Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 15 Tishri, 5785
Sukkot Day 1

 Good afternoon. Torah thoughts were delayed today because I started not feeling well last night and came down with COVID. It has been an interesting day of reflecting.

I wrote this last year and it has been sitting with me:

For the past few months (Starting in Elul, and culminating at Yom Kippur) all of our work has been internal.  We have reflected internally.  And, as we are at the cusp of the cycle and about to start over, we now physically move out of our homes and enter the Sukkah.  We take the internal work we’ve been doing to this point and go outward with it.  Because all of the internal love and spiritual growth and development does not mean much if we do not pour it out into the world and community around us.

This should be a time we should be applying what we’ve learned with those in our community. This is the harvest. This is the meaning of Sukkot. We are starting fresh – and it is time to see what we’ve learned and put it into direct practice!  How are we doing this over the next week?

As we work within.  as we heal ourselves. We heal the world.  THIS is the message of Sukkot. “Heal ourselves. Heal the World.”

Given that I have COVID, Hashem seems to be encouraging me to rest and stay within, despite the energy pushing us outward. I have walked through a wide range of emotions today.

The day before Yom Kippur, I wrote about when things aren’t going your way, what our options are. My therapist recently reminded me that when we are suffering, there really are only four choices:

• Continue to suffer
• Control our controllables
• Change how we think about the situation
• Practice acceptance

I have struggled with the idea I have COVID. It changed a lot of plans. I was “supposed” to have dinner in the Sukkah at my kids house tonight. I was “supposed” to have fun this weekend. I was “supposed” to work Monday (because I am just starting a new job).

And? I can’t control that. I need to change how I think about the situation.  So now – I am resting. That is what I am supposed to be doing. And, friends have connected with me and reached out to communicate care and compassion.  I’ve had lots of reminders.

Like I wrote before Yom Kippur.  I am  ALSO leaning into:

• This is what is happening
• May I learn to be with reality as it is rather than how I’d might like it to be
• May I be present to the comings and goings of life

 What is happening is I am in the apartment with COVID. I am not in a Sukkah with my kids. I am learning to be with this reality instead of how I want it to be.

A dear friend reminded me of this earlier today when they texted me about all of the amazing things that are going on in my life. I felt so seen and understood – because they’ve been paying attention to me and knew my current reality, and helped me ground in it.

I am also learning to be present.  I was having a tough time this morning. I did not want to be sick. Another dear friend walked with me through that with me on the phone. I did not want to live in the present reality. They stuck with me until I was grounded in what is, instead of lamenting what I felt “should be.”

I have learned today, I have amazing people in my life. I have attracted and been attracted to – over the past few years – many people around me who see me – my heart. They see my life with curiosity and compassion. It’s been a beautiful transition.

And? If you read my Torah thoughts over the past three years? I think you’ll discover the road here is connected the work I have been engaging in – learning to see MY OWN life with curiosity and compassion.

It is a beautiful world Hashem has created. When we truly heal ourselves, we heal the world around us. And as we enter the Sukkot season, may we see and be reminded of the Harvest from the inner work we have been engaged with in the past.

I know I sure have been reminded. Today has been about the external entering MY LIFE and coming into MY SUKKAH within. My heart is the tabernacle. All are welcome in. For those who freely choose to be here? It feels free and safe to be with them!

Ok. I hope my thoughts above make sense. If they don’t, chalk it up to COVID. If they make sense? Chalk it up to COVID.

And what I mean by that? Chalk it up to Hashem.

Chag Sameach Sukkot!

Here’s my thoughts from last year:

Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 15 Tishri, 5784

Chag Sameach! Happy Sukkot!

We take a break from the Torah cycle – we have one more portion to go!  And we read special readings.

Today’s readings are Leviticus 22:26-23:44 and Numbers 29:12-16

Numbers 29:12-16 is basically the Torah defining what this Holiday of Sukkot is all about.  But the portion of Leviticus 22:26-23:44 is really interesting to me.  I am including commentary from two years ago below.

But I wanted to share a short thought as we enter Sukkot.

