Kol Ramah

Amy Erlanger and Mitch Mernick talk to B3 about the 4th of July and their time at camp.

Complete soundtrack of the wonderful July 4 concert "The Miriam Hertzon Experience"! Josh Ehrlich - Keyboard and Vocals Jeff Weisz - Guitar Max Silverstone - Bass Guitar Phil Kronenberg - Drums Adam Weingarten - Drums and A/V Landon Braverman - Vocals and a little bit of keyboard Lexi Wenger - Vocals Lexi Weakley - Vocals Leilah Rosen - Vocals Ava Lewis - Vocals Mac Liebowitz - Harmonica and vocals

Parsha Talk, with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanosfky. Parashat Korach [Numbers 16-18] is the fifth of the ten weekly readings in the Book of Numbers. One of its distinguishing features is that it is named after a person, which happens 3 times in Numbers, as many times as in the rest of the Torah. The Korach in question is a first cousin of Moses and Aaron, but his appearance in the parashah is for political, not merely familial reasons, though the two are related. Korach takes umbrage at the concentration of power in the family of Moses and Aaron, and wishes for it to be diffused more widely, at least to him and his family. He leads a rebellion against the leadership of Moses and Aaron, which in our version in the Torah is combined with at least 2 or 3 other separate rebellions. Suffice it to say, none of them end well for the instigators. For a slightly different approach than our usual thematically based conversation, we began with the first verse and then made our way through

Jake Weiss from B9 (Bogrim) talks to Amy Erlanger and Benji Goldstein of Kol Ramah.

Opening Day Kayitz 2022!! by Camp Ramah in the Berkshires

Parsha Talk with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky. Parashat Sh’lach [Numbers 13-15] is primarily concerned with the episode of the so-called spies [Numbers 13-14]: Moshe, apparently at God’s bequest, sends 12 men, each a princes of his tribe, to scout out the land in anticipation of entrance and conquest by the Israelites, in fulfillment of God’s promise to the ancestors. They come back with a devastating report by 10 of the 12, which sets back the history of the people by 40 years, since God’s response is to declare that no one over the age of 20, with the exception of Caleb and Joshua [from the tribe of Judah and Ephraim, respectively], will enter the land. The generation of the spies is condemned to live their remaining days in the wilderness. Chapter 15, which itself is worthy of a show, contains legislation about sacrifices, the curious story about the wood-gatherer [15:32-36], and the best known passage, 15:37-41, which became the third paragraph of the Shema in Jewish litu

Parsha Talk, with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky. We often refer to the Torah as the Chumash, a shortening of the Hebrew phrase for the 5 Books of Moses or 5 Books of the Torah. But there is a rabbinic tradition that there are actually 7 books, based on a scribal anomaly where the two verses 10:35-36 are bracketed by inverted nuns [the 14th letter of the Hebrew alphabet] in the Torah scroll.. Our book of Numbers would then comprise 3 books: 1:1-10:34, 10:35-36, and 11:1-12:16. There is no clear consensus why these verses are so bracketed, but the two verses in question are most familiar to us from the Torah service in the synagogue, where verse 10:35 begins the Torah service with the opening of the ark and 10:36 begins the last paragraph before we return the Torah and close the ark. We discuss the significance of these verses as part our conversation for Parashat B’ha’alo’tkha [Numbers 8-12]. There are a myriad of other topics this week, some of which capture our attention, i

Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky: Parashat Naso [Numbers 4:21–7:89] is not just amazing, it is the longest single parashah in the Torah, with well over two thousand words, and contains the longest chapter, chapter 7, with 89 verses. Among the topics taken up is the completion of the levitical census, the trespass offering, the ritual for the woman suspected of adultery, the nazir, and the tribal chieftains’ gifts for the Tabernacle. It is perhaps appropriate for such a dense parashah that our conversation lasted nearly forty minutes, which may be our record. We hope you enjoy! Shabbat Shalom!!

Parsha Talk with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Eliot Kalmanofsky. We begin a new book of the Torah this week, Sefer B’midbar [the Book of Numbers], with the opening parashah [Numbers 1:1–4:20] also named b’midbar [literally, “in the wilderness (of)”, which is the setting for the opening chapters]. This parashah is concerned with the tribal census of fighting men, which is what influenced the Greek, then Latin name for the book, which made its way into English as Numbers. Immediately upon the conclusion of Shabbat begins the holiday of Shavuot, the holiday of first-fruits, which the rabbis designate as z’man mattan torateinu, the season of the giving of the Torah. We devote our conversation this week to the holiday of Shavuot and the theme of revelation. We may pick up b’midbar when we return to our regular schedule next week with parashat Naso, which completes the levitical census, the enumeration of the 3 principal clans of the tribe of Levi and a detailing of their tabernacle responsibilities.

Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky. Parashat B’chukotai [Leviticus 26:3-27:34] concludes the reading from the Book of Leviticus. Chapter 26 contains the tochechah, the lengthy passage of rebuke for failure to live up to God’s commands, which finds an echo in parashat Ki Tavo, near the end of Deuteronomy. Chapter 27 discusses votive offerings to the tabernacle, where a person’s donation is determined by gender and age. This finds an echo in the Book of Numbers, which we begin reading next week, and the redemption of the first-born. This topic of valuations forms the basis of the mishnaic tractate of Arakhin, and provides a contrast between the monetary worth of a human being here with the infinite value of a human being embedded in the idea that each of us is created in the image of God. Shabbat Shalom!

Parsha Talk; with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky. Parashat B’har [Leviticus 25:1–26:2], at 57 verses, is one of the shortest of the weekly readings. It is concerned with the shmittah [sabbatical] year and yovel [jubilee] year, as well as other legislation designed to remediate poverty which leads to the selling of ancestral land. Of particular note for Americans [of the United States variety] is 25:10, which provides the Hebrew source for the inscription on the Liberty Bell, “you shall proclaim liberty throughout the land, unto all the inhabitants thereof”. We discussed a little bit what liberty or freedom might have meant in its biblical context, but spent most of our time discussing a rabbinic take on the trolley problem, which is found in the Talmud [Bava Metzia 62a], and quotes from our parashah as a proof-text [25:36] As always, comments and criticisms are welcome at parshatalk.com. Shabbat Shalom!

Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky bring us Parsha Talk! The parashah this week is Emor [Leviticus 21-24], which features the Levitical calendar [chapter 23], last read in the synagogue on the 2nd day of Passover. This calendar is a culmination of the move to a fixed calendar, with nearly all the holidays now designated for a specific day and month, completing the shift from agricultural occasions in the earlier calendars [Exodus and Deuteronomy]. Chapter 21 is devoted to various priestly restrictions and limitations, to borrow the title given it by Baruch Levine in his JPS Torah Commentary, while Chapter 22 discusses various sacred donations which come to the priests as a result of their service. Chapter 24 contains one of the few events that takes place in Leviticus, an event which sparks the conclusion of our conversation. As always, comments and criticisms are welcome at parshatalk.com. Shabbat Shalom!

Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Jeremy Kalmanofskt and Barry Chesler. This week we are back to the regular weekly reading, parashat Kedoshim [Leviticus 19-20]. For the rabbis, this is the central portion of Leviticus, with the famous verse, ve-ahavta l-re’akha ka-mokha [“you shall love your neighbor as yourself”], at the very center of the Torah. According to the Sage, Hillel, the rest [of the Torah] is commentary. We take up the theme of holiness in our discussion of chapter 19, though we make some references to chapter 20, a kind of reprise of chapter 18, read three weeks ago as part of parashat Acharai Mot. Since we recorded the show on the eve of Yom Ha-atzma’ut, Israel’s Independence Day, we spent some time discussing its significance. We hope you enjoy! Shabbat Shalom!!

Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Jeremy Kalmanofsky and Barrry Chesler. Parashat Acharai Mot [Leviticus 16-18] is familiar to many of us from Yom Kippur, when we reach chapter 16 in the morning and, traditionally, chapter 18, though in modern times congregations have chosen to read chapter 19 or parashat nitzavim for Deuteronomy. Chapter 16 describes the Yom Kippur ritual in the mishkan [tabernacle], and is prefaced by a note about the deaths of Nadav and Avihu, narrated in chapter 10. We spend the first part of our conversation discussing these deaths and what they might have meant in the life of the nation and in the lives of Moses and Aaron, national leaders but also brothers who suffered an enormous tragedy. The second part of the conversation took its cue from the calendar, the observance of Yom HaShoah [Holocaust Memorial Day] this past Wednesday evening and Thursday, and of Yom Ha-Zikkaron [Israel’s Memorial Day] and Yom Ha-Atzma’ut [Israel’s Independence Day]. Jeremy, who must returned from a trip to Israel

Join Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky for Parsha Talk! Because the next two shabbatot are the first and last Yom Tov of Pesach, we offer this special Pesach edition of Parashah Talk, where the conversation focuses on the Haggadah, rather than the Torah portion. We hope this will carry you through until parashat Acharai Mot, read in synagogues on April 30, when we will return to our normal schedule! Until then, our best wishes for a zissen Pesach!!

