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24 June 2008
Candy Man
There was no one so frightening as the man who sat in the farthest back row of the synagogue. To most adults he was friendly and harmless, but we children knew better. We approached him with great care and trepidation. He never looked you straight in the eye, but he knew you were there. He [...]
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2 June 2008
What Does G-d Taste Like?
Shauli, our youngest son, was about seven years old as he sat across the table from me, at our favorite pizza shop. He considered a slice of pizza he held in his hands and asked:
“Is Hashem (G-d) everywhere?”
“Yes,” I answered, matter of factly.
“Is He in this slice of Pizza?” he asked, probing further.
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12 May 2008
Taking My Mind for a Walk
One day, Mayer, my chavruta wondered out loud about how a prophet could identify that a particular event he saw would happen in the future; after all, the information that he was accessing was most likely coming from a “place” beyond the boundaries of time.
His question began a stream of consciousness that led me to [...]
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16 April 2008
The Trouble With Antisemitism
The Trouble with AntisemitismUploaded by Jewneric
For more information on Rabbi Karsh please visit The Torah Learning Center
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7 April 2008
Bedtime Stories
When we watch the evening news, everything we hear and see will have already happened. The news anchors are telling us stories. We watch because we believe that knowing those stories will help us navigate the path from the present to the future.
We hear the same story over and over again, told with slight variation. [...]
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26 March 2008
Simple Goodness
Several years ago, a collection of Jews from Chicago got together to deal with hatred run amok. They formed two groups which they ironically named “One Groups.” The purpose of these groups was to help its members develop doable, individual projects that would heal rifts and build bridges.
The first meetings were charged with energy. [...]
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17 March 2008
Thinking about G-d
“Do you really think G-d exists?” (curious)
“No.”
“Excuse me?” (bewildered)
“What?”
“I just asked you if you think G-d exists and you said ‘No.’”
“So?”
“But you’re a Rabbi, and an Orthodox Jew; how can you not think G-d exists?”
“Why did you ask me if you already know the answer?”
“So you do think that G-d exists?”
“No.”
“Are you kidding me?” (unsure)
“No.”
“This [...]
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9 March 2008
Is G-d Going to Kill Me?
Thursday night there was a terrorist attack at the Yeshiva Mercaz Harav. Many students were murdered. In light of that event I wanted to share a discussion I had with myself after September 11th:
“Why does G-d allow terrible suffering?”
“I can’t answer that question.”
“Why does G-d kill innocent people?”
“Again, I can’t answer that question.”
“Will [...]
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4 March 2008
The Art of War
“All warfare is based on deception. Hence when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near. Hold out bait to entice the enemy. [...]