Points of Light
The holiday of Chanukah is often misunderstood. People imagine that it was a fight of military prowess and for political liberty. Yet neither of these is true. Chanukah, rather, tells us that we can accomplish miracles when we truly dedicate ourselves to G-d.
The Recurring Lies of Laban
The story of Laban and Jacob is critical to our understanding of anti-Semitism, the pernicious hatred of Jews. We know this from the Passover Haggadah -- we learn briefly about Pharoah, read that this hatred happens in every generation, and then continue, "go and...
Don’t Follow the Herd
Last week we learned that Avraham and Lot had separated. Lot moved to the fertile land surrounding the city of S'dom, yet he retained some of the traits of his holy and generous uncle. So when two disguised angels came to the gates of the city, he rose to greet them...
Ends and Means
In the Torah, human life is of infinite value. Every person around us is of infinite value, and deserving of respect. And that even includes the one in the mirror.
We’re all in This (World) Together
With an insight that my friend Rabbi Leonard Oberstein called prescient, the very first comment of Rashi on the Torah quotes a Medrash: Rebbe Yitzchok says: He did not need to begin the Torah [here,] but from 'this month will be for you the first of months' [Exodus...
Time for a Reboot
When a computer device of some kind isn’t operating correctly, the first question any technician will ask is, “have you tried rebooting?†The option may be called “Restart,†but it means the same thing: clean out apps that are running, wipe the memory...
