“I was taught a month ago,To bide my time and take it slow.But then I learned just yesterday,To rush and never waste the day.Well I’m convinced the whole day long,That all I learn is always wrong.”– Phish (Character Zero) I learned two lessons this year that at first glance seem completely contradictory. Early in the year, it occurred to me…
We are within the period between Yom HaShoah, Yom HaZikaron, and Yom Haatzmaut, during which we commemorate the Holocaust, remember those who died fighting for Israel, and the birth of the State of Israel. It is a time of reflection and gladness, of mourning and joy. It is a time during which we look back, but it also is a…
Pesach is the holiday of freedom. We celebrate how our ancestors were once slaves in Egypt, and how God redeemed us with an out-stretched Arm and brought us to freedom. And if God hadn’t redeemed us, we would still be slaves today. But is it really? After all, what is this “freedom?” After all, in only a few months, we…
Dear MMAE Family, In Parshas Shemini, which we just read, the Torah commands the kohanim to refrain from drinking alcoholic beverages before they do the service in the Mishkan or Temple. The Torah goes on to explain the reason- a crucial part of the kohain’s job is to differentiate between “pure and impure, holy and unholy”. In order to differentiate,…