For the past few months (Starting in Elul, and culminating at Yom Kippur) all of our work has been internal.  We have reflected internally.  And, as we are at the cusp of the cycle and about to start over, we now physically move out of our homes and enter the Sukkah.  We take the internal work we’ve been doing to this point and go outward with it.  Because all of the internal love and spiritual growth and development does not mean much if we do not pour it out into the world and community around us.

This should be a time we should be applying what we’ve learned with those in our community. This is the harvest. This is the meaning of Sukkot. We are starting fresh – and it is time to see what we’ve learned and put it into direct practice!  How are we doing this over the next week?

As we work within.  as we heal ourselves. We heal the world.  THIS is the message of Sukkot. “Heal ourselves. Heal the World.”

Here is my commentary on Leviticus 22:26 – 23:44 from two years ago:

So let’s dig in;

The portion (Leviticus 22:26-33) starts with speaking against offering a blemished animal as a sacrifice. The Torah lists out various animals and they should be brought without blemish. When we get to Oxes and Sheep, God does make a provision:

You may bring an ox or sheep that has disproportionate limbs or uncloven hooves as a pledge but not as a vow.

So we see there is a difference between a pledge and a vow. Vows require unblemished animals.

Next, God speaks to Moses about how to keep and slaughter the sacrifices.

1. When an ox, sheep or goat is born, it should remain with its mother for 7 days. Then from the 8th day on, it will be accepted as a fire offering
2. do not slaughter a mother ox or sheep and her child in one day
3. When slaughtering a thanks giving sacrifice, it should be done while having in mind the sacrifice will be eaten on the same day it is sacrificed, and there will be no leftovers.

The portion then closes with the message; “pay attention.”

We should keep studying Hashem’s commandments and observing them because Hashem is God. We should not desecrate His name by violating the commandments intentionally.

Hashem is the God who sanctifies us. He separates us; makes us holy.

Let’s stop for a minute. Going back to the idea of being “blemished,” this line is critical. We are not made pure and holy because of what we do. Hashem makes us holy because he sanctifies us. Daily. Why else have this sacrificial system? Hashem provides a way for us. He desires us to be holy. He desires us to be set apart. That’s the message!

The last line of the portion also is significant:

“I am God who sanctifies you, who is taking you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. I am God.”

God makes us desirable. We can’t make ourselves desirable. We cannot make ourselves free. God makes us free.

And that is good news when we are dealing with our blemishes!

What are your thoughts?

Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 10 Iyar, 5782

Today is the 25th day of the Omer

Todays portion is really interesting because we are learning about the period of time which we currently find ourselves. We are going to study the two current festivals we find ourselves between and the counting of the Omer.

Todays portion (Leviticus 23:1-22) starts with Hashem talking to Moses and telling him to tell Israel to go to Jerusalem to celebrate the festivals of God.

Hashem goes on to explain that just like the Sabbath (each Friday night to Saturday sundown), these festivals should be observed to the same degree. These are intended to be holy celebrations.

The festivals are connected to the agricultural cycle- Passover is a time when produce ripens, Shavuot is a time when the harvest comes, Sukkot is the completion of the harvest season.

It’s almost like Shavuot is our Memorial Day, and Sukkot is our Labor Day. Even in our current culture we have built our lives around this similar schedule – although robbed of its Jewishness.

So let’s get back to the passage – Passover is up first. We are given the mitzvahs of Passover. Read my Torah thoughts from two weeks ago, and you can see my thoughts about Passover. I want to focus on the Omer.

First, we learn about the Omer offering. Hashem tells Moses that when we come to the land He is giving us, and we reap its harvest, we should bring an “Omer-measure” from the first of our reaping to the priest.

The priest should wave the Omer in front of Hashem on our behalf. It should be waved on the day following the first rest day of Passover. And on that day, we should additionally offer up:

1. A perfect lamb in its first year as a burnt offering
2. It’s associated meal offering of 2/10ths of an Ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a fire offering
3. A quarter hin of wine.

We are also told that until this day (the first day following the rest day of Passover) we should not eat bread, parched grain flour or parched kernels from the new harvest.

Finally, we are told this isn’t just about the promised land. We are told this is a mitzvah throughout our generations In all the places we live.

So. Why don’t we do this? I am not sure I have an answer.

Finally, todays portion closes with the counting of the Omer and Shavuot. This is the season we are in right now.

