Articles

It is easier to have cataracts removed from our eyes than to eliminate “mental cataracts” from our minds. But proper vision—physical and intellectual—demands both operations.

Rabbi Hayyim Angel shares some thoughts on this week's Torah portion.

We remind ourselves: we are Yisrael. We face struggles…but we prevail. We muster the physical strength to ward off enemy attacks; we draw on our spiritual strength to overcome ideological opponents.

Janet Kirchheimer offers poignant thoughts on the passing of her beloved mother, on the nature of grief, on the resilience needed to move forward with life.

While so much of the news focuses on dissension among groups, it is important to be aware of significant efforts to bring people together in friendship and mutual understanding. Rabbi Dr. Alon Goshen-Gottstein is director of the Elijah Interfaith Institute.

The subtitle of the book is “A Theological Reintroduction to Judaism.”  The author’s goal was to go beyond a simple introduction that presents beliefs and observances. The result is a volume of over 600 pages of heavy reading. This “reintroduction” offers insights and challenges that contribute to the ongoing vitality of Judaism.

These anonymous souls deserve respect and appreciation. They represent the good people of every generation—including our own—who stand faithfully and loyally with the descendants of Abram and Sarai.  They are with us in good times and bad; they sacrifice for us and for our shared ideals.

When we are at an impasse, we are not likely to receive a prophetic dream as did Jacob. But we can think of our situation as a challenge from God in which the Almighty prods us to be strong, resilient, clear-headed, unafraid. It is as though God places Jacob’s ladder before us and says: will you ascend or descend? Do you have the courage to climb and reach for the heavens?