Rabbi Shanks

Rabbi Judy Shanks is a native of Phoenix, Arizona, where she grew up in a Reform synagogue and participated actively in her local and regional Youth Groups. She earned her B.A. degree with honors in Religion from Pomona College in Claremont, California in 1977. After college she served as the Director of the summer Day Camp at the Jewish Community Center in Walnut Creek, CA. In 1979 she entered Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, first in Jerusalem and then in New York City. She earned her Masters Degree and was ordained as Rabbi in 1984. From 1984 - 1991 Rabbi Shanks served Temple Beth Hillel in Richmond, California. The following year she taught Jewish Studies at the University of San Francisco and then joined the clergy team at Temple Isaiah in the Fall of 1992. Rabbi Shanks has a special interest in Jewish feminist studies, the development of new rituals for life cycle events, liturgical poetry and modern Hebrew literature. She is the wife of Dr. James Gracer and the mother of Talia (age 20) and Mira (age 18).

Parshat Shelach L’cha
Numbers 13.1 - 15.41

We’ve all been on road trips - as kids and as adults - that seem to take forever.  “Are we there yet?” gets answered with “Not even close,” and the groans fly furiously from the back seat to the front.  The happy anticipation of the packing up, the setting off, and the first fifty miles dissipates right along with the good humor and patience.  “What were we thinking?” becomes our mantra until the destination is in sight.

Parshat Naso
Numbers 4.21 - 7.89

When I was a child, I attended Shabbat services at a synagogue in Los Angeles. It was the first time I had prayed in a synagogue other than the one I grew up in, so I noticed how different everything was - the ark, the rabbi, the cantor, the melodies. But it was the Ner Tamid, the Eternal Light, that caught my attention and held it for the longest time. The light was framed by a sculptured image of two hands lifted up and as if invoking the Priestly Blessing. The light shone through those fingers with such beauty and power that I truly felt God’s own light upon me, a holy light of peace and blessing shining eternally on all who entered the sacred space.

Parshat Bamidbar:
Numbers 1.1-4.20

The Torah seems to struggle mightily with the rights of older siblings. Time after time the younger brother usurps his elder, taking the rights and privileges accorded the first-born. Think of Ishmael and Isaac, Esau and Jacob, Reuben (and all the brothers) eclipsed by Joseph, even Rachel finding more love than the elder Leah. The pattern seems to hold true as well with Aaron and Moses, as the younger brother becomes the leader of the Israelite nation through its 40 formative years in the wilderness.

Parshat Tazria-Metzora
Leviticus 12:1 - 13:59

In Jewish circles, this week’s Torah portions (a double portion) often elicit an ironic grin or woeful laugh.  After all, how much meaning can we moderns find in graphic descriptions of bodily discharges, leprosy and skin lesions, or household mold and mildew?  Our ancestors grappled with these messy details because of their concern with ritual purity; they needed to understand which affliction would render them or their priests unfit to participate in communal worship and sacrifice.  Today, the portions might cause us to worry more about viral contagion, disease-resistant antibiotics and the chemicals in the spray bottles we use to fight bathroom slime!

Shabbat Chol Ha-Moed
Pesach - Exodus 33:12 - 34:26

At a recent Bar Mitzvah one of the guests to our community “confessed” to me that the reason he stopped going to synagogue after his Bar Mitzvah was that he “could not get past the statement in the Torah that the ‘sins of the fathers would be visited upon their children for many generations.’”  It is not unusual for me to hear such impromptu confessions, but this one was singular and unusual in its content.  I was intrigued that one Torah verse had had so profound an impact on this man that he remembered it clearly these thirty plus years later.  Without a fuller discussion than was possible or appropriate at an Oneg (‘was your relationship with your father difficult?, etc.), I said that it was a shame one of his Bar Mitzvah teachers had not pointed out to him that though the Hebrew Bible does contain statements about generational punishment, it also takes issue with itself and proclaims just the opposite.  In Deuteronomy 24:16 the text reads:  “Parents shall not be put to death for children, nor children be put to death for parents:  they shall each be put to death only for their own crime.”*  The prophet Ezekiel agrees, stating:  “The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father’s iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son’s iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.”(Ez. 18:20)  “Come back to Judaism,” I encouraged this man.  “For every statement you might disagree with, we usually have several others that might bring you insight, wisdom, consolation.  It’s a long, vast and complex tradition.  A lot has happened in your life and in the Jewish world since you were thirteen.  Come and learn!”

