THE LIVING JEWISHLY BLOG
Nourishing the World
As hard as we try, we cannot permanently avert our eyes from global food insecurity, which is not a matter of lifestyle, or values, or identity. It is a binary of life or death, with little in between. Without protecting the fragility of the ecosystem, we will be unable to leave a viable legacy to our descendants.
Sukkot and the Fragility of Life
Life invariably shows us how fragile we really are and Sukkot is about literally shifting perspectives and encountering that fragility. Sukkot asks us to consider the real meaning of security and to cherish our beloved all the more.
Shofar and the Sounds of our Lives
How do shofar sounds connect to the lives we all lead? Because music is a language. This Rosh Hashana let the music take you on a journey through the ups and downs of life and set your intentions for the new year.
A Scholar and a Gentleman
The theological questions that emerge from the Holocaust are many, and they are difficult. Like many of us, I have thought about and been highly disturbed by these questions, so in 2008 I contacted Rabbi Dr. David Weiss Halivni, who died on June 29 at the age of 94, and asked if he would be willing to discuss his thoughts about the Shoah.
Let God Explain
Human beings throughout history have committed acts of unspeakable evil. In addition, natural disasters have killed untold millions; babies and children have suffered terrible illness and deformity. For the religious believer, there is a component of agonizing perplexity, why would God would create a world which is then seemingly abandoned to fate?
A Voice for the Silenced
As Holocaust Remembrance Day and Israel Independence Day approach, Dr. Elliot Malamet discusses the importance of these holidays as they remind us of the past. In this blog, he discusses why with each passing year our memory of the holocaust is weakened and what we can do to ensure that we continue to give a voice to those who were robbed of speech in the Holocaust.
Go Quiet or Go Public?
Why would a man invite the wrath of an empire, risking death and devastation to descend on his entire people? Is it so important to hold fast to your principles when the result may be catastrophic? Shouldn’t war be avoided when you are outmatched and outgunned? Why stand firm, and provoke the apocalypse? Read this week's blog post by Dr. Elliot Malamet to discover how he answers these questions.
Helping Children Feel Safe
It’s been said often that parenting may be the hardest job on earth; it is arguably the most important. There is no perfect formula or manual, no guaranteed method. And whatever we did with one child, we may have to think and react differently with the next one.
We are Not Diminished by the Other
What happens to Chanukah in an atmosphere where Christmas can be so all consuming? What do we do with these December dilemmas? Read Dr. Elliot Malamet’s latest blog to find out!
Chanuka and the Spinning of Fate
The dilemma of Chanuka is how to stand out proudly as a Jew in a world where, at times that might be a precarious undertaking. Our Judaism does not require a neon sign, but it also not something to obscure or keep sequestered indoors. May the light of Chnauka shine in our hearts, and then radiate outwards into the rest of our lives and our world.
Rosh Chodesh Eul, with guest yoga teacher, Jenna Zadaka
Chodesh Tov! We invite you to begin this month with a beautiful yoga practice. This yoga practice invites us to return to our inner child, which is the tikkun (healing) of this month; to remember to return (teshuva) home with each breath; and to inspire our own sense of Awe through nature, and through our bodies.
Baseball, Ice Cream and Fixing a Broken World
In Elliot Malamets latest blog he discusses the “Law of Triviality,” which asserted that the amount of time spent discussing an issue within an organization ran in inverse proportion to its actual importance. When the world is shuddering under the press of weightier matters we choose to talk about trivial things instead of discussing the important issues due to lack of understanding.
Gratitude
Much of contemporary life is organized around making us desire things we do not need. How do we break the cycle of false desire and its twin sister, incessant complaining? There are two key steps, renunciation and gratitude. In this blog Dr. Malamet discusses how we can break the cycle and be grateful for all that we have.
Rosh Chodesh Tammuz, with guest yoga teacher, Jenna Zadaka
Tammuz is one of the most difficult months in the Jewish calendar which contains many of the darkest events in our history. To guide us into the month of Tammuz, Jenna Zadaka of Breath and Soul Yoga leads us in a yoga flow from Jerusalem. The heated heart of the holy land.
Day by Day
In our culture, we are repeatedly given two paradoxical/contradictory messages: Be Yourself & Be Better. So how do we navigate between self-acceptance and the goal of transforming into the best version of ourselves?
Borderlines: The Ethics of Immigration
Is immigration a basic human right? Or is it a privilege? This episode of Living Jewishly is an instalment of What Would You Do?, a podcast about ethics. In this episode, we explore the borderlines making up the ethics of immigration.
Life is Elsewhere? The Israel of Fantasy and Reality.
In the imagination of many people, Israel engenders hypersized fantasies, where each day respresents—depending on your point of view--the potential for violence and bravery and heroism; a haven from persecution or a fresh start for Jewish dreamers; Start-Up Nation mixed with spiritual elation; brutal occupation and ethnic discrimination.
Chodesh Tov & Ramadan Kareem!
My dear friend, the Sufi poetess Sukina Pilgrim shared a poem that she wrote last Ramadan. I am sharing it with you, as both our communities honour the time of receiving our Holy books, to share the inspiration in her devotion, and to wish our muslim friends a Ramadan Kareem.
Freedom is A Verb
Freedom is certainly not felt identically by all sectors of society. This Passover, along with cherishing our own self-determination, let us reach out and help those who are not truly free, harassed and threatened not for anything that have done, but simply for who they are, what they look like, whom they love.
When Slavery Is Not Just In Your Head
Many people have commented about feeling “confined” during the pandemic while at the same time according to the International Labour Organization, at least 40 million people are virtually owned by others right now around the world.