Teens Connect to Judaism Through Justice
Opening a New Book: Lessons From Parashat D'varim
Chasidic tales. The foolish but pious people of Chelm. Folklore. Myths. The Jewish people is a people of storytellers. We use stories to make our points, identify moral and ethical responsibilities, and connect ourselves to an ancient tradition.
Opening a New Book: Lessons from Parashat D'varim
Chasidic tales. The foolish but pious people of Chelm. Folklore. Myths. The Jewish people is a people of storytellers. We use stories to make our points, identify moral and ethical responsibilities, and connect ourselves to an ancient tradition. Each time we hear a story, we find ourselves in it. Maybe we don’t always do this consciously, but each of us is looking for that connection; that meaning; that relevance.
Words Not Spoken . . . Words Not Heard
Words are powerful. In Genesis, chapter one, God creates through words: “God said, ‘Let there be light!’—and there was light. . . . God said, ‘Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters,’. . . . God now said, ‘Let us make human beings in our image,’ ” (Genesis 1:3, 6, 26).
An Open Letter from the 2013-2014 Eisendrath Legislative Assistants
The Challenge of Righteousness
The wording of the verse gives rise to this debate. The text states that “Noah was a righteous man,” but immediately follows with the phrase “in his generation, he was above reproach. . . ” All of us, including the ancient Rabbis, are left to wonder if Noah is exceptional or not, if his righteousness would be universally righteous or simply righteous in his time.
The Show Must Go On
Rabbi Tarfon… used to say: It is not for you to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it.
-Mishnah, Avot 2:16
When we started the Galilee Circus (Jewish-Arab youth circus) in 2003, I idly googled “youth circus” and discovered that this is a world-wide phenomenon: there are dozens if not hundreds of youth circus programs, in every corner of the globe. The educational values of circus – trust, courage, cooperation, non-verbal communication, balance, hard work, etc., are universal, and appeal across cultures, from Afghanistan to New Zealand, creating an international language, and network. That Google search led to a partnership with the St. Louis Arches youth circus troupe. They joined the Galilee Circus in 2007 and again in 2010 for two-week joint performance tours in Israel – and hosted the Israeli kids for summer programs in 2008 and 2012. This “Peace through Pyramids” partnership was great for the all the participants – and for the many audiences who were both entertained and inspired.
The “Right” Action to Take in Aiding the Homeless
Concern for Religious Minorities Around the World
He writes, "In a speech before thousands of Christians in Budapest in June, I made a solemn promise that just as I will not be silent in the face of the growing threat of anti-Semitism in Europe and in the Middle East, I will not be indifferent to Christian suffering. Historically, it has almost always been the other way around: Jews have all too often been the persecuted minority. But Israel has been among the first countries to aid Christians in South Sudan. Christians can openly practice their religion in Israel, unlike in much of the Middle East."