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Rabbis for Human Rights is the Jewish voice on human rights.
Founded in 1988, it brings together more than 170 members – ordained rabbis and rabbinical students from across the denominations.
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Weekly Torah Portion
“You stand this day, all of you, before the ETERNAL your God”
Thoughts for Parashat Nitzavim-Vayelech / Rabbi Mira Regev
This Shabbat, Shabbat Nitzavim, is the final Shabbat of the year. Just before we move into a new year, the Torah pauses us and places us within one of its formative moments: “You stand this day, all of you, before the ETERNAL your God” (Deuteronomy 29:9).
Rashi interprets this as: “This teaches that Moses gathered them before the Holy One, Blessed be He, on the day of his death, to bring them into the covenant.” There is deep significance in the word that opens this moment: nitzavim. It means more than simply standing; it means presenting oneself, taking one’s stand.
Standing the Mountain of Curses
Thoughts for Parashat Ki Tavo / Zoe Dressner-Wolberg, Rabbinical Student, HUC-JIR
The beginning of Parshat Ki Tavo is all fun and games– the fun, of course, being the laws of first fruits, and the games being the laws of tithing. As the reading continues, though, the tone becomes increasingly bleak. The Israelites stand on Har Gerizim and Har Eval to hear some blessings, and many, many curses. In synagogue, the intensity of this moment is marked by somber ritual, the Torah reader’s voice quieting as they convey the parasha’s fear-inducing imagery. And for me this year, having just returned from a summer spent in Jerusalem, these curses have taken on added sorrow and urgency.
Israel and the Nations
Thoughts on Parashat Ki Teitzei / Rabbi Gil Nativ, Ph.D.
Why is there an absolute prohibition against intermarriage with the peoples of Moab and Ammon — “Even in the tenth generation, none of them may enter the assembly of the LORD forever” — as opposed to the more moderate prohibition concerning Edom and Egypt: “Children born to them in the third generation may enter the assembly of the LORD”?