Rabbi Ballaban’s Monthly Column
Human Beings Are Not Bargaining Chips
Human Beings Are Not Bargaining ChipsBy Rabbi Ari Ballaban Tuvia’s mother was wailing and tearing her hair. His father was sobbing. His sisters were terrified. “Tuvia, my dear son,” his mother cried. “My only boy, why are they tearing you away from me?” Tuvia was taken, half-asleep, to a large house where many frightened, wide-eyed […]
Fact vs. Narrative: Road to Peace Needs Both
Facts vs. Narrative: Road to Peace Needs BothBy Rabbi Ari Ballaban “When peace comes, we will perhaps in time be able to forgive the Arabs for killing our sons, but it will be harder for us to forgive them for having forced us to kill their sons.” As I sat heavy-hearted, reflecting on May’s bloody clashes between the IDF […]
Never Stop Learning a Very Jewish Attitude
Never Stop Learning a Very Jewish AttitudeBy Rabbi Ari Ballaban It is finally May, and our last day of Makor is right around the corner! Our last day of Makor will be on May 13th; on that day our kids will do some important wrapping up of their final class projects and will get to […]
Jews Obligated to Stand Against Discrimination
Jews Obligated to Stand Against DiscriminationBy Rabbi Ari Ballaban While out to dinner a few weeks ago, I had an unusual conversation with a stranger. During it, I glimpsed something discomfiting about the Jewish duty to stand in solidarity with those of other minority faiths. When I meet people outside of my normal circles (who […]
Jewish Holidays Remember All Milestones
Jewish Holidays Remember All MilestonesBy Rabbi Ari Ballaban Judaism teaches that certain times and seasons carry special, sacred significance. Of course, this is a familiar idea in our daily lives: Our weekly celebration of Shabbat is meant to reenact God’s mythic, post-Creation rest. However, we also regularly engage in such temporal symbolism in a larger […]
Jewish Calendar Marks Many Occasions
September 1, 2018
Jewish Calendar Marks Many OccasionsBy Rabbi Ari Ballaban Most Jews are aware of two new years we celebrate per calendar year: Rosh Hashanah in the fall and the secular new year, on January 1st, in the winter. Knowledgeable Jews may also note that there is a third new year that comes each spring—Tu BiShevat—which marks […]