Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf

Listening to Others so God Will Listen to Us

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

Though many of us remain focused on Israel’s current war, the more general polarization in Israeli society and throughout much of the world that preceded it and continues to serve as its backdrop should be an even greater concern.

Redeeming Relevance: The Limits of Torah Legacies

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

There is no more meaningful relationship than the relationship of someone who teaches Torah with their students. And yet, no student is the same as their teacher.

Redeeming Relevance: Moshe’s Speech to Jews Living Today

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

While Moshe saw all the Jews as one whole, it was the ones in front of him who served as the representatives for all those who had lived and would live in the future.

Levinas, Ammon, and Moav: On the Neutral Neighbor

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

Many commentators wonder why not proffering bread and water is considered such a great crime

Of Witnesses, Keruvim, and Clones

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

The Torah standard for the conviction of criminals is set much higher than in most contemporary systems of law

Ending Poverty, the Torah Way

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

The reward matches the challenge.

Parshat Eikev: Can the Torah Exaggerate?

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

NEVER lose sight of the gol

Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Ve’etchanan :Why You Don’t Need to Worship Idols

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

...And Why You Might Have Thought Otherwise

The Torah’s Insists Uganda is for the Ugandans

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

The Land of Israel being the ideal homeland of the Jews is that it is the only one. It is ideal, and nowhere else

Reading Between the Lines

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

once Aharon dies and they confront the king of Arad, they decide upon a different journey in which they will enter Israel through the “side door.”

Redeeming Relevance: Parshat Balak: What You Don’t Know Won’t Hurt You?

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

How important are failed plans and plots, such that the Torah needs to mention any of them at all?

What to do When Our Decisions Bring Casualties

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

When God gets angry at the people, all Moshe can do is fall on his face in grief at his own responsibility about what was happening-- But Moshe doesn’t stay on his face for long.

When Silence is NOT Golden

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

Being a real hero is not just about what we do, it is also about when we do it.

Moshe and the Missing Matriarch

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

One may then raise the question of why should Moshe have gotten married to begin with

The Place of the Displaced, the Replaced, and the Misplaced

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

The Kohen is the one who will accompany these three alienated individuals and, by so doing, become their connection to the rest of society.

Why Weren’t the Non-Jews Under the Mountain?

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

Judging from the sources in the Talmud, there is more than a tinge of ambivalence about the non-Jews being left out of Matan Torah....

Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, an “Accident” of History

Redeeming Relevance / Rabbi Francis Nataf Rabbi Francis Nataf

Since historical events like these have the potential to challenge our faith, they create a religious imperative to search for God’s loving hand even in the face of tragedy and sorrow. That is an important part of R. Akiva’s legacy as well as that of R. Shimon’s.