כי תעביר ממשלת זדון מן הארץ צדק צדק תרדוף “Justice, Justice pursue” “Remove the wicked kingdom from the earth” “Remove the wicked kingdom from the earth” is one the many supplications that we offer during the High Holidays. It articulates hope for a redeemed world, for a new dispensation in which primal goodness is restored and all life is realigned with H’. Its envisages a new age, though one whose fulfillment is not possible within the familiar…
הֲשִׁיבֵנוּ יְהֹוָה אֵלֶיךָ וְנָשׁוּבָה Hashiveinu, H’, veNashuvah “Bring us back to you, H’, and we will return” [Lamentations 5:21, Regular prayers, with special significance on the High Holidays] Hashiveinu (“Bring us back”) is a call for input from beyond, asking for an affirmation, hoping for a sign, some kind of spiritual experience: Bring us back, awaken us, remind us, shