TORAH READING FOR 26 KISLEV 5784 Dec 8-9, 2023

SECOND CHANUKAH CANDLE – SHAZOOM ONLY 6:30 PM Dec 8, 2023

MEDITATION – WE STAND WITH ISRAEL

Hanërot Halalu – הַנֵרוֹת הַלָּלוּ [these lights/candles]

WE KINDLE THESE LIGHTS because of the wondrous deliverance You performed for our ancestors. During the eight days of Chanukah, these lights are sacred; we are not to use them but only to behold them, so that their glow may rouse us to give thanks for Your wondrous acts of deliverance.

PARSHA

From Reform Judaism https://reformjudaism.org/torah/portion/vayeishev

Vayeishev (וַיֵּשֶׁב — Hebrew for “[Jacob] settled”) – Gen. 37:1-40:23

Jacob now settled in the land of his father’s sojourning, in the land of Canaan. – Genesis 37:1

SUMMARY:

• Jacob is shown to favor his son Joseph, whom the other brothers resent. Joseph has dreams of grandeur. (Genesis 37:1-11)
• After Joseph’s brothers had gone to tend the flocks in Shechem, Jacob sends Joseph to report on them. The brothers decide against murdering Joseph but instead sell him into slavery. After he is shown Joseph’s coat of many colors, which had been dipped in the blood of a kid, Jacob is led to believe that Joseph has been killed by a beast. (Genesis 37:12-35)
• Tamar successively marries two of Judah’s sons, each of whom dies. Judah does not permit her levirate marriage to his youngest son. She deceives Judah into impregnating her. (Genesis 38:1-30)
• God is with Joseph in Egypt until the wife of his master, Potiphar, accuses him of rape, whereupon Joseph is imprisoned. (Genesis 39:1-40:23)

HAFTARAH – CHANUKAH

Zechariah 4:1-7 [historic: Zechariah 2:14-4:7]

RECOMMENDED READING

From Reform Judaism https://reformjudaism.org/torah/portion/vayeishev

Caring for the Widow, the Stranger, and the Orphan

By: Rabbi Kari Tuling

STRUGGLING WITH TORAH and REFLECTION

For the time being, we will meet every other Friday for Torah Study to read and discuss selections from Ketuvim, the third section of Tanach (Hebrew Bible), which follows Torah and Nevi’im. Please see the NEW Torah Study-Shazoom schedule below. NEXT week we will continue studying Tehillim (Psalms) focusing on the main themes of Psalms 1, 2 and 91. You can read this week’s Torah Portion at https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.37.1-40.23 and Haftarah at https://www.sefaria.org/Zechariah.4.1-7

From “The Torah / A Women’s Commentary” edited by Dr. Tamara Cohn Eskenazi and Rabbi Andrea L. Weiss, Ph.D., Women of Reform Judaism/The Federation of Temple Sisterhoods and URJ Press New York 2008

וישב Vayeishev – Genesis 37:1-40:23

Contemporary Reflection – by Carol Selkin Wise, pp. 228-9

IN TERMS OF THE BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW, Tamar’s tragedy is evident: she has lost her husband, and she has no offspring to secure her status as a widow and give her life purpose. Tired of leaving her fate to male relatives, Tamar takes action to secure her own position, thereby joining the circle of matriarchs who exemplify action to protect Israelite destiny.

When the Family Constellation Changes.   As the Bible tells the story, Judah and Tamar are in-laws who have reached a crisis point in their relationship. Why? As Carol Meyers explains (Discovering Eve: Ancient Israelite Women in Context, 1988, pp. 133, 183), a young woman typically married into her husband’s extended family household. The new wife was expected to conform to household norms.

At first, Judah is more than willing to support Tamar’s rights. It is he who prompts Onan to perform his duty (38:8); however, when Onan dies in turn, Judah inwardly blames Tamar (38:11), although the reader knows that she is innocent (38:7, 10). Clearly, there is a failure of communication. Judah tells Tamar he will eventually allow her access to Shelah, while he privately intends no such thing. For her part, Tamar correctly surmises Judah’s true intentions, but she never confronts him, discusses it with him, or attempts less radical measures, such as mediation. Evidently, Judah’s abiding sense of loss and resentment are blocking his reconciliation with Tamar. Because of Judah’s failure to heal, Tamar is also unable to move on.

