“I believe in the soul of the underdog. The one who has to struggle for the victory, who learns that the challenges she overcomes to achieve it make it all the sweeter.” I wrote these words fifteen years ago, the opening lines in an essay for NPR’s “This I Believe” series. I was thinking about these words when Rebecca Stapel-Wax accepted the Michael Jay Kinsler Rainmaker Award at this year’s Purim Off … Read more
Essay originally appeared at thisibelieve.org (2008) I believe in the soul of the underdog. The one who has to struggle for the victory, who learns that the challenges she overcomes to achieve it make it all the sweeter. I believe in this soul’s journey because it has been my journey. My earliest Jewish memory consists of a Passover Seder in my grandparents’ Brooklyn apartment. The year was 1970, and our religious … Read more
Every act of communication is a miracle of translation. —Ken Lui Today is a double-holiday: it’s International Women’s Day and Shushan Purim, or the 15th of Adar 5783, which in the Jewish calendar is when the holiday of Purim is celebrated in Jerusalem. Shushan Purim is also a special anniversary for me personally: Shushan Purim 5747, which corresponded to Monday, March 16, 1987, was the day I interviewed at the Jewish Theological … Read more
Homegoing and Transcendent Kingdom, both by Yaa Gyasi, a celebrated young author. The Days of Afrekete, by Asali Solomon, a professor of English at Haverford College. I wasn’t intentionally reading these books because it was Black History Month. But when I realized that I’d read three books by Black women in the first three weeks of February, I decided to investigate the origins of this month-long celebration of the achievements and contributions … Read more
My Remarks (more or less) at the Georgia State Capitol on February 22, 2023 – Rosh Hodesh Adar 5783: I have stood here before, with colleagues and friends; it is a privilege to stand her again and teach a central principle of my faith, a core Jewish value, rooted in the Hebrew Bible and known in over fifty world religions as the Golden Rule: וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ Love your neighbor as yourself. … Read more
Oh, for the love of God and humanity: RFRA is back! Like a bad penny or a reboot of Night Court, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) came back to the Georgia State Senate last week, reintroduced as SB 180. This is a partisan attempt to revive legislation that would lead to discrimination against religious minorities and LGBTQ people, legislation that has been repeatedly rejected for nearly a decade. Let’s hope the … Read more
As the clock ran out on the Eagles’ last play of the game, after the Chiefs’ kicker sent the ball sailing through the goalpost for the winning field goal, our eldest turned to us and said, “You know, the real winner of the Super Bowl is that mom.” She was referring to Donna Kelce, who received some media attention for the half-Chiefs half- Eagles jacket she wore to support her two sons, … Read more
I was delighted to see friends from all around Metro Atlanta at the Tu B’Shevat tree planting in Wade Walker Park on Sunday, and honored to offer a teaching and kavanah, intention, before we began our work. While there isn’t a blessing to recite upon planting a tree, I shared Rebbe Nachman’s prayer (below). The weather was perfect and, with the help of experts and veteran volunteers from Trees Atlanta and JCAN-GA, … Read more
It’s difficult to believe it’s been 3 weeks since I posted any news here. I can’t really explain why—I suppose I could offer the excuse that I have limited use of my “mouse hand,” but this would be disingenuous. The splint protecting my right CMC joint is definitely a help not a hindrance. Perhaps the best I can do is acknowledge that January blew through here like a Nor’easter. One day we … Read more
I thought my relationship with Resurgens Orthopaedics would be more of an affair than a long-term thing. I was wrong. You may remember the story of how it all started. Perhaps you read about the incident involving two dogs, one leash, a fire hydrant and Hailey, which I blogged about twice: after the fall, when I believed I was healing, and after my first visit with Dr. Dantuluri. Throughout the fall and … Read more