What Is the Body Language of Prayer?
As a teenager, I had the unique experience of participating in a joint Reform/Orthodox retreat up at OSRUI, our URJ camp in Wisconsin. I remember walking over to the Orthodox service after the Reform service had ended and seeing one of the participants standing in front of the congregation, barefoot, with a tallit over his head and his hands spread wide. I learned that I had seen a ritual sometimes called Birkat Kohanim (the Priestly Benediction or Priestly Blessing). ...The origins of this ritual come from this week's portion, Sh'mini.
It’s Important To See the Whole Person, Not Just the Illness
I’ve never had great knees, but this was a bit much. At 32 years old, I was limping around, struggling to go up and down stairs, and just feeling terrible about it. Thankfully, surgery and physical therapy helped and I have long since recovered. The most important lesson I learned from my bad knees is one that I see reflected in this week’s Torah portion. Parashat Tazria-M’tzora teaches us about our physicality; its focus is on the skin, hair, fluids, and organs that make up our bodies. We learn how out of our control those things can be and we gain some insight into our relationships with those entrusted with our care.
Committing Ourselves to the Actions Required for Full Inclusion
At its best, the Torah can lift up humanity, reminding us of our place in the continually unfolding story of God’s Creation of the world and our role in the hopeful journey toward freedom. At its worst, it can serve as a tool for domination, oppression, hatred, and all that is base and vile within the human soul. As a gay man, I approached this week’s Torah portion, Acharei Mot-K'doshim, with a fair amount of trepidation.
How Can Social Isolation Lead to Illumination?
Jacob’s Vertical and Horizontal Encounters
As Parashat Vayeitzei begins Jacob is fleeing from his home in Beersheba. He’s afraid his brother, Esau, will make good on his threat to kill Jacob (Genesis 27:41), because Jacob (with Rebecca’s guidance) tricked their father, Isaac into giving the blessing for the firstborn to Jacob.
The Power of Names and Naming
Elie Wiesel has written, "In Jewish history, a name has its own history and its own memory. It connects beings with their origins.
All I Need Is a Miracle
It was the winter of 1999 in Israel, and my sister had come to visit me while I lived there. We planned a trip to Masada and everyone told us that we should leave near sunrise in order to hike up at the coolest part of the day. Did we listen? No.
Sing, Sing a Song!
So, you know how there are tons of melodies for Adon Olam? You may never have thought about it before, but there are many out there. Yes, each congregation may default to one or another, but the words to Adon Olam can be fit into many modern tunes.
Everybody’s Working for the Weekend
One Monday night, I sat in a circle with my ninth and tenth grade students.1 We were in the middle of a unit on wellness and k'dushat haguf, "the holiness of our bodies." I asked them to give me an example of a way Judaism encourages us to take care of ourselves.