Parashat Naso: It’s not my fault!
by Monica Solomon Being in business these are words I hear almost daily. Certainly if they are not said, they are implied. It seems that it is really difficult for people to own up to their mistakes, and to take…
Rabbi Adrian Michael Schell
Proudly Jewish - Proudly Progressive
Rabbi Adrian Michael Schell
Proudly Jewish - Proudly Progressive
Category Rabbinic Thoughts
Parashat B’midbar: We count!
Incredulous! That’s how I felt, after requesting and then learning my Uber passenger rating. You see, drivers get to rate and rank you too. “4.8! That’s it?” I thought. “I’ve never been impolite or unfriendly. I never cancel a request…
Behar – Bechukotai: Walking upright and unafraid
In our parashah, God vows to enact a series of blessings and curses for the Israelites—blessings if they observe the commandments, and curses if they do not. In her interpretation, Rabbi Lisa Exler explains that the blessings are “curiously framed”…
Parashat Emor: Making the Holy One, holy.
The point of being Jewish is to have a relationship with God. Yet, a relationship implies a certain give and take, and there is little in the Torah that talks about what we have that God could possibly need. What…
Acharei Mot – Kedoshim: Holiness is about sharing
The holiness code detailed in Leviticus 19 opens with the command: “You shall be holy for I the Lord your God am holy.” The chapter then goes on to describe in exquisite detail the means to achieving holiness. Surprisingly these…
Tazria-Metzorah: Our people’s approach to life
While Rabbis often dread having to preach about our Torah portion (who likes to speak about skin eruption called tzaraat), it is a very suggestive one, and presents, an image of the holiness of the Israelite people. Tzaraat is a…
Yom HaShoah: Reinstating the memory and names as a permanent remembrance
When someone we love passes away, we experience deep sorrow and grief. We miss that person’s presence and caring. We miss the support and all that we shared. Jewish mourning rituals and customs are meant to help us cope, to…
Torah Sparks: Resurrection of the death?
This coming Shabbat, we have a dramatic haftarah reading from Ezekiel 37:1-14. The prophet shares the vision of dry bones coming to life. What does this vision have to do with Passover, our festival of freedom, our deliverance from slavery?…
Pesach Seder: A very Jewish version of a symposium
The most well-known thing that Jewish people do during Passover is to gather together for a ceremonial festive meal called a seder. The main thing to understand about a seder is that it combines a delicious meal, the telling of…
Torah Sparks: Teach it to your children
An old saying teaches that we believe what we see, but the reverse is often true: we see what we believe. And what we believe is often coloured by the stories we’ve learned. In less than two weeks, we are…