At the end of his long discourse, Moses breaks into song in Ha’azinu, painting a poetic picture of Israel’s journey into the unknown. It is a song of warning, a song of memory, and a song of hope. In the…
Tag: Devarim
Nitzavim – Life, the Gift That Keeps on Giving
In just a few days, the shofar will sound, Rosh Hashanah will dawn, and the Days of Awe will open before us. The Jewish calendar, in its divine wisdom, does not wait for tragedy to remind us of mortality—it sets…
Ki Tavo – Normal Mystics and Wandering Arameans
From the first rays of the sun in the morning, through our meals, our chores, our friendships, our studies and our work—we are constantly surrounded by a vast array of fragrances, sounds, visions, and thoughts. Some of them catch our…
Ki Tetze – Compassion In An Unjust World
Listen to an audio version There’s a park not far from my home that’s well known for its beautifully groomed tulip and rose gardens. My wife and I often go there, and sometimes we’ll sit at the little outdoor café…
Shoftim – The Pursuit of Justice
Parashat Shoftim begins with words that seem to echo across time: “Justice, justice shall you pursue, so that you may live and inherit the land that the LORD your God is giving you” (Deut. 16:20). The Torah doesn’t just call…
Re’eh – See With Your Heart
Our parashah begins with a single commanding word: “Re’eh” — See. Moses does not say hear, or remember, or even believe, but see. He calls us to open our eyes to a reality that already lies before us: blessing and…
Eikev – No Machers in the Kingdom
Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Freud, in his own idiom, echoed him: “Where id is, let ego be.” Both saw that most people drift through life half-awake. Judaism answers with something far simpler—and far deeper.…
VaEtchanan – How Do You Spell Relief?
Do you like to make choices? Whether you do or not, it seems as though for each of us there is a never-ending stream of options that place demands upon our time and threaten the normal and easy flow of…
Chazon – A View from the Rubble
People don’t always get along. It’s not just a modern problem — it’s a human problem. We are often tired, stressed, or overwhelmed. And when someone cuts us off on the highway, lets their kids run wild in a restaurant,…
Shabbat Shuvah: Re-Righting Our Stories
Listen to an audio version “I am now one hundred and twenty years old, I can no longer be active.” With that surprising realization, Moses begins his final address to the children of Israel. When Moses completes this address he…