Her Memory is a Blessing
At the end of October in 1984, I left Birmingham, Alabama after a fabulous, two-month stint working on a bound-for-Broadway musical while staying with my mother who resided there. Mom and I had been estranged for many years. But this visit was a breakthrough!
Galilee Diary: Sustainability
When the Holy One Blessed be He created the first humans, he showed them all the trees in the Garden of Eden, and said to them: See how wonderful and pleasant are my creations! Everything I created – I created for you.
Cause for Celebration in Israel: Tu B'Av, the Jewish Festival of Love
When I moved to Israel, it was easy for me to forgo some of the holidays that I grew up with in America that I knew had a distinctly non-Jewish origin. It was also a pleasant surprise to discover other holidays here that unite Israelis across the spectrum – such as Tu B’Av, also known as the festival of love.
Galilee Diary: Balancing act
Everyone will sit under their own vine and under their own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid… -Micah 4:4
Galilee Diary: Truth in labeling
Who is the mightiest of the mighty? ...He who turns his enemy into a friend.
-Avot D'Rabbi Natan, version A, chap. 23
Death to the extremists!
-popular Israeli bumper sticker
Galilee Diary: Women's Work
Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel said: if a man vows that his wife may not work, he must divorce her and pay her ketubah, for idleness leads to boredom.
-Mishnah Ketubot 5:5
Galilee Diary: CSA
Asher's bread shall be rich, and he shall yield royal dainties. -Genesis 49:20
A Prayer for Peace in the Aftermath of Terror
by Rabbi Joe Black On Sunday evening, I participated in a prayer vigil at the Aurora Civic Plaza. Many people from around the country saw the proceedings live on national television. From my perspective, sitting on the dais, the scene was somewhat surreal.
Munich Massacre Memorial Prayer
Here is a memorial prayer for the 40th anniversary of the Munich massacre.