Off the Pulpit Archives

The great Rabbi, the Maharal of Prague in the 16th century wrote that Passover changed the nature of the Jewish people, making them free even throughout the captivities of history. This theme was expressed in the twentieth century by Rabbi...

The Passover Seder’s “Four Questions” are a hit in most Jewish households. It is the opportunity to nudge the youngest child forward, cajoling them to sing Mah Nishtana, leading everyone in familiar song. But if we analyze the text, there...

The sin of the golden calf is very strange. The Israelites thought that Moses would be on the mountain for forty days and he did not come down until a day later, on the forty-first. In that single day they...

In this unsettling time, it is helpful to remember that Judaism has faced contagions and dangers before, and our sages have reacted wisely. Perhaps best known is the decree of the great Rabbi Yisroel Salanter, who, during the cholera epidemic...

In Myanmar they tell a story about horses. The story goes that horses were originally created without teeth. The cow has teeth only on the bottom and water buffaloes only have teeth on the top. Originally they both had full...

We all struggle between the impulse to assume we are self-made and that we are indebted to others. Both of course are true: without effort and hard work it is impossible to accomplish much in this world. Yet without all...

Several years ago, I pointed out to my congregation that at our seders we were the Egyptians. While we enacted the ritual and said the prayers, in most homes we were being served by those we hired. Obviously, it was...

Most Jews are not aware, in a world of factory farmed and cruelly killed creatures, that kindness to animals is central to Judaism.    Tza’ar ba’alei chayim, not causing pain to any living thing, is even reflected in the Ten...

In the wake of a rising of anti-Semitism, one strategy is to emphasize the Jewish contribution to the world. The hope is that recognizing the many blessings Jews have brought to humanity will ameliorate some of the hatred. The list...

It is well known that Jews have a deep love of argument. If you disagree with this, you are just proving my point. The Talmud is many things, but one defensible definition is an extended argument. It contains wonderful phrases...