Another Way Of Looking At Things, Inspiring People, Longform, News & Politics, Relationships & Family, Spirituality & Faith, This Week In Wisdom, Uncategorized, Wisdom Daily News / 31 Mar 2023
This Passover Roundtable began in the aisles of Costco and Home Depot…
Clal’s Rabbinic Faculty share their thoughts on Passover this year.
News & Politics / 31 Mar 2023
Not in the Fire: A Reflection On The Protests In Israel
A Reflection On The Protests In Israel
Spirituality & Faith / 30 Mar 2023
Imagining My Ancestors’ Passover Helps Me To Prepare For My Own
Would our ancestors feel comfortable at our Passover seder?
Another Way Of Looking At Things, Breaking False Dichotomies, Daily Life, Hold Dualities Together, News & Politics, This Week In Wisdom, Weekly Parsha, Wisdom Daily News / 30 Mar 2023
Clawing for Legitimacy
We fight for attention. We fight for resources. But perhaps we fight most over our own sense of legitimacy – that we belong, deserve a good place in society, and are worthy of regard. This holds true both for us as individuals and for us as families, groups, communities, and even entire countries. In addition to the many presenting issues in the polarization of Israel’s society – not to mention American society and that of so many democracies around the world – legitimacy may be at the forefront. For 75 remarkable years, Israel’s Supreme Court has been the center of conferring legitimacy upon leaders, governments, and social norms. Its 15 justices serve as a unique combination of rabbinic sage, Platonic “philosopher-king,” and the High Priests of justice. Its strength did not derive from its institutional framework so much as its social framework. It is of little wonder, then, that so much furor has arisen at prospective changes to this key institution in Israel. Without getting into the details of the “judicial reforms,” “judicial coup,” or any overstatements and understatements about the present political situation in Israel, we would do well to redouble our focus on the notion of legitimacy itself – and the forces that bestow it or take it away, notably within a Jewish framework. This week’s Torah portion, Parshat Tzav (Leviticus 6:1 – 8:36), does just that. Leviticus 8, in particular, relates the “laying on of hands” and formal consecration of the Priesthood. It is among the quintessential scenes of conferring legitimacy upon representatives of the people in holy work of transcendent purpose. We read in Leviticus 8: 5-13: Moses said to the leadership, “This is what God has commanded to be done.” Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons forward and washed them with water. He put the tunic on him, girded him with the sash, clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod on him, girding…
Building New Identities, Business & Education, Uncategorized, Wisdom Daily News / 24 Mar 2023
Where Everything New Is Old Again
“Old” connections create new paradigms
Relationships & Family, Wisdom Warehouse |
November 12, 2013
What’s In A Name? Perhaps A Great Deal!
We all know the expression ‘what’s in a name’. Essentially it means?what something is?called can never fully capture the full meaning of what that something?is.?This saying is particularly true for people,?who are surely more complex than any one name or label that gets slapped on them. ?But there’s still a lot in a name. While true that a person’s identity cannot be reduced to their name,?names?can?matter when it comes to expressing our hopes, dreams, aspirations and expectations. ?Just ask any parent who?has spent countless?hours?choosing a name for?their baby, or people wrestling with......
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Many Americans today who are asked about the role of faith in their lives identify themselves as “None” – no religious identification.? For me, if I’m honest, religion alone is increasingly not getting the job done (that it used to) of nurturing the virtues we all need in life to flourish: awe, wonder, humility, transcendence, responsibility, kindness and love. As an eighth-generation rabbi, this is a significant challenge! Lately I’ve been looking at the intersection of popular culture and science for new “sacred” wisdom that works to evoke and nurture these qualities.......
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Today is Veterans Day and whatever our politics or opinions of war, we need to respect, honor and most critically, care about our veterans. In reflecting upon the importance of Veterans Day, I came across some surprising and even shocking facts on the impact of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan: More than 6,600 dead. 2.5 million men and women have been deployed in these two wars – over 400,000 have done more than three deployments. If you do not know anyone who has served it is because we have made an......
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Wait! Before you skip over this post because you may not believe in God, substitute a term that does fall into your beliefs: “awe,” “wonder,” “inexplicable beauty,” or “a moment of transcendence.”? Don’t let the words get in the way.? Now ask yourself: Where do you find those things, and where are you when they find you? It turns out that we often discover the transcendent in the most unexpected or idiosyncratic places. It can literally happen any place. That’s actually really promising – because if God (or whatever) can be there,......
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Spirituality & Faith, Wisdom Warehouse |
November 07, 2013
The Ethical Issues of Ebay Selling Holocaust Memorabilia
As the 75th Anniversary of Kristallnacht approaches, Holocaust-related stories surface more often and resonate more deeply.? Of particular note is Ebay making Nazi artifacts available for sale. As the last survivors of the Holocaust perish, the ethics of memory — what this story is really about — becomes entirely our question to deal with. This is a far more complicated issue than most people realize, even though I share most people’s initial revulsion at the crass commercialization of the Holocaust by turning tokens of unspeakable horror into high-end collectibles. But because I......
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Daily Life, Videos, Wisdom Warehouse |
November 06, 2013
Sights Unseen — The Monkey Business Illusion
Before you read on, watch this video that was an Internet sensation. I guarantee you will be surprised. If you are like the majority of people, including myself, who have watched this video you missed something that was right before your eyes.? You experienced the phenomenon called “inattentional blindness”. It turns out that we consciously see only a small subset of our visual world, and when our attention is focused on one thing, we often fail to notice other, unexpected things around us — including very major things going on right......
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The United States Air Force has decided to make God an option; at least as far as the service or enlistment oath is concerned.? The oath is older that the United States itself, dating back to June of 1775, and has been administered in its current form since 1962, as follows: I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey......
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It’s easy to say that parents should never play favorites.? But if we’re honest, it’s a lot harder in practice. We are all someone’s kid, and many of us are someone’s parent.? In at least one of those roles most of us have experienced favoritism – either showing it, or experiencing it as a sibling.? It’s not that we don’t love all of our kids, or that our parents didn’t love all of theirs. For a moment, let’s assume love is not the issue. ?Sometimes though, we simply mesh better with some......
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I just saw Liberal Arts, a nostalgic coming-of-age indie film directed by and starring Josh Radnor (of How I Met Your Mother) that tells the story of Jesse, a 35-year-old college admissions officer in New York City who loves literature and language who has a romantic relationship with Zibby, a 19-year-old college student. ?The film deals with the addictive pull of nostalgia for our youth but there is a line in the film that caught my attention. Jesse is overly negative and judgmental and at one point after dissing a book Zibby......
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Book Club, Wisdom Warehouse |
October 30, 2013
Using Gladwell’s Insight to Inspire Those Who Need It Most
I just finished reading Malcolm Gladwell’s new book, David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants.? Like Gladwell’s prior books this one is entertaining, with great story-telling that explores one counterintuitive thesis. ?Blink compelled us to trust our guts. ?The Tipping Point suggested we seek out and invest in “influencers”.? And in Outliers, Gladwell posits that it isn’t talent, but rather luck and hard work that are far more important. As always with Gladwell you need to read him while understanding that what he “proves” is always more true......
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Latest Video
Listen To The Names Of The Victims First
A video where Brad Hirschfield lists the victims names in the recent Orlando shooting. Because first we need to internalize a tragedy before we jump to speak.
