Monday night, I was pleased to be the guest of the Midwest Consul General for the State of Israel, Elad Strohmayer, along with more than six hundred other supporters of Israel from nine midwestern states that the consul serves, at the annual Yom HaAtzmaut reception. The guests included elected officials, business leaders, faith leaders, and community partners from throughout the region. The event took place in Skokie at a large strictly kosher banquet facility near Mariano’s

A synagogue hires a new cantor. He has a gorgeous voice, but he’s… dramatic. Operatic. Every note is a production. The congregation starts to complain. So the president of the shul meets with him and says, “Cantor, the people love you, but they say your best piece — your absolute finest moment was last Shabbat. ”The cantor beams. “Really? Which piece?” And the president answers: “The Silent Amidah.” It’s an old joke, but for some people it is really the truth. It is during t

In a Yemenite Midrash by the 15th‑century sage Choter ben Shmuel, the author addresses us directly: “Dear reader of this derash, know that the scholars have set boundaries for us within that which exists, beyond which we cannot pass. And there is a law violated only by one who wishes ‘to rise up to the heavens or descend to the depths of the sea.’ Such a person believes things that are impossible. He exercises free choice — ‘each person has the ability’ — and becomes excited

Jews often say that whenever you have two Jews together, you are likely to have three opinions. We laugh because it’s true, but beneath the humor lies something profound. Judaism treats disagreement not as a flaw but as a sacred tool. We are urged to consider multiple possibilities for understanding any concept. There are countless commentaries on the biblical and rabbinic texts. A limitless God, we believe, would hardly limit divine words to a single meaning. Each of us hear