Our guest this week is Rabbi Brian Zimmerman of the Union for Reform Judaism. Rabbi Zimmerman, a 12th-generation rabbi, was ordained by the Hebrew Union college in NY in 1993 and served as the spiritual leader of Temple Beth Am in Tampa, FL for seven years. In 2006 he was appointed congregational network director for the South at the Union for Reform Judaism, a position which includes strengthening nearly 200 Reform temples across the American South. Rabbi Zimmerman spends a lot of time on the road, regularly serving as scholar-in-residence at these temples, where he can be found teaching, leading services, consulting on synagogue programming, distributing educational resources and assisting congregations and their leaders. Aditionally, he also helps oversee the region’s Reform summer camps.
This Simchat Torah edition of Torah-Talk discusses Parashat Vezot HaBracha (Deuteronomy 33:1–34:12), the final portion the Torah. The Parasha gives us Moses' final words to the people of Israel and goes on to describe his death on Mount Nevo. Our discussion focuses on the very last psukim of the Torah.
