Read & Listen

An overview on current events and political trends in Israel and the surrounding region.

We lost a sage of our era with Leonard Cohen’s passing. His absence prompted me, as it has so many others, to revisit his words and to absorb his unflinching wisdom. Leonard Cohen was a prophet of brokenness, a seeker of the light who did not ignore the inherent frailties and folly of the human condition.

Historical, spiritual and contemporary perspectives on our Festival of Lights.

Joseph could be understandably bitter about the trajectory of his life: cast out of his family, repeatedly betrayed, imprisoned despite his innocence. He could easily view himself as a self-made man, surviving on his wits and with no allegiance other than to his own survival. But that is not the lesson Joseph has gleaned from the descents and ascents of his turbulent life. Instead, Joseph sees the “downs” as necessary precursors to the “ups.”

It’s time for Jacob to go home and face his past. It has been 20 years since he stole his brother Esau’s blessing and then had to run for his life. Jacob fled with nothing, and now, 20 years later, he returns with a family, flocks and herds.

This is the beginning of Jacob’s journey of spiritual awakening. By impersonating his brother Esau, Jacob had tricked his blind father, Isaac, and acquired the special blessing of the firstborn intended for Esau. But now, Esau wants to kill him, and Jacob has been forced to run away from the only home he has ever known.

If Parashat No’akh is named after its protagonist Noah, why isn’t Parashat Toldot named after its protagonist Isaac? Why is it called Parashat Toldot, and not Parashat Yitzkhak?

Life goes on after Sarah’s death, as it should. There is grieving and renewal, loss and continuity. But the name of our parashah — “The Life of Sarah” — prompts us to pause and assess Sarah’s life before the inevitable moving on. I would like to examine two prominent streams of interpretation of the text.

Let us approach the story of Abraham and his near-sacrifice of his son, Isaac (Yitzkhak יִצְחָק). This story makes most of us shudder, to say the least. Why does our tradition present this story of the Father of our People trying to kill his son?

Abraham and Sarah heeded the call lekh-lekha and embarked on the inward journey towards self-awareness. Every one of us can take that spiritual journey.