My nephew Dov, a philosopher, scholar and rabbi of YAKAR Jerusalem , sent me a brilliant essay he recently published entitled “ On Social Distancing and deontology.” It looks at the ethical aspects of the current crisis in terms of what moral responsibility we have to avoid causing sickness in others. How do we decide medical equipment allocations and services?…
Israel and the Diaspora
As we approach Israel’s independence day, the relationship between Israel and the Diaspora remains ambivalent. Israel is faced with constant existential threats and low-grade warfare. It is fiercely self-protective. On the other hand, American Jewry has the luxury of continuous peace and tends towards a more liberal world view. Attitudes towards Israel have always been a problem, but never more…
Religion and COVID-19
There has been a great deal of negative publicity that religious communities in Israel and the United States were disregarding state and medical laws about social distancing. And it has given ammunition to anti-Semites (as if they need an excuse) to blame Jews and Israel for the virus. As this has created an unfavorable image of religious life, I think…
Passover or Passunder?
Pesah was always intended to be a challenge – To our way of life and our values. Egypt, the most advanced civilization of its time, was being challenged by a single man with a different way of looking at things. Akhenaten (1336 BC or 1334 BC) tried to replace the multiplicity of Egyptian gods with one Sun god. His revolution did…
A Walk in the Park
This past Shabbat, I went for a walk around Central Park. It was a beautiful day. The air was cool and fresh. The sun was out and I was feeling good. I was careful to observe the statutory social distancing from everyone else and chose paths that were not busy. The cherry trees were in blossom. The magnolias were heavy with…
The Economist
I think there’s been enough written about the virus crisis. Here is something less serious, to relieve the tension. I read The Economist religiously every week. Its coverage of world affairs in a concise and readable form, combined with its cultural, scientific and review articles, are the best way to keep up to date with what’s going on. I don’t always agree…