Rabbi Jacqueline Mates-Muchin: You Shall Have Joy
For Sukkot, we are commanded to be happy. Yet emotions can be difficult to command. What does the Torah mean when it commands us to be happy?
Rabbi Daniel Bouskila: “A Rosh Hashanah Like No Other: How Agnon Brings Us All Together in His “Days of Awe”
It was a Rosh Hashanah like no other. It was the Rosh Hashanah when I felt as if I held a “Book of Life” in my hands. On that day, for the very first time, I opened S.Y. Agnon’s beautiful High Holy Days book “Yamim Noraim — Days of Awe.”
Healthy Yom Kippur fasting
Cornell University has published tips for healthy Yom Kippur fasting. If you will be fasting for Yom Kippur, please follow the link below for tips:
Forgiveness: Mary Klaus
Mary Klaus writes that sincerely asking forgiveness is difficult for most: it is inherently humbling. You have to confront uncomfortable truths about yourself. It is also challenging is that you must prepare yourself to not be forgiven.
Nitzavim: Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks
Rabbi Sacks asks the question: Why Judaism? In Exodus, at Sinai, our forefathers said, “All that the Lord has spoken we shall do…”. Now, at the end of Moses’ life, he has to ensure that all future generations will also be bound by the covenant.
To the Third and Fourth Generations
There is a contradiction in the passage of the 13 attributes, describing God’s compassion, as well as holding descendants responsible for their parents’ wrongdoing.
Detailed Source Sheet On Shofar Blowing
During Elul, it is a reminder of what it means to be a Jew and to have received the Torah. It is also a wake-up call, a call for yeshivah. To read the whole article, please follow this link:
Protecting Captives of War – Ki Tetze
Rabbi Chaim Ovadia writes an interesting article about the treatment of female captives. He develops the theme that the men in power have the right to violate the female captive, as long as they simply follow certain protocols.
Come Together in Song with Cantor Marsha Attie of Congregation Emanu-El of San Francisco
Getting ready for High Holy Days – Please check out this beautiful rendition of Or Zarua by Cantor Marsha Attie
Sigal Samuel of American Jewish World Service
Author Sigal Samuel posted an article on Deuteronomy 22:5, which addresses the Biblical prohibition against cross dressing.