Jewish Musings Sunday, February 18

[hollygail]

What’s on your mind — how to make kugel? This week’s Torah reading? Life goals? Prayer? We are all engaged in weight loss/weight maintenance journeys and we are all Jewish or at least interested in Judaism. We like to eat, we like to discuss. It is our goal here to provide each other support on our journeys, to share experiences, to call on our rich cultural heritage and texts, and to help each other grow spiritually.

Some of us take weekly turns starting the thread:

Frieda (hopefully)?
Holly
Lee
Louise
Lynne
Peachy

And for those of you who stop by to read this thread without posting — you are welcome to, but you are also welcome to chime in. Don’t be shy!

[lee058]

Good morning everybody, and hi there hollygail, !! Hope everyone is well and SAFE!! Please pray for Israel!!

Today I will be cooking (with DH and DS) and doing laundry (with DS). I think we'll have fun.

I'll check back in awhile to see what today's topic will be.

Have a peaceful day, Lee

[hollygail]

This week's Torah portion is Tetzaveh, Exodus 27:20 – 30:10. A brief summary might include that God appoints Aaron and his sons as priests. God describes the priestly clothing and explains how to sanctify the priests properly. Aaron is commanded to make incense offerings to God every morning on an altar. God explains that once a year Aaron will make an offering on that altar to atone for all of the Israelites’ sins.

That's a broad overview. I'd like to look at some of the specifics this week. Here's one.

There's a ner tamid, an "eternal flame," in the ancient portable tent of meeting. There is a ner tamid in every contemporary synagogue too. One way to look at it is that Judaism relies on continuity from generation to generation. Doesn't this demonstrate the continuity of Jewish tradition across thousands of years?

What in your life has been a continuation from previous generations? Maybe it has to do with you and your parents / grandparents / etc., or perhaps you and your progeny? Or feel free to give it your own spin.

I was raised as a secular Jew. My grandparents were Orthodox, and that's all my parents knew when they married (before the end of the Depression, no less). However, over time, they reinterpreted what they'd been taught and raised DS and me as secular Jews, with all the Jewish values they'd been taught. They just neglected to tell us that these values were Jewish ones. DS and I raised our children with the same values we learned. Now my youngest grandson is aware that that the values he's learned are Jewish ones. And he lives them more purposefully than his parents, and my DS and DDIL live them more purposefully than I did/do. If that's not continuity, passing down Jewish teachings, I don't know what is.

[gazelle18]

I’m proud to say that Judaism has been carried forward from generation to generation in my family. My ancestors were immigrants from Eastern Europe, and my DH’s ancestors were Holocaust survivors. While our Judaism has been reinterpreted over the decades, it is going strong. Thankfully , all of our grandkids are Jewish, and we suspect and hope that their kids will also be.

[lee058]

Back again. Re today's topic: One small item signifying continuity is giving children names starting with the first letter of a deceased relative. For example, my DS is named after his great-great-grandmother, who helped bring her family to the USA. I like to think that this has encouraged him to be brave and adventurous.

Have a peaceful rest of the day, Lee

[louise]

Sorry - crazy busy work day toda both for my jpb and sorting my congragation into delvery zones for Mishloach Manot. Still haven't studied the Megillah reading near enough.
Gr-r-r.

I love that we name children for our ancestors, literally generation to generation. I have an embroidered matza covrr my grandmother made so that must be over 100 years ago. Continuity+!