Even now, any new family member–whether spouse, in-law, or child–begins as an outsider. The attendant changes in family dynamics bring accompanying stresses. If conversion or adoption is involved, the difficulties of adjustment may be compounded, requiring increased patience and sensitivity. Recriminations, too, have never been uncommon when premature death occurs in a family.

Recovering from the Loss of a Husband.   Tamar’s actions following the loss of her spouse involve extreme risk, but they are not reckless; she has a plan. Spousal loss should not force anyone into desperate acts. In modern terms, Tamar’s predicament cautions women today not to abdicate their financial security to others. They should be aware of and involved in household decisions concerning retirement plans, mortgages, and taxes. Too many widows emerge from mourning to discover financial troubles they had not known existed, and, apart from any monetary crisis that may ensue, are left with a tainted memory of their loved one and an ensuing anger that is hard to resolve.

On a less dire note, entering widowhood nowadays may not be dangerous, but it can be frightening to face life as a single after years of partnership. Tamar’s courage in the face of genuine adversity serves as a model for those who fear entering a social situation alone for the first time, and it may help reduce that fear to realistic proportions. After all, no one in America today will try to burn them for exiting their father’s houses, even were they to turn up pregnant.

Widows today should remember that they are not genuinely alone. Just as Tamar could fall back on her family of origin, the bereaved should not avoid turning to their support networks of family and friends. If these do not exist or are inadequate, there are communal resources–and new interests and people yet to explore.

Tamar eventually rises from her mourning and responds to her loss by taking action that will produce meaning for her life. Producing an heir is not the only way to create a legacy. Many are the widows and widowers who have responded to their loss through volunteer work and community involvement. Victor Frankl, in his work Man’s Search for Meaning (1959), taught that while we may have no control over circumstances in which we find ourselves, we have utter freedom in how we respond to those circumstances, even if only in the attitude we choose to assume in response. Tamar teaches us not to become immobilized by loss. Mourn–but then move to find ongoing purpose.

The Role of the Foreigner.   Had Tamar been kin, mention of her lineage would be expected; thus it seems that she was foreign. Yet this matters little to Judah: he resents Tamar because he associates her with the loss of his sons, not because of her ethnic identity. Judah had himself been married to a Canaanite, and it is he who arranged Er’s marriage with Tamar in the first place (38:6). Moreover, in Tamar’s time, no conversion rite, as such, existed; she makes her affiliation clear by aligning herself with the destiny of Judah’s household–and thus with the destiny of Israel.

Non-Israelite origin connects Tamar to the story of Potiphar’s wife that follows in Genesis 39. Placing the story of a good woman next to that of a bad woman clarifies, from a biblical standpoint, the meaning of both goodness and badness in women. This juxtaposition of good and bad models, known to literary structuralists as “binary opposition,” is found again in the case of the widow of Zarephath (in Phoenicia), who aids Elijah in I Kings 17 and is in counterpoint to that other Phoenician woman, Jezebel, who hounds Elijah. Women are not the only foreign exemplars: the good Kenites are repeatedly balanced with the hated Amalekites (Exodus 17–18; Judges 4; and I Samuel 15:6). Such stories provide examples of how a foreigner or foreign people should behave, and another less edifying one of how they often did behave. In the context of the Bible, such passages represent ethnic tensions of the past and highlight the uncertainty of trusting outsiders. For the modern world, they serve as a reminder for us to judge individuals by their actions and attitudes, rather than by labels and assumptions.

ROSH CHODESH TEVET

Begins at sundown on Tuesday, December 12, 2023, and ends at nightfall on Wednesday, December 13, 2023. Tevet is the tenth month of the Hebrew calendar and the fourth of the civil calendar. It has 29 days.

PRAYERS

From “Mishkan T’filah / A Reform Siddur”:

ROSH CHODESH – FOR THE NEW MONTH p.519

Our God and God of our ancestors, may the new month bring us goodness and blessing. May we have long life, peace, prosperity, a life exalted by love of Torah and reverence for the divine; a life in which the longings of our hearts are fulfilled for good.

