Articles in Concepts
Olympians Defy Game Spirit and Embrace Human Spirit
When Soul Trumps Sport
The world media loved it. The LA Times ran a headline “Runners Abbey D’Agostino, Nikki Hamblin are the real winners in Rio.” Indeed, they are the real winners. They really did win gold.
Here is how it happened.
Long distance runner Abbey D’Agostino, of Topsfield, Mass., collided with Nikki …
Vaetchanan: A Woman’s Comfort
Comfort
Just before I sat down to write this essay, I tucked my daughter Rochel into bed. As I walked into her room, she was struggling with pillows, blankets and a comforter that were way too large for her to maneuver. I offered to help, but she declined. I realized that …
Devarim: It Is Not About You
Olympics
Two things drastically different events are taking place this week. Jews around the world are mourning the Temple that was destroyed in 69 BCE and Olympians from around the world are competing for gold medals. What is the connection between them? Both have learned the secret to life: It is …
Masei: Back to Basics
Basics of LIfe
Are you still in touch with your grade school teachers; the ones that taught you the basics and laid your foundation for life? If you were like me, you looked down on your first grade teacher by the time you reached second grade. He was still in first, …
Pinchas: From Tragedy to Joy
More Tragedy
As the summer months arrived, we learned of more black lives killed by police shootings. After the rash of police shootings last summer and the resultant furor, we would have expected the police to introduce responsible measures to reduce tragedy, but whatever measures were taken, were simply not enough. …
Chukat: Miracles
Two Wars
Why don’t we see miracles in our time similar to the miracles our ancestors saw in Biblical times? I would think that if G-d were to show his hand today, it would inspire billions to believe in Him. He did this back then, why not again?
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Chukat: The Yiddishe Mama
Miriam’s Well
Shortly after the passing of Miriam, the preeminent Yiddishe Mama, the stone that accompanied our ancestors in the desert for forty years, from which water flowed miraculously, ceased its flow. The nation realized that the water had been provided in the merit of Miriam and although Moses and Aaron …
Korach: Remembering Elie Wiesel
Never Shall I Forget
Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, that turned my life into one long night seven times sealed. . . Never shall I forget those flames that consumed my faith for ever. . . Never shall I forget the nocturnal silence that deprived …
