Kol Ramah

Parashat Va-yiggash [Genesis 44:18-47:27] is the penultimate parashah in the Book of Genesis. It is hard to believe that it has been well over two months since we began our annual reading in the synagogue! This parashah provides the climax to the saga of Joseph and his brothers, with the big reveal, the reunion of the brothers, now each known to one another, and the reunion of Jacob with all of his sons. We sometimes lose sight of the idea that these stories in Genesis operate on two distinct levels: on one level, they are the stories of individuals in specific family relationships; on another level, they are stories about tribal dynamics, a way of explaining the national drama. We try to address both in our conversation this week. Please leave any comments below. Now well over 800 days into the war, Ran Gvili remains the single hostage who remains in captivity. We continue to pray for his speedy release to his family for a final, dignified burial. We also have in mind the soldiers who defend Israel as

Parashat Mi-ketz [Genesis 41:1-44::17] is the second parashah in the extended Joseph saga, which stretches over 4 parashiyot, taking us to the end of Genesis in two weeks. This year, it coincides with Rosh Hodesh and Hanukkah, an occurrence which happens with some frequency. In 1991, this triple Torah header took place on the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor, and my senior sermon. It allowed me to begin by noting this was the Jewish version of Torah Torah Torah. I spoke then of the butler’s confession, et hatta’i ani mazkir ha-yom, My sins I mention today. The midrash pays attention to the plural, sins, noting that the butler sinned against Pharaoh, which caused him to be sent to jail, and he sinned against Joseph by letting him languish in jail after promising to mention him at the end of last week’s parashah. It occurred to me only recently that the butler had in mind his sin against Joseph does not make a great deal sense; what is the value of a public confession when the person sinned against is no

Parsha Talk Vayeshev Rabbi Kalmanofsky 2025 5786 by Camp Ramah in the Berkshires

Parsha Talk Vayeshev Rabbi Malomet 2025 5786 by Camp Ramah in the Berkshires

Rabbi Eliezer Diamond was a distinguished scholar, a deeply respected spiritual leader, and a transformative interpreter of the Talmud. For more than 35 years, he taught Talmud and Rabbinics at JTS, retiring only about a year ago. Generations of students were profoundly influenced by his passionate and insightful teaching. His writings on prayer, asceticism, rabbinic storytelling, and environmental law and ethics have left a lasting mark on the Jewish world. In the summers of 2006 and 2007, Rabbi Diamond hosted the show "Eli the D with Music for you and me" on radio Kol Ramah. In honor of Rabbi Diamond, we share these shows again.

Rabbi Eliezer Diamond was a distinguished scholar, a deeply respected spiritual leader, and a transformative interpreter of the Talmud. For more than 35 years, he taught Talmud and Rabbinics at JTS, retiring only about a year ago. Generations of students were profoundly influenced by his passionate and insightful teaching. His writings on prayer, asceticism, rabbinic storytelling, and environmental law and ethics have left a lasting mark on the Jewish world. In the summers of 2006 and 2007, Rabbi Diamond hosted the show "Eli the D with Music for you and me" on radio Kol Ramah. In honor of Rabbi Diamond, we share these shows again.

Rabbi Eliezer Diamond was a distinguished scholar, a deeply respected spiritual leader, and a transformative interpreter of the Talmud. For more than 35 years, he taught Talmud and Rabbinics at JTS, retiring only about a year ago. Generations of students were profoundly influenced by his passionate and insightful teaching. His writings on prayer, asceticism, rabbinic storytelling, and environmental law and ethics have left a lasting mark on the Jewish world. In the summers of 2006 and 2007, Rabbi Diamond hosted the show "Eli the D with Music for you and me" on radio Kol Ramah. In honor of Rabbi Diamond, we share these shows again.

Rabbi Eliezer Diamond was a distinguished scholar, a deeply respected spiritual leader, and a transformative interpreter of the Talmud. For more than 35 years, he taught Talmud and Rabbinics at JTS, retiring only about a year ago. Generations of students were profoundly influenced by his passionate and insightful teaching. His writings on prayer, asceticism, rabbinic storytelling, and environmental law and ethics have left a lasting mark on the Jewish world. In the summers of 2006 and 2007, Rabbi Diamond hosted the show "Eli the D with Music for you and me" on radio Kol Ramah. In honor of Rabbi Diamond, we share these shows again.

