Articles by Lazer Gurkow
Sukkot: Repentance Again?
I sit in my study late at night after breaking the fast of Yom Kippur. As I do every year, I feel euphoric. The day was so intense, we invested so much effort, and the Divine dividends that will be paid out over the year will surely be generous. We …
Shabbat Shuvah: Jewish Guilt
Have you ever heard of Jewish guilt? Well, of course. If you have a Jewish mother, you know about Jewish guilt. But the truth is that Jews have little to do with guilt. In fact, the Catholics claim to have cornered the market on guilt. Considering the Catholic doctrine of …
Nitzavim: Tears of Joy
The eyes of a Jew on Rosh Hashanah—the annual day of judgment, are often filled with tears and remorse. We know we will be judged for our behavior. We also know that some of our behavior has been compulsive, some of our personality has been toxic, and some of our …
Ki Tavo: The Joy Imperative
Joy is an imperative in the Jewish tradition. In describing the terrible calamities in store for our people if we turn from G-d, the Torah says it will occur, “because you did not serve G-d, your G-d, with happiness and gladness of heart, when [you had an] abundance of everything.”[1]
In …
Ki Tetze: A License To Eat
When you work in your fellow’s vineyard, you have a license to eat his grapes. When you visit your neighbor’s vineyard, you don’t have a license to eat. If you pluck a grape during a visit without permission, it is theft.
How much can you eat if you work in the …
Shoftim: The Individual
Today I want to talk to you about the individual. When nations go to war, they institute mandatory drafts. Wartime drafts are different from peacetime drafts. In peacetime drafts, soldiers are eligible for all kinds of exemptions. During war, everyone must serve. Exemptions are rare.
In Jewish law, however, it is …
Re’e: The Pivot
In the course of life, there are always moments of pivot. A moment when we recognize that we have strayed from the proper path, and we pivot—reverse course and head in the opposite direction. The moment of pivot is, at the risk of sounding cliché, pivotal. It isn’t merely a …
Vaetchanan: The Full Moon
This Shabbat will be special because the full moon will shine on Friday night. The full moon occurs every month but is most important in the month of Av. The Temple’s destruction on the ninth day of this month was the low point in Jewish history. At that time, it …