The Torah says following this first day of Omer offering (the following Day after the first day of rest of Passover) we are to count seven weeks. We should count up to but not including 50 days. The day following the seventh week.

Now it’s interesting. We are today in the middle of the 25th day. 24.5 days have passed since the day of the Omer offering and 24.5 days are in front of us until the 50th day starts.

So we are right smack dab in the middle. Between the ripening and the harvest. The ripening of liberation and the harvest of liberation.

And on the 50th day, we are told to bring the first meal offering from the new crop to God.

Think about this. Liberation ripened on Passover. But we don’t bring the fruits of that liberation until Shavuot – 50 days later.

What journey are you on with liberation today? Take comfort that we are halfway there!

And what are we to bring on the 50th day?

1. From the places we live, we should bring bread that is designated for a higher purpose! 2 loaves made from 2/10ths of an ephah of fine flour. Baked leavened since they are the first meal offering to God.
2. With the bread, we are to offer 7 perfect lambs in their first year. One young bull. Two rams. These should be a burnt offering
3. One male goat as a sin offering.
4. Two lambs in their first year as a peace offering
5. The priest should wave the two lambs with the first meal offering bread as a wave offering before God. This should be done while the two lambs are still alive. This is unlike a normal peace offering which is of a lesser degree of holiness.
6. We should declare this day (the 50th day) a holy celebration for us. We should not perform any manual work. It’s an eternal statute in all the places we live, throughout our generations.

Let’s stop for a second. We are called to celebrate Shavuot everywhere. Why don’t we? Even as a Jew, growing up in a conservative synagogue- Shavuot was discussed but we never really “celebrated” it. Passover? Sure. Rosh Hashanah? Sure. Yom Kippur? Sure. Sukkot? Yup. But Shavuot really didn’t seem to be a big deal. maybe that’s my perception as a kid; but I know I didn’t have to take off from school for Shavuot.

The portion today closes with this:

1. When we reap the harvest of the land, we should not completely remove the corner of our field during harvesting. It should be left for the poor. Nor should we gather the individual stalks of the harvest that have fallen; those should also be left for the poor and the convert.

There is an interesting note from Rabbi Meir Simchah of Dvinsk about this practice:

“Why does the Torah make mention of the gifts left over for the poor in the middle of detailing all the festivals? After the Torah commands us regarding the Festival of Weeks (Shavuot), which is associated with the giving of the Torah, we are told immediately about the moral obligation to give charity to the poor to stress that the Torah comprises not only suprarational decrees and spiritual matters, but also a deep sense of humanitarianism.”

I really appreciate this thought. As we recognize today being the middle of this period of our own personal journey of liberation and freedom, it would be easy to hyper focus on ourselves. Yet we are called to also think of others on this journey. How are we focusing on others at the same time we journey within?

Those are my thoughts. How about you? What are your thoughts?

Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 11 Iyar, 5782

Today is the 26th day of the Omer!

As we have passed through the midpoint of the Omer and turn our attention towards Shavuot – when the ”new crop” is brought before Hashem. This “new crop” hopefully is connected to our freedom and liberation journey from Passover. This new crop is planted in freedom and not out of obligation.

It is interesting because today’s passage is relatively short. But it’s dense.

The portion today (Leviticus 23:23-32) talks about two holidays – Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur; the days of awe.

The theme of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are repentance and forgiveness – and atonement. It’s a good reminder; that even in freedom and liberation, we need to reflect and chew on areas we need forgiveness for – both behaviors that occurred while we were still in slavery – and those that occur while in liberation.

As we journey to bring our new crop to Hashem on Shavuot, it’s good to pause and reflect on those areas we need to deal with and navigate. What are we holding onto that we haven’t let go of? Now is the time to reflect and seek forgiveness; because by doing so, the “new crop” we bring to Hashem on Shavuot is going to be even more pleasing and sweet to Him!

All along the walk with Hashem, He provides us opportunities to turn inward and reflect.

So what thoughts, behaviors and/or beliefs have been dragging you back to slavery? What might we deal with today that will help us continue our journey in the wilderness towards liberation?

I know for me; it’s the trauma of neglect. How that yearning to be healed from a childhood of neglect has impacted how I navigate my relationships with others. How I internalize anxiety in a response to doing everything I can to not neglect others. To the point I don’t take care of myself and then shut down, which then causes neglect of others. Which then creates guilt and shame, and the spiral goes down and down and down.

