After concluding a rabbinic ordination test the examining rabbi asked his student to name the fifth volume of Shulkhan Arukh (Code of Jewish Law). The student was surprised and answered that the Code of Jewish Law only has four volumes. The rabbi responded that common sense and good judgment is…
Our arrogance will kills us in the end
Watching the world standing impotently by as Iran races towards acquiring nuclear weapons is terrifying. And seeing how humanity if unable to overcome the oil well it drilled in the Gulf of Mexico is humbling. In the later case we are confronted by human limitation and in the former by…
The Failed Ukrainian Revolution
The Ukraine holds the final round of its Presidential election this coming Sunday. For those who have not been following the frontrunner to win the presidency is Viktor Yanukovych, the same person who was ousted from power due to allegations of voter fraud and corruption during the Orange Revolution in…
Uniting our Belief System
What are Jews supposed to believe in? Is Judaism a religion of belief, or is it, as some have maintained, primarily one of practice? This is an age old question and one which Maimonides in the 1100Ís tried to put to rest. He laid out a code of practice and…
Religion and Politics: Are They Compatible?
It is often stated that it is not the job of a rabbi to comment on politics. Stick to religion, we are told: rabbis should keep out of politics. Clearly, many people think that religious leaders should be apolitical. To be sure, rabbis should not use their pulpit to further…
Learning from Jacob’s Business Acumen
It’s little surprise that Jacob is revered by the Judaic tradition as a model for correct leadership. Jacob didn’t reject his father’s or his grandfather’s wisdom. Instead he combined them into a far more powerful mode of leadership. To illustrate this, let’s return to the biblical narrative (in this week’s…
Why So Many Jews Are Atheists
It is indisputable that a disproportionate amount of secular Jews self identify as atheist or agnostics. The celebrated atheist Christopher Hitchens has suggested that this is because Jews carry an atheist gene. This is an interesting and arguably racist conclusion that I wholeheartedly disagree with. Though it does make me…
Manipulating the Energies
We have all experienced interesting coincidences in our lives. Some of us, however, experience them more often and more intensely than others. But are they really coincidences or is there something else at work here. There is a story in this weeks’ Torah portion that sheds light on the phenomena…
Stubbornly Selfless
A friend of mine was a very successful businessman. He climbed the corporate ladder rung by rung until eventually he got to the top. That was it – he had made it. He had the house on the beautiful road, the paved driveway, the Mercedes, and his children all went…
An Alternative to J-Street
J Street the new Israel lobby in the USA held their first conference last week. The Israeli ambassador to the United States Michael Oren declined to attend but the Obama administration was well represented by the PresidentÍs National Security Adviser James Jones. J Street has raised much ire amongst many…