Torah Musings
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I have lived much of my life as if I was a floating head. By which I mean, my default tendency is to intellectualize everything, to the point of at times more or less ignoring the fact that I have a body. I mostly got away with leading with my head, because it usually worked…
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There is a place called the Everest Hotel. From the name you might think it is located in the Himalayas, or another exotic mountain location. In actuality, this Everest Hotel is a fairly nondescript hotel and conference center, with meeting rooms and a space to host gatherings. It is located in a town called Beit…
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As part of my rabbinic training, I completed a unit of Clinical Pastoral Education several years ago. One of our assignments was something called “Theologial Dynamics,” in which we were invited to explore our own theology in any way we chose. I’m not sure why it occurred to me to do this, but as I…
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Before it was cool again, one of my favorite books that I read in high school, was George Orwell’s 1984. A close friend and I found the novel so compelling, that we even wrote a satirical screenplay inspired by the plot, set in our high school. In our post-9/11 Texas public high school, we saw…
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The Torah’s telling of the sotah ordeal challenges us to think carefully about how we know what we think we know. As the episode of the husband propelled by jealousy teaches us, feeling something is true doesn’t actually make it true. And acting on beliefs and feelings has serious consequences.
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I was scrolling through Instagram the other day and found myself admiring the work of others who have creatively used their accounts as a platform for their professional lives. I noticed the sleekness of the images, their ability to convey meaningful teaching and information in an aesthetically-pleasing way. It took about 30 seconds for my…
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As I have been preparing my home for Pesach this year, I have felt that somehow I am cleaning up more chametz than ever before. Now, it’s true that crumbs are always a reality of life for families with young children, but the sheer volume of what I have been finding is unusual this year.…
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January 8, 2021 This week, something sacred was attacked. In this very unusual of times, after 10 months of enduring a pandemic, and after a very tumultuous election season, we experienced yet another unprecedented event in our country. After a long period of shocking events, this still had the power to shock me. I wasn’t…
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14 Tishrei 5781/October 2, 2020 As we descend from the spiritual heights of the Yamim Nora’im, the Days of Awe, we head immediately into the holiday of Sukkot. Starting this evening, we have the opportunity to ground ourselves and reconnect with another dimension of our Jewish practice. While we focus on our heads and hearts…
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In the early stages of the pandemic, I remember having conversations with friends and acquaintances about whether it was ok to do things that might seem silly, given the amount of suffering in the world. There is a sense of guilt that has hung over many people I know. For those of us who have…
