Sermons & Stories

Shabbat Shalom!

A very brief teaching from Parshat Pinchas…

This Torah portion comes after great upheaval the past few weeks. We’ve seen a political rebellion that was put down, we’ve seen an attempt at prophetic corruption that was corrected, and we’ve seen the violence of an extreme zealot. Following all this we have a lengthy instruction about which sacrifices to offer on our holy days.

One possible reason is to remind us that after dealing with the challenges and difficulties of the world, having structure can provide comfort. Shabbat comes every week. Each month the moon renews its cycle. As we mark sacred time, we place ourselves within a larger narrative, a larger purpose. Life can throw us off balance. Jewish structure can help restore our equilibrium and help keep things in perspective.

Shabbat Shalom!