GLEANINGS FROM THE STORY

TORAH
Torah is read when? 
    The parasha is begun Saturday afternoon, repeated Monday and Thursday morning and expanded Saturday morning.
    It is also read on holidays including Rosh Chodesh. 

Why Monday, Thursday and Saturday?  What is the reason given in the story?
    In addition to the answer in the story, those were market day when people were already gathered together and
    could take the time to hear the communal reading. 

FAMILY 
It was Sarah’s idea for Abraham to have a child with Hagar. How do you feel about her sending Hagar and her son away once she had her own son?
 
Why do you think God told Abraham to listen to Sarah’s request?

Have you had family members move far away? How does it change the family?
If you stay in touch, how do you do that?

Jews have been thrown out of many countries.
Imagine being told that you have to leave the only home you know. How do you feel?
Can you think of things that you might do to try to stay?
If you left, why might you want to return?
How do you feel about helping others stay in their home?  
        If you are ready: Let's talk about immigration.

ROSH HASHANAH
In a traditional congregation, the story of the birth of Isaac and the banishment of Hagar and Ishmael is read on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, Genesis 21.  On the second days the Akeida, the near sacrifice of Isaac, Genesis 22, is read.
What are the similarities between these stories? 

What are the differences?

Why do you think we read them both for Rosh Hashanah? 

If Ishmael had not been sent away, would the Akeida have been the same test for Abraham?

AWARENESS
Have there been times when you were sure of the outcome for an event and it did not happen? (a performance, a test, a game, a race,) What occurred to make the change?

Are there times when you are confused about your situation and can’t seem to find an answer? It seems like a lose –lose proposition? What helps you to open your eyes? What do you do or to whom to you turn to find guidance?

PARENTS – PARENT SUPPORTED CORNER
PARENT:
If you are a parent, make a list of blessings you want for your child (think what you want his/her life to be like 10/15/20 years in the future).

Now mark them in order of importance.

For which of those can you influence the outcome? 

Until what age do you think you will have the most influence?

Consider how you will react to those things that do not evolve in the manner you would like? 


PARENT-SUPPORTED INDIVIDUAL:
If you are still being supported by a parent, make a list of the things with which you would like to be blessed (think what you want your life to be like 10/15/20 years in the future).

Mark them in order of importance to you.

Mark them in order of importance to what you imagine they would be for your parent(s).

For what blessings do(es) your parent(s) still influence the outcome? Explain how.

Explain how you influence the outcome of these blessings. 
 

TRUTH
Ezra says that Hagar found truth.

What is truth? How do you know when you have found it?

Can there be more than one side to truth?

PERSONAL REVIEW
Mama says she knows what kind of person Ezra will be. Project yourself ten years into the future,
what kind of person do you imagine you will be? What would you like people to be saying about you?

MUSIC OF CHAPTER 2
IN YOUR TRUTH
In Your Truth  is composed from verses of Tehillim, psalms. Psalms are found in the section of Tanakh called Ketuvim, Writings. It is the longest section of Ketuvim. There are 150 psalms. The Hebrew word, Tehillim, comes from the root hey-lamed-lamed, meaning praise. Tehillim are songs of praise. The word psalm comes from the Greek or Latin meaning to play a stringed instrument or the twang of a harp. When the Septuagint was written, Tehillim was called Psalterion, a reference to the instrument that accompanied the songs. Hence in church one might find a psalter or hymnal. 

Psalms are not considered to be prayer or petition although they sometimes read as such.Rather, they signify “an exercise for one’s inner self, which is thereby penetrated anew with the perception and acknowledgement of certain truths so that our judgment and evaluation of things may become more correct.” (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, The Hirsch Psalms, Feldheim Publisher, Jerusalem ISRAEL, 1997. pg 107). 

That truth is one’s awareness of God’s nearness. That is to say, if we are humble enough to accept that there is a power greater than humankind, the power of the Divine is open to us for its mere acknowledgement. 

Psalm 86 specifically addresses the need for spiritual solace at a time of attack and near destruction. It expresses gratitude for patience, for mercy, for loving-kindness and for truth. 


 

TORAH: What did Avimelech mean by I did not know, and you did not tell it to me and I did not hear it except today? Was it his responsibility to know? When is it important that a leader know what is happening by those under their direction? (Sports, Military, Education, Restaurant, Business, Law enforcement, Business).

When you encounter it in the story: Do you agree with Mama’s assessment of what this Torah phrase means?

A BLESSING AND A CURSE: Technology has brought the world into our backyards. In what ways does knowing what is happening in other parts of the world change the concept – v’ahavta l’recha kamocha/love your neighbor as yourself?  

Are we responsible for what happens elsewhere in the world? How? Why? Or why not?

To what issues does this apply, i.e., social, justice, environmental? Which of these are most likely to affect you directly? Will any affect you indirectly?  

LIFE ISN’T FAIR: Finish the following sentences: Life is_________________

I wish life was ___________________________

Share responses.

Do you think we notice tragedy more when it strikes the poor and needy or when it strikes the rich and famous? Why do we notice each situation? How do we react to each situation? Who gets the most sympathy? Who gets the most assistance? From where does each come?

EXPLORE THE WORLD: Take time to find out where there is slavery in the world. What kinds of slavery still exist in the world? What conditions make someone most vulnerable to become part of the slave culture?

YOUR VALUES: What do you value that you carry with you that no one can take away?

What is your enemy?

Teaching Birkat HaKohane – Always There

The three-fold blessing known as Birkat HaKohane is found in Numbers: 6:24-26. The text is written in poetic form on three separate lines, unlike most of Torah which is written in paragraph form. The blessing was given to Aaron and his descendants to offer to the people. It was offered at the end of the Mishkan (the tabernacle that traveled with the Israelites in their wanderings through the desert) service and eventually in the Temple service each day. 
   
Y'varech'cha Adonai v'yish'recha 
Yaeir Adonai panav eilecha vichuneka
Yisa Adonai panav eilecha v'yasem l'cha shalom.
 
May Adonai bless you and keep you.
May Adonai make His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you.
May Adonai turn His countenance unto you and grant you peace.

The Birkat HaKohane is offered at holidays, weddings and b’nai mitzvah ceremonies and in many congregations on Shabbat. When offering the blessing, the Kohane’s hands are lifted, the thumb is separated from the first finger and the second and third are separated so that the hand forms a shin. The shin is for Shaddai, the name of God meaning Almighty One. The shin is also found on tefillin and mezuzot. 

The two thumbs touch. Often the two first fingers also touch forming a triangle. What might the triangle stand for? 
1)    Ahl Shlosha Devarim: Torah, Avodah, Gemilut Chasadim

2)     For a wedding: Eesh/Eesha/Adonai: The yud from eesh and the hay from eesha spells ‘Yah’ – one of God’s names. For single parent family: hay with an apostrophe is used as an abbreviation for Adonai. For double sex parent families: double yuds are used as a way to write Adonai. 
 
We say, “God bless you,” whenever someone sneezes. Think about that now. What does it mean to say, “God bless you” or “Bless you”? 
 
How would you know if grace (as in graciousness) was in your life?

If you believed you could have access to a Divine blessing, for what would it be? 

Why do you think the Birkat HaKohane mentioned peace?

Try to craft a blessing for someone you know. 
 
It is interesting to note that this blessing was recognized on a tiny silver scroll dating back to the 7th century BCE. The artifact was found during a 1973 archeological excavation in Jerusalem. Also of interest, DNA sequencing has been able to identify descendants of Aaron, the Kohanim.