A D’var Torah for 2 Elul 5786, 15 August 2026 Parashat Shoftim asks how power can serve a people without consuming them. Judges must judge fairly. Witnesses must speak truthfully. A king must submit to the Torah and remember that the people he governs are his brothers. Those who claim…

Judaism is one faith, one covenant, and one religious civilization, but it has never been culturally uniform. A Jew entering a synagogue in Warsaw, Fez, Aleppo, Rome, Sana’a, Tehran, or Cochin would recognize the Torah scroll, the Shema, the Amidah, Shabbat, the festivals, circumcision, marriage, mourning, and the basic structure…

A D’var Torah for 25 Av 5786, 8 August 2026 There are moments when doing what is right seems straightforward. We understand our responsibilities and recognize the choice before us. At other times, appearances confuse us. Something may look religious without being faithful to God. A familiar practice may feel…

Few figures in Jewish intellectual history occupy a place as uncomfortable, fascinating, and consequential as Baruch Spinoza. To some, he was the first great secular Jew, a courageous defender of reason who refused to surrender his conscience to religious authority. To others, he was an apostate philosopher whose writings denied…

For much of history, Jewish civilization has been described primarily as a civilization of words. Torah, commentary, prayer, poetry, philosophy, law, and storytelling occupy such an important place in Jewish culture that it is easy to imagine Judaism as almost deliberately detached from the visual arts. Christianity filled its churches…

A Torah-Centered Approach to Rest, Holiness, and Modern Life Shabbat is one of the enduring signs of the covenant between God and Israel. Each week, we set aside the seventh day, cease from our work, and acknowledge that our lives belong to something greater than production, consumption, and the demands…

A D’var Torah for 18 Av 5786, 1 August 2026 A man once came to synagogue after many years away from Jewish life. He stood near the back, uncertain when to sit, when to stand, and where to find the prayers in the siddur. His Hebrew was poor, and more…

What happens when we sin? Does wrongdoing permanently separate us from God? Must someone else suffer before we can be forgiven? And without a Temple or an altar, how can we return to the One who gave us life? These questions reach beyond theological debate. They concern the person who…

The young man had practiced his greeting at least twenty times before leaving home. It was supposed to sound casual: “Beautiful evening, isn’t it?” Unfortunately, by the time he reached the vineyards outside Jerusalem, his carefully rehearsed words had become tangled somewhere between his heart and his tongue. When the…

Netzarim Judaism begins with a responsibility that no synagogue, rabbi, organization, or political movement can carry for us: each Jew must study Torah, cultivate an informed conscience, and take responsibility before God for how we live. Teachers can guide us. Communities can strengthen us. Traditions can deepen our understanding. Yet…