Parsha Talk with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Jeremy Kalmanofsky and Barry Chesler. This week’s parashah is M’tzora [Leviticus 14-15], which continues the Torah’s discussion of the skin affliction commonly, but mistakenly, identified with leprosy. In the latter part of chapter 14, this affliction plagues the houses of the Israelites. The Torah raises the curiosity of the Israelite summoning the priest to make the diagnosis but given time to remove the movables, lest they be condemned with the house. This raises the possibility that the affliction has a spiritual dimension which may be of greater importance than the physical one. The haftarah, special for the Shabbat before Passover, is from the last chapter of the last prophet, Malachi [generally dated to late 6th century, around the building of the 2nd Temple], who predicts the coming of Elijah to restore harmony between parents and their children. The generation gap, perhaps surprisingly, is much older than we often imagine, and may require a miraculous interv

Parsha Talk with Rabbis Malomet, Kalmanofsky and Chesler. This week is the 4th of the special Shabbatot before Pesach, each with a special maftir [additional reading] and haftarah [prophetic reading]. Next week is also special; it is the Shabbat before Pesach and is called Shabbat Ha-gadol, for reasons which fall far short of unanimous agreement. While Shabbat Ha-gadol does have a special haftarah, there is no special maftir. Perhaps more on that next week! The weekly reading is Thazria [Leviticus 12-13], flying solo so to speak this year [in many years it is paired with M’tzorah, which this year we read next week]. The seventh aliyah, which is normally the end of the weekly reading, is from Numbers 28:9-15, in honor of Rosh Chodesh, the first day of the Hebrew month Nisan.. The maftir is from Exodus [12:1-20], and details the preparation for Pesach Mitzrayim, the Passover as celebrated in Egypt. While Thazria, which is primarily about the disease commonly, but mistakenly according to most scholars, cal

Join Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky for Parsha Talk! Parashat Sh’mini [Leviticus 9-11] coincides with Shabbat Parah this year, the third of the four special shabbatot before Passover, each with its own maftir [this week Numbers 19] and haftarah [Ezekiel 36:16-38]. The Torah reading features the culmination of the ordination ceremony for the priests and sacrifice with its unexpected ending in the deaths of Aaron’s two older sons, Nadav and Avihu, and the dietary laws. The special maftir describes the curious rite of the red heifer, and provides a different counterpoint to the story of Nadav and Avihu than the usual haftarah [2 Samuel 6:1-7:17]. As is often the case, I do not always remember what we discuss before we record and what we discuss on the program! You may send questions and comments to parshatalk@gmail.com. Shabbat Shalom!

Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky. Parashat Tzav [Leviticus 6-8] divides, unevenly, into 2 sections. The first 2 chapters reprise the sacrifices discussed in last week’s parashah, but this time from the priest’s perspective. In this sense, it is a coda to last week. Chapter 8 is the first half of what Baruch Levine calls, in his JPS Torah Commentary on Leviticus, “The Initiation of Formal Worship”. Eliot has the timer when we record so I have no idea if our conversation so neatly mirrors the parashah’s division or has its own organizational scheme. We said what we wanted to say, though, and we hope you enjoy it! Shabbat Shalom, and for those listening before Thursday night, Purim Same’ach!!

Parsha Talk with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Jeremy Kalmanofsky and Barry Chesler. This week, we begin a new book of the Torah, Va-yiqra [Leviticus] with the parashah [chapters 1-5] taking its name from the book. It provides a detailed description of the 5 major sacrifices an Israelite might offer, 3 voluntary [olah (burmt offering), minchah (grain offering), zevach sh’lamim (sacred gift of greeting)] and 2 required [chattat (sin-offering) and asham (penalty offering)], occasioned by certain sins and the desire to make amends.. In addition, it is Shabbat Zachor, the 2nd of the special shabbatot before Passover, which always falls on the Shabbat before Purim, observed this year Wednesday evening, March 16, and Thursday, March 17. We touch upon the maftir [Deuteronomy 25:17-19] but did not have time to discuss the fascinating haftarah [1 Samuel 15:2-34] in which Saul will lose his kingdom. Instead we concluded with a game to spark a discussion of the Book of Esther and the holiday of Purim. Let us know what you