Issue Spotting is an essential legal skill. The Torah Portion Vayeitzei provides a target rich environment to employ it to address Decalogue and Decalogue-adjacent issues. The Portion offers an opportunity to unleash one’s inner barrister! For those wanting to taste the legal profession or a Bar Exam, this Post invites you into an attorney’s mindset.Continue reading “Issue Spotting: Vayeitzei’s Ten Commandments’ Moment”
Category Archives: idol
A Legend Preserving a Legacy? V’Zot HaBerachah: A Ten Commandments’ Moment
Barred entry into the Promised Land, Moses is buried on a mountaintop. The end? The end, for the Torah Portion V’Zot HaBerachah, actually marks the beginning. In their infancy, legacies are fragile. Upon one’s death, their legacy becomes detached from the person. They no longer are able to control what they once controlled. The seedContinue reading “A Legend Preserving a Legacy? V’Zot HaBerachah: A Ten Commandments’ Moment”
Lasting Impressions: Eikev
All that is gold does not glitter JRR Tolkien Years ago, a good friend invited me to a Hollywood Bowl concert. His box seats were close to the orchestra pit. Before Bowl peformances, it customary for box holders to picnicofteny bring out their fancy baskets and indulge in every imaginable delicacy and imbibe with fineContinue reading “Lasting Impressions: Eikev”
Idol Reflections: Vayishlach’s Ten Commandments’ Moment
The Torah Portion analysis should never be done in isolation. The Portion Vayishlach connect intimately with both past and future Torah Portions. Merging the texts unleashes deep context which includes a Ten Commandments’ moment. Vayishlach’s Decalogue moment happens at a time of crisis. Jacob’s sons Simeon and Levi’s committed horrendous acts, the Jacob must respond.Continue reading “Idol Reflections: Vayishlach’s Ten Commandments’ Moment”
No To Recycling? Eikev
How is the human spirit tied to inanimate objects? And what does it have to do with recycling? The Torah Portion Eikev enlightens us on both queries. Eikev touches upon the interplay between idolatry, recycling and human thought. The human psyche is profoundly impacted by material objects; even something as simple as a glass ofContinue reading “No To Recycling? Eikev”
On A Lark, Chestnut Is No Longer America’s Top Dog
Fanaticism has a price in the world of sports. Superstars and idols succumb human frailties such as greed and ego. Escapism to a world of purity or innocence dissipates. On a Lark, however, there is some hope. A little “hot dog” named Lark served up athletic dominance in 2024, satiate anyone with an appetite forContinue reading “On A Lark, Chestnut Is No Longer America’s Top Dog”
Isaiah On Idols
While the Decalogue provides commandments concerning idolatry, passages from Isaiah offer much insight into the workings that surrounded this practice. This post will discuss one particular portion is worthy of looking at in contemporary terms. In Isaiah 44, the Prophet Isaiah brings the following message: “All who fashion statues are empty, and the objects ofContinue reading “Isaiah On Idols”
A Book of Judges Ten Commandments’ Moment: Micah Part II
With Part I of Micah’s saga, thanks to his mother, he came to possess a graven image of the Lord. Judges’ Chapter 17, continues Micah’s tale. Micah was reported to have a house of idolatry. There, he made ephods [religious garments] and icons. He even installed one of his sons to be his priest. [note: Micah, in Judges, wasContinue reading “A Book of Judges Ten Commandments’ Moment: Micah Part II”
A Book of Judges Ten Commandments’ Moment: Gideon
Readers can cheat. They can jump to the back of the book to get that sweet ending. ” Who done it?” is solved. With the Book of Judges, however, while the last line sums up most everything, the reader would be cheated. The journey through Judges is as rewarding as the ending. The tale of Gideon- planted in the middleContinue reading “A Book of Judges Ten Commandments’ Moment: Gideon”
The Ten Commandments & Apocryphal Texts: Bel & The Dragon
bel & the dragon, an apocryphal text most likely authored during the persian exilic period, is a three part fictional story serving up ten commandments’ entertainment and propaganda. bel & the dragon’s context appears to be during the period around second temple judaism. this diaspora piece addresses the challenges of living in a foreign landContinue reading “The Ten Commandments & Apocryphal Texts: Bel & The Dragon”
The Ten Commandments Project 