Believing the Unbelievable
In Jewish Thought and Philosophy and Parashat Va'era by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
I am jealous of atheists because they are able to believe the unbelievable. And I, in my simplicity, cannot reach that state of belief.
Jewish Thought and Philosophy
To think Jewishly is to stand at the edge of certainty and still choose to believe, question, and seek. Jewish thought lives in the tension between faith and doubt, law and freedom, eternity and change.
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Being Jewish vs. Being Israeli
Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai or A.B. Yehoshua?
In Israel, Jewish Thought and Philosophy and Yom HaShoah by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
Rabbi Yochanan taught us that Jews can survive without Israel, as long as there is Torah, the portable homeland of the Jewish people. But Jews will not survive solely because of the existence of Israelโhowever powerful it may beโif Israel does not incorporate a large percentage of Jewish traditional resources.
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ืืจืืช ืืืื: ืืืืข ืืกืื ืืช ืฉืืื ืืืืืื?
In Halacha and Jewish Thought and Philosophy by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
ืืืืืืช ืืืืคืืื ืฉื ืืขื ืืืืืื ืืืืืจ ืขื ืื ืืืืืื โ ืืืืฆืจืื ืืขื ืืืืื ืื, ืืจืืืืื ืืืคืจืกืื... ืืขื ืื ืืฆืื โ ืืืืื ืขืฉืืื ืืืืืช ืชืืฆืื ืฉื ืืืชื ืืชืขืจืืืช ืืืคื ืืช ืงืื ื. ืืืขืฉื ืืืจื ืืื ืฉื ืืืช, ืืื ืืื ืืืฆืจ ื ืฆื.
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Franz Rosenzweig and the Berliner Shtiebl
In Franz Rosenzweig, Jewish Thought and Philosophy, Liturgy & Ritual and Parashat Terumah by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
To attend synagogue is an art. People must come with a sincere urge to discover their Jewishness, to reconnect with their inner being and with the Jewish people. To enter the synagogue is to hope for a metamorphosis in oneโs soul and a transformation of oneโs personality.
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The Enduring Preciousness of the Secular Jew
Some thoughts inspired by the writings of Avraham Joshua Heschel
In Heschel and Jewish Thought and Philosophy by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
There is little doubt that secular Jews, consciously or unconsciously, keep a large number of commandments. Many of them may not be in the form of rituals, but there is massive evidence pointing to secular Jewsโ commitment to keeping interpersonal mitzvot. Beneath the divisiveness of traditional commitment lie underpinnings of religion such as compassion, humility, awe, and even faith.
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The Challenge of Yitro
Would you convert?
In Franz Rosenzweig, Jewish Thought and Philosophy, Moses and Parashat Yitro by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
Yitro confronts us for the first time with a new phenomenon: to be a Jew by choice. He presents all Jews with a major challenge: how to become a Jew by choice even when one has been born into the fold.
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ืืื ืื ืื ื ืืืืช ืืืืืื ืืฉืจ? ืขื ืืกืืืื, ืฆืืืขืืช, ืืืกืชืชืจืืช ืืืืืจื ืืืืืช ืืฉืจืืช
In Jewish Thought and Philosophy by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
ืืขืงืืืช ืืฆืืืื ืืืกืืืืช ืฉื ืชืขืฉืืืช ืืืฉืจ, ืื ืืืืืื ื ืืืืช ื ืฉืืืืช ืืื ืืื, ืืืชืืืืก ืืืขืื ืืืื ืืฆืืจื ืืืื ืืช, ืืคื ืฉืืืืื ืืืืืืืช ืืืจืฉืช, ืืคื ืืืืจ ืืืชืจ ืืืืชืจ ืงืฉื, ืื ืื ืืืืชื ืืคืฉืจื. ืืืืืช ืฉืืืื ืืฆืขืจ ืืขืื ืืืื ืืืื ื ืืงืืืืืช ืืืืืืืช ืฉืืืื ืืฉืจ ืืคืจืงืื, ืื ืืชืขืฉืืื ืืขื ืงืืช ืฉืืฉ ืื ื ืืืื, ืื ืืืืงืื ืืืื ืืื ื ืืืืืื ืืืืฉืืจ. ืืื ืื ืจืืื ืืืฃ ืจืฆืื ืืืฆื ืขื ืืื ืื ืฉืืื, ืฉืืืืืื ืืชืืื ืืืคืื ืืฆืืืื ืืื?
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Knowing How to Lose
In Jewish Thought and Philosophy, Moses and Parashat Shemot by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
What was Mosheโs secret that enabled him to continue to fight for his goals, in spite of everything, and succeed where so many others would have failed? The answer is simple: he knew how to lose. He knew that his failures were in fact the building blocks for his future successes.
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Bilaam and our Lost Heretics
A Warning to Our Rabbis
In Jewish Thought and Philosophy and Parashat Balak by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
How much might Judaism have benefited from people like Jesus, Elisha Ben Avuyah and Spinoza, had they not been rejected and had they contributed to the tradition in which they were raised?
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Solving the Conversion Crisis
The Birth of Non-Jewish Jewish Communities
In Converting to Judaism and Jewish Thought and Philosophy by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
Today, Israel has many thousands of immigrants who are of Jewish descent, yet not halachically Jewish. Should we convert them even though we know that they will not live a fully committed Jewish life? Or should we abandon them, basically ignoring and excluding them as we do now? I believe there is a third way, a way of reconciling these difficulties.
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Learning to be finite
Spiritual experiences may represent our yearning for the โinfiniteโ, but this yearning can only find expression in seeking to improve ourselves to the best of our ability and seeking to relate with love to the people and the world around us, while at the same time coming to an acceptance of our finiteness and separateness, overcoming the grief and outrage we feel at not being everything. Yearning for the infinite is really a way of learning how to be finite.
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On Spiritual Experiences – A response to Yael Valier
Religious experience is not necessarily any more valuable than purely spiritual experience. A vital part of the defining genius of the Jewish tradition is that it produced an intricate set of observances which, together, create an experiential space which is hospitable to spiritual experience and, to an extent, stimulates it.