“The world doesn’t revolve around you.” “Believe it or not, you’re not the center of the universe.” We’ve all heard these lines. We’ve (hopefully) all spent the time between babyhood and the present learning to accept them. But in the process, we’ve lost something. Because in a certain sense, they’re false. The world really does... Read more »

And what does G-d demand of you except to do kindness and justice and to walk modestly with your G-d. Micah (6:8) IN THE IMAGE OF G-D R. H. Tawney stated that “The essence of all morality is this: to believe that every human being is of infinite importance, and therefore that no consideration of... Read more »

The importance of leadership in government, business, and every facet of society cannot be overstated. The shelves of our bookstores are stacked with advice on how to become an effective leader. Everyone expects only the highest standards from our leaders. What are the criteria for Jewish leadership? In Parshat Shemot, God chooses Moshe Rebeinu to... Read more »

‘Cognitive dissonance’ is a term coined by psychologist Leon Festinger back in 1957 in his book, A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance. It refers to the discomfort that a person feels when there is misalignment between their behavior and their values or beliefs. It can also occur when a person holds two contradictory beliefs at the same time.... Read more »

On motzaei Shabbos, I took the “long” route home from maariv. It’s about two minutes longer than if I had used the shortcut. But because of heavy rain that fell just minutes before, the shortcut was muddy and treacherous. So, I decided to take the “long” way home to save myself the possibility of slipping... Read more »

THE HISTORY OF MAN AND THE HISTORY OF EACH MAN We are, as the British-American poet W.H. Auden once said, “history making creatures.” [1] We make this history together with our G-d. As Jews, we cannot allow ourselves to be passive observers, swept along by the events that others make. We are a history-making people!... Read more »