In My Opinion...

All progress - whether it be in spiritual or physical matters - is a result of differing opinions

Most of the time the demonstrations are gatherings looking for a cause rather than a cause inspiring demonstrations

Disconnect eventually breeds disrespect

Peace involves sublimating memory and releasing one's hold on the past

The Jewish future always aspires to a better world without denigrating the current world

I like to look at baseball as a metaphor for life. The simplicity, beauty, quirky unexpectedness, and uncertainties of the game accurately mirror the events in our personal and national lives.

What our Jewish society today needs are a few good broadcasters who will be able to put current events into perspective, to be dispassionate about issues that we face, to view things realistically and not purely emotionally and judgmentally, and who are loyal to the game, but not afraid to point out errors made on the field

Gratitude to God that we are alive, no matter what our problems are; gratitude to God for what we have, no matter what we think we are missing; gratitude to God for everyday life, difficult as it may be

It is true that in regard to individual Torah greatness, our generations do not include a Rashi, a Maimonides, or a Gaon of Vilna. There are no equals in our time to the great spiritual scholars and savants of the past. But there is no question that the overall situation of the Jewish people is better now than it was in eleventh century France or eighteenth century Lithuania - far better. And that is an important concept to remember and consider

Yet for centuries one of the greatest attributes of the Jewish people has been that even though we have been victimized, we have never allowed ourselves to feel that we are victims

Admitting the truth is a painful experience, both for the teller and for the listener. For many of us - individually and communally - life is wrapped up in avoiding painful truths. But, at least once in a while, the truth should be publicly stated so that we will realize the true problems that face us and in what direction we should turn

The desire for change - any change at any cost - is a potent example of human arrogance and hubris. We are all convinced that we can change the world and refashion it in our image and according to our values and aspirations. History mocks us in this belief

In our godless time, neither the words of the prophets of Israel, nor Rashi's grammatical probings, and certainly not the aggadic digressions in the Talmud are given adequate time nor place of honor. We are wholly devoted to demonstrable knowledge, facts, exams, and scholastic marks. The inner spirit and beauty of Judaism is lost.

For decades, official American Jewry has been trapped by its own public relations sloganeering

The dire circumstances of Eastern European Jewry over centuries almost forced a type of humor upon that society: self-deprecating, always mildly sarcastic, and totally ironic. It was meant to amuse and not to hurt. It never targeted individuals per se, but nevertheless it served as astute social commentary on Jewish society and circumstances. It always had a dark side to it, but it was not depressing nor too bitter. It acknowledged human foibles, even of great people, and held them up to laughter - but not to ridicule

I have noticed that there is a decline in humor in the religious world. People take themselves too seriously to be self-deprecating, and self-deprecation was always the hallmark of Jewish humor. At Jewish weddings, wild dancing and ear-splitting music has replaced the badchan Too bad. We could all use a good ironic look at ourselves every so often

Events on the ground truly mock the past wisdom of journalistic experts

The Torah bids us to remember the past in a meaningful fashion. That means not only to remember past events and personalities, but also to remember the inaccurate assessments that were regarded as infallible in the past. Remember what wise men once said was "impossible to occur, and nevertheless did occur. Remember the fallibility of all human beings, and the fact that great people often are capable of great mistakes. Remember that the race is not always to the swift or the battle to the courageous and mighty

Affluence contributes to changing privileges into rights. Pesach vacations, school trips to Poland, a gap year or two of study in Israel, a college education, major support from others while continuing to study after marriage, all are examples in our current Jewish world of privileges, of which were completely unknown to an earlier generation. Many of these things are regarded as rights, if not outright obligations. There is little gratitude expressed for receiving these gifts, for, after all, they are viewed as rights and not privileges.The unfortunate result is a narcissistic and skewed society.

The attitude of Judaism is that everything is a privilege, even life itself

Exclusivity of division of labor is a wise course for a successful marriage relationship

Jewish tradition also prescribes that the husband should prepare the candles that his wife will later light to welcome Shabbat to their home. I find this to be an act of affection to both my wife and to Shabbat. The custom is that the husband actually lights the candles to make certain that the wicks are in proper order and then extinguishes them. It is the small things in life and home that build meaningful relationships. Judaism does not recognize anything as a small thing- and certainly not in relation to preparing for Shabbat.

A unique aspect of Elul is that it dwells upon the future. Months that contain days of commemorations and holidays always possess a necessary emphasis on past events, on history and momentous events that have previously occurred. Because Elul has no such holidays, its thrust is forward looking. Its message to us is that the misdeeds and sad events of the past should be considered as having ended; and now we can only look forward to better times and more positive behavior in the new year that appears on the horizon.

The basis for Judaism and its value system can be summed up in one word: accountability

Remembering that we are bidden to erase the memory of Amalek from our midst has served to constantly remind us of its presence in the world and of the danger that it still poses to us and to all civilization. Apparently, it is only by remembering our enemies that we are able to truly erase their legacy. Paradoxically, commemorating the days of our disasters is the method of preserving our hopes and commitments to rebuild ourselves and our homeland

The grief and tension of the first part of the month of Av are still with uscenturies after the destruction of the Holy Temple - simply because deep within the heart and psyche of the Jewish people the Temple is not gone: it is only missing.

