Parsha Talk Toldot 5785 2024

Parsha Talk with Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Barry Chesler and Jeremy Kalmanofsky. Parashat Toldot [Genesis 25:19-28:9] is the sixth of the 12 weekly Torah readings in the Book of Genesis. With the death of Abraham and Ishmael last week, the story this week concentrates on the family of Isaac and some of the key events in the life of Isaac: the birth of his twin sons, the wife-sister story in the 2nd generation, and the deceiving of Isaac by Jacob [and Rebecca] to acquire the blessing of the first-born for Jacob. Our conversation concentrated on the story not directly related to Isaac, which is the acquisition of the right of the first-born for Jacob by the sale of lentil soup. The word for blessing [ברכה, b’rakhah] and right of the first-born [בכורה, b’khorah] sound nearly the same, and certainly the stories are two be seen together. Whereas Jacob is the main actor in the sale of the birth-right, in the acquisition of the blessing, Jacob is portrayed as a passive character, first driven by his mother Rebecca, and then allowing his father to draw the wrong conclusions about his identity. It is sometimes surprising that just a few verses and commentary spark so much conversation! On the 418th day of the war, we continue to be mindful of the hostages, may they be returned speedily to their families, and the soldiers defending Israel as members of the Israel Defense Forces, may they be removed from harm’s way. With the onset of the ceasefire in the north, we remain hopeful that peace may soon descend on the region. Shabbat Shalom.