Resources
Vayeshev, Yosef’s brothers, and Gaza
"More and more I begin to believe that we are as defined by those calls for help we do not answer as by those calls that we do."
“THEY FOUGHT BACK, USING EVERYTHING THEY HAD AVAILABLE”: Democracy and Theology in Independent Afro-Jewish Communities
A conversation between Rabbi Walter Isaac, PhD, and Rabbi Koach Baruch Frazier on the role of Black Judaic communities in innovating democratic ideals in the Americas.
Democracy: Remembering Where We Are Going
A d’var Torah for Yitro (Ex.18:1-20:23) by Rabbi Gordon Tucker. The Book of Eikhah (Lamentations) contains this apparently oxymoronic phrase when speaking of how ancient Judea had lost its moral way: “It did not remember its future” (1:9). What could it mean to remember something that is not in the past? The usual ways of...
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Judging a Sovereign: How the Judges are Judged
With thanks to our chaver Rabbi Jason Rubenstein, who brought these texts to our attention, this sheet delves into what happens when a sovereign goes on trial and the judges buckle under fear of him. It gives us Jewish language for grappling with corruption, complicity, and power.
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Chester Hollman III Has a Lot of Torah to Teach Us
Chester Hollman III understands what it means to endure the trials and tribulations of the wilderness while dreaming of the Promised Land.
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Tefillat HaDerekh from Montgomery, Alabama
Written during the T’ruah delegation to the Legacy Museum and National Memorial for Peace and Justice, January 26-28, 2020 Rabbi Nina H. Mandel Bo Bo el Par’oh Come after the oppressor Join the trouble Muster your strength Gird your loins Mobilize your anger Disrupt, disrupt, disrupt Watch for bias Cry out for truth Soften...
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How Teshuvah Can Inform Our Thinking on Slavery and Reparations
In a d’var Torah for Parshat Bo, Rabbi Ari Lev Fornari suggests teshuvah may provide a framework for thinking about reparations.
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How Jews Are Fighting for Racial Justice
T’ruah’s public message for Martin Luther King Day 2020: Dear Supporter, As people around the country remember Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we at T’ruah are honoring him by preparing for our next delegation to Montgomery, Alabama. One week from today, we will be visiting the National Memorial for Peace and Justice and the Legacy...
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Freedom Means Thinking for Oneself, Too
In this week’s d’var torah on Parshat VaEra, Bard College President Leon Botstein asks just what kind of freedom Moses was demanding.
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No Shortcuts to Liberation, Alas
In this week's d'var torah on Parshat Shemot, NYC Councilman Brad Lander draws connections between patterns of oppression and resistance then and now.
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Arts of Losing: Joseph and His Brothers, Religious Nationalism, and Democracy
Joy Ladin applies the 'art of losing' to Joseph, his brothers, and religious nationalists in this d'var torah for Parshat Vayechi.
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We Choose To Keep People Hungry. We Don’t Have To.
Abby Leibman analyzes our attitudes towards hunger in this d'var torah on parshat Vayigash.
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