Galilee Diary: Fitting in II
by Marc Rosenstein
(Originally published in Galilee Diary and Ten Minutes of Torah)
Marilyn Monroe's Prayer Book is Up for Auction
The upcoming auction of Marilyn Monroe’s personal prayer book is making news. The siddur contains many pencil notations in the margins from when she was learning about Judaism
The Three Lies We Tell About Hanukkah
There probably is no holiday on the Jewish calendar that has been redefined more than Hanukkah. In each age, this holiday has been transformed to suit the issues and concerns of its time.
In Toledo, Asleep in the Room of the Moneylenders
We took advantage of our empty nest status to take a week-long trip to Spain this month, the first time in almost 20 years that we could travel at a time when schools weren’t on vacation.
From Blasphemy to Blasphemous: An Instructive Transition
In Parashat Emor, the Torah reports that a man born of mixed Israelite-Egyptian descent “blasphemed the Name [of God],” was placed on trial, and was stoned to death. A law was then enacted that anyone, Jewish or gentile, who blasphemes the name of God shall be put to death. Over time, in communities throughout the world, laws against blasphemy were put in place to address curses leveled at God as well as perceived slights against some religions.
Joseph and Potiphar's Wife: A Study of Moral Ambivalence
The portion Vayeishev contains astounding examples of bad behavior: Joseph maligns and humiliates his brothers; they, in turn, respond by selling Joseph to the Ishmaelites; Judah and Tamar become involved in a charade of dismal consequences; and, of course, Joseph, onc