Summer of 1940. Winston Churchill (paraphrasing):
“What General Weygand has called the Battle of France is over … (France was lost to the Germans) the Battle of Britain is about to begin. Upon this battle depends the survival of our civilization. Upon it depends our British life, and the long continuity of our institutions . . […]
In today’s parashah, we read about 3 figures who go through great struggle, and who may well have succumbed to despair. They could have lost hope. They could have lost the will to make things better— but they didn’t.
First, Jacob is told about the apparent death of his son Joseph, but we read that Jacob […]
Family turmoil, poor parenting, elements of deceit. Yes, in the Bible. But today’s parashah, Toldot, sounds like many contemporary families, doesn’t it?
Like many of our matriarchs, Rebecca has a tough time conceiving a child. Well, she winds up with two at the same time, and learns that the two are already fighting in her womb! […]
Bereshit. Again. Weren’t we just here? Wasn’t it just yesterday that we had recently shut down because of the pandemic Did a year really pass this quickly? Sunrise, sunset. How quickly flow the years. At least most of us are back in shul again. Still grappling with the pandemic, though.
There were Adam and Eve, in […]
We’ve all seen live fireworks at one time or another. And as we know, there are typically one or two shots at a time, with colors from the one fading before another is launched into the darkened sky. And then, near the end, what happens? Right – a whole bunch of the various types of […]
As many of you know by now, I will be retiring from my medical practice very soon. And no matter how much I try to line up other activities and remain productive in one way or another – docent at the Holocaust and Human Rights Museum, teacher of ESL, etc, etc, the fact remains that […]
In today’s parashah, we find the ancient and very famous Priestly Blessing. For those of you who would like to refer to it during my D’var, it is Ch 6, v. 23-25 on Pg 804 in Etz Chaim.Truthfully, after all these years, I think its translation needs to be . . . freshened up a […]
Janusz Korczak was the pen name for Henryk Goldschmidt. He was an author of children’s books in Poland before WWII. He eventually ran an orphanage in Warsaw. He, the social workers and all the children were gathered by the Naziis and sent into the Warsaw Ghetto during the war. He was given the opportunity to […]
The latest of my forays into my future post-career life is teaching ESL – English as a second language – to a group of adults. While I’m still working, my 70th birthday looms. Time waits for no one. So as I prepare for what comes next in my life, I’ve ventured into several activities as […]
Nancy and I received a text last week before Thanksgiving from a well-meaning cousin. She sent it to several people in the family. The thrust of the message was that we should be thankful for struggles because they make us stronger. And on and on it went about different types of struggles – physical, emotional, […]
