Temple Beth Sholom of the South Shore
  • Schedule
  • RSVP
    • Shabbat Dinners
    • Trivia Night
    • Adult Ed: Tu B'Shevat Seder
  • Make a Contribution
    • Send A Card
    • Honor Roll
    • Tree of Life
    • High Holiday Appeal
  • About Us
    • Covid-19 Policy
    • D'Var Torah
    • Worship Information
    • Mi Shebeirach
    • Membership
    • History
    • Contact Us
    • Photos

D'Var Torah

Shabbat Chol HaMoed Sukkot

10/18/2019

0 Comments

 
Friends:

Each year on Sukkot, we read these famous words of Ecclesiastes (Kohelet):
“A season is set for everything, a time for every experience under heaven. ...a time for tearing down and a time for building up.” (Kohelet3:1,3)
To speak of building during a holiday dedicated to erecting a temporary structure seems fitting. And yet, the order of the ideas in this verse is at odds with our Sukkot experience. Surely, “a time for building up and a time for tearing down” would align more closely with the sequence of the holiday. So why this order? And what exactly are “we tearing down and building up”?
The Torah portion for ShabbatChol HaMo-eid Sukkot — Exodus 33:12-34:26 — can help us answer these questions.    In this Torah portion, we are presented with a slice of a story — a short vignette of a significant moment in the history of the people of Israel that covers several key events. The portion begins with Moses’ request to “behold Your [God’s] Presence,” (Exodus 33:18), continues with the carving of the second set of tablets (Exodus 34:1), and concludes with a short summary of the three Pilgrimage Festivals (Exodus 34:18).  At first glance, this somewhat disjointed section seems a strange fit for the Shabbat of Sukkot and appears to offer no answer to our questions about tearing down and building up. As we examine the narrative more closely, however, we realize that the story
enacted in this text is indeed one of rebuilding — not of structures but of relationship.
In their original context, Exodus 33 and 34 occur in the aftermath of the sin of the Golden Calf. God is furious, Moses is distraught, and the people are in peril. Our small section is the coda to the entire episode — the events that transpire after Moses intercedes, God forgives, and the people are
spared complete destruction. Here, God, Moses, and the people all try to move forward — to rebuild their relationship and their eternal covenant.
In just a few short verses, the Torah portion reveals a path to repair:
 Reassurance of God’s Presence: Moses asks God to lead the people and reveal God’s Presence (Exodus 33:12-18)
 Granting a Second Chance: God commands Moses to write the second set of tablets (Exodus 34:1)
 Restating the Terms of Relationship: God restates the conditions of the three Festivals (Exodus 34:18-26)Shabbat Shalom שבת שלום. 
Rabbi David Grossman
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Rabbi David
    Grossman

    Rabbi David Grossman became the spiritual and religious leader of Temple Beth Sholom on July 1, 2019.  For the prior two years he was the Rabbi of Temple B'Nai Tikvah in Canton, the congregation resulting from the merger of Temple Beth Am of Randolph and Temple Beth Abraham of Canton.  Previously, he served the Temple Beth Am community, first as Cantor (8 years) and Rabbi (5 years).
    You can read more about Rabbi David in our About section.

    Archives

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    May 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

We HOPE TO SEE YOU Soon!


OFFICE Hours

M-Th: 10am - 2pm

Telephone

(781) 925-0091

Mailing ADDRESS

Email

600 Nantasket Avenue, Hull, MA 02045
TempleBethHull@gmail.com
  • Schedule
  • RSVP
    • Shabbat Dinners
    • Trivia Night
    • Adult Ed: Tu B'Shevat Seder
  • Make a Contribution
    • Send A Card
    • Honor Roll
    • Tree of Life
    • High Holiday Appeal
  • About Us
    • Covid-19 Policy
    • D'Var Torah
    • Worship Information
    • Mi Shebeirach
    • Membership
    • History
    • Contact Us
    • Photos