I have just returned from a wonderful four day cantorial conference in Atlanta, GA. The theme of the conference was social action. So many times over the course of the week people spoke about how helpless they felt in the face of so much horror happening in our...
This week’s Torah portion, parshat Naso, contains the famous words of the Priestly benediction: “May G-d bless you and protect you. May G-d deal kindly and graciously with you. May G-d bestow G-d’s favor upon you, and grant you peace.” (Num. 6:24-26) This blessing is...
In this week’s Torah portion, Parshat Korach, Korach and his band stage a rebellion against Moses and Aaron saying, “You’ve gone too far. Why do you raise yourself up above us?” When Moses hears, he falls on his face. He puts it to G-d to decide. This ends badly...
A famous Buddhist parable tells of a group of blind men who heard that a strange animal, called an elephant, had been brought to the town. Since none knew what an elephant was like, they endeavored to describe it based on their sense of touch. The first man, standing...
This week, with Parshat Masei, we complete the reading of the book of Numbers. The parshah begins with a description of the journeys of the children of Israel as they make their way through the wilderness towards the Promised Land. The Torah recounts each stop on...