In Jewish thought, Creation and Revelation are considered ongoing, renewable and recyclable. Ideas recorded in the biblical text are often highlighted through liturgy. In the morning, we recite or chant the prayer Yotzer Ohr which refers to God as “former...

There is a popular saying: Beginnings are difficult. It holds true whether it is beginning an article for the paper, a new position in one’s vocation, a new school in one’s education, a new relationship or a new year. Beginnings are awkward,...

I was sitting with the truthful linguist, the Sefat Emet, the Gerer, just before he became nifter, er dead, it must have been ’04, maybe ’05 [note: 1905]. The sukkah is a chuppah, he opened with. We wedded God on the way out of Egypt. I am the...

Parashat Haazinu (Deuteronomy 32:1-52) finds Moses calling on heaven and earth to witness his words. Moses begins by thanking the Almighty and describes the special care afforded the people of Israel. To his disappointment, the people have consistently...

Maqam Bayat. Every Shabbat is associated with a musical figure, a maqam, Arabic cognate of maqom signifying “place.” This is the last day of my life, Moshe Rabbeinu said, and he went and spoke these words to all Israel: “I’m not going out,...

This week, we read from Parshah Nitzavim, the same parshah we read on Yom Kippur morning. We are near the end of the book of Deuteronomy, as well as the death of Moshe rabbeinu, Moses our teacher. Even though the end of the Torah is near, Moses continues...

Each year, as we reread the powerful words of the Book of Deuteronomy in our synagogues, I can’t help but notice how germane its wise teachings are to the season in which we find ourselves: the Days of Awe, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, which we will...

Justice is elusive. We learn this from this week’s Torah portion,  the famous tzedek tzedek — justice reiterated and pursued (Deuteronomy 16:20) — a reminder that justice, true justice, transformative justice, necessary justice, requires us to...

From “Stories for Public Speakers,” compiled and edited by Morris Mandel: “A man was marooned on an island for years. One day, he saw a ship in the distance and signaled to it. A boat was sent out to him. As the boat approached the shore...

Whenever I start to study this week’s Torah Portion, Eikev, Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25, I am drawn to one particular verse. It is Deuteronomy 8:10, the context of which refers to the bounty of the Promised Land and the food it will provide. The verse states:...

If you have been paying close attention to social media or advertisements on television, you have noticed that as summer began, more and more people returned to traveling. This is due in large part, of course, to the fact that, overall, people...

Have you met the daughters of Zelophehad? They are the five brave women we encounter in this week’s Torah portion (Parashat Pinchas), in which we hear their impassioned plea to Moses regarding their and their deceased father’s right to inherit...