“And the community was without water….”

Our Torah depicts what can happen to us in a world without water... Moses striking the rock to yield water is a vivid metaphor for the water-related violence that is breaking out all over our world — particularly in the Middle East, as well as in South Asia and Africa.
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Finding the Roots of Our Neighbor’s Home

The al-Walaja olive tree is one of the oldest trees in the world... Today, as it bears fruit for this generation of residents, it also bears witness to the State of Israel demolishing the homes of some of those residents.
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Buy Kosher Fair Trade Products

Bring human rights to your celebrations of Chanukah and Passover, to your synagogue kiddush, and more. Through partnerships with Divine Chocolate and Equal Exchange, we are proud to offer kosher fair trade Chanukah gelt, kosher-for-Passover chocolate, coffee, and more that come from companies committed to dignified working conditions and environmental sustainability. Proceeds from these purchases...
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At Our Season of Liberation, Black Lives Matter

Change in the air. Sugar-flecked red, yellow, orange, and green jelled semi-circle slices; macaroons; pounds of nuts; Barton’s tin can almond kisses; overflowing grocery bags. My mother and I shop among the street carts and small shops that dot Blake Avenue in East New York, Brooklyn. Although my family is not observant, the white gold-rimmed...
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A Long Walk Continued

Nelson Mandela called his autobiography Long Walk to Freedom, and that title resonates with this week’s Torah portion, Haazinu. This parashah is only one chapter long; it is written in two columns in poetic form, resembling a two lane road; and it records Moses’ last song to the Children of Israel. It is a last...
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Net Neutrality: The Torah of the Donkey

In this week’s Torah portion, parashat Balak, we read the story of the mighty Moabite king Balak, who wants to hire the prophet Bil’am to curse the children of Israel. Balak places increasing pressure upon Bil’am, first through Moabite and Midianite elders, and then through elite princes. Both times Balak sends esteemed men, but God...
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Three Plagues

This week’s Torah portion is Parshat Bo. The portion tells the stories of the last three plagues suffered by the Egyptians—locusts, darkness and the killing of the firstborn. During the Pesach seder, we remove drops of wine from our cups to remember the suffering of the Egyptians. During morning worship on Pesach, we recite Hallel,...
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