Parshat Vayikra:
Leviticus 1:1-5:26

Too often when we modern Jews open the Book of Leviticus, we quickly close it again when we encounter the unappetizing descriptions of animal sacrifice. We ask, “What does this have to do with us?” Our ancestors were barbaric and we’re civilized, right?

by Rabbi Judy Shanks
from the March 2009 issue of The Ruach

Driving down the neighborhood road leading from my home to the highway entrance that takes me to the Temple each day, I once again bumped through potholes that seemed to grow larger by the minute. Right after making a mental note to get my tires realigned, I added a second reminder to contact my city councilwoman firmly to request expeditious repairs.

Parshat Bo: Exodus. 10.1 - 13.16

Hope - the word is on everyone’s lips these days. As we have seen, hope is a powerful emotion and a powerful motivator for action. As we look at this week’s Torah portion, we see it is also one of the deepest touchstones of our faith.

Parshat Vayigash: Gen. 44.18 - 47.27

This first Shabbat of 2009 finds Jewish hearts throughout the world heavy with sadness as we follow the events in Gaza and Israel.  It is hard to be hopeful as a new secular year dawns in the midst of what seems to be an intractable state of war - sometimes very hot, sometimes cold - but always an absence of peace and security.

by Rabbi Judy Shanks
from the December 2008 Ruach

That’s what one of our Shabbat morning Torah study “regulars” said to me after a lively, provocative, meaningful discussion of the portion called Noah. Most fittingly, it was raining hard that day, and we addressed, among other topics: the nature of the human soul, the problem of evil in the world, and whether or not God ‘grows up and matures’ as the Torah progresses.

Parshat Hayyei Sarah: Gen. 23.1 - 25.18

Though called Hayyei Sarah, the Life of Sarah, our portion actually announces Sarah’s death - at the age of one hundred twenty-seven! - and then focuses on the life of her son, Isaac.  Primarily we learn the story of Rebecca’s selection as Isaac’s wife.  But the story of this couple’s meeting is where I turn your focus this Shabbat.  Picture this:  Rebecca and her entourage is traveling, by camel caravan, from her father’s home in Nahor.  The very afternoon she will arrive in Canaan, to Isaac’s home, her intended decides to “go out walking and praying in the field in late afternoon.” (Gen. 24:63) 

Parshat Lech L’cha: Gen. 12.1 - 17.27

From one second to the next, their lives are changed.  Abram and Sarai, ages seventy-five and sixty-five respectively, are called by God to leave their ancestral home and family, everything familiar, and travel a new path of faith and destiny.  Remarkably, they go!

Sukkot 5769/2008

Welcome, Honored Guest…

Our ancestors, Abraham and Sarah, set a high standard for hospitality when they welcomed three strangers into their tent with honor, bathed their dusty feet, cooked a young calf for their dining pleasure, and prepared fresh, tasty pancakes for the side dish of the sumptuous repast. (Genesis 18: 1- 15) All this took place before any of the three had uttered a word!  In the twelfth century, the renowned Maimonides underscored the importance of hospitality by declaring that anyone who sits to eat comfortably at home with his family but does not share with the poor is performing a mitzvah not for joy but for the stomach! 

