Purim – The Anti Semitism of Shushan — By Ben
The story of Purim has drama, suspense, nudity, plot twists, and drinking. So much drinking. But despite all that craziness and tomfoolery it’s actually a troubling story of how a society […]
Category Archives: Posts by Ben
An Eye for an Eye and a $100,000 Ticket For Speeding — By Ben
In Finland, it’s possible to get a speeding ticket for hundreds of thousands of dollars… if you’re rich. That’s because in most Scandinavian countries, a person’s income is factored into the […]
Yisro – More than Hearing
This week’s parsha may be the most important portion in the Torah. Not only are the 10 Commandments given, but God Himself speaks to the Jewish people. It is a revelation […]
A Leader and One Who Leads — By Ben
We’ve all had “test of faith” moments (or in Jew-speak test of emmunah.) And in this week’s parsha, Beshalach, the Jews have a pretty daunting one. Just after leaving Egypt, God instructs Moses […]
Rosh Chodesh and New Beginnings — By Ben
Parshas Bo has a ton going on. It finishes up the plagues (most notably the death of the first born), the Jews are given their freedom finally becoming a nation, […]
Va’eira – Denial isn’t Just a River in Egypt
In this week’s parsha, Va’eira, there is the big showdown between Moses and Pharaoh. God sends Moses to plead with Pharaoh for the Jewish people’s freedom and every time Pharaoh […]
Shemos – Five Times No
If ever there is an iconic image from the Torah recognized by the religious and the secular world alike, it would probably be Moses and the burning bush. Throughout the Torah, […]
A Tale of Two Messiahs
The messianic prophesy is one of the most fascinating and crucial aspects of Judaism. The belief that the world will one day be redeemed by a single individual to usher in a new […]
Chanukah, a REAL holiday. — By Ben
Chanukah is a lie. Or rather that’s what I came away with after a seminar taught at my reform Temple when I was 12. I don’t remember much, I just […]
Reward for Failure – Vayeishev
This week’s Torah portion, parsha Vayeishev, begins Joseph’s story. And it’s quite a story at that. There’s betrayal, seduction, a prison set piece, some dreams sequences, and (of course) mistaken identity. But the event […]
Six Degrees Of Kosher Bacon 