I’ve learned the importance of self care. That I need to be grounded from within. And understand I am human just like the rest of you. My spending time taking care of me, I am LESS likely to neglect those in my life I care about. I always thought it was the other way around.

So those are my thoughts. What about you? What are yours?

Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 12 Iyar, 5782

Today is the 27th day of the Omer

Good morning! Today’s portion (Leviticus 23:33-44) talks about the Holy days of Sukkot – and the last day of Sukkot which is a different Holy day, Shemini Atzeret.

Fun fact about Shemini Atzeret; our third daughter, Noelle was born on Shemini Atzeret!

Let’s dig in!

Here is what the Torah says about Sukkot:

1. On the 15th day of the seventh month is a Festival of tabernacles – a period of seven days for God
2. The first day is a holy celebration- we should not perform and manual work
3. For seven days we should bring a fire offering to God
4. The eighth day will be a holy celebration for us, and we should bring a fire offering to God.

The Torah then adds this interesting tidbit:

This is a time (the eighth day) when God holds back the Jewish people to be with Him for another day.

So remember – Sukkot is about the harvest season coming to completion. Shavuot is the start.

Hashem loves us SOOOOOO much that when the Harvest comes to an end, He wants just one more day with us. He doesn’t want to let us go. We are wanted. We are desired. That’s very comforting (at least to me).

1. We should not perform any manual work

We then get a summary of all of the festivals – and what we should be doing and what we should be celebrating as holidays.

Because Sukkot is a smidge different. Because when other holy days fall on a sabbath? We are to bring the holy day offering AND the sabbath offering. But on Sukkot, we do NOT bring the peace offerings for Sukkot on the sabbath.

I’m reflecting and chewing on why that would be. Maybe it’s a recognition that this is hard work. Yes, we are talking about the harvesting of literal crops. But I also reflect on the deeper meaning of the spiritual, emotional, and mental health work we do; that there is a planting of healing practices and ideas, there is the growth and development of those ideas in our lives, and then the harvest comes and we reap the benefits and rewards of the work we do on ourselves. Maybe this passage represents God understanding just how tough the work is, and as we come to the end of the cycle of growth and harvest, we get an extra bit of rest before putting everything into practice? Just a thought.

The Torah then tells us Sukkot is eight days but the first and last are rest days. If there is a sabbath in the middle, we get three rest days out of eight.

The Torah then talks about the lulav and etrog. The four species.

The eighth day is Shemini Atzeret. We are to shake the lulav for seven days; but not on Shemini Atzeret; because remember – that’s an “extra” day God just wants to be with us!

Something interesting the Talmud talks about with the four species:

The four species represent four types of people. A citron (etrog), which possesses a good taste and a pleasant smell, represents the Jew who possesses both Torah learning and good deeds.

The date palm branch (lulav) has a good taste but no fragrance, signifying those whose who have Torah knowledge but lack sufficient good deeds.

Those who possess good deeds but are lacking in Torah knowledge are represented by the myrtle (hadasim), which has a fragrant odor but lacks taste.

The willow (aravot), which is inedible and has no aroma represents those people lacking both in Torah and good deeds (end quote)

What I love about this idea is that we can see ourselves as one of the species AND see ourselves connected to the larger Jewish community. There isn’t a judgment on us as to how we live. We are still welcome into the booths and holy days! And. God wants to spend one more day with us.

The portion here closes with the idea that for the seven days of Sukkot we should be living in booths (sukkahs). Every native Jew and convert should live in booths. Why? The Torah tells us; “so that your ensuing generations should know God caused the children of Israel to live in clouds of glory that resemble booths when He took us out of the land of Israel.”

Fun fact for my Christian friends. The likelihood of Jesus being born on December 25th is small. The more likely reality is the manger described in the book you read? Likely a booth. Jesus was Jewish; and the family would have been going to Jerusalem to celebrate Sukkot – and to bring their offerings.

But somehow, over the years, The Jewishness of this event was washed away for December 25th. And Santa Claus. And Yule Logs. And Christmas trees. I wonder why? Just a question.

Anyway! Enjoy your day!