Standing at the Edge of Promise

Standing at the Edge of Promise

In 2003, my parents, of blessed memory, became snowbirds. They spent the winter in Sarasota, Florida and the summer in Trumbull, Connecticut where my sister and I were raised. One year, during the February vacation, we took the kids to my parents, spent a few days all...
No Hebrew? No Problem!

No Hebrew? No Problem!

One of the most universal dreams–perhaps nightmares is a better word–are the ones where you show up in class totally unprepared, assuming you can even find the classroom! Of course, everyone else knows exactly what’s going on. I have those dreams, and I’m always...
Ki Tetze, Amalek and Erasing Memory

Ki Tetze, Amalek and Erasing Memory

This week’s Torah reading, Ki Tetze, ends with a command to the Israelites regarding the nation of Amalek, “Remember what Amalek did to you on your journey, after you left Egypt; how, undeterred by fear of God, he surprised you on the march, when you were famished and...
Batter Up – Stepping Up

Batter Up – Stepping Up

Parashat Pinchas is about leadership, and about stepping up to the plate. In contrast to Korach, who rebelled against the leadership of Moses and Aaron for his own purposes, Pinchas, Aaron’s grandson, is rewarded with a brit shalom, a “covenant of friendship...
How Not To Stage A Rebellion

How Not To Stage A Rebellion

Korach ben Izhar, I’ve misjudged you, and I owe you an apology. You challenged the authority of Moses and Aaron, and ultimately of God and Torah, and for that you paid, along with 250 of your closest friends. But this year, when I read your story, I looked beyond what...

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