Parshat Ki Teitzei / Deut. 21:10 - 25:19

A few years ago I got a teary phone call from my sister in Boston.  Her cat had not come home from his customary ramblings and despite days of combing the neighborhood with her young sons and posting signs asking for help from neighbors, the cat was still missing.  The family was distraught at the loss of their pet. 

Consider these questions—hard questions—and think to yourself what your answers would be.  Read them slowly, more than once.  If an answer comes quickly to mind the first time, then do yourself the favor of pushing yourself a little deeper the next time around.  Here are the questions:

Parshat Matot / Num. 30:2 - 32:42

What do we do with the parts of the Torah that disturb us, that shock us, that push us to want to close the holy book in sheer disgust?  For me, such a passage occurs in this week’s portion.  The Israelites are camped on the east side of the Jordan, preparing to enter the Land of Israel and bring their 40-year trek to an end.  But first God commands Moses:  “Avenge the Israelites people on the Midianites; then you shall be gathered to your kin.”  (Num. 31:2)

Parshat Chukat/ Num. 19:1-22:1

A few weeks ago I carpooled into San Francisco with a friend.  As he began to take a few extra turns through neighborhood streets on the way to our destination, I asked:  “Why the detour?”  He answered, a little sheepishly, “Whenever I’m near my old apartment, the one where my first child was born, I just have to drive by.  It’s a touchstone for me…good memories.”  He slowed the car as we cruised by the place, stared up into his old apartment without words, and then we were back on our way.

Num 13:1-15:41

The term “supply and demand” has been filling our news reports as politicians, economists, pundits and all the rest of us try to understand rocketing gasoline prices and their impact on our lives.  Underneath all the verbiage, it is becoming crystal clear that global demand has (or will soon) outstrip the finite supply of fossil fuels.  With fuel in short supply, fear is available in abundance!

Pent. Num 1:1-4:20

The opening verses of the fourth book of the Torah return us to the saga of the Israelites as they continue their slow trek from Egypt to Israel:  “On the first day of the second month, in the second year following the exodus from the land of Egypt, the Eternal One spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai…” (Num. 1:1)  The ancient editors of the Torah text interrupted this saga with the sacrificial laws that filled the pages of Leviticus; as we enter the book of Numbers we now are back on track, back on the trek with the Israelites again. 

by Rabbi Judy Shanks
from the June-July 2008 Ruach

These past few weeks, I have been traveling abroad – first with a wonderful group of Isaiah members as we explored the history and contemporary worlds of Berlin and then Jerusalem, and in the weeks following, Jamie and I enjoyed time alone to explore new cities, take beautiful hikes, talk and read a much–needed and much–appreciated mini-sabbatical – thank you!

Pent. Lev. 14:1 - 15:33

By now many of you are checking the items off your Passover list:  invite guests to the Seder and give them food assignments; clean out the cabinets, the fridge, the piles of papers and junk that might be hiding those crumbs of chametz; buy the Pesach products before the local Safeway runs out; take the Pesach box of Haggadot, seder plates, Afikomen holders and matzo plates out of the garage; go to the Temple Gift Shop and buy some of those cute plastic “plague” frogs and craft supplies to keep the little one happy during the seder.  Celebrating Passover takes planning, elbow grease, energy, endurance and exuberance!  (Easy for me to say this year - I am currently in Israel with our wonderful group from Temple Isaiah and will be spending my seders with cousins on their kibbutz in the Northern Galilee - as a happy and grateful guest!)

by Rabbi Judy Shanks
from the April 2008 Ruach

While prayer invites us to beseech God, we must also be open to what God wants from us. Rabbi Samuel Karff wrote, “Each generation must struggle to hear the call, ‘Where art thou?’ Each must choose to answer, ‘Here I am, send me.’” Each generation – not merely each individual. A siddur must challenge nar- cissism; that challenge begins by saying to a worship- per: your voice is here amidst others. To hear the call: to realize that prayer is not merely an outpouring of self; it is the opening of our senses to what is beyond our selves. Send me: prayer must motivate us to give selflessly.” (From the Introduction to Mishkan T’filah, A Reform Siddur.)

Vayikra Pent.
Lev. 1:1-1:26; Deut. 25:17-19

SHABBAT ZACHOR
The Shabbat to Remember

Last Shabbat we joyfully entered the Hebrew month of Adar Bet, the “leap” month added to regulate the Jewish calendar and keep our holy days in their proper season. We are commanded to “be happy it is Adar,” because Purim falls during Adar with all its raucous and hilarious customs (you will not want to miss Surfin’ Megillah this Thursday night!). How fortunate that this year we get to double our happiness with two months of Adar.

Tetzaveh
Exodus 27:20- 30:10

Near the end of this week’s portion, God offers this promise to the Israelites as they complete the building of the Mishkan:

“For there I will meet with you, and there I will speak with you, and there I will meet with the Israelites, and it {the Tabernacle} shall be sanctified by My Presence.  I will sanctify the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and I will consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve Me as priests.  I will abide among the Israelites, and I will be their God.  And they shall know that I the Eternal am their God, who brought them out from the land of Egypt that I might abide among them, I the Eternal, their God.” (Ex. 29:42 - 46)

by Rabbi Judy Shanks
from the February 2008 Ruach

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Perachiah said: “Find yourself a teacher/rabbi, and thereby acquire a friend.” – Ethics of the Fathers 1:6

In late December and early January, I had the opportunity to attend two conferences: the Biennial of the Union of Reform Judaism (URJ) and the Pacific Association of Reform Rabbis. These gatherings allow me to talk with colleagues and synagogue leaders from across the country, catch up on friendships, hear the latest ideas for worship, education, outreach, social justice initiatives, and all other parts of synagogue life. I was delighted that Temple Isaiah had close to 30 delegates to the URJ/WRJ (Women of Reform Judaism); we all came back energized with suggestions to infuse into the life of Temple Isaiah. Stay tuned!

B’shallach
Exodus 13:17 - 17:16

This is Shabbat Shira, the Sabbath of Song, when we chant the Torah text that describes the Israelites’ perilous and miraculous escape from slavery in Egypt.  At our Kabbalat Shabbat services this Friday night, our Temple Isaiah choir and our choir friends from Lafayette-Orinda Presbyterian Church will combine their voices and ours to imbue Shabbat Shira with appropriate, exhilarating joy!  Do not miss this chance to remember our past, to celebrate our freedom, to worship together and to honor the steps toward redemption the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave to our country through his work for civil rights.

Vayechi, Genesis
47:28-50:26

It happens all the time.  We all probably do it.  We tell “white lies,” small deviations from the truth that smooth social discourse or get us out of an uncomfortable situation.  But isn’t it always wrong to lie?  Doesn’t Judaism demand truth as an absolute, an ideal for which to strive always?

Parashat Vayischlach
Gen. 32:4-36:44

Since I usually travel during the Thanksgiving weekend to be with my family, I spend quite a bit of time in the airport with the rest of the hoards getting from here to there.  It is always interesting to observe the family groups and listen in on their conversations as they anticipate family reunions at the other end of the trip.  Of course, there are exclamations of longing and dread and everything in between.  Families are complicated!

Vayera, Genesis
18:1 - 22:24

I wish I had a dollar (to give to tzedakah!) for every person who has said to me, “I don’t believe in God.”  When addressed to me, the statement is most often linked to other questions or declarations, like, “Can I still be considered a Jew?” or “This makes praying from the Siddur very difficult /meaningless/ tedious” or “What should I tell my children when they ask about God”?

