Time to Weep, Time to Dance: Sukkot 5780
Enough with all this happiness! The Torah commands, and we dutifully sing, “rejoice on your festival… and be entirely happy” (Deut. 16: 14, 15). The Rabbis explain the original form of rejoicing to be the consumption of the “happy sacrifice” (קרבן שמחה) during Temple times; thereafter everyone should rejoice in their own way—by drinking wine,…
Eyes on the Prized Land: Ekev 5776
Everyone wants our attention, and technology has made it both easier and more difficult to focus on what is truly important. Facebook keeps nudging me about the birthdays of people I haven’t spoken with in years, if ever, and there is no escape from the latest escapades of our politicians. Disasters cluster and clamor for…
Reimagining God: Ekev 5774
On the surface, Parashat Ekev is about what kind of people God expects that Israel will become. We read that Israel’s God “demands” many things—reverence, love, obedience and devotion. Israel is warned of the afflictions of affluence—ingratitude and materialism, and is reminded of the many benefactions that God has bestowed upon them since the days…
Rabbi Danny Nevins 