• Tragedy Is But One Ingredient for Change

    Tragedy Is But One Ingredient for Change

    I’ll always remember seeing a Israeli Muslim doctor on TV a couple days after October 7th 2023. The fact that he was Muslim matters, since he was working in Israel in an Israeli hospital and talking about Jewish victims of the Hamas attack. My memory is hazy, but I believe he was a pathologist, which…

  • Listen Up, You Who Struggle

    Listen Up, You Who Struggle

    שְׁמַע “Listen.” The first word of the Sh’ma, the statement of faith for Judaism. If I had my way, any faith statement would begin and end with that word. Listen. Just listen. In Hebrew, which I’ve come to love in ways I never expected, every letter and word offers doorways of endless meaning. “Sh’ma” doesn’t…

  • Let’s Do the Time Warp Again: In the Beginning

    Let’s Do the Time Warp Again: In the Beginning

    בְּרֵאשִׁית, Bereshit, “In the beginning…” Not really. But let’s do a little time warp here. It’s just a jump to the left and then a step to the right. It’s 1984 and I’m born. It’s one of those years with an accompanying vibe that is not lost on me in 2025. How Orwellian can it…

  • Ritual Immersion for People Terrified of Water

    Ritual Immersion for People Terrified of Water

    I’m terrified of water. Okay, let’s narrow that down. You will never see me enthusiastically get on a boat, travel the ocean, or journey down a river. Murky lakes and ponds are out of the question, too. If I can see the shoreline, that helps reduce the anxiety. Oh, yeah, I’ve not been in a…

  • The View from the Mountaintop

    The View from the Mountaintop

    Hineini, “Here I am.” I begin this journey at the end of another journey, but really, it’s all a journey in progress. I’ve let go of the illusion there’s ever a single destination in life. This one, though, is monumental. Some will characterize it as a shift in perspective, worldview, and then some. I would…