Sukkot 5768/2007

Our ancestors, Abraham and Sarah, set a high standard for hospitality when they welcomed three strangers into their tent with honor, bathed their dusty feet, cooked a young calf for their dining pleasure, and prepared fresh, tasty pancakes for the side dish of the sumptuous repast. (Genesis 18: 1- 15) All this took place before any of the three had uttered a word!  In the twelfth century, the renowned Maimonides underscored the importance of hospitality by declaring that anyone who sits to eat comfortably at home with his family but does not share with the poor is performing a mitzvah not for joy but for the stomach!

by Rabbi Judy Shanks
from the October 2007 Ruach

When God called Abram (soon to be renamed Abraham) to leave his homeland and journey to Israel to establish a new covenant with God, the Torah teaches that he and his wife Sarah brought with them “all the people they had gathered to them.” When the Israelites came out of Egypt, the Torah reports that “a mixed multitude” went with them. Non-Israelites joined the band of ex-slaves to witness God’s revelation at Sinai, to enter into the covenant and, forty years later, to settle as residents of the Promised Land of Israel.

Rabbi Shanks’ column from the September 2007 Ruach

“O God of mercy, be gracious and answer us, for we have little merit. Treat us generously and with kindness, and be our help.” At this season of the year, with the turning of the year, we too turn – inward to examine our deeds and outward to the Holy One, to seek atonement and blessing. It is a time of contrasts: humility and grandeur, reflection and celebration, remembrance of the past and resolutions for the future. The words and music of our High Holy Day liturgy, the holiday meals with family and friends, the opportunity to judge ourselves honestly, can have a profound effect on our lives. We can change. We can become who we were meant to be. We can bring deeper meaning, more balance, and more joy to our lives. Let us give each other strength and bless each other at the turning of this New Year. May God treat us generously and with kindness. May we be counted among those who pursue justice, peace and blessing for all peoples of the world.

Jamie, Talia and Mira join me in wishing you and your loved ones a Shanah Tovah, a New Year of goodness, happiness, health and joy!

L’shanah Tovah!

Rabbi Shanks’ column from the August 2007 Ruach.

No, but This Year I Want You to be Ready to Help Start a New Isaiah Sukkot Tradition!

Devarim, Deuteronomy
1:1 - 3:22

To mourn or not to mourn is often in question in today’s world.  When a Jew dies we survivors have a step-by-step traditional path to travel from the moment of our loved one’s death to the unveiling of the person’s grave stone some eleven months later.  The steps give us a way to sit with our grief, to confront its terrors and its blessings, to weep, to get support, to take the first shaky and then gradually firmer steps back to the fullness of our lives.  Through my own losses and witnessing the mourning of those in our community, I am more and more convinced of the great wisdom of our Jewish traditions.  I believe they give us a gift we should not shun, an opportunity we should embrace.  We should not be in such a great hurry to get back to work or our routines, but should.

Numbers
25:10 - 30:1

To be honest, I always feel an almost physical revulsion when I turn to this week’s parasha, Pinchas.  At the end of last week’s reading, we learned that Pinchas, an Israelite priest, takes “justice” into his own hands to quell the immoral behavior of his fellow tribesmen.  When one of the Israelite leaders flagrantly disobeys God and indulges publicly in sexual relations with a foreign woman, Pinchas appoints himself witness, judge, jury and executioner to mete out the death sentence to the couple.  In the aftermath of that violent act, in this week’s portion God says, “Pinchas is the only one who zealously took up My cause among the Israelites and turned my anger away from them, so that I did not consume the children of Israel in my jealousy.  Therefore tell him that I have given him My covenant of peace.” (Num. 25:11-12)  God also tells Pinchas that he and his descendants have earned the eternal pact of the priesthood; they will now and forever be in charge of the sacrificial system. 

Korach Numbers
16:1 - 18:32

In this week’s parasha, Moses and Aaron face a strong rebellion led by the Levite Korach.  On the surface, it’s yet another challenge to Moses by the seemingly ungrateful Israelites - challenges that range from complaints about eating manna every day, to fears about the “giants” they will have to fight once they reach Israel, to calls to return to Egypt.

