In 1897, Theodore Herzl convened the first Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland. Though he defined himself as a secular Jew to whom Judaism was just an afterthought he gave form to a 2000 year … more

The image of his smiling, victorious face, aglow with the sense of vindication that seemed to be one step away from “I told you so,” has become the paradigm of the image of impending … more

Next week we commemorate the breaching of the Old City walls of Jerusalem by the Roman Tenth Legion on the 17th day of Tammuz in 70 CE, heralding the beginning of the end of the Jewish Second … more

In Israel, even a bus ride can become an existential experience. On a long, crowded bus ride from Haifa to Jerusalem, a fellow in a long black coat and black hat was sitting towards the rear of … more

One of the guys I was in yeshiva with tried to convince me not to sign up for Officer’s course. I would be forced to spend an additional year and a half in the army, without any spiritual … more

I have long been intrigued by one passage in this week’s parsha, Beha’altecha. After a lengthy stay in the Sinai desert, the people are about to begin the second part of their … more

Three thousand years ago, King Solomon wrote in the book of Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) that there is a time and a season for everything under the sun. “A time to sing, and a time to dance, a … more

A story is told of a Jewish man who was riding on the subway reading a newspaper of the Klu Klux Klan. A friend he approached and asked, “Moshe, have you lost your mind? Why are you … more

It was our first masah, our first forced march. We were barely two weeks in the army and Itzik, a sadistic little first sergeant who had made it his mission to break us into soldiers, owned us … more

Literally translated, Acharei-Mot-Kedoshim means “after the death of the holy ones,” a reference that is all too appropriate following weeks that included Yom HaShoah (Holocaust … more