Trying to endure loss in isolation is more than painful; it puts our lives at risk. Rambam understood that when he described the consequences of not being connecting to Am Yisrael at times of trauma, including our fast days.
When their parents returned to Iraq, Sima and Oded decided to continue living in Israel as practicing Jews. Despite their efforts throughout the years to obtain Israeli citizenship, their requests were always denied.
With Netanyahu still in power, issues of religious pluralism, equality, and civil marriage will likely take a backseat, leaving the power of the ultra-Orthodox Chief Rabbinate firmly in place and leaving little hope for progressive change.
In a 1989 interview for Reform Judaism magazine, I asked Amos Oz, one of Israel’s best-known writers and peace activists, about the role of the writer in society.
“In the West,” he explained, “especially in the Anglo-Saxon tradition, writers and poets are
Together, we will champion the lessons of Passover by bringing greater wholeness, justice, and belonging to our world.