Naso
Numbers 4:21 - 7:89

This parasha contains three of the most familiar verses in the whole Torah:  May the Eternal One bless you and keep you!  May the Eternal One shine upon you with graciousness!  May the Eternal One bestow favor upon you and grant you peace! (Numbers 6:24 - 26)  Thus through the ages have we used God’s beautiful words to ask God’s blessings upon our people, words designed to seek and find sanctity in time and place.

Emor Leviticus
21:1 - 24:23

Like most of the book of Leviticus, Parashat Emor directs our attention to the behavior and duties of the Israelite priests, the kohanim, who derive their authority to perform sacrifices to God from their lineage through Aaron, Moses’ brother and the High Priest.  God says, “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron,...” (Lev. 21:1)  There follows a lengthy discussion of the obligations, restrictions and distinctiveness of the kohanim as set apart from and elevated above their Israelite brethren.  The implication of this text is that down through the generations, the kohanim will continue to hold themselves to a different standard, a more rigorous observance, and serve as role models for the whole community.  To this day many Jews still know whether, indeed, their Jewish heridity is from the priestly lineage, and observe the differences still relevant in Jewish practice.

We come now to one of the most troubling portions of the Torah.  Parashat Shimini details the pomp and glory of the investiture of Aaron and his sons as High Priest and priests of the newly-dedicated Tabernacle.  God dramatically affirms the leadership of Aaron by sending heavenly fire to consume the Israelite sacrifices on the altar.

Raw.  Bloody.  Primitive.  Crude.  No, I’m not writing a review of the new epic “300”.  These are words that one might use to describe this week’s Torah portion, Tzav.  You see, we read this week of the kodesh kodashim, the most sacred offerings, or sacrifices.  We read in great gory detail of the four different sacrifices: the Olah, the burnt offering; the Mincha, the grain offering; the Chattat, the sin offering; and the Asham, the guilt offering.  If that were not enough, this is followed by descriptions of offerings of lesser holiness, the kodashim kallim.  These include the Korban Todah, the thanksgiving offering..  These were all the means for biblical Jews to atone for wrongdoing and to renew themselves as children of God.

Parashat Yitro
Exodus 18:1-20:23

It is impossible to read the Revelation at Mt. Sinai without wondering:  What did the people actually hear?  However real or true or accurate we believe this Torah text’s account to be of the giving of the Ten Commandments, its words compel us to imagine and relive a stunning moment of insight into the Divine.  One commentator offered this description of the Revelation experience:

Parashat Bo
Exodus 10:1 – 13:16

Last week I peeked in the window of a restaurant in Walnut Creek and saw two women sharing an animated conversation over a beautiful meal, glasses of wine at hand, the perfect picture of friendship and fun on a sunny afternoon.  Only one visual jarred the otherwise delightful scene:  attached to the ear of one woman was a high-tech blue-tooth transmitter/receiver!  Not only was this diner so “connected” to her phone that she could not turn it off long enough to enjoy the company of her companion.  She was hot-wired to communicate instantly—in her ear—anyone else who knew her number! 

Parashat Vaera
Exodus 6:2 - 9:35

This parasha opens with ELOHIM saying to Moses:  “I am YHVH.  I appeared to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as EL SHADDAI, but I did not make Myself known to them by My name, YHVH.”

Parashat Va-Yiggash
Genesis 44:18 – 47:27

The name of this week’s Torah portion, Va-yiggash, means “and he drew close.”  The he of this sentence refers to Judah, the fourth son that Leah bore to Jacob.  This portion finds us at the denouement of the Joseph saga, the charged and emotional moments in Egypt before and after Joseph reveals his identity to his estranged brothers.  Therefore the word va-yiggash has special thematic significance. 

