Russian-British philosopher Isaiah Berlin is most often credited with introducing the two basic concepts of freedom, namely freedom from or negative freedom, and freedom to or positive freedom. According to Berlin, who introduced this idea in his University of Oxford inaugural lecture in 1958: Freedom from consists in the absence of obstacles or constraints to one’s own action. By contrast, freedom to identifies the possibility to autonomously determine and achieve individual or collective purposes. While scholars continue to debate the “Jewishness” of Berlin’s philosophy, I would argue that the Torah, millennia before Berlin’s birth, understood freedom along this axis. In fact, I believe that freedom—as the Israelites experienced it immediately after Sinai—is offered precisely in these two forms. Over and over, the Torah reminds us that the foundational experience between God and the Jewish people is the freedom from Egyptian bondage. I am Adonai your God, the Torah says, whom I freed from the land of Egypt, [...]

As we prepare to celebrate July 4 this week, we will reflect on the themes of liberty and freedom across our tradition. For a musical theater lover like myself, it would be almost inconceivable to talk about liberty and freedom without referencing my fellow Hunter College Elementary (and HS) alum Lin-Manuel Miranda and his groundbreaking musical Hamilton. So, I’ll get it out of the way early—and begin the week with a quote from the show. During the first Cabinet Battle, where Thomas Jefferson and Hamilton debate over the latter’s economic plan, Hamilton claps back at Jefferson, saying: Thomas, that was a real nice declaration/Welcome to the present, we're running a real nation. And then, after the battle, President Washington offers similar counsel to Hamilton himself, saying: Ah, winning was easy, young man, governing's harder. Now, the commentary on Hamilton is, at this point, rivaling the Talmud itself for its obsession with each and every [...]

My beloved Grandma Roz died in December of 2013, shortly after Jacob was born. Today would have been her 100th birthday, and I dedicate this morning’s kavannah to her. Without airing too much dirty laundry, let me begin by saying that I have in my possession a recipe written in my grandmother’s handwriting for a dish that is very not-kosher. Perhaps you will gasp to know that I can remember, in my childhood, enjoying this very dish. However, from the moment I began keeping kosher until almost the day she died, my grandmother insisted that she had never made this dish; she claimed that she would NEVER make a dish that was so not-kosher. It is, to this day, something I laugh about with my mother and my aunts. And, it also says so much about memory— the way that we shape it and the way that it shapes us. I [...]

According to Hasidic teachings, Tuesday night is the latest that one can make havdalah, the ritual separation between Shabbat and the rest of the week. I will take this opportunity, then, to shift from thinking about the Torah portion from last Shabbat – B’Ha-alotcha – and look towards what we will hear and study this Shabbat--Shlach L’cha. This is the Shabbat of the spies, of the twelve men who are sent to scout the Promised Land. It is a narrative of faith and fear, and the event that sets the stage for Joshua’s eventual succession of leadership. He and Caleb, alone amongst the twelve, come back with hope for the future, with the belief that God’s promise will come true. Along with the story of the Golden Calf, this is one of the origin stories for our relationship with Divine punishment and forgiveness. After the sin of the Golden Calf, [...]