This recording is from the Radio Kol Ramah archives 2012. If you were curious which music our scholar-in-residence listens to, you will not want to miss this episode of Rabbi Eliezer Diamond’s weekly radio show on Kol Ramah 102.3 FM. Featuring music of Debbie Friedman, Doc Watson and the Band.

Songs In the Key Of Peace & Harmony. Featuring The Town & Village Synagogue Choir, T&V Junior Singers and Teen Singers, Scott Stein, Piano. Special Guests: The Coral Torah Collective - Featuring the Music of Cantor josh Ehrlich

Parashat Va-yishlach [Genesis 32:4-36:43] features Jacob’s reunion with Esau, but not before his fateful encounter with the mystery combatant, sometimes identified as Esau’s guardian angel, sometimes with Jacob himself, and sometimes as some other figure. Jacob reunites with his father ever so briefly, ever so cryptically, at the end of chapter 35:27. There is also the horrific assault on Dinah, Jacob’s only daughter. There was a lot to talk about, including the various family relationships highlighted in this parashah and elsewhere in Genesis. We hope you enjoy it! We continue to keep in mind the two remaining hostages, may they be returned speedily to their families. We are also mindful of the men and women defending Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.

Parashat Va-yetze [Genesis 28:10-32:2], my Bar Mitzvah (BC) portion, crams over 20 years of Jacob’s life into a single parashah. And what an eventful 20+ years. Jacob leaves Beer-sheva for his uncle Laban’s home, meets his cousin Rachel at the well, agrees to work for 7 years to marry her; agrees to work another 7 years to marry her after Leah was substituted for Rachel at the wedding, sires 11 of his 12 sons and his daughter Dinah, works another 6 years to acquire flocks of his own, and decides to return to Canaan. A half hour hardly seems to do justice to the richness of this parashah! We are mindful of the remaining hostages in Gaza, may they be speedily returned. We also keep in mind the soldiers defending Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. A belated Shabbat Shalom as this is posted after the parashah has already been read in the synagogue. My apologies.

Parashat Toldot [Genesis 25:19-28:9] features Isaac, the middle patriarch. The toldot [“generations” or “story} belong to Isaac; but the far more interesting character is Rebecca, so we devote most of our time to exploring her character. Perhaps the most famous story in the parashah is Jacob’s acquisition of the blessing, about which it might be said that Rebecca, alone of the four participants in the drama, gets what she wants. On the other hand, she loses everything, in a sense, including a death notice. Give a listen and let us know what you think! We continue to have in mind the remaining hostages, dead in Gaza, who should have been returned to Israel long ago. May they be speedily returned to their families. We are also mindful of the men and women defending Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Hodesh Tov. Shabbat Shalom. May the coming lights of Hanukkah illumine bring light to the world.

Parasashat Hayei Sarah [Genesis 23:1-25:18] begins with the death of Sarah and the acquisition of the Cave of Machpelah as a burial place for her. The cave will become the burial place for all the patriarchs and matriarchs save for Rachel, who is buried elsewhere. By far the longest chapter in Genesis, chapter 24 describes how Rebekah became rhe wife of Isaac. Chapter 25 provides the details of Abraham’s marriage to Keturah and their subsequent offspring; the death and burial of Abraham; and the genealogy and death of Ishmael. One way to look at this parashah is as the emergence of Isaac as the 2nd patriarch, for at the end of the parashah he is the only male left standing. Our conversation mostly focused on the always engaging chapter 24. With the return of another body to Israel, 3 hostages remain in Gaza. We continue to keep them in mind as we continue to pray for their speedy return to Israel. We also have in mind the men and women defending Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be

Parashat Va-yera [Genesis 18-22] is one of the richest parashiyot in the Torah. Chapter 18 features the angels coming to announce the birth of Isaac, chapter 19 the conversation between God and Abraham about the fate of Sodom and Gemorrah, chapter 20 the second wife-sister story featuring Abraham and Sarah, this time with Avimelech, chapter 21 the banishment of Hagar and Ishmael, and chapter 22, the binding of Isaac. We took as a prompt verse 18:33 from the conversation [actually the verse just after the conversation concluded] and one from the binding of Isaac [22:19], which is the conclusion to that story. We discussed them in-depth as we tried to come to an understanding of the character of Abraham. As always, we are interested in what our listerners and viewers think of our ideas, so please feel free to respond below. This past Sunday, the body of my former student, Captain Omer Maxim Neutra z”l was returned to Israel, where he will be buried on Friday morning, Israel time. While this marks the end of

