Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel
Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (1924-2014) died on July 3rd this past week. The world has lost of one its greatest and most imaginative modern Rebbes of modern times. In the early sixties, he and Shlomo Carlbach were among the earliest followers of Rabbi Schneersohn and their success set the standard for generations of Chabad shiluchim (emissaries).
My experience with Reb Zalman goes back almost four ...
Learn More ShareAristotle and the great Greek writers like Euripides, Sophocles, and Aristophanes regarded irony (from the ancient Greek noun εἰρωνεία [eirōneía] meaning hypocrisy, deception, or feigned ignorance) as a situation where an observer sees an incongruous circumstance that evokes paradox and laughter. Irony suggests that there is a profound polar difference between appearance and reality, between expectation and fulfillment. The Bible also has many stories about irony; perhaps its most famous story about irony is the birth of Isaac-a tale that ...
Learn More ShareDebating Evolution in Israel
The United States is not the only place where creationists attempt to redesign the science curriculum in textbooks. Israel’s chief scientist in Israel’s ministry of education, Gavriel Avital, “sparked a furor” by questioning the reliability of evolution and global warming, leading to calls for his dismissal, according to Haaretz (Feb. 21, 2010).
Avital asserts, “If textbooks state explicitly that human beings’ origins are to be found with monkeys, I would want ...
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Today’s Version of “The Wise Men of Chelm”
The Wise Men of Chelm have an iconic and legendary status in the history of Jewish storytelling. According to traditions to have emerged from Eastern Poland, the town of Chelm had a dubious reputation for being incredibly foolish. Whenever the townspeople were confronted with any kind of common everyday problem, its leaders always demonstrated a penchant for overlooking the obvious solutions. Instead, they proposed silly solutions that never ...
Categories: ethics, Humor, Political Commentaries