This week’s Torah portion is Devarim, the first parsha in the book with the same name. Devarim means “The Words” and is also known as Deuteronomy – the final book of the Torah. We’re in the home stretch y’all!
Deuteronomy is a retelling of the events in the desert, as told by Moses. That’s sort of what we do for you each week when we write! We read the events, and tell you what happened in our own words.
One of our favorite quotes from Pirke Avot, Ethics of the Fathers, is when Rabbi “Ben Zoma said:Who is wise? He who learns from every man, as it is said: “From all who taught me have I gained understanding” (Psalms 119:99)” (Pirke Avot Chapter 4). We love learning from others who are like us, those who interpret the Torah and help us understand! This week we came across two resources we found particularly meaningful and interesting.
The first is a column written by Menachem Feldman called, In Your Own Voice. He connects the structure of Deuteronomy and how we folks interpret Torah. The second is a fun video from BimBam, formerly G-dcast, about Moses’ review of history in this portion. Not only is the video fun, but there’s also a free accompanying source sheet if you’d like to use it with a group.
As we bring our fellow Torah interpreters to the forefront of the blog this week, we are in the background thinking up some fun content for next week! Exciting things are coming.
Have a wonderful Shabbat, and don’t forget to wear a mask, wash your hands and that Black Lives Matter.
Love,
Amanda & Marissa
