"Love, therefore, the Lord your God, and always keep His charge, His laws, His rules, and His commandments." (Deut. 11:1) This passage from Parshah Ekev is not unique. It is one of many places we are told to "love" God. But what does that mean? Rabbi Jakob Petuchowski wrote, "Jews study Torah...read more
The concept of teshuvah, repentance, is a given in traditional Jewish circles: One who sins before God has the inalienable right to repent and to be absolved. Nevertheless, an analysis of the Torah indicates that such a theology might be absent from the text.
In this week’s portion, Ekev, Moses...read more
Jack is an Internet professional living in Silver Spring, MD. He is a proud alum of the Frisch School in Paramus, NJ as well as Boston University, where he was active at BU Hillel.
Esther D. Kustanowitz is a writer, editor and social media consultant based in Los Angeles. She has many Dvar Torah writers in her family, and she can't wait to read contributions from Divrei Torah: The Next Generation (two nephews and a niece).