Parashat Vayishach
Genesis 32:4 – 36:43

Sometimes we receive clues to the deeper meaning of a Torah portion by examining unusual features of the handwritten text passed down through the generations and into our hands.  In this week’s portion, which narrates the almost unimaginable reconciliation between Jacob and Esau, there are six inexplicable dots that appear over the Hebrew word that means “and he kissed him,” in the sentence:  “And Esau ran to meet [Jacob] and embraced him and fell upon his neck and he kissed him, and they wept.” (Gen. 33:4)

Parashat, Hayyei Sarah
Genesis 23:1 – 25:18

Our portion for this week, called Hayyei Sarah, Sarah’s Lifetime, actually speaks mainly of Sarah’s death:  “Sarah’s lifetime—the span of Sarah’s life – came to one hundred and twenty-seven years.  Sarah died in Kiriat-arba—now Hebron—in the land of Canaan; and Abraham proceeded to mourn for Sarah and to bewail her.”(Gen.23:1-2)

Parashat Noah
Genesis 6:9 – 11:32
Last week we reveled in the Torah’s rhythmic creation of the world and its inhabitants, day following day, and God declaring, “it was good.”  But it did not stay good.  Already by the end of last week’s parasha, “the Eternal saw how great was man’s wickedness on earth, and how every plan devised by his mind was nothing but evil all the time.”  What an utter and complete condemnation of humanity!  As this week’s portion begins, God declares that the earth itself has become corrupt, abhorrent, and unacceptable in God’s eyes.  Only Noah and his family will survive God’s proclamation:  “I have decided to put an end to all flesh, for the earth is filled with lawlessness because of them.  I am about to destroy them with the earth.”

Parashat Sukkot:
Leviticus 33:33-44

We Jews emerge from the synagogue on Yom Kippur a bit amazed that the world outside proceeds apace.  The long night and day of prayer, fasting, self-examination truly separates us from everything else and removes us from the world of the senses.  But before we quite catch our collective Jewish breath, we plunge headlong into a heightened celebration of the senses with the celebration of Sukkot.  The fragile booths we construct and eat in connect us to the sights, smells, tastes and touch of nature; the wind blows through open walls, sun and stars shine through leafy roofs.  The commandment of Sukkot is to be joyful and celebrate with great energy - a fitting antidote to the solemnity of Yom Kippur.

Parashat Nitzavim
Deuteronomy 29:9 – 31:30

Recently I heard a radio ad for the San Francisco opera describing the myriad of components that must come together to produce a stellar and memorable performance:  a stunning score, compelling set design and construction, orchestra and rehearsals, etc.  And of course, says the announcer, none of it comes alive without – the remarkable voices of the performers.

Parashat Shoftim
Deuteronomy 16:18 – 21:9

Today is the first of the Hebrew month of Elul; we have now entered the intense time of preparation for the Days of Awe.  We must ask ourselves and we must demand answers of ourselves:  Have I fulfilled the promises I made with a full and open heart as the gates closed last Yom Kippur?  Have I spoken words of apology, words of forgiveness, words of humility to important people in my life?  What breach have I repaired?  What new road taken?  How am I different?  Where did I make significant changes in direction?

Parashat V’ethanan
Deuteronomy 3:23 – 7:11

In this week’s portion lie the six words we Jews pray with special ceremony, with heightened awareness, with deepened intention: 

Sh’ma Yisrael Adonai Eloheynu Adnonai Echad
Hear, O Israel! The Eternal is our God, the Eternal alone.

