Rachel is a powerful biblical character, in her showing up and in her disappearing, and possibly the biggest "oker/uprooter" of the whole family....
Akiva and Ishmael at the Mountain
"Acher and ben Zoma in the orchard. Akiva uprooting the mountain...." some SVARA-inspired thoughts on rabbinic image-language.
Bent, Barren, Essential and Abundant
Midrash calls Rachel ikarah [chief] as play on the word "akarah [barren]." But what about Sarah and Rebekah? More on roots, uprooting, and essence.
UncertainTree
What was Isaac doing in the field at the eventide? Uncertainty is more powerful than a simple answer.
Planting Trees, Stretching Glitter
The planting of an orchard, or center of hospitality, could be a whole episode, or maybe an entire series, in a serial story. Within the plot-heavy Torah portion Vayera, ([“And he saw”]: Gen 18:1-22:24 — see My Jewish Learning), however, this bit of narrative can be easily overlooked or dismissed -- it seems so small, … Continue reading Planting Trees, Stretching Glitter
Reading Wrong
If we start with the intention of learning to build community, how will the questions we ask of Torah change?
Structure and Blessing
Short note on a connecting root shared by birah and berakha.
Across and Afire
An individual perceived a structure aglow and asked: "Is no one in charge?" God responds: "We are!"
Bent Word of the Week
In the spirit of noticing words with a meaning related to "bending," here are some notes on the root bet-reish-chaf (barakh; berekh)
Purposes and Purpose: Ecclesiastes and Babel
This post looks at the contrast between "every purpose" and "common purpose" in Ecclesiastes and the Babel story and some related matters of language and poetry.
Rereading Torah Towards Liberation 