By Rabbi Ari KaimanThe word “today” is mentioned a total of eight times in Parashat Re’eh. This is how that parasha opens,“See, today I set before you blessing and curse: blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I enjoin...
We all want to give our children better than what we had for ourselves. It is a natural inclination. We work hard in order that those who follow after us should not know the same struggles that we faced. We hope that the fears and uncertainties we have...
By Rabbi Josef Davidson
• Published August 7, 2014
We have fasted; we have prayed; we have mourned the destruction of the Temple, the exile of our people and the calamities that followed as a result of our powerlessness. Tisha B’av was an opportunity to begin the process of collective self-examination...
This summer I’ve had the incredible opportunity to spend time in St. Louis, as the Rabbi Bernard Lipnick Summer Rabbinic Intern at Congregation B’nai Amoona. I just returned from a year studying in Jerusalem, and so it should come as no surprise that...
In this week’s Torah portion, Masei, Moses stands on the eastern banks of the Jordan River with Jewish people before they enter the land of Israel. Moses reviews and writes down all of the stops that the Jewish people had made during their travels...
By Rabbi Brigitte Rosenberg
• Published July 16, 2014
For the past few weeks, many of us have sat glued to the news and checked social media regularly, all in an effort to hear news of the goings on in Israel. Whether we have friends and family who live there or are visiting, or we know no one currently...
This commentary is dedicated to Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi – now of blessed memory. He was laid to rest July 4, 2014. His approach to Judaism ignited and reignited a passion for deep exploration of our sources and traditions. He modeled a spiritually...
There is an old cliché that continues to ring true: One can attract more bees with honey than with vinegar. It is a lesson that seems to be lost on the title character of this week’s Torah portion, Balak.Balak, the king of Moab at the time that our...
As I was preparing to write this message, I read a disturbing news article. Barbara Surk and John Heilprin of The Associated Press reported that the U.N. Commission on Refugees had announced that the number of men, women and children displaced from their...
Parashat Sh’lach L’cha records Moses’ sending of scouts to check out the Promised Land and the Israelite response. Ten of the 12 scouts recommend to not advance, and they persuade the people. That response is regarded as faithlessness and is one...
“And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Kushite woman whom he had married; for he had married a Kushite woman. 2. And they said, ‘Has the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses? Has he not spoken also by us?’ And the Lord heard it.”...
I like to think of the Jewish people as ninjas. Hollywood has demonstrated to us again and again that ninjas function according to the fundamental principle of what has been coined the “Inverse Ninja Law.” Put quite simply, the Inverse Ninja Law...
