I grew up in the shadow of the Six-Day War. The impossible yardstick of this war measured every subsequent war in Israel. It redefined the term blitzkrieg as Israel rebuffed a three-nation attack and came away with land from each of them.
All this changed when we woke up on Friday, …
We usually talk about a leap of faith. Today, I want to discuss a much harder concept: a leap of trust.
The name of the Parshah we read this week is Chukat. There are three types of commandments: (A) Mishpatim, commandments that make sense to us. We would likely have drawn them up ourselves if we were creating a value system. (B) Edut, testimonials. We may not have originated these exact traditions, but they make sense once we learn about them. These include Shabbat and Passover, among others. (C) Chukim, commandments that transcend our understanding. We don’t and can’t understand them. Read the full story »
Authentic leaders are few and far between. Most people think of authentic leaders as leaders willing to do what is right, even when it is unpopular. That is authentic leadership. However, I was talking about authentic leaders. What’s an authentic leader?
Authentic leaders are not in it for themselves; they are …
This week, we read about the spies that Moses sent to inspect Israel ahead of the Jews’ arrival. The story begins like this: “And G-d spoke to Moses, saying, send people for yourself, and they will inspect the land of Canaan that I will give to the children of Israel” …
Last night, Israel launched a devastating preemptive strike against Iran’s military and nuclear ambitions. The IDF explained that Iran was on the verge of producing nuclear weapons, and there is no question of their aims against Israel. This was a preemptive strike, but by no means an opening salvo. This …
When speaking of lighting the candles in the Temple, the Torah uses an unusual euphemism. Rather than saying lighting the candles, it speaks of raising the candles. Rashi offers two interpretations. (A) Hold the torch to the wick until the flame rises on its own, and only then do you …
In this week’s Torah portion, we read about the priestly blessing. G-d designates the kohanim (priests) to be blessers of the Jewish people. They wash their hands in the ritual manner, remove their shoes, stand before the congregation, spread their arms forward, and interlock their fingers. They wrap their heads …
Every year, we read a Torah portion called Bamidbar—in the desert—on the Shabbat before Shavuot. This portion describes the census of the Jews in the desert. Just as we count forty-nine days and then celebrate Shavuot, so should we read about the counting of the Jews and then celebrate Shavuot.
This …
I am not distraught, I am angry. I don’t know why this shooting, this mindless taking of life, was the string that broke my camel’s back, but it did.
The suspect says he did it for Palestine. Do you believe him? I don’t. I bet he did it because he was …
On Friday, May 16, Jews around the world will celebrate Lag Ba’omer. Lag Ba’omer is a joyous day. In Israel, thousands flock to Miron, the burial site of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, the second-century Talmudic sage who passed away on this day.
Rabbi Shimon was the first to publicize and record …