Torah lessons are often surprising and distinctive, unaligned with either historic or contemporary liberal or conservative positions. This week, the Torah may challenge our conceptions of "poor." Parashat Ki Tissa opens with contributions for the...

While I was still a student, I entered into an e-mail-based discussion with other rabbis on the concept of the rabbinic day off, meaning whether or not we should have one. The discussion was more evenly split than you thought. The senior rabbi of...