On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah -- Tol'dot: Who Will Carry Our Tradition Forward?
Many of us know the story of Jacob and Esau, the brothers who could not be more different from one another.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah -- Tzav: Courageous Choices
This week's Torah portion, Parashat Tzav, is read around Purim, a story of mythic (and even improbable) proportions that remains enduringly relevant to Jewish Diaspora life and anti-Jewish persecution throughout the centuries.
Stories We Tell: Ezra's Sparkle
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah -- Sh'mini: The Dangers and the Neccessity of Innovation
In this week's Torah portion, Parashat Sh'mini, we learn about the sudden deaths of Nadav and Avihu, two sons of Aaron the High Priest. Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch wrote that their sin was innovation.
Loving Israel and Lobbying for Peace
On Purim, Let's Get Vulnerable - Whether or Not We Get Drunk
What Does it Mean to "Code Switch" in Jewish Spaces?
Whenever I enter Jewish spaces, whether it’s my first time or my fiftieth, I make a conscious effort to bring my kippah, my Sh’ma bracelet, and my Magen David necklace.
The Struggle to Build a Loving, Accepting, and Ethical Israel
A classmate recently snapped a photo of a billboard promoting Israel’s right-wing Yachad party that read: “So there won’t be a child with a father and a father!”
Drunk on Purim: What Are We Teaching Our Kids?
Purim festivities don't square with what I know about the harmful side of alcohol: It destroys people’s lives. What message are we sending our children?
"Make a Change": A Jewish Teen Leader's Challenge
"Connection doesn’t have to be this huge thing. It can be small things, too, that make just as big of an impact."