Democracy

"In the form we know them today, popular elections – where all adult citizens vote for their leaders – are the product of western democracies."

Two decades later, it is easier to see how we were tempted by the idols of that time, but it is still hard to recognize the idols of today. We remember the sheer panic of 19 years ago, and how we longed for someone — anyone — to make us feel safe again. Those who told us that we need only sacrifice a bit of our liberty for safety often gave us neither. Looking back, we remember just how hollow those promises were.

It’s Rosh Hashanah, and those lifeless eyes stare at the collective of mingled families, a lot of kids – I’m among them – who sneak off to play cards.

A d’var Torah for Parshat Naso. “The Eternal one spoke to Moses: Take a census.” This week’s Torah portion, Naso, focuses on one of the multiple censuses that was carried out, the census of the Levites in the desert. This year in the U.S. is our year to carry out the census — to be...

A d'var Torah for Shavuot by Congressman Jerry Nadler, originally published in 2020.