21 Ki Tisa: Day 3 (Tuesday)
Today's reading is Exodus 33:12 to 33:16.
This is the link to Daily Chumash with Rashi at Chabad.
The Daily Wisdom from the Lubavitcher Rebbe is titled "Following Moses' Example."
On 3 March 2026 at 5:49 AM EST, Jonathan writes:
Today is Purim. 14 Adar 5786.
This is the text of the Purim Torah reading from Chabad.
This is a poignant article about Purim from Israel this year. And here is another.
After reflecting on Exodus 33:14 and Exodus 17:16, I am thinking this morning about Gentile humility in relation to Jewish chosenness. Is it sinful pride that prevents some Muslim and Christian leaders - and some leaders of non-Abrahamic Gentile nations - from seeing God's hand in the remarkable Jewish story? Is it a deficiency of humility, ultimately, that prevents the eyes of some from seeing a truth that is hidden in plain sight?
Today's Gemini deep dive:
Q1. Is it fair to say that most Jews today are dismayed that Israel receives disproportionate attention from the international community, and if so, how does this relate to the theological reality of their chosenness?
Q2. Say more about Or LaGoyim (Light unto the Nations) - where is it found in the Hebrew Bible and what prominent Jewish scholars explore contemporary attention to Israel as a secularized reflection of this divine mandate?
Q3. Are there any Jewish American scholars who see America as a similar "City on a Hill" because of its world hegemony and its Judeo-Christian heritage, and do any of them see the Israel-US alliance in these theological as well as geopolitical terms?
Q4. Some may argue that Israel and America can only be a "Light to the Nations" if they lead on climate change. By aligning so closely with President Trump, has Prime Minister Netanyahu arguably exhausted Israel's environmental leadership credibility so badly that it will take a new Israeli Prime Minister to restore Israel's "green tech" leadership image?
Q5. I am particularly interested in the vegetarian vision of Rav Kook, Isaiah 11:9, the modern Israeli plant-based nutrition movement, and the idea that Israel can best be a light to the nations if it urgently transitions to a sustainable food system - and that means a lot more vegans, vegetarians and flexitarians.
Q6. Israel seems to be hiding much of its hard-earned light in this area. Are any Israeli political parties or politicians effectively capitalizing on Israel's leadership in this area in the 2026 Israeli elections, or is the war too all-consuming?
Q7. I wonder if you could explain how the plant-based policy proposals in the 2026 platform of the Israeli Democrats compare to the same issue in the 2026 midterm strategy of US Democrats - are the Israeli Democrats far ahead of the US Democrats?
Q8. To add further theological light to this conversation, can we say that the "presence" or "panim" of God in Exodus 33:14 (today's Torah reading) is the core of Israel's Light to the Nations," and that the Amalek of every generation in Exodus 17:16 (today's Purim reading) refers to the "shade" cast on that light by internal and external Israeli factors, from Jewish sin to Iranian aggression?
Q9. Can you wrap this session up with some thoughts about how vegan Green Zionism relates to the Noahide Laws and whether this is fertile ground for conversation between Orthodox Jews and secular Democrats?
Complete Q&A thread:
Heavenly Father, we thank you for the holy opportunity to study your Torah today. We ask that you pour out your blessings on all those who precede us, join us, and follow us in this effort, and that you make us good round-the-clock examples and emissaries of the Noahide Laws.
Amen and Shalom.
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