( The Times of Israel) – Could someone earn a commendation for deliberately breaking the holiest object ever created, one that was crafted and inscribed by God Himself? According to a midrash [scripture interpretation], this is exactly what happened to Moses. In our weekly scripture reading, Exodus 30:11–34:35 [“Ki Tisa”], Moses shatters the tablets after […]
“No other Land”: When Ordered to Destroy, we Sometimes have a Moral Obligation to Lie
( The Times of Israel ) – You are ordered—like in the Oscar-nominated documentary No Other Land—to demolish the homes, schools, and wells of Palestinian families in Masafer Yatta, a community in the West Bank that has existed since the early 1900s. The official reason: to clear the land for a live-fire military training zone. But when […]
Tevet, Palindromes, and the Ceasefire in Gaza
( The Times of Israel ) – On the occasion of the ceasefire in Gaza, let’s reflect on the current Hebrew month of Tevet: This word is a linguistic treat—it’s the only month that forms a palindrome, a word or phrase that reads the same backward and forward. However, in Hebrew, this palindrome magic doesn’t […]
Gaza: Harris lost because her Party represented War Mongering, Q.E.D.
( The Times of Israel) – My beloved grandmother Savta Greta z”l often liked to use the acronym “Q.E.D.” – an abbreviation of the Latin phrase “quod erat demonstrandum” which means “that which was to be demonstrated” — signifying the end of a mathematical proof or logical argument. Essentially, it indicates the argument has been […]
The Verse “Hear O Israel” is Common to Judaism and Islam
( The Times of Israel) – This Shabbat we read the second paragraph of the Shema, and last week we read the first paragraph which opens with a call — arguably the most famous prayer in our liturgy: Listen, Israel: the Lord is our God, the Lord is one” (Deut. 6:4). “The first paragraph of […]
Does Compromise show Weakness or Strength? – A Surprising finding in the Talmud
Growing up in Israel, the prevailing mentality surrounding me everywhere I went was that compromise shows weakness. The message was clear: compromise is a “Diaspora thing,” but for us Israelis – we stand strong, we take “what is ours,” and we don’t back down. But my father Elhanan Leibowitz OBM (of blessed memory), whose yahrtzeit, […]
Leon Fleisher – the Pianist Who Reinvented Himself and Inspired the World
It was a sad day for the music world when we heard that concert pianist, conductor, and teacher par excellence Leon Fleisher died on August 2 at the age of 92. But it’s also an opportunity to celebrate the legacy of a great musician who was an inspiration to countless music lovers and anyone struggling […]
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