Parashat Mattot-Mas’ei
Numbers 33:1 – 36:13

At the end of this week’s double parasha, the end of the Book of Numbers, God instructs Moses and the Israelites to set the boundaries of the Land they will inhabit once they cross the Jordan River into the Land of Canaan.  From the Sinai wilderness and the tip of the Dead Sea in the South, to the coast of the Mediterranean on the West, to Mount Hor in the North and the Jordan River on the East, the Israelites are commanded by God to “take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given the land to you to possess it.”  (Numbers 33:53)

Parashat Shelach L’cha
Numbers 13:1 – 15:41

The last verses of this week’s portion include this commandment to the Israelites:  “Instruct them to make for themselves fringes on the corners of their garments throughout the ages; let them attach a cord of blue to the fringe at each corner.  That shall be your fringe; look at it and recall all the commandments of the Eternal and observe them, so that you do not follow your heart and eyes in your lustful urge.  Thus you shall be reminded to observe all My commandments and be holy to your God.  I am the Eternal your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God:  I, the Eternal, your God.” (Numbers 15:38 – 41).

Parashat Be’Ha’alotcha
Numbers 8:1 – 12:16

The Torah telescopes much of its human drama into a few short sentences:  fourteen verses describe Abraham’s near-sacrifice of Isaac, and in this week’s portion, Miriam is stricken with leprosy for a week but we never hear a word from her lips in the cursory six verses about the incident.  Luckily, over the millennia, our people’s commentators have recorded midrashim that fill in the blanks for us.  This week I want to share a beautiful piece of writing by a modern master of Midrash, Peter Pitzele, who elaborates on Miriam’s experience in his piece called Seven Stages of Healing, the seven-day story that takes place between the two phrases of one verse.

Rabbi Shanks’ column from the June-July 2006 Ruach

I gave these remarks at the Annual Membership meeting, May 2.

Elohaynu v’elohay avotaynu v’emotaynu,
Our God and God of the generations who came before us,
Bless us on this evening of commitment and decision with the sense of Your loving presence,
Be close to us and guide us with your wisdom and Your clarity:
As we pledge our support of our leadership,
As we establish the stability and financial security
of our community for the year to come,
As we celebrate achievements past and plan for the dreams of the future.
Guide our minds and our hearts that our work might be worthy of Your praise, O God,
And worthy of the trust given into our hands to bring Temple Isaiah, this holy congregation, from strength to strength. Amen.

Shabbat Shalom
Shavuot 5766

At sundown tonight (Thursday) we begin our celebration of Shavuot, as we reach the 50th day of counting (seven weeks and one day) from Pesach to now.  The Torah dictates the counting and the observance of Shavuot according to the agricultural calendar in Exodus 23, again in Leviticus 23 and finally in Deuteronomy 16 with these words:  “You shall count off seven weeks; start to count the seven weeks when the sickle is first put to the standing grain.  Then you shall observe the Feast of Weeks for the Eternal your God, offering your freewill contribution according as the Eternal your God has blessed you.”  This third of the pilgrimage festivals (in addition to Sukkot and Pesach) fulfils the Israelites’ obligation to mark each planting and harvest cycle with appropriate gifts of gratitude to God and attendance at the communal celebrations in Jerusalem.  Nowhere in the Biblical texts regarding Shavuot do we find reference to its later connection to the Revelation at Sinai. 

Parashat Emor
Leviticus 21:1 – 24:23

On the heels of last week’s exalted portion of Kedoshim, this week’s portion gets down to the nitty-gritty of how to avoid ritual defilement and remain in the realm of holiness as defined by our ancestors.  Israelite priests must refrain from contact with corpses, even their own family members, in order to retain the purity necessary to perform their official duties in the Tabernacle.  Strict boundaries are established for who may eat meat from the sacrifices and when.  High standards of quality apply to those sacrifices; God deserves and receives only the best from the herds and harvests. In Parashat Emor, holiness is achieved through faithfully fulfilling the commandments of God regarding personal conduct, regarding the times and offerings of the festivals throughout the year, through keeping the menorah lights kindled and through rigorously obeying the laws of the Sabbath. 

Parashat Shemini
Lev. 9:1 – 11:47

When I was a little girl, walking into the sanctuary of my synagogue was something I did with trepidation and awe. On Sunday mornings, our religious school class stood in line for several moments outside as our teacher quieted us down and explained again that the sanctuary was a sacred place reserved for