Let me ask you this: “As a child, what did you most associate with Christmas? What about Hanukkah? Easter? Passover?” Think about the images you associated with these holidays. Then think about what an evergreen tree has to do with the birth of Jesus; or why eight gifts represent Hanukkah. And how about connecting jelly donuts with the victory of Maccabees over Assyrian King Antiochus and the Hellenistic influence over the Israelites. Better yet, what does a bunny and chocolate eggs have to do with the crucifixion of Jesus? And even more interesting, how does the happy tune of the “Frog” song reflect on the horrifying experience of the one of 10 plagues – which caused so much suffering among Egyptians?

Parashat Shemot, is the first parashah in the book of Exodus, whose name is also Shemot, which literally means names. In this parashah we read of the birth of Moses. Not taking anything away from Moses – or from his father, whom we’ll get to in a moment – I would like us to keep in mind that Moses’ birth, and his very survival, were made possible by a few brave and fearless women!!

With this portion, Jacob comes to end of his life’s journey, and makes preparations for his family. He blesses and adopts Joseph’s sons, Ephriam and Menasseh. He calls his sons together and offers words of blessing – and some less than blessing. He makes Joseph promise that after his death, Joseph will bury him in the family cave at Makhpelah in Canaan. It seems straightforward. The rabbis read more into Jacob’s calling his sons together, based on Genesis 49:2: הִקָּבְצ֥וּ וְשִׁמְע֖וּ בְּנֵ֣י יַעֲקֹ֑ב וְשִׁמְע֖וּ אֶל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֥ל אֲבִיכֶֽם׃ Assemble and hear, O sons of Jacob; Hearken to Israel, your father… You might notice, that the word “V’Shimu” is repeated twice. And you might also realize that this word – whose root letters are Shin-Mem-Ayin – is closely connected to the word “Shema – Read More >

When I was a student at AJR, I was fortunate to take an elective entitled Bibliodrama with Dr. Peter Pitzele. We were told that the class would expand how we would view Torah, by making a parashah come alive by making it into a drama.