How do we know when it’s time to leave the familiar behind? In this episode, Zvi Hirschfield and Yiscah Smith explore Avraham’s response to the call of Lech Lecha and what it means to leave the familiar behind. Was Avraham…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Personalities, Biblical personalities, Self & spirituality
When the world is on fire, who will stop and answer God’s call? In this episode, Zvi Hirschfield and Gila Fine explore Parshat Lech Lecha through the famous midrash of the bira doleket—the burning building that leads Avraham to encounter…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Podcast series, Pardes Parsha Podcast
What can Avraham’s journey teach us about finding inner light when surrounded by uncertainty? In this episode, Zvi Hirschfield is joined by Nechama Goldman Barash to delve into Parshat Lech Lecha. They discuss the complex dynamics between Sarai and Hagar,…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Podcast series, Pardes Parsha Podcast
In this week’s Torah portion, we examine a story that many today would consider jarring. How do we take the afflictions placed upon the Egyptians for Sarah’s kidnapping? Was Sarah a victim of Pharoah and patriarchy, or were the Egyptians…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Podcast series, Pardes Parsha Podcast
This podcast is sponsored by Suzana and Alan Caro in honor of Rav Meir Schweiger, a master teacher who held up the tradition as a mirror to us to live an ethical and rich life of meaning. Parashat Lech Lecha…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Podcast series, Pardes Parsha Podcast
Avraham is both the Idol Smasher and the Harbinger of Justice and Righteousness. The Torah tells us explicitly why Avraham was chosen in Genesis 18:18-19, and the rabbis tell a story intended to explain what qualified him for the job.…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Podcast series, Pardes Parsha Podcast
The Torah never presents our great men as being perfect, it deifies no man, says of none “here you have the ideal, in this man the Divine became human.” -Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch (1800-1888) Our parsha introduces us to two…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Educator resources, Meaning-making
A challenging life situation becomes a ‘test’ when it requires making a difficult choice between two values that are both important to us. What are Avraham’s tests in this week’s Torah Portion that force him to painfully decide between competing…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Podcast series, Pardes Parsha Podcast
“At the very start of Parshat Lech-lecha, God famously begins speaking to Avram – seemingly out of nowhere! God doesn’t introduce Himself to Avram – God just cuts right to the chase and commands Avram to do something really difficult…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Educator resources, Meaning-making
In the aftermath of his defeat of the powerful eastern monarchs, Avram has a fateful encounter with two men: the king of Sodom and the king of Shalem. In that moment, destiny hangs in the balance. Please let us know…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Podcast series, Pardes Parsha Podcast
The Pardes Parsha Discussion is a weekly series by faculty member Rabbi Alex Israel, designed to stimulate discussion around the Shabbat table, especially with teenagers. Click here to download and print this week’s Parsha Discussion on Lech Lecha: Is Faith…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Educator resources, Meaning-making
In this podcast Nechama Goldman Barash explores the origins of Abraham and analyzes a famous midrashic story about Abraham and the idols. Nechama’s analysis enables us to understand how the tantalizingly elusive nature of the Biblical text allows midrashic narrative…
Tanakh, Torah, Bereishit (Genesis), Lech Lecha, Podcast series, Pardes Parsha Podcast
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