Parashat Lech L’cha [Genesis 12:1-17:27] is the third of the parashiyot in Sefer Bereshit [Book of Genesis]. It has long been recognized as the beginning of our Jewish journey, though Abram [who is renamed Abraham in the parashah] is never identified as a Jew. He is Abram the Ivri, the Hebrew, which might be understood as Abram, the descendant of Eber, or Abram, the one who stood over and against the world with his proclamation of monotheism in a world of pagan worship. Our conversation focused on the opening verses, with God’s charge to Abraham. What is the force of the phrase ve’h’yeh b’rakha, be a blessing [12:2]? What is Abraham’s mission? We also compared him with Sarah, about both of whom the Torah records that they laughed in response to the news about an impending pregnancy. What kind of laughter was it? What does it teach us about Sarah and Abraham, not only as individuals, but as marriage partners? This is a particularly rich parashah [which probably could be said about all the parashiyot in

Parashat Noah [Genesis 6:9-11:32] is the second parashah in Sefer B’reshit [Book of Genesis]. It largely consists of the Flood story, which has been unwoven by modern Bible critics who convincingly show, to some, that the story is the weaving together of two discrete and sometimes contradictory accounts. Our focus was on the character of Noah, and what to make of him. At the end of last week’s parashah he is described as one who found favor with God. At the beginning of this week, he is described as a “righteous man; blameless in his age; [who] walked with God” [NJPS]. What do these terms mean? How does Noah compare with Adam and with Abraham? Before we knew it, our time was up! We continue to be mindful of the remaining hostages, no longer among the living, who yet remain in Gaza. May theY be returned to their families no! We also keep in mind the soldiers defending Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces, may the be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.

After many summers at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires, we began Parashah Talk again the week after Covid shut down so much of the country in March 2020. In October, 2025, we begin our sixth year of the Torah Cycle. We spend some time talking about the epochal moment in which the remaining living hostages were returned home to Israel. We also discuss the importance of Parashat B’reshit [Genesis 1:1-6:8] and what that mean for our understanding of God and the God of Creation. Give a lesson and let us know what you think! Though the living hostages have been returbned, we continue to be mindful of those whose bodies have yet to be returned for a proper and dignified burial. May God protect those who defend Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces, and remove them from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom.

(Excerpts from Rabbi Barry Chesler - full comments at kolramah.us) Fifty-two years ago this past Thursday on the Jewish calendar, war broke out in Israel as soldiers from Egypt and Syria crossed the borders established by the 6-Day War into Israel. On the holiest day of the year, Israel was attacked. That year the Book of Life was inscribed with the blood of Israel’s soldiers, and Yom Kippur has never been quite the same. Fifty years and two days later on the English calendar, war again broke out in Israel with the invasion of Hamas terrorists into Israel, murdering indiscriminately over a thousand people: Israelis and non-Israelis, Jews and non-Jews, civilians and soldiers. This time the holy day was Sh’mini Atzeret/Simhat Torah in Israel, Sh’mini Atzeret in the Diaspora, the culmination of זמן שמחתנו [z’man simhateinu], the season of our rejoicing. This year, October 7 falls on the first day of סוכות. Such are the vagaries of the Jewish calendar. Let us find away to rejoice, to celebrate, even with t

Parashat Nitzavim [Deuteronomy 29:9-30:20] is the last parashah of 5785, and consequently the last Parashah Talk of the year. We will be next recording after Rosh Hashanah [September 22-23, 2025]. There are only two weekly readings left in Sefer Devarim, the Book of Deuteronomy, with the last parashah reserved for Simchat Torah [October 15, 2025]. In our conversation we explored the meaning of circumcision of the heart, comparing it with the physical circumcision of b’rit milah. As befitting our last episode of the Jewish year, we also discussed Rosh Hashanah and what blessings we would hope for. We continue to keep in mind the hostages, both the dead and the living, may they be returned to their families immediately. We are also mindful of the soldiers defending Israel as part of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. Shabbat Shalom and Shanah Tovah U’m’tukah. May the coming year be one of return, one of healing, and one of peace. If this comes to pass, our wish for a sweet ne