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The Parable of the Tribes (Vayishlach)
From beginning to end, Genesis chapter 34 tells a terrifying story. Dina, Jacob’s daughter – the only Jewish daughter mentioned in the entire patriarchal narrative – leaves the safety of home to go...
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The Heroism of Tamar (Vayeshev)
This is a true story that took place in the 1970s. Rabbi Dr Nahum Rabinovitch, then Principal of Jews’ College, the rabbinic training seminary in London where I was a student and teacher, was...
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Appearance and Reality (Mikketz)
After twenty-two years and many twists and turns, Joseph and his brothers finally meet. We sense the drama of the moment. The last time they had been together, the brothers planned to kill Joseph and...
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The Birth of Forgiveness (Vayigash)
There are moments that change the world: 1439 when Johannes Gutenberg invented the movable-type printing press (though the Chinese had developed it four centuries before); 1821 when Faraday invented...
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When Can We Lie? (Vayechi)
After the death of Jacob, Joseph’s brothers were afraid. Years earlier, when he had revealed his true identity to them, he appeared to have forgiven them for selling him as a slave.[1] Yet the...
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On Not Obeying Immoral Orders (Shemot)
The opening chapters of Exodus plunge us into the midst of epic events. Almost at a stroke the Israelites are transformed from protected minority to slaves. Moses passes from prince of Egypt to...
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Freewill (Vaera)
The question is ancient. If God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, then it was God who made Pharaoh refuse to let the Israelites go, not Pharaoh himself. How can this be just? How could it be right to punish...
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Telling the Story (Bo)
Go to Washington and take a tour of the memorials and you will make a fascinating discovery. Begin at the Lincoln Memorial with its giant statue of the man who braved civil war and presided over the...
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The Face of Evil (Beshallach)
After 9/11, when the horror and trauma had subsided, Americans found themselves asking what had happened and why. Was it a disaster? A tragedy? A crime? An act of war? It did not seem to fit the...
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The Structure of the Good Society (Yitro)
In the House of Lords there is a special chamber used as, among other things, the place where new Peers are robed before their introduction into the House. When my predecessor Lord Jakobovits was...
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