Being Holy in the 21st Century
Apr 25, 2014 By Gerald C. Skolnik | Commentary | Kedoshim
If I were challenged to present a one-sentence, pithy articulation of the overarching responsibility of a Jew in this world, I would be hard pressed to find abetter phrasing than the second verse of this week’s Torah reading, Parashat Kedoshim: “Kedoshim tih’yu, ki kadosh Ani Adonai Eloheikhem”(Be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy).
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“This Year We Are Slaves”: How and Why Do We Celebrate Freedom in the Face of Oppression?
Apr 18, 2014 By Eliezer B. Diamond z”l | Commentary | Pesah
What does it mean to celebrate Passover in the shadow of death?
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Paying Attention to Our Bodies and Ourselves
Apr 3, 2014 By William Friedman | Commentary | Metzora
What are the rituals that help us transition from one experience to another?
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Enthusiastic and Committed Judaism
Mar 19, 2014 By Danielle Upbin | Commentary | Shemini
When my husband and I named our first son Nadav, we knew that we would have some explaining to do.
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Purim Reversals
Mar 11, 2014 By Julia Andelman | Commentary | Purim
A few months after college graduation, I arrived in Israel as an eager new yeshiva student.
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The Fire Within
Mar 11, 2014 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Tzav
Parashat Tzav discusses the role of the priests in the Temple, and emphasizes the vigilance with which they were to offer sacrifices.
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Offerings As Devotion and Redemption
Feb 25, 2014 By Stephen A. Geller | Commentary | Pekudei
Parashat Pekudei ends with a tremendous scene, one of the highlights of the Bible: the divine Glory, the kavod, comes down from heaven and settles into the newly completed Tabernacle so that Moses cannot enter it.
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Vayikra—Lean Out
Feb 24, 2014 By Burton L. Visotzky | Commentary | Vayikra
This week we begin reading the middle book of the Five Books of Moses, Leviticus. Its position in the Torah scroll is not just coincidental; the laws of Leviticus are central to the earliest rabbis’ understanding of Judaism.
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