Daniel M. Kimmel
My Weekly Drash -- (a mini D'Var Torah) -- Shmot (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Shmot
As we begin Parshah Sh'mot, we discover how after many generations beyond Joseph things have gotten bad for the Israelites, to the point where the new Pharaoh has ordered the murder of newborn male children. The Israelites need someone who, with God's help, will free them from slavery and lead...
My Weekly Drash -- (a mini D'Var Torah) -- Shmot (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Shmot
As we begin Parshah Sh'mot, we discover how after many generations beyond Joseph things have gotten bad for the Israelites, to the point where the new Pharaoh has ordered the murder of newborn male children. The Israelites need someone who, with God's help, will free them from slavery and lead...
My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) - Va-Y'Chi (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Vayechi
Parshah Va-Y'hi closes out Bereshit (Genesis) on a somber note. After the death of Jacob there is mourning and - with Pharaoh's permission - his remains are transported to Canaan. Joseph's death is reported differently: "Joseph died at the age of one hundred and ten years; and was embalmed and...
My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) -- Vayigash (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Vayigash
Parshah Va-Yiggash contains Joseph's dramatic revelation to his brothers and his emotional reunion with his father Jacob, but there's an interesting lesson to be had in between. Pharaoh has told Joseph to invite his entire family to settle in Egypt and promises they will be well treated. Joseph...
My Weekly Drash (a mini d'var Torah) -- Miketz (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Miketz
As Joseph plays out his elaborate ruse with his brothers, there's a moment where he has something else on his mind. In Parshah Mi-Ketz we read, "He greeted them, and he said, 'How is your aged father of whom you spoke? Is he still in good health?'" (Gen 43:27). The rabbis see this as an example of...
My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) -- Vayeshev (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Vayeshev
Joseph's problems emerge in the opening verses of Parshah Vayeishev: "And when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of his brothers, they hated him so that they could not speak a friendly word to him." (Gen. 37:4) Jacob, who saw his own father favoring his brother and saw the...
My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) -- Vayishlach (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Vayishlach
For those of us without rabbinical training, the workings of the classic rabbis can sometimes seem strange. For example at the beginning of Parshah Vayishlach Jacob sends messengers to soften up his brother Esau ahead of his return. He begins one such message, "I stayed with Laban and remained...
My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) - Vayetze (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Vayetze
We read in Parshah Va-Yetzei, “Leah conceived and bore a son, and named him Reuben; for she declared, “It means: ‘The Lord has seen my affliction’; it also means: ‘Now my husband will love me.’” (Gen. 29:32). Although we are a people of custom and tradition, this is one custom that has happily...
My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) - Toldot (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Toldot
In Parshah Toldot Jacob gets the birthright due Esau by demanding it in exchange for dinner. "And Esau said, 'I am at the point of death, so of what use is my birthright to me?'" (Gen. 25:32) We can question Jacob's action, but the rabbis note the ease and carelessness with which Esau accepts the...
My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) -- Vayera (3)
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel | Tags: Vayera
The story of Lot is a baffling one. What we remember is that his wife turns to a pillar of salt, but that’s actually the least interesting part of the story. When a Sodomite mob demands he produce his male guests (actually angels) for implied gang rape, his response is to offer his virgin...
