Abraham and Martin Luther King
When we are driven out of our complacency by a wrong we don't know what the perfect world will look like. We only know that we can't allow the world as it stands to continue. The need to leave home is clearer to us than our destination. Lekh Lekha.
Are You Listening?
God hears, and responds. God hears our prayers, and in so doing, gives voice to a powerful message of love. Can you hear it?
Building The Stage
Balak was furious. Balaam was defeated in his mind by a greater prophet, Moses, who would record Balaam's words and shame for eternity, despite not being present at the performances. Rather than perform his blessings or curses, Balaam projected a picture of the future with his ideas in it; he offers his vision of the End of Days (14) with all his hints to Israel's future failings hidden within his words of praise.
Trust-but Verify
Esau handled the meeting with Jacob far more grace than most people manage an argument with a spouse. Not bad behavior for a person we are taught is one of the most evil biblical characters!
Without Intimidation
On Parshat Vayeishev with a nod to Chanukah.
From The Outside Looking In
Displacement as motivation? Just ask Korach's sons.
When Disaster Hits
It sounds quite nice, but I wonder whether Abraham had it easier than do we. He had a warning and a reason as well from the only reliable spiritual authority. God appeared to Abraham and told him that a storm was coming to Sodom because of her evil. As far as I know, God did not appear to anyone to warn that the East Coast would be punished for her 'evil'
“Yet More From My Students!”
I look toward Shavuot as an opportunity to not only absorb the Torah's wisdom, but as a chance to apply its wisdom so well that God the Teacher will look at us say, "Yet more have I received from My students"
Head In The Clouds
Moshe was leading them, and I suspect that he knew exactly where to go. The cloud was not a GPS, it was a reminder of the benefit of having our heads in the clouds: The cloud was an invitation to extend their reach, to remind them that each time they
The Journey of Halacha
Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the teacher of the Zohar who we honor on Lag B'Omer, plants seeds of infinite growth in our minds so each of us can begin our time travel with Torah with a taste of her eternally expanding wisdom embedded in our souls
Dreams, Naps & Promises
If I had Jacob's dream, I would not have been able to go back to sleep, and, I'd like to believe that I would have responded to the historic promises rather than make a conditional promise emphasizing bread and clothes. I would expect a "Thank You," from Jacob, instead of falling asleep and then playing "Let's Make A Deal,"
A Sense Of Place
This week's portion, Re'ei, speaks of our need for a sense of place, how difficult it often is to find, and how we must protect others' sense of place. It also guides us in how to manage the experience of no place
Jacob’s Gift
Each prayer, Shabbat, Torah study and Mitzvah offer us, in our imperfections, to connect with the Eternal. Jacob insists that we first reject the shame we've carried since Adam and Eve, and understand that there is a place in Paradise even for the imperfect.
Rereading
Purim Sameiach!
A Tale of Two Noahs
Adam's two Fermatas resonate in the two Noahs, and the notes continue to reverberate in our souls as we struggle to retain our connection to the Garden,
Hearing to See
I wish all of us, parents and teachers, would listen to everything our children ask and say. I dream of our hearing them so well that we can begin to visualize and relate to them as who they can be when they fulfill all their potential.
An Honest Inward Look
It is Judah's honesty that triggers Joseph's decision to reveal his identity.
The Foundation Stone: Parshat Bamidbar: Archeological Flags
Revelation both Divine and self. Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach
When Earth Touches Heaven
The true definition of holiness is to cross the boundary between heaven and earth. We are forbidden to combine species connecting their lowest common denominators, their purely earthly definitions. We are encouraged to make combinations that allow each world to meet beyond their highest common denominators so that, together, they can connect heaven and earth.
The Beginning At The End
It is impossible to be involved in life without somehow sensing endings. We need not be permanently scarred by our beginnings, nor scared of what seems to be the death of a relationship.
Help! My Nose Is Growing!
The Spartans used their mistakes as lessons for the future. Pinocchio chose to ignore the lessons and continue to do as he pleased. Who are we on Yom Kippur, Spartans or Pinocchio?
Between Hope & Despair
The Tisha b'Av experience is a spiritual affliction, "Acedia," a "sadness, a disgust with life, which comes from our inability to get along with ourselves, our disunion with God."
Trust But Verify
Jacob was sending a message to his family and to us: Esau was of sufficient stature to merit angels to greet him. Jacob's years in the house of the scoundrel Laban taught him how to view his brother from a different perspective. He began to appreciate Esau's greatness,
Protecting the Precious
Our Matzah is not Shmurah if we are unconcerned with those who have nothing to eat, or no Seder to join.
Celebrating The Non-Celebrated
There are many who celebrate the wise, the heroes, and the mystics, and they forget that we must also celebrate the typically non-celebrated, the people who keep the spirit alive, the very spirit that nurtures the more celebrated.
Before Judging
The primary quality of anyone judging another is that the judge first know how to judge himself. If he cannot honestly examine his own behavior, how can he possibly judge someone else's?
Where Is Our Exodus?
Where is our Exodus? If the question is about miraculous salvation and the punishment of our enemies, I have no answer. If the question is a quest for experiencing greatness, the answer is the Mitzvot
Framing Our Vision
Having 'real' vision permits an entirely different, improved view of events and the world.
Sharing the Fruit
We glorify God, not in numbers, but in expansiveness. We too, are bringing our First Fruits when we're not busy battling each other over what is ours or who speaks the truth. Our Bikkurim begin with affording room for people to explore and grow.
You Count
A devar torah you can 'count on.' Shabbat Shalom from the Foundation Stone