The ways in which we are enslaved, each of us, are often invisible to us. Our narrow-mindedness about who knows what, our blindspots - whether they are political, personal, religious, familial - these are so commonplace to us that we sometimes don't see them.
Read moreReturn from Brigadoon (Report from Rabbi Land)
I just got back from Brigadoon. That’s how I’ve begun to think of the annual Ohalah conference. It’s the winter jamboree of Jewish Renewal rabbis from around the world. The week felt like being at a yeshivah, not of the old kind, but a yeshivah as you might imagine it in Olam Haba, in Paradise. Rabbis and students of all ages and genders. All of them with a hand in the old texts and an eye on the future of the planet. Progressive people, creative people, mystics and musicians.
Read moreThe Angel and the Shepherd
Moshe, still in hot pursuit of the baby goat, splashed right through the puddle of predicament that was the angel Zagnugael. And in that moment, the messenger heard his thoughts.
Read moreThe Renewable Resource of Reciprocal Blessing
...But blessing can be so much more! How do we use blessing to bring more peace to the world? How do we bless in ways that are more expansive and imaginative than Isaac was able to muster? How do we outwit the jinni?
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B'Chukotai: What Did You Just Say?
And I have to say, with a deep sigh, that this is the kind of thing that gives Judaism a bad rep. This is the kind of thing that drove a lot of people in this room out of Hebrew school and out of shul. A theology that on the surface says, "If bad stuff happens to you it is your fault." But I am still in love with Torah, and don't feel a need for divorce just because of some bad words between us.
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