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The Real Sin of Sodom and Gemorrah #512

11/04/2017 07:29:30 PM

Nov4

p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 18.0px Arial; color: #232323} The Real Sin of Sodom and Gemorrah

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There are many passages in the Torah which have been misinterpreted in order to pervert God's word.

This...Read more...

Go Forth: My Personal Journey #511

10/28/2017 05:26:41 PM

Oct28

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It was a rainy evening in November 2003 when I picked my wife up at Edmonton International Airport.

She got into the car and reached for her seatbelt. "I have something important to share with you," she...Read more...

Noah, alcohol and the challenge of addiction #510

10/23/2017 09:48:53 PM

Oct23

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There are two festivals of the year during which Jews are actually encouraged to drink.

One is Purim. According to the Talmud, we are obliged to consume wine...Read more...

Punchline of the Torah #509

09/17/2017 06:03:20 PM

Sep17

Punchline of the Torah

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There are times when I believe that we make religion and Judaism more complicated that they need to be.

Our tradition is limned with countless interpretations and commentaries which have produced thousands of rules and regulations fully known to a chosen few, to the point that so many...Read more...

The Most Vulnerable Among Us #508

09/04/2017 10:52:09 PM

Sep4

The Most Vulnerable Among Us 

There is a somewhat disturbing passage -- or more precisely a troubling commandment  -- closing this week's Torah portion.

We are told that, whenever we encounter descendents of the Amalek nation, we are supposed to destroy them: their warriors, their families, their possessions -- everything.

This commandment seems so out of character...Read more...

Unity Against Hatred? #506

08/20/2017 05:47:54 PM

Aug20

Unity Against Hatred?

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See, ("Re'eh"), is the word which begins this week's Torah portion.

Indeed, there was much for Americans and the world to see this past weekend.

Torch carrying Nazis storming the streets of...Read more...

Not on Bread Alone #505

08/20/2017 05:45:32 PM

Aug20

Not On Bread Alone

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During the 1990s, I served on a senior committee which provided advice to the journalism department at a college in Calgary, Canada. 

Twice a year, the college would fly our group in to offer insights, and these were used...Read more...

#504: Is the World Good or Bad?

08/07/2017 11:16:57 PM

Aug7

Is the World Good or Bad?

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One of the strangest conversations of my rabbinate took place recently as services ended one Shabbat morning.

A visitor to our congregation approached me to offer his objections to the Prayer for our Country which we recite each Sabbath...Read more...

#503: Tweeting and the Jewish Connection

07/29/2017 04:25:16 PM

Jul29

Tweeting and the Jewish Connection

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On the average, every second of every day, about 6,000 new tweets appear on Twitter.

That translates to more than 500 million tweets every day.

Based on an average of 70 characters per tweet, and about four characters required to form a...Read more...

Reflections of Israel 2017 #502

07/16/2017 08:25:26 PM

Jul16

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TEL AVIV --  A few days after I arrived in Israel, a Tel Aviv resident asked if I knew what the national bird of Israel was.

"It's the crane," he chirped, before giving me a chance to respond.

Cranes are everywhere in Israel, extending skyward above new construction work, crowning buildings under renovation. You can see them around new apartments, office towers, cultural centers.Read more...

Tue, July 15 2025 19 Tammuz 5785