FOR OUR COUNTRY p.376

THUS SAYS ADONAI, This is what I desire: to unlock the fetters of wickedness, and untie the cords of lawlessness; to let the oppressed go free, to break off every yoke. Share your bread with the hungry, and take the wretched poor into your home. When you see the naked, give clothing, and do not ignore your own kin.

O GUARDIAN of life and liberty, may our nation always merit Your protection. Teach us to give thanks for what we have by sharing it with those who are in need. Keep our eyes open to the wonders of creation, and alert to the care of the earth. May we never be lazy in the work of peace; may we honor those who have [served, suffered or] died in defense of our ideals. Grant our leaders wisdom and forbearance. May they govern with justice and compassion. Help us all to appreciate one another, and to respect the many ways that we may serve You. May our homes be safe from affliction and strife, and our country be sound in body and spirit. Amen.

PRAYER FOR THE STATE OF ISRAEL p.552

O HEAVENLY ONE, Protector and Redeemer of Israel, bless the State of Israel which marks the dawning of hope for all who seek peace. Shield it beneath the wings of your love; spread over it the canopy of Your peace; send Your light and truth to all who lead and advise, guiding them with Your good counsel. Establish peace in the land and fullness of joy for all who dwell there. Amen.

FOR HEALING

We recite MI SHEBËRACH for the victims of abuse, brutality, conflicts, fear, natural disasters, pandemics, tragedies, violence of all kinds especially directed at individuals and specific communities including us, and war; for all those at home alone or lonely; for all those in need of physical, emotional, and mental healing. “R’fuah sh’lëmah” – a complete recovery!

YAHRZEITS/ANYOS

We say KADDISH YATOM for those of our friends and families who have died and been buried this last week; those in the period of Sh’loshim (30 days since burial); those who have died in the last year; and those whose Yahrzeits/Anyos occur at this time; as well as the victims of brutality, conflict, disease, natural disasters, pandemics, tragedies, violence of all kinds, and war.

This coming week, 26 Kislev through 4 Tevet, we lovingly remember:

 Julius Kolber

Father of Jane Kolber

 Those victims of the Sho’ah (Holocaust) who died at this time of year.

“ZICHRONAM LIV’RACHAH” – MAY THEIR MEMORIES BE FOR BLESSING.

SHAZOOM ONLY

This year, Chanukah began at sundown on Thursday, December 7, 2023, and ends at nightfall on Friday, December 15, 2023. There is NO Torah Study this Friday, December 8, 2023. Starting at 6:30 PM on Zoom, we will begin by lighting the Chanukiah (second candle) before lighting the Shabbat candles each with their specific blessings. The Service will include Chanukah songs.

Zoom regularly updates its security and performance features. Making sure you have the latest version of Zoom, please join us online this evening with wine/grape juice for Kiddush and Challah for Motzi. Feel free to have your favorite Chanukah foods available.

Shazoom – Chanukah Second Candle – Erev Shabbat Service

Time: Dec 8, 2023 06:30 PM Arizona

To join Shazoom click on the following link [you may need to copy it into your browser]: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/72510500854?pwd=Z3VQZWF4U1BBZytNYmh3aHFTWkFDZz09

Meeting ID: 725 1050 0854

Passcode: 4NrMk0

Hint: The last character of the password is the number zero.

Chag HaUrim/Chag Chanukah Sameach and Shabbat Shalom – Buen Shabbat/Gut Shabbos!

-Ruben

PS – About Tehillim (Psalms) and the NEW schedule through December 2023:

From My Jewish Learning

https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-book-of-psalms/

From Jewish Encyclopedia

https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12409-psalms

From Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psalms

From Encyclopedia Britannica

https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-literature/Psalms

From Sefaria

https://www.sefaria.org/Psalms?tab=contents

 

NEW Schedule for Torah Study and Shazoom (Arizona Time Zone):

December 8, 2023 – Shazoom ONLY at 6:30 pm [Chanukah 2nd Candle]

December 15, 2023 – Torah Study at 6 pm and Shazoom at 7:30 pm [Chanukah ends]

December 22, 2023 – Shazoom at 6:30 pm

December 29, 2023 – Torah Study at 6 pm and Shazoom at 7:30 pm