Stumbled out of bed this morning. It was one of those “hit the snooze multiple times” type experiences. What’s wrong with me? I don’t need to make meditations at 8am. There’s a whole days’ worth of time to get in a session. I can explain. When I was very young, my parents became involved in …
“What will you take with you to the other side of Covid?” That was the prompt an interviewer asked me for an on-line magazine this week. It is an important question. After quarantine is over and social distancing restrictions ease, what will we have learned during this period? Additionally, at the time of the interview, …
This is the fourth week of the month. For Reflections Off the Bimah, the fourth week features thought leaders from throughout the Jewish world and beyond. These special posts give you the opportunity to consider important opinions you may not readily encounter. I share this piece from Rabbi Jacob Blumenthal, CEO of The Rabbinical Assembly …
Trombones, Drums and Trumpets dancing up the street towards the cemetery, forming a 2nd line to the formal funeral procession. This custom of the Crescent city is one of the unique and most celebrated customs of New Orleans. Not everyone gets a second line. It’s normally reserved for the most celebrated citizens of the city, …
Since 1949, May has been National Mental Health Awareness month. I have never felt the need to focus on mental health as intensely as now. From children to senior citizens, we are all feeling the difficult emotional, physical, social and spiritual effects of Covid-19. Focusing on our mental health is critical. Throughout this year, Beth …
By Robin Jacobson. We proudly present three new memoirs by DC-area authors Judith Heumann, Esther Safran Foer, and Ron Hoffer. Each book speaks to the Jewish and human experience and offers, in different ways, an example of fortitude and hope especially welcome at this time. Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Activist by …
By Robin Jacobson. What to read during a pandemic? Since the Book of Psalms (Sefer Tehilim) is the traditional Jewish prescription for times of crisis, I opted for a new historical novel about the psalms, Lux by British poet Elizabeth Cook, a wise and wonderful work. Lux takes place partly in the biblical world of …
Today is Rosh Chodesh Iyar, the month in which Israel’s Independence falls – the 5th of Iyar corresponding to April 29, 2020. As this is also the fourth week of the month, for Reflections Off the Bimah, I share this piece from Rabbi Daniel Gordis, Senior Vice President at Shalem College in Jerusalem. Gordis is …
Total Reset It’s remarkable. I cannot remember a time when 95% of the world’s news coverage centered on one topic. Sure, it’s hundreds of variations on the ramifications of the virus, but its essentially the same story. How has Coronavirus effected the economy, health care system, politics, environment (positively), worker psychology, churches, synagogue and restaurants? …
It is paradoxical to discuss Passover during an ‘unprecedented’ time of disease. Plagues are a center piece of the Passover narrative. We recognize the plague of frogs (tzfardea) with cute plastic jumping toys; hail (barad) by throwing cotton balls at each other; darkness (choshech) by wearing sun glasses; …
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