The Meaning of Sound
What does sound mean to you? Sound plays many roles. It is a vehicle for communication, music, and even distraction, but at its root sound is the simple indicator of life.
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Read the full story »Vayechi: A Symbol of Hope
Hope would have been the most important thing that Jews could have when they descended to Egypt, but hope seems to have been the last thing on the Torah’s mind at this point in the narrative. The last Torah portion of the book of Genesis is all about the passing …
Vayigash: Debt of Kindness
Kindness is something that is usually given out of generosity. We don’t usually think of kindness as a debt. Yet, sometimes it is a debt. For example, if someone treats you kindly, they deserve to be treated kindly in return; you owe them a debt of kindness. If you owe …
Chanukah: Spice Up Your Routine
Routine can be boring. You do it every day and you grow tired of it. We are always looking for something new and exciting. Something to pique our interest and engage our curiosity. Routine doesn’t do the trick. We need something novel, something unusual, something unexpected. The problem with new …
Vayeshev: Dare to Dream
Dream on, is an expression we use when someone shares a hope that seems fantastical. To dare to dream is to have the courage to think beyond the box; to push the envelope. Plans that people dismiss as impossible, are the stuff of dreams. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a …
Vayishlach: Minority Syndrome
When Jacob returned to Israel after twenty-two years of being a minority in the city of Haran, where his uncle Laban lived, he said “I sojourned with Laban . . . and I acquired oxen and donkeys, flocks, manservants, and maidservants.[1]
Why did he announce that he had sojourned with Laban, …
Vayetze: Find Your Well
Find your well is a mission to live by. Once we figure how to find it, it can be the answer to life’s moral challenges.
You see, there are three kinds of places, the city, the field, and the desert. The city is where people live. Wild animals are not usually …
Toldot: Like father like son
Like father like son, an idiom rooted in the words of Ezekiel (44:16), “like mother like daughter,” describes a child that resembles his parent in either mannerism or behavior. This idiom could truly be applied to our forefather Isaac, who is introduced to us in the Torah as, “Isaac, the …
Chayei Sarah: Consistency in Education
Consistency is the most important part of education. Children need to hear the same message from their teachers, parents, coaches, and peers. When we expose our children to multiple streams of thoughts and conflicting values so they can make educated choices, we only succeed in confusing them. Children don’t need …
Parsha Insights »
Pekudei: Was Iraq Freed?
This essay was written in 2005, when the US led effort to bring democracy to Iraq was still in its infancy.
Democracy in Iraq
The international media has subjected the US-led coalition that liberated Iraq and established a democratic government, to intense scrutiny and even criticism.
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Yearly Cycle »
Purim: When Hebrews Became Jews
The Jews
Today we are known as Jews, but in the Torah we were known as Hebrews and Israelites. Who are we really, Hebrews, Israelites or Jews? The more I think about it, the more I feel an identity crisis coming on.
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Concepts »
Acharei: Be Upfront
Mind Games
Too many people like to play mind games. They won’t be upfront and tell you that they are in hospital, but then they’ll complain when you don’t visit. They won’t tell you that they are in crisis, but will complain that you didn’t ask. They talk in riddles and …
Rabbi’s Desk »
What Can We Do?
These past two days have been the most difficult for our people in the last fifty years. It was Simchat Torah, a time for rejoicing, yet it was a time of horror. Nearly a thousand members of our family were brutally murdered, more than a hundred were taken hostage, and …
