Vayera 5785: Justice and Mercy
Why might kindness be perceived as weakness, and what does Avraham’s response teach us? In this episode, Zvi Hirschfield and Rabbi Leon Morris examine Avraham’s…
VaYera
Vayera 5784: An Imminent and Transcendent Connection
Do we allow our pursuit of spirituality to get in the way of true divine connection? In this week’s episode of Pardes from Jerusalem, Yiscah…
Parashat Vayera 5783: Examining Our Own Narratives
Are we blinded by our reading of the text? When we read about characters that are often portrayed negatively, such as Ishmael, are we truly…
Parashat VaYera 5782: Human Sacrifice – Problematic or Profound?
Parashat VaYera 5782: Human Sacrifice – Problematic or Profound? Description: Why would Avraham’s 10th and final test be to participate in a cruel and despicable…
5781 — Vayera: Life’s Concentric Circles
This week’s parasha contrasts two acts of hospitality: Avraham welcomes three strangers to his tent at Elonei Mamrei, and Lot later welcomes two of them…
The Parsha Discussion with Alex Israel — Vayera. The Akeida’s Contrary Commitments
This week, I share a short passage from a book by Uriel Simon, one of Israel’s leading Modern-Orthodox bible professors. I have found his reading…
5780 — Vayera: Did Abraham Pass the Test? A Different Look at the Akedah
In this podcast we will re-read the Akedah and wonder whether the story might have ended differently, for Abraham, Isaac, Sarah and even for God,…
Vayera: Highway 61 and Mount Moriah
Bob Dylan’s dark song, Highway 61, is actually an extended midrash on the story of the binding of Isaac. In this podcast, Rabbi David Levin-Kruss…
An Interactive Parsha Experience: Vayera – Feeling our Laughter
“In Parshat Vayera, Avraham and Sarah are old and past when they think they will be able to have children. Suddenly, as Avraham is sitting…