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Congregation Emanu El: Houston / July 29, 2006.

Article Excerpt
Some Bible classes opt for a bird's-eye view, resting content with extracting the main facts and dominant lessons from the text at hand. Others prefer the worm's-eye approach, working dutifully through each individual verse. At Houston's Congregation Emanu El, a Reform synagogue with 2,150 families, Senior Rabbi Roy A. Walter leads a small group whose approach makes the worm seem like a soaring eagle. The story of Joseph (Genesis 37 and 39-50), one of the most familiar in the Bible, explains how the children of Israel got to Egypt, leading eventually to the defining event in the history of Israel and Judaism, the Exodus and return to the homeland of Canaan. A rich narrative with memorable twists and subplots, it is well worth extended study. Still, I was a bit surprised to find out that, after nearly two years, the class had covered only six of the thirteen chapters. I soon learned why.

For more than 25 years, a Saturday morning class at Emanu El has devoted itself to the detailed study of the Torah (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy),...

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