On the Hebrew calendar, the Ninth of Av is a day of fasting and mourning. At this time of year we mark the anniversary of several momentous tragedies, including the destruction of our ancient, singular Temple in Jerusalem in the 6th century B.C.E., and the subsequent destruction of the re-built Temple in the first century …
Upon hearing that his beloved son, Joseph, has been torn to pieces by wild animals, Jacob declares, “I will go down to my son, in mourning, to Sheol!”[1] In the ancient Israelite imagination, Sheol is the dark, shadowy underworld where the dead reside. It is the place everyone will go at the end of their …
A 2010 New Yorker profile of Israeli writer David Grossman bears the emotionally raw title, “The Unconsoled.” Its author, journalist George Packer, notes that Grossman’s more recent creative work deals with “the new reality that I am acquainted with now, which is the proximity of life and death, and how to contain death in life.” …
In Parashat Hukkat, we are struck by a specter of death and turmoil within the narrative describing the people of Israel as they wander the desert. In considering this portion, we may gain important insights into our understanding of death, loss and healing. In the opening verses, we are instructed that a person who is …