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On Wednesday night January 14, 2026, a group of Board members of the Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals met with a group of Board members of the Peace Islands Institute, a Turkish Muslim organization. Rabbi Jospeph Potasnik, Executive Director of the New York Board of Rabbis, also participated in this gathering.  The mentor and spiritual guide of Peace Islands Institute was the late Fethullah Gulen, a remarkable Muslim thinker who fostered respectful relations among all human beings.

By placing the account of Jethro’s visit immediately before the invitation to be “a nation of
priests,” the Torah illustrates the kind of priests that God calls us to be: people who act with
wisdom, justice, compassion and humility.

It has been said that no one on their death bed says they wished they would have spent more time at the office! People tend to regret that they devoted so much time and energy to their work and social obligations that they shortchanged their own families. We need to put our lives in perspective: our responsibilities to our families must be prioritized

This week’s Torah reading includes the “shirat hayam,” the song sung by Moses and the people of Israel after they miraculously crossed the Sea of Reeds. The Torah scroll presents the song in an unusual formation. Instead of the words following one another in order, the words of the song are interspersed with blank spaces. This format suggests a deeper lesson about life itself.

Many of us have received gracious gifts of advice, time, and money that meant a lot to us, that may have changed our lives for the good. Some fine people believed in us and invested in us. Likewise, we can help others when they turn to us. We can do this now, when they need us, not when it’s too late.

It’s as simple as “May I help you?” Or, “Is this your first time here?” Or, “Do you need a siddur or a Chumash?” Maybe, “Would you like a better seat?” Or, simply, “Shalom!” In other words, just a few words. A “chat” does not have to be long. Just helpful.

Beshallah:

Natural Phenomena and Divine Purpose