Finding Sanctity in Community
May 17, 1997 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Emor
In Judaism certain religious acts require a minyan. We do not chant from the Torah scroll or recite a haftara without a quorum. For a cantor to lead services that include the recitation of the blessing barkhu or the kedusha in the amida or a mourner’s kaddish likewise needs the presence of a minyan. So does a wedding. Moments of peak sanctity call for community. We attain a sense of God’s concern by entering a space filled with kindred souls. In public worship, Jews past and present are united to in fuse us with the spiritual power to reach for the transcendent.
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Isaiah Berlin and Kant
Oct 21, 1995 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Bereishit
I like Isaiah Berlin’s favorite quotation from Kant: “Out of timber so crooked as that from which man is made nothing entirely straight can be built.”
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On Baseball and Jewish Endurance
Sep 25, 1995 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Rosh Hashanah
Seminary lore has it that Solomon Schechter advised the young Louis Ginzberg, when he joined the faculty, to master the game of baseball.
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“Dear Mr. Prime Minister…”
May 28, 2005 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Behukkotai
This past Sunday, New York Jewry greeted the Prime Minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, at a Leadership Assembly at Baruch College sponsored by UJA-Federation of New York, the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, and United Jewish Communities.
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Lessons From the Book of Ruth
Jun 12, 2005 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Shavuot
Sharing our possessions is not a disposition that comes naturally.
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Elijah the Prophet
Apr 23, 2005 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Shabbat Hagadol
The Shabbat just prior to Passover is known as the Great Sabbath, Shabbat ha–Gadol. It is not one of the four special Sabbaths that span the month of Adar to herald the coming of Passover (Shekalim, Zakhor, Parah and ha–Hodesh).
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What Is Love?
Oct 1, 2005 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Nitzavim
Love is surely a tough emotional state to prescribe by law.
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The Language of the Jewish People
Sep 24, 2005 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Ki Tavo
The owner of the mid-nineteenth-century farmhouse we rented for August has a well-tended orchard of diverse fruit trees.
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