By Brianna Fowler

This week I have the privilege of writing this d’var torah from Israel. The parashat for the week is Emor. It talks about the rules of the Cohanim, as well as laws that relate to sacrifice. Here’s a summary of the parashat.

I must admit that I am not the biggest fan of this portion about the rules of Cohanim. Why are there different rules for the priests? Just to keep order? What do these rules make us think of today? These rules just give structure and keep order.

Today, these things are not what hold the people or the structure of the religion together. Different people abide by and claim different parts of the religion. We do this as well in Habonim Dror: to look at the words we are saying and shape them to be something that we can connect to.

I’m sitting in Haifa thinking about the way that Shabbat in the community here looks: what has been done to re-think, re-shape, and reclaim Judaism? It looks especially different in Israel because people don’t work on Fridays. There is cleaning and cooking to do and everyone is getting ready for Shabbat to come. Some share their Shabbat with their kvutza, share about their week, and recite prayers that they have rewritten to match their values.

What have you done to reshape your Judaism? What rules (or standards) do you hold yourself to because of your Jewish roots and traditions?

I encourage you on this Shabbat, wherever you are, to think about how you relate to the words of the Torah in a way that feels relevant and meaningful to you.