yaakov, and was provided with the same G‑dly education and divine mission as his brother. Even more than Yaakov, Esav had something special in common with his father Yitzchak, a quality that was the source of Yitzchak’s unique love for his rebellious son. |
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| Vayeitzei: True Love |
| Yaakov labored for his father-in law-for seven years in order to marry Rachel, yet the Torah tells us that the seven years felt to him like only a few days. But if someone deeply loves and yearns for something, then every moment not having it should feel excruciatingly long. We will see how Yaakov’s love for Rachel serves as the Torah’s eternal model for the only kind of true love that there is: An essential, selfless love that focuses entirely on the needs and interests of one’s beloved, and not at all on one’s narcissistic desires or self-interest. |
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| Vayishlach: The Purpose of All Things |
| On the road to meet with Esav, Yaakov returns one night to retrieve some small jars that were left behind when his family decamped from their previous resting stop. Now alone, Yaakov engages in a cryptic struggle with a man who we learn is Esav’s angel. We will see from these events how Divine Providence and our consideration of purpose and value sometimes leads us to places of conflict and injury. We are able to fulfill our purpose in life only by understanding that there is meaning behind everything that happens to us, and by being mindful of the value of everything that is ours. |
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| Vayeishev: Mistaking Someone’s Purpose |
| One of the more fascinating yet perplexing episodes in the Torah is the story of how Yosef's brothers plotted to sell him into slavery. Yosef and each his brothers had very different but uniquely special spiritual gifts. The brothers’ collective mistake was that they did not understand that Yosef’s categorically higher spiritual stature was integral to the fulfillment of their own Divine service. We will show how this error in judgment led to all of their incorrect conclusions about their younger brother, and drove them to act against him. We will explore what lay behind their mistake, and emphasize that when we develop our humility and open ourselves to accepting the help of others we are helping both them and ourselves to actualize our G‑dly purposes in life. |
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| Mikeitz: Finding Purpose in Adversity |
| Facing starvation, the Egyptians plead with Yosef to sell grain to them, but he refuses to do so unless they first circumcise themselves. He later accuses his brothers of espionage and threatens them in an extremely harsh manner. What do these stories have in common, other than Yosef’s seeming cruelty? Hidden within the story of Joseph’s life as an Egyptian leader are messages related to his purpose as a Jewish leader, his love of his brothers, and his understanding of their collective purpose as ancestors of the twelve tribes and of the Jewish people today. |
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Vayigash: Yosef and his Father
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| We often describe the saga of Yosef in Egypt as the story of “Yosef and His Brothers.” But the Torah also tells the story of Yosef and his father: of a special love and identification that remained with them throughout their lifetimes. In this week’s class, we will examine the sources of their closeness, and see what lessons their relationship may provide for the way we relate to our own parents and children. |
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| Vayechi: The Purpose of Tzadikim |
| Sensing that his death was approaching, Yaakov summoned Yosef to his bedside and asked him to take an oath that he would bury him in the cave of Machpailah, in Hevron. Yaakov then confides that his beloved wife Rachel, Yosef’s mother, “died on the road” and that he buried her where she died. The burial place of Rachel, knows as Kever Rachel, remains a focal point of Jewish history thousands of years later. Jews from around the world gather at Rachel’s Tomb to pray to G‑d, and ask for Rachel’s assistance in their daily lives. We will see how the ongoing intercession by a tzaddik in our daily lives, long after their natural lifetimes, is embedded in the words of the Torah and our Sages. This assistance is a core part of every tzadik's eternal purpose, part of which is to help each of us find our own G‑dly purpose and direction in life. |
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Join Us For:
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Shavuot Dairy Buffet & Ice Cream Party
Hear the 10 Commandments being read from the Torah as we celebrate the Holiday of the Giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.
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This Year Celebrate Purim with the Flavor of Israel
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