…is the willingness to live a life of risks that makes such individuals different from others… To try, to fall, to fear, and yet to keep going: that is what it takes to be a leader. Vayetse: Light in Dark Times Managing the conflicts that affect every human group is the work of the leader – and if the leader…
…Conversation, Vayetse) Prayers from the past and present can shape our world of the future (Credo article) Prayer, Meditation and Ritual are Fitness Trackers for the Soul (Thought for the Day radio broadcast) The Power of Jewish Prayer (2009 article for Jewish Action Magazine) Prayer (Letter 13 from Letters to the Next Generation 2: Reflections on Jewish Life) Short Quotes…
…Lecha Vayera Chayei Sarah Toldot Vayetse Vayishlach Vayeshev Mikketz Vayigash Vayechi Shemot (Exodus) The book of Exodus – Shemot – is the West’s meta-narrative of hope. It tells an astonishing story of how a group of slaves were liberated from the mightiest empire of the ancient world. Theologically, its message is even more revolutionary: the supreme power intervenes in history…
SUBMIT A REFLECTION FEATURED STORY I teach high school English at a Jewish day school in America. When Rabbi Sacks spent the day at our school, the administration hosted a special luncheon with some of the teachers and Rabbi Sacks. During the luncheon, the teachers were given the opportunity to ask the Chief Rabbi their questions. One teacher asked Rabbi…
As we have seen in both Vayetse and Vaera, leadership is marked by failure. It is the recovery that is the true measure of a leader. Leaders can fail for two kinds of reason. The first is external. The time may not be right. The conditions may be unfavourable. There may be no one on the other side to talk…
If we could only stop asking the question, “How does this affect me?” we would see that we are surrounded by miracles. There is the almost infinite complexity and beauty of the natural world. There is the Divine Word, our greatest legacy as Jews, the library of books we call the Bible. And there is the unparalleled drama, spreading over…
Prayer is a ladder stretching from earth to heaven. On this ladder of words, thoughts, and emotions, we gradually leave earth’s gravitational field. We move from the world around us, perceived by the senses, to an awareness of that which lies beyond the world – the earth’s Creator….
Those who wish to learn to listen to God must learn to listen to other people – to the kol demamah dakah, “the still, small voice” of those who need our love….
The deepest crises of your life can turn out to be the moments when you encounter the deepest truths and acquire your greatest strengths….
I believe that we can face the future without fear because we have been here before and because we are not alone….