Category: Other

Introduction: The Invention of a Lie

Every empire tells stories about itself — and about those it conquers.
The story Europe told about Africa may be the most devastating lie ever written.

The previous essays restored the record of…

For most nations, war ends when the guns fall silent. But for Israel, the battle continues long after, in the unrelenting quest to bring every son and daughter home. Whether alive or deceased, no Israeli hostage, soldier, or civilian is ever…

There is a wise saying (Proverbs 10:24): “The fear of the wicked shall come upon him.” Why does this happen? The case of Zohran Mamdani offers a striking demonstration.

Mamdani and other militant anti-Zionists harbor a deep-rooted fear:…

Upon giving the chronology of the generations that followed Adam, the Torah informs us about an unusual individual named Chanoch. He died at the age of 365. This was considered young for those generations.

We learn that he was the father of…

An oyster farmer and progressive military veteran running an insurgent campaign for Maine’s Democratic Senate nomination admitted this week to having had a Nazi tattoo for nearly two decades.

Graham Platner shared video…

On the surface, I have a lot in common with Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove. We have 138 mutual friends on Facebook. We are roughly the same age. And the synagogue he has led for the past quarter century, Park Avenue Synagogue, is…

This piece is adapted from a sermon delivered on Oct. 18, 2025. It can be viewed here.

On Shabbat, I told my congregants something I believe strongly: that Zohran Mamdani poses a danger to the security of New York’s…

A Jewish connection to Madagascar?

 With everything going on, you might have missed this. However, last week there was a revolution in Madagascar, a large island on the southeast coast of Africa. President Reguliana who had been at the helm…

Jewish identity is complicated.  It’s a religious identity.  Or it’s an ethnic identity.  Or it’s a racialized identity.  Or it’s a national identity.  Or it’s a cultural identity.  Or it’s a type of ancestry.  Or it’s…