…role and impact of mitzvot in Judaism in general and in the thought of Rabbi Sacks in particular Understand the difference between the three categories of mitzvot: Mishpatim, Chukim, and Edot Consider examples from these three categories in order to explore them further Consider whether Judaism is a religion of thought and faith primarily or action and ritual The ‘Ten Paths to God’ curriculum project has…
…in defence of the powerless. Shemot Vaera Bo Beshallach Yitro Mishpatim Terumah Tetzaveh Ki Tissa Vayakhel Pekudei Vayikra (Leviticus) In Vayikra, the book of Leviticus, God sets out the mystery and majesty of holiness, summoning the people with whom He covenanted to a life driven by its energy, lit by its radiance, transformed by its alignment with the will and…
…(the numerical value of the Hebrew word yad is fourteen ). The books are: 1. Knowledge (Madda) 2. Love (Ahavah) 3. Times (Zemanim) 4. Women (Nashim) 5. Sanctity (Kedushah) 6. “Expression” (Hafla’ah) 7. Seeds (Zeraim) 8. Service (Avodah) 9. Sacrifices (Korbanot) 10. Purity (Tohorah) 11. Damages (Nezikin) 12. Acquisition (Kinyan) 13. Judgment (Mishpatim) 14. Judges (Shofetim) In his introduction to…
The Parsha in a Nutshell Balak is the king of Moav, a country next to the Land of Israel. He becomes scared when he hears that the Israelites are heading his way. Together with the elders of Midian (another country near Israel), he tries to hire the famous non-Jewish prophet Bilam to curse the Israelites. Bilam asks God what he…
One of the most striking features about Judaism in comparison with, say, Christianity or Islam, is that it is impossible to answer the question: Who is the central character of the drama of faith? In both of the other Abrahamic monotheisms the answer is obvious. In Judaism, it is anything but. Is it Abraham, the founder of the covenantal family?…
A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible I Believe is a personal and intimate demonstration of how Rabbi Sacks came to see the world through listening attentively to the Torah and its message for the present and all times. This book is the last instalment of the Covenant & Conversation series of themed books, written by Rabbi Sacks on the…
Judaism is a religion of law – not because it does not believe in love (“You shall love the Lord your God,” “You shall love your neighbour as yourself,”) but because, without justice, neither love nor liberty nor human life itself can flourish….
Behind Jewish belief in Torah shebe’al Peh, the “Oral Law,” lies a fundamental truth. The meaning of a text is not given by the text itself. Between a text and its meaning lies the act of interpretation – and this depends on who is interpreting, in what context, and with what beliefs….
To be sure, at the highest levels of mysticism, God is to be found in the innermost depths of the human soul, but God is equally to be found in the public square and in the structures of society: the marketplace, the corridors of power, and the courts of law. There must be no gap, no dissociation of sensibilities, between…
If you seek to change anyone’s behaviour, you have to enter into their mindset, and then say the word or do the deed that speaks to their emotions, not yours….