The Pursuit of Justice
Sep 3, 2011 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Shofetim
Rousseau opened his famous essay on the ideal political order, “The Social Contract,” by stating his intention to “imagine men as they are and laws as they might be.” The same could be said of Moses’s objective in the book of Deuteronomy and particularly in this week’s parashah.
Read More
Father, Have You No Blessing Left for Me?
Nov 21, 2014 By Leonard A. Sharzer | Commentary | Toledot
In Parashat Toledot, the saga of our somewhat dysfunctional ancestral family continues, and included within is one of the family鈥檚 saddest and most poignant episodes. Yitzhak, scion of the family and heir to his father鈥檚 covenant with God, has just married at the age of 40. He and his wife, Rivkah, remain childless for 20 years, when, in response to his entreaties to God, she conceives. Unlike her late mother-in-law鈥檚 easy pregnancy at an advanced age, Rivkah鈥檚 pregnancy is complicated. We are told right away that 鈥渢he children, the 鈥榮ons鈥� in fact, were struggling within her womb鈥� (Vayitrotzetzu habanim bekirbah; Gen 25:22). However, she does not know the reason for her discomfort and distress.
Read More
A Call for Hope
Sep 10, 2011 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Rosh Hashanah
In the face of a litany of personal, societal, and global woes that has seemed particularly long this year; in the face of our nation鈥檚 inability to shake the economy loose or defeat our enemies or work together despite our differences, the Jewish calendar insists there is something new in store鈥攐r that there can be, if we together do as the Torah commands.
Read More
Conflicted Relationships
Nov 25, 2011 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Toledot
At the start of this week’s parashah, and again at its conclusion, we confront the complex, conflicted relationship that binds Isaac’s twin sons to one another and to their father. The middle section of the parashah, by contrast, is concerned with the no less complex and conflicted relationship that binds Isaac and his family to their neighbors.
Read More
The Whimsy, Confusion, and Hope of Purim
Feb 11, 2012 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Purim
Purim is probably the most confusing of all Jewish holidays.
Read More
Standing with Moses on the Mountaintop
Feb 18, 2012 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Mishpatim | Shabbat Shekalim
Readers of Mishpatim cannot fail to be struck by the contrast between the main body of the parashah and its conclusion. The former consists for the most part of rather dry case law, covering such things as goring oxen, robbery by day and by night, and release from indentured servitude. The end of the parashah could not be more different in subject and tone.
Read More
For Our Students
Mar 31, 2012 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Shabbat Hagadol
I got valuable help this year in writing my annual Shabbat Hagadol message to teens and 20-somethings from six teens and 20-somethings who are studying at 91快播’s Albert A. List College of Jewish Studies.
Read More
Filling Life with Life
May 5, 2012 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Aharei Mot | Kedoshim
“The deeds of the ancestors are a sign for their descendants,” said the medieval commentator Nahmanides. Sometimes it seems that the weekly Torah portion captures the situation of our generation with remarkable prescience. So it is with Aharei Mot-Kedoshim.
Read More