The month of Av symbolizes this angst and challenge of living a Jewish life, of being grateful for what we have, and yet maintaining a sense of loss for what we are still missing

Promises easily made are a sign of arrogance and hubris

But all logic and common sense tells us that bringing the Charedi public into general Israeli society and to achieve its participation in military or national service is an evolutionary process - one that will require time, patience, tolerance, education, compromise, and goodwill on behalf of everyone involved. Coercion, mandatory prison sentences, fines, etc. are populist solutions that will have no significant effect in the real world that we currently inhabit.

Jews pray three times daily for peace. It is the final blessing of the Amidah, the central prayer of the prayer service. The reason that it is the final prayer of that service is because it encompasses all of the blessings, hopes, and longings that the preceding texts of prayer expressed.

To such Jews as my father, a Jewish postal service in a sovereign Jewish state in the Land of Israel is an exciting, if partial, fulfillment of biblical prophecy. Once, while waiting in line with me at the post office, he noticed my impatience at the slow progress of the line. He gently said to me: "We waited two thousand years to have a Jewish post office. We can wait another ten minutes to use its services." And so we can.

Much of our Jewish world is still dealing with the situations and disputes that existed in Eastern Europe or other areas of the Diaspora a century ago. The realization as to how the world has changed, and especially how the Jewish world has changed, is oftentimes not reflected in the statements and positions of our leaders who command our allegiance.

So unfinished business is good business in the Jewish world and in the eyes of Jewish tradition. One should always have new ideas and plans for personal growth and communal benefit Behind the scenes, often out of our consciousness, this impetus of eternity governs everything in Jewish life and makes everything that we endeavor to do meaningful; and it elevates even the most mundane of efforts and plans to be instruments of eternal value. The Talmud tells us that we should attempt to finish what we can, but we should never lose sight of the fact that we are dealing with eternity and that there is no negative side to leaving over unfinished business for other generations to complete. And to me, this is a most comforting and satisfying thought.

Judaism abhors simplistic answers to very complicated problems and issues. There has never been a simple answer to the question of ransoming Jewish prisoners or hostages. Obviously, there is no simple answer to this issue today. If and when these challenges arise (God forbid), we can only pray for wisdom, patience, balanced behavior, and Godly inspiration to help us arrive at the correct decisions.

Of course, the rabbi of the congregation that first initiated this action of banning alcohol from shul was roundly criticized for curtailing the private lives of others. However, all of Torah is based on the necessity of curtailing imagined private life freedoms.

Skepticism is allowed, and in fact encouraged, but depression and pessimism are to be avoided at almost all costs. Drawing this fine line is really the challenge of human life and of our society. Skepticism is not synonymous with cynicism. Skepticism based on experience teaches us that there usually are no shortcuts on the road to personal and national achievement. Belief teaches us that there is always a better tomorrow that can be achieved, that one should never despair despite omnipresent challenges. So, to sum it all up, I imagine I can call myself a satisfied, believing skeptic.

if we stand too close to the mundane occurrences that are our daily lot we are very prone to frustrations and all of the negative emotions that they produce within us. Life must be viewed as a whole. Awareness of the general picture can help us deal with the particular issues that confront us.

Many schools have instituted chesed programs requiring the students to perform specific acts of chesed at appointed times to assigned people and groups. In unguarded moments, a number of students over the years have complained to me about such coerced chesed. Instead of training these young people to love doing chesed, the program had a completely opposite effect upon them. Coercion rarely breeds acceptance in the soul and mind of the coerced person. Chesed is a habit that should be learned at home and emphasized in society.

Many situations in life are resolved simply by benign neglect: let time and life experiences work their magic. “What logic cannot heal, time will." The prophets of Israel seem to indicate that this is what will happen regarding the internal squabbles that plague the Jewish world. Unfortunately, patience, silence, and waiting are not primarily Jewish traits in our time.

It was not only Eichmann and the Nazis who were the defendants in that most bruising and bitter trial, but in a very real sense, Europe itself was on trial. And when Eichmann was justifiably found guilty and executed for his crimes, subliminally Europe was also judged guilty and complicit in the horror of the Holocaust. Europe has never forgiven Israel for that trial and verdict And in line with its time-honored obsession with the Jewish people and its innate necessity to scapegoat Jews for all of Europe's problems, Europe has turned its enmity in an unremitting fashion against the Jewish state. Israel should be pilloried and boycotted, delegitimized and isolated, while the noble Palestinians - fomenters of worldwide terrorism, intifadas, and recurring wars - are worthy of diplomatic recognition, media support, financial aid, and moral justification. Hamas is no longer a terrorist organization as far as Europe is concerned; but Israel should be hauled before the International Court of Justice at The Hague. This is Europe's revenge against the Jews for surviving the Holocaust, instilling the unease and guilt that Europe feels towards Jews, Judaism, and the Jewish state.

The Jewish liberal establishment preaches inclusion of non-Jewish partners, but wants very little to do with the Orthodox Jewish world. That is somehow outside of the pale of inclusion, despite the expanding numbers and growing influence of Orthodoxy. When one is occupied with fixing the world, one has little patience for one's brethren who still are unwilling to countenance the public desecration of Shabbat and intermarriage with non-Jews. Being busy with the universal leaves little time to be occupied, or even interested, with the particular

I have always attempted to be a pragmatist; a realist, if you will. The advantage of being a realist is that one is rarely shocked by events as they unfold. The highs of life are not really that high, and the lows are not really that low. It becomes a matter of perspective, of patience, and, above all, a matter of faith. It is the high expectations that we harbor for our children, our finances, our social acceptance, and our success that lead to our deepest disappointments. The secret of successful therapists is that they respond only to the realities of their patients and not to their fantasies or psychotic ramblings.