The Courage to Search: A Tribute To Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks
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 Sacks. When I heard of Rabbi Sacks’ passing I still could not come to terms with it. I could not shake the empty feeling of loss.
Identifying Your Life’s Mission
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 at you accusingly, and says, “I see here that you did not report for work at 9 am one time during this entire period.”
All In Order: by Lord Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
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 compose until 2:00 or 3:00pm in the afternoon. Subsequently he would go for a long walk, taking with him a pencil and some sheets of music paper to record any ideas that came to him on the way. Each night after supper he would have a beer, smoke a pipe, and go to bed early, 10:00pm at the latest.
Nurturing Jewish Values
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, Israel,” says the parsha. “Stretching out like brooks, like gardens by a river.” (Numbers 24:5-6).
A year later, it was confirmed – this inexplicable hum was in fact Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB), the radiation left over from the birth of the universe, providing the strongest possible evidence that the universe expanded from an initial violent explosion, known as The Big Bang. The CMB remains one of the most important scientific discoveries in history. In one fell swoop, the Big Bang theory – the theory that the universe had a beginning – displaced the dominant Steady State Model – that the universe had no beginning, that it simply always was.
“Judges and officers shall you appoint for yourselves in all your cities…” (Deut. 16:18)
Because there are no coincidences in spiritual matters the commentators interpret the commandment to appoint judges as a trumpet call to arms issued to all of us.
Return To Mindfulness
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 is crushing us. Don’t Despair! These 5 Mindfulness tips will help you take on teshuva like a Pro.
