The Jewish people can best be described as a spiritual family. We are connected by our souls, and every Jew is a part of this invisible web by virtue of our Jewishness. You can either be born into the family or join by choice. But once you are in, you are family, no matter what. If Jews are a family, the Torah is the family rules. It recounts the family history, defines the family identity, and lays out the expectations of how members of the family should behave and the good they can contribute to the world. Some of the Torah is universal, but much of it is about our particular family and its relationships - with our brothers and sisters, our ancestors, our homeland and the Head of the family - G-d. If you break the rules, you are still a member, because family is family. But those who keep the rules keep the family together. Those who reject the rules usually find their children or grandchildren will drift away from the family entirely, not even knowing what they are leaving beh...
Can you guess what is the most often repeated two word phrase in the entire Torah/ Tanach/ Bible? “Al Tira” do not fear is mentioned 44 times! Add to that another 26 times in which it is said in the plural (al tirau), or as many as 110 times when you include other slight variations of the tense. On one occasion or another G-d said do not fear to each of our forefathers! Why is not being afraid so important? What do you think? Here are some thoughts: Fear shuts you down. It causes you to hide and to run away. You have so much to accomplish in life through the mission tailored specifically to you. Fear is the antithesis of living life broadly and proudly and tenaciously. Fear makes you feel that you are all alone. Faith means that G-d has your back and cares about you, you are never alone even in your most difficult times. Do not fear! Mendel Bluming, Maryland
In Las Vegas we were stunned once again by another staggering and grotesque mass murder and the resultant anguish for all those whose lives have been destroyed and irrevocably altered. We are left perplexed and wondering what in the world is going on in our country? This kind of vicious mass murder is something we have not seen before, certainly not with the frequency that we see it today. Would you believe that there has been a shooter incident somewhere in the country almost every day this year? In the latest tragedy in Las Vegas the killer doesn't seem to even have had a twisted ideological or religious motive. Just wanton murder. Although law enforcement may be baffled in their search for a motive in this case, A general societal shift may have contributed to the perpetration in these kind of atrocious acts. The most dramatic changes in American society over the past seventy five years has been, not in the technological realm (though superficially it may seem so), ...