Posts Tagged: Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
The Missing Fifth on Passover
The following is an excerpt from Rabbi Sacks' Haggadah commentary. Many commentators, among them the Vilna Gaon, have drawn attention to the influence of the number...
When is it Permitted to Tell a Lie?
After the death of Jacob, Joseph's brothers were afraid. Years earlier, when he had revealed his true identity to them, he appeared to have forgiven...
The Story of Joseph and the Dawn of Forgiveness
There are moments that change the world: 1439 when Johannes Gutenberg invented the movable-type printing press (though the Chinese had developed it four centuries before),...
Violence Defiles Us All, Even When Necessary
From beginning to end, Genesis 34 tells a terrifying story. Dina, Jacob's daughter - the only Jewish daughter mentioned in the entire patriarchal narratives -...
Reticence vs. Impetuosity
It should have been a day of joy. The Israelites had completed the mishkan, the sanctuary. For seven days Moses had made preparations for its consecration. Now...
Celebrating the Victories of Others
If leaders are to bring out the best in those they lead, they must give those people the chance to show they are capable of...
Judaism is About Taking Personal Responsibility
The sequence of parshiyot, Terumah, Tetzaveh, Ki Tissa, Vayakhel and Pekudei, is puzzling in many ways. First, it outlines the construction of the Tabernacle, the portable house...
Jewish Law Provides Vision and Detail
Our parsha (Bible portion) takes us through a bewildering transition. Until now in Shemot (Exodus), we have been carried along by the sweep and drama...
Former Chief Rabbi Sacks Tells CNN’s Amanpour Resurgent Anti-Semitism Main Worry (VIDEO)
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks told CNN anchorwoman Christiane Amanpour that resurgent anti-Semitism is his prevailing worry for world Jewry. In a transcript of the interview uploaded to the...
How to Succeed? Fail, Get Up, and Try Again
At first, Moses' mission seemed to be successful. He had feared that the people would not believe in him, but God had given him signs...
The Tradition of Women as Leaders
This week's parsha (bible portion) could be entitled "The birth of a leader." We see Moses, adopted by Pharaoh's daughter, growing up as a prince...
British Leaders Silent in Face of Anti-Israel, Anti-Semitic Rhetoric
In what's becoming a regular and predictable occurrence, yet another leading British politician recently attacked Israel and the American Jewish lobby. This time it was...
Perfect Justice is Beyond Human Understanding
In Deuteronomy 24, we encounter for the first time the explicit statement of a law of far-reaching significance: "Parents shall not be put to death for...
Testing Prophecy
In his enumeration of the various leadership roles within the nation that would take shape after his death, Moses mentions not only the priest/judge and...
