Let Us See Your Goodness

On the heels of the great sin of Israel–worshipping an oversized molten calf while Moses took “so long coming down from the mountain” (Exodus 32)–Moses implores God not to desert the Israelites. “See, You tell me, ‘lead this people forward’ but you have not told me whom You will send with me. If You Yourself...
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Words and Deeds

Last year at this time, we were hearing the distressing news of the conflict in Gaza. Coinciding with Tisha B’av, which this year occurs in the week to come, Jews everywhere were mourning, and beginning to argue with aching hearts about Israel, and about justice. Parashat Devarim begins with Moses addressing “all Israel.” Rashi suggests...
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What I Learned In Prison

About three years ago, I was called by the Head Chaplain of the Butner Federal Correction Institution located forty-five minutes north of my home in Raleigh, NC. This is the same penitentiary where (in)famous prisoners like Jonathan Pollard and Bernard Madoff currently reside. The chaplain’s message came with a southern drawl: “Rabbi, we have a...
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Modern Barbecue

I have had a strange relationship with eating meat over the course of my life. At some points I have cut out red meat, then all meat, and now “some meat depending on what it looks like.” My aversion to meat has a lot to do with its appearance, its preparation, and how it is...
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Fear

In December I sat with M., a thirty-four year old man who is seeking asylum. Over the course of 3 ½ hours, M. told me what he had endured for many years in his country that propelled him to leave his home and his country to embark on a harrowing journey in search of asylum....
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To Change Or Be Unchanged

When we tell others the stories of our lives, we often find ourselves spicing up the narrative a bit as we tell and retell the story. It’s only human to exaggerate a bit, especially if our audiences don’t seem to be giving the stories the attention we feel that they deserve. Our additions add an...
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Appropriate Responses

The rape of Jacob’s daughter Dinah by Shechem and subsequent verses (Bereshit, chapter 34) is one of the most disheartening episodes in the entire Torah. Where is Dinah’s voice in this narrative? What did Dinah think and feel? Who comforted her after such a frightening episode? Sadly, shockingly, we never hear from Dinah. She speaks...
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How I Met My Kohelet

“‘Absurdity of absurdities,’ said Kohelet, ‘Absurdity of absurdities. It’s all absurd’”1 (Koh. 1:2). These are the first words that we hear from Kohelet, the son of King David whose philosophical musings we read during Sukkot. Kohelet is arguably the most cynical book in Tanakh. There is not much hope, there is not much joy, there...
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Fighting Poverty as a Theological Necessity

There shall be no needy among you – since the Lord your God will bless you in the land the Lord your God is giving to you as an inheritance – if only you heed the Lord your God and take care to keep all this mitzvah that I enjoin upon you this day. (Deut....
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“Satiety Leads to Rebellion”

The problem with taking my children to Disney World is that upon returning home, they kvetch about wanting to return to the Happiest Place on Earth. The thousands of junky Disney calories and hundreds of amusements lead my children and, I must ruefully confess, me, to “grow fat and kick”,” in the words of the...
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