In this week’s Torah portion, Chayei Sarah, literally “The Life of Sarah”, we are informed of her passing. The Torah states: “These are the years of the life of Sarah 100 years, twenty years and seven years the years of her life”. Rashi noting the seeming repetition of the phrase years of her life comments that “allContinue reading “The power of our past to define our future”
Category Archives: Blog
Kol Nidrei – Breaking Free
Monumental Decisions
Edward Colston being thrown into the River Avon by BLM protesters
Racism- is that relevant to us?
The natural reaction that I think we all felt was utter revulsion as we heard the news from America of the murder of George Floyd and many of us watched the video. But as the protest spread and the accusations of institutionalised racism and societal racism, I could not help but wonder what does thatContinue reading “Racism- is that relevant to us?”
Never just a number
Stories, rather than numbers, are where we can find rich meaning in life. The UK’s death toll has reached over 10,000 – in a little over 5 weeks. The sheer enormity of these numbers overwhelms each personal tragedy. In the aftermath of the Holocaust, Former Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau, the youngestContinue reading “Never just a number”
Wide open space
Looking at a written Sefer Torah, there are intentional spaces and gaps that are left in specific places between key events and various laws. Our sages tell us, that these gaps are intended for us to pause, to think, to consider carefully the impact and implications for us of what we have read. “An opportunityContinue reading “Wide open space”
The Viral Virus
My insights on COVID so far… A couple of weeks ago, travelling on the underground, I stared in disbelief at the spectacle of a couple of Chinese commuters with masks over their faces, in London, I thought? Absurd!? Fast forward a few weeks, and commuters, whether in London, New York or Paris are filled withContinue reading “The Viral Virus”
A Papal slap
Pope Francis had been making his way to the Nativity scene in Vatican City on Tuesday, New Year’s Eve. When he began to walk away from the crowd that had gathered to greet him, video shows a woman grabbing his hand and yanking him toward her. He became visibly upset, slapping the woman’s hand inContinue reading “A Papal slap”
