This week as we count the Omer, we are examining the middot (character traits) of Peace and Patience. The Apostolic Witness refers to these as the “Fruit of the Spirit”, or the character we demonstrate when we live by God’s…
Cleaning Our Homes and Hearts
This Shabbat is Shabbat HaGadol or the Sabbath of “the Great One”. The Great One is Elijah the prophet, the one who according to tradition will herald the coming of the Messiah. So on this last Shabbat prior to Pesach…
Mishpatim – In The Presence Of The Lord
This week’s Torah portion Mishpatim can feel like a bit of a letdown following the sacred drama at Mount Sinai recorded for posterity in Yitro. At the conclusion of last week’s parasha Israel is given immortality with its designation as…
Bo – Passover Lambs and Hesed Community
Listen to an audio version Every year the gift-giving season comes earlier and earlier, to the point that some desperate merchandisers try to lure us into their stores with X-mas in August promotional ads. But as we read Parashat Bo…
Our Hope Has Not Perished – Vayera
For many of us this has perhaps seen like a year of hopelessness. The nation is politically bifurcated and the negative campaign ads continually suggest that we are on the verge of collapse and driving over the cliff. But the…
B’reishit – Denying the Naked Ape
Listen to an audio version In 2002 PETA initiated its “Holocaust on a Plate”, an advertising campaign intended to draw attention to the plight of animals raised in factory farms for the purpose of satisfying America and Europe’s insatiable appetite…