Why Antisemitism Is A Historical Constant
Jews and Jew Hatred are entangled essentially.
Writing about it won’t help. I’m so angry. I’m so angry for being born and for being in this place. Not really. not authentically. Not in a way that I’d want to reverse the process of being born or being in this world. See, even that’s not real. And that’s part of why I’m angry. […]
Nodding in despair, leaning on the Chevy, I considered my options. It was a bright Friday morning in May and the southern sun beat down on my hat and jacket, mocking the choices that tormented me as they torment all mortal men. The short ceremony at the imposing villa was over and I’d retreated to […]
Hello. It’s 2 AM. And Pesach Is Coming.
I learn Torah now from 2:30 to 3:30 on Thursday mornings. This is how it happened: I have a chevrusa (a one-on-one study session) with a genius from Israel once a week. It involves a lot of him talking very quickly and me nodding as if I understand, and we used to do it at […]
Consider: Jews. Ruin. Everything. I don’t mean our chosen actions or behavior ruin things. That, too, is possible. But we often seem to ruin things just by sort of being around. Take monarchy, for example. For a long time we were kind of cool with it. “Hey, man, if you wanna rule over everything that’s fine; […]
Everything You Know About Chassidus Is Wrong
I begin with a confession. Some say they’re involved with Judaism because of its eternal truth, or because it is the tradition that runs in their veins, or because it is the best way to make sense of the world and their place in it. I am involved with Judaism because of the pleasure I […]
10 Atheist Arguments I Like (part 4)
~ Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 ~ We finally continue our series on atheist arguments that help us improve our faith in G-d. Our previous installment spoke about the perennial question, “What […]
When A Non-Jew Asked What I Believe
A friend who is not Jewish recently asked me, “What are your metaphysical beliefs?” This was the best answer I could give him: What do I believe? Well, I’m an ordained rabbi, so that should tell you something. By most outside evaluations, I am what would be called “orthodox jewish,” or even the semi-derogatory “ultra-orthodox.” […]
“G-d is a place you will wait for the rest of your life.” – Neutral Milk Hotel, “Two-Headed Boy Pt. 2” ~ If I hadn’t been half dead from heat stroke, I never would have stepped into the first hovel on the left looking for shade. Instead of a dusty convenience store with spindly-necked bottles […]
The Rebbe, The Chief Rabbi, and The Fossils
In the fall of 1987, the Chief Rabbi of Britain, Rabbi Lord Immanuel Jakobovits of blessed memory, engaged in a short correspondence about something the Lubavitcher Rebbe once wrote. The Chief Rabbi’s position was that, though well-stated and perfectly above-board, the Rebbe’s argument was “simplistic” (which Rabbi Jakobovits claimed is not at all in the […]