Cherubim at the Entrance
Dr. David Sanders On my news feed an article appeared touting an important discovery. It was titled: Helium escaping from the atmosphere of a nearby rocky exoplanet orbiting in a habitable zone. It caught my eye because of the lead author’s name, Collin Cherubim, who upon investigation is a 26-year-old Harvard researcher. The Cherubim, referenced […]
Every New Beginning
by Melanie Gruenwald This time of year is always full of beginnings and endings—beginning of the school year, job changes, the turning of seasons. But this year, change feels sharper, closer to the bone. My husband has taken a job in another state. My twins are beginning their senior year of high school. Our home […]
Choosing Joy: A Weekend Away, a Soul Returned
by Melanie Gruenwald This past weekend, I stepped away with my husband — not far geographically, but far enough to remember myself. We went to southwest Colorado- we enjoyed staying in a yurt, near hot springs with a view of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and the Great Sand Dunes. There was no agenda, no […]
This is the Order of the World
The Sages taught: On the day that Adam the first man was created, when the sun set upon him he said: Woe is me, as because I sinned, the world is becoming dark around me, and the world will return to the primordial state of chaos and disorder. And this is the death that was […]
Creativity in the Tree of Life
by Melanie Gruenwald This summer, I created and facilitated a course called Isha al Achota, As a Woman Faces her Sister. It has been a wonderful process of discovery– exploring primary texts and contemporary voices, which bring alive the spirit and the energy of women in our tradition. I am particularly struck by Rabbi Tirzah […]
Ken, Barbie, and the Tree of Life
by Dr. David Sanders On the insistence of my wife and daughters, I went to see Barbie. Barbie? Why? I knew more about that doll than them. My sister had Barbie dolls and at some point a Ken doll. Barbie was not part of the culture my wife grew up in and our daughters never […]
Tree of Life: Malchut
by Melanie Gruenwald The Tree of Life is constantly surrounding us. We just have to be aware of it. I’d like to start with two stories. Several weeks ago, our family was cycling in the Courage Classic, a bike tour in the mountains of Colorado, to raise support for Children’s Hospital Colorado. I […]
Practicing Awareness
by Melanie Gruenwald Last December 31st, Salomon, Hannah, Micah and I spent New Year’s Eve together. We each took a moment to write a personal note to our future self, reflecting on hopes and dreams for 2022. I was sifting through a kitchen drawer this morning and found these letters. I can’t wait to bring […]
Tree of Awareness
Allen Afterman begins his book Kabbalah and Consciousness by declaring that “as much as Kabbalah is a philosophy it is even more a map of transcendent experience.” There are two important ideas that Afterman touches upon. The first is that Kabbalah is a philosophy. This may come as a surprise to some because Kabbalah emerged […]
The Spiritual Revolution
Copernicus did not have it all figured out. Neither did Galileo. They had the right instincts but got caught up in circles. Kepler refined it by thinking elliptically but it took Sir Isaac Newton to finalize the heliocentric view of our solar system with the discovery of gravity. Why did it take so long for […]