It’s so interesting that preparation deepens an experience. But this applies particularly to deep and meaningful experiences. The truth is, an experience that is superficial is not enhanced by preparation; it can sometimes even be ruined by preparation.
One of the most harrowing pictures I ever saw appeared in Newsweek. The camera caught a glimpse into a life that had, in many senses, vanished before it even began. A child, who could not have been more than
There is a part of me that really dislikes Rosh Hashanah. Rosh Hashanah is called Yom HaDin, the “Day of Judgment”–and I simply dread being judged. Who enjoys feeling fear, feeling threatened, or thinking about possibly being punished?
In the beginning, when all was “waste and void”, God created the universe. Day by day, the world unfolded. First, there were the domains: light and dark, the upper and lower waters, sea and dry land. Then there were
The Torah repeatedly warns against submission to the “el zar.” El zar is usually translated as, “strange god,” but it can also mean, “god of estrangement.” The el zar is the force of disconnection and alienation.
As the great contemporary sage Rabbi Shlomo Wolbe
Parshat Shoftim is the first Parsha that we read in the month of Elul; the Parsha initiates a special season within the Jewish calendar year spanning the months of Elul and Tishrei which includes the days of Judgment and
The Torah tells us it is important to be Nosay b’ol im chaveiro – literally “carry your friend’s burden.” In other words, be aware and share the pain of others.
David Rosmarin was a sophomore in college in 1999 when he began to feel anxious. His nervousness – about academic stresses and social woes – was probably typical of all college students everywhere, but when David experienced difficulty falling
Bernard Hochstein, a man fondly described as “larger than life,” lived by his lofty principles and inspired others to do the same. At the age of 96, he returned his soul to its Maker, and his rich legacy is
On 4 March 1987, then US President Ronald Reagan addressed the American people from the Oval Office about the Iran-Contra Scandal. It involved senior government officials secretly facilitating the sale of arms to Iran, which was the subject of
When humans grow, they must shed some aspect of their former selves. This demands a painful renunciation, a renunciation of a little bit of who I was last week, of the comfortable skin I am used to calling myself.
For
The National Geographic’s recent article, “High Science,” about the new science of marijuana, features Israeli scientist, Dr. Raphael Mechoulam, who was the first to identify marijuana’s psychedelic properties. He named the neurotransmitter that binds to the same receptor in
In 1964, Arno Penzias and Robert Woodrow Wilson, two young astronomers, stumbled on the origins of the universe completely by accident. Sitting at their desks at Bell Labs, New Jersey, they suddenly picked up a strange buzzing sound from
Love is a funny thing. Even though most people view it as one of the most important aspects of their lives, they have a tough time defining it. Poets and painters have labored to capture and express its essence
The Call Of Teshuvah Is To Do Voluntarily What Life Does To Us Involuntarily.
Everyone wants to say they are crushing it in life, but when Elul comes around, it can be overwhelming to see that it’s more like life
The Torah relates how the evil gentile prophet, Bilam, is hired by the king of Moab to curse the Jewish people, and how that curse is transformed into words of blessing:
“How good are your tents, Jacob, your dwelling places,
Beethoven rose each morning at dawn and made himself coffee. He was fastidious about this: each cup had to be made with exactly sixty beans, which he counted out each time. He would then sit at his desk and
After six months of working for the company, it’s time for your evaluation. You walk into the boardroom, where three designer-suit-clad personnel managers are sitting behind a mahogany desk. The one on the left scans your file, looks up
I never attended a single lecture of his. I was never a member of any of the many institutions he ran. I never even met him in person. Nonetheless, I consider myself a student of the late Rabbi Lord Jonathan
