Reflections, September 2016
By Rabbi Dr. James Jacobson-Maisels Parashat Shofetim R. Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk’s opens his reflections on Parashat Shofetim by quoting from Torah and the Talmud: [Then the officials shall address the troops, as follows:] “Is there anyone who has built [a new house but has not dedicated it? Let him go back to his home, […]
Reflections, August 2016
By Rabbi Dr. James Jacobson-Maisels Parshat Va’etchanan The Vitebsker’s interpretation of va’etchanan starts with Rashi’s reading of one of the parsha’s most famous verses: Rashi interprets the verse “You have been shown to know [that YHVH alone is God; there is none beside Him]” (Deut 4:35) according to the Targum (the ancient Aramaic translation) which renders […]
Reflections, July 2016
By Dr. Rabbi James Jacobson-Maisels Parashat Balak We have just returned from a powerful retreat where it was wonderful to see some of you. We had the opportunity on retreat to be with our experience, such as the craziness of our comparing minds (ie. s/he is a better/worse meditator than I am) and the truth of the […]
Reflections, June 2016
By Dr. Rabbi James Jacobson-Maisels Parashat Nasso / פרשת נשא (This will apply to this week's Parsha if you are in Israel, or next week’s if you are in the U.S.) What is freedom? Our consumerist culture would have us believe that freedom is about having access to many choices and the ability to decide […]
Reflections, May 2016
By Rabbi Dr. James Jacobson-Maisels “I will run on the path of Your mitzvot for they widen my heart” (Ps. 119:32). Do not we all want that widened heart? The Vitebsker in parshat Emor tells us that joy is accessible to us all. The path is the practice of letting go of ego, and the […]
Reflections, March 2016
By Rabbi Dr. James Jacobson-Maisels “This is the law (Torah): When a person dies in a tent” (Num. 19:14). How do we want to die? What kind of death do we desire? R. Israel Hopshtein of Koznitz, the Maggid of Koznitz uses death as a way of talking about life and uses two ways of […]
Reflections, September 2015
By Rabbi James Jacobson-Maisels, Founder and Spiritual Director On Yom Kippur, we let go. We let go of food, drink, sex, comfort. We try to let go, not hold onto our normal ideas and practices of what we need. On Yom Kippur, we reenact the Temple service of the High Priest and his entry into the holy […]