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GM

No, not General Motors, but seeds that are Genetically Modified. Pesach is a time when we “moderns” focus on grains more than at any other time of the year. Shavuot may be the main summer harvest festival, but very few of us nowadays are involved in commercial agriculture. (Even in Israel, the kibbutz dream of Jews returning to a nostalgic…

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Women Rabbis

There’s a storm in a teacup over Rabbi Avi Weiss, a well known Orthodox American rabbi who has, it seems, appointed a woman “rabbi”–no, a “maharat”, no, a “rabba”, or perhaps it is a “rabbit”. The Orthodox right is up in arms. There was even talk of expelling Rabbi Weiss from the Orthodox Rabbinical Council of America. What really is…

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Whose Fault?

Haiti, then Chile, one earthquake after another has brought death, suffering, dislocation, and torment. And as ever, everyone seems to be asking, “Did God do this? And why?” All the usual holy rollers of all religions trundle out the old tired theories about what we did wrong to deserve this. Indeed, often there may well be a good reason why…

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Assassination

The outpouring of protests over the assassination of a terrorist in Dubai is another case of hypocritical anger and symptomatic of a complete loss of moral compass. From a Jewish ethical point of view, if someone is trying to kill you, you have every right to disable or remove the threat in any way you can (preferably without killing). If…

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Purim 2010

One of the most well known quotes from the Talmud goes, “Rava said: It is a man’s duty to get so drunk on Purim that he cannot tell the difference between ‘Cursed be Haman’ and ‘Blessed be Mordecai’” (Gemara Megilah 7b). The text goes on to give an example of how too much wine can lead to murder, and as…

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Special Blog Post – Carmel College Reunion

Carmel College Reunion – March 20th, 2010Village Hotel, Elstree, London Carmel College was a magnificent adventure and experiment in Anglo-Jewish education that lasted from 1948 until 1997. For many people it was a defining experience in their lives. Having been involved in Carmel through my father, as a pupil and later headmaster, I remember vividly how difficult it always was…

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