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...
FINDING YOUR VOICE Twice in the bible, we are told that the Children of Israel sang a song (to G-d.) The first time was after they had crossed the Red Sea on dry land: אָ֣ז יָשִֽׁיר־מֹשֶׁה֩ וּבְנֵ֨י יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל אֶת־הַשִּׁירָ֤ה הַזֹּאת֙ “Then Moses and the Children of Israel sang this song.” In this week’s parasha, forty years later, when they have re-experienced the miracle of the water of the well they sing, once again: אָ֚ז יָשִׁ֣יר יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֶת־הַשִּׁירָ֖ה הַזֹּ֑את “Then Israel sang this song.” What is the difference between these songs? On the first occasion, they sang the song together with...
TURNING JUDAISM OUTWARDS This coming Sunday, 3rd Tammuz, marks the yahrzeit of one the greatest Torah teachers and leaders of the twentieth century: Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the 7th Lubavitche Rebbe, who died in 1994. He taught a Judaism that saw the good in every human being and inspired his followers to reach out to all parts of the world. Unsurprisingly, he shows us a positive angle on Korach, one of the villains of the bible, the antihero of this week’s parasha. 20 years before he died, the Rebbe gave a talk to a group of teenage girls. He reflected...
