Posts Tagged: Pini Dunner
Jews Must Search for the Silver Lining
Over the past year-and-a-half, as the COVID-19 pandemic has relentlessly unfolded, we have all faced countless ups-and-downs -- hopeful glimpses of sunlight that are soon dashed...
As Jews, Our Fate Is in Our Hands
The noted American gossip columnist Earl Wilson (1907-1987) was the author of countless pithy one-liners — far too many to quote. But just to give...
Our Loving Relationship With God
This Shabbat is ‘Tu Be’Av’ — the 15th day of the Jewish month of Av — an obscure Jewish festival day when we highlight the...
Remembering My Father, and the Promise of One Jewish Life
This week marks 10 years since the passing of my dear father, Avraham Moshe ben Yosef Tzvi HaLevi z”l, at the age of 73. Known universally...
What Judaism Tells Us About Wisdom and Learning
Jason Tan is a professor of Policy, Curriculum and Leadership at The National Institute of Education in Singapore. He is also an acknowledged expert on...
Korach and the Arguments of Destruction
If you’re British and of a certain age, you are probably a fan of the irreverent 1970’s comedy sketch show Monty Python’s Flying Circus. I...
Celebrating Israel’s New President, Isaac Herzog
In a world full of conflict and discord, in which the very idea of representative democracy is struggling to survive an overwhelming onslaught of hostility...
A Torah Quirk, and a Tale of Jewish Sustenance
A couple of weeks ago, during our Torah reading on Shabbat, the Torah reader suddenly stopped in his tracks and bent down towards the parchment...
Parshat Emor: Is the Greatest Danger Close to Home?
If you were on the lookout for a bizarre news headline this week, I don’t think you could have beaten this one: “Shock After Christian...
Why Fake News Is an Affront to God
Have you ever heard of Veles (pronounced “veh-less”)? I don’t expect you have. It’s a small town in a European country called North Macedonia —...
The Difference Between a Merely ‘Religious’ Jew and a Principled One
Hearts & Minds: An Original Look at Each Parsha in the Torah by Pini Dunner; Otzrot Books, 2021. Many Jews believe that being religious is the...
Giving to Others Gives Our Life Meaning
Earlier this week, I read that Barbara Rickles had died at the age of 84. Her late husband, Don — who passed away in 2017,...
A Rabbi Becomes an American Citizen
I became an American citizen this week. Over the past nine and a half years, first there were visas, then there were green cards, and...
Parshat Ki Tissa and the Meaning of Jewish Community
Earlier this week, we moved back into our synagogue after a full calendar year of being unable to gather for services in our beautiful building....
