Shabbat as a Movie
My rabbi asked, "If Shabbat were a movie, would you stay until the end? Would you walk out in the middle? Would you buy the DVD?" I thought about services and why I try and get there every Friday night.
Past, Present, and Future
Our frenetic world is beset with difficult and complex issues and one within which all manner of things must (ostensibly) be dealt with immediately, if not sooner.
Stories We Tell: The Spoonful of Oil
How to Mark Your Wedding Date When You’ve Had to Postpone
There is some small comfort in the fact that Jewish ritual offers many ways to mark life’s significant moments and to acknowledge the complicated mix of feelings that may accompany them. Here are some ideas to get you thinking.
Observing MLK Day & Shabbat Tzedek in Your Jewish Community
Shabbat Videos
Cold: Prayer for a Chilly Shabbat
Snow days can be fun; not so this kind of cold. It was colder in Chicago this week than it was in the North Pole.
A Jewish Response to Political Scandal
As we witness public figures dismantled by the revelation of ugly episodes from their pasts, we parents must distill these events and their aftermath for our children.
The Challenge of Holding God Close While Keeping Fear at Bay
The poet Yehuda Amichai writes: I don’t want an invisible god... I want a god who is seen... , so I can lead him around and tell him what he doesn’t see… ... In this week’s portion, Ki Tisa, we reconnect with this unfinished storyline at the beginning of Exodus 32. While Moses tarries atop Mount Sinai, the people down below are losing their patience:
The Unique Contributions of Women and Men Are All Needed
According to Ramban (Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman, or Nachmanides; 1194-1270), this week’s Torah portion, Vayak’heil, is properly understood as the necessary reconciliation between the Israelite people, on one side, and God and Moses, on the other, after the devastation of the Golden Calf episode. Ramban reads the opening phrase, “Moses then convoked the whole Israelite community (Ex. 35:1), as Moses rebuilding and healing the community through the inclusion and involvement of all ...