HUMILITY Both Richard Branson in his Virgin Galactic and Jeff Bezos in his Blue Shepherd have commented on the awesome experience of being up in space, looking down at earth. “Nothing could prepare you for the view of Earth from space,” said Branson. “It is one thing to recognise it intellectually,” said Bezos. “It is another to actually see it with your own eyes.” Indeed this has been the reaction of every astronaut before them. They are awestruck and overcome with a sense of humility as to who we are and our place in the universe. Yet, 2500 years ago,...
REACHING OUT This coming Motzaei Shabbat, Saturday night, is Tisha B’Av, the fast of the 9th Av. After the Maariv service, we will read the book of Eicha, Lamentations, the prophet Jeremiah’s lament for the destruction of the Temple and the exile of our people. The book begins with the words, Eicha Yashva Vadad, “How is it, that the city, once so full of people, dwells alone?” What does this phrase, “dwells alone” mean? It could mean that the city, once bustling with people, is now deathly silent, as its inhabitants are in exile. Rabbi Chaim Shmulevitz, the one-time head...
Consoling my 9 year old son, Yosef, after the England game was a very tricky parenting moment! I am sure many can relate….. I’m sure many across the country feel a deep sense of disappointment, failed dreams, and unmet aspirations…. One of the truly major challenges of parenting, and life in general, is managing expectations and dealing with disappointment. We all experience it at some stage, whether in our social, family and national life. The Gemora teaches us that no human being leaves this world having even half of one’s hopes and desires completely fulfilled, we only have to look...
ACHIEVING OUR GOALS The outstanding performance of England in their semi-final match against Denmark displayed a team that won the nation’s heart. Onwards, now, to the final! Is football coming home at last? The transformation of a group of talented players into a confident team, who gave of their best, has given us all a great deal to be proud of. This underlying theme of transformation, is actually alluded to in the names of the two sidrot we read this Shabbat, Mattot and Massei. Mattot in the context of the sedra means ‘tribes’ but the word Matteh also means a...
SETTING GOALS AND SCORING GOALS At the time of writing, England is still in the Euros and the quarterfinal match against Ukraine will be played in Italy on Shabbat afternoon. Perhaps some extra devotion may be evident in the Shabbat morning prayers this week! For those nations already eliminated, the post mortem has begun. Why did they not perform as well as expected? Whilst football has its dramas of a side rising to unexpected heights on the day and winning an unpredicted victory, the majority of times it will be the form that the team has displayed throughout the year...
BALAK’S OWN GOAL With England through to the next round of the Euros, due to play Germany, next Tuesday, I am reminded of an occasion, a few years ago, when an English team playing a German team placed football fans in a moral dilemma. In 2012, Chelsea were in the finals of the Champions League, playing Bayern Munich. A win for Bayern Munich would have given Spurs a place in Champions League football the following season. A win for Chelsea would have enhanced the pride of English football but would have deprived Spurs of top-flight European football. What should the...
