(M)oral Torah

...modern American politics have alienated the word dror from the Jewish concept of liberty.

This month, we have overlapping “sacred times”: the counting of the Omer and Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month.

We are commanded to be holy in this parshah and “to not profit by the blood of our fellow.” (Leviticus 19:16) This means that we are obligated to do our best in preventing worker abuse.

When the boogeyman of the mob is demystified, we have the humanity to look even our enemy in the face as a real, breathing human soul. 

In a time when modern day Pharaohs are seeking to peddle fear, to oppress, and to erase transgender people, we can take our direction from our brave matriarchs.

This year I want to be a wise child who asks: “Can I be brave enough to go out and see who is suffering for my freedom?"

To stand for human dignity means not only insisting on the right to basic survival needs, but the right to live fully — to experience joy, pleasure, love, friendship, beauty.

The Mishkan was not just a compound our ancestors built; it is a state of mind that we can inhabit.

Anger is like fire that, when used productively, can power engines of change but when mishandled can consume anything in its path, including us.

If America is to be the land of the free, a melting pot of diversity and equality, it too must clear the stones from the proverbial roads and build up pathways for immigrants, especially refugees and asylum-seekers.