Genuine Torah scholars are supposed to be builders of society and increase peace in the world. When rabbis and scholars are seeking heaven and communal unity, their Torah scholarship is the ideal tool to unite diverse people.
On a holiday that brought much of the nation together for a week in one place, the four species let each group take pride in its region while giving the group a sense of cohesiveness. The central place given to the four species as a Jewish symbol in later times suggests that this message may ultimately have been internalized.
As Moses approached his death, he offered a final message to the Israelites. He called the heavens and earth as witnesses to indicate the eternal covenant between God and Israel. He underscored the importance of hearing, listening and internalizing. There is a message here as we approach Rosh Hashana.
TIAF is focused on showing that the battle against extreme jihadism is not just Israel's fight; it is a fight for all who value peace, tolerance, and coexistence. By empowering non-Jewish voices, especially Muslims and Christians, to take a leading role in this advocacy, we can create a broader, more inclusive movement that transcends national and religious boundaries.
The Torah tells us that Noah took his wife, sons and daughters-in-law onto the ark with him. But it doesn’t give us the names of Mrs. Noah, Mrs. Shem, Mrs. Ham or Mrs. Yafeth. These women are left in anonymity. Yet, according to Biblical tradition, these women were the matriarchs of all later humanity, including us! Why don’t we know anything about them, even their names?
With the lack of national and authoritative legal structures and the ensuing diasporic dispersion, the Jewish people encountered a void, necessitating a unifying judicial anchor. The Rambam’s Mishneh Torah emerged as this anchor, offering a comprehensive presentation of the entirety of talmudic law and, therefore, of the Oral Law.
This op ed piece by Rabbi Marc D. Angel appeared in the Jewish Journal of Los Angeles, August 20, 2024.
As we enter the holy day season, it is important for us to remember that we each stand before the Almighty, who Alone knows the essence of who we are. The ultimate Arbiter of the value of our lives is the One to whom we are answerable. There is no point in pretending to be what we aren't, or in posturing to make ourselves more important in the eyes of others--God always knows the Truth about who we are.
Judaism includes the basic tenets of belief in one God, divine revelation of the Torah including an Oral Law, divine providence, reward-punishment, and a messianic redemption. The question for believing Jews today is, how should we relate to the overwhelming majority of contemporary Jews, who likely do not fully believe in classical Jewish beliefs? Two medieval models shed light on this question.
The letter bet that opens the Torah is a reminder that no matter how much we may know, there is so much more that we do not know. Intellectual humility is the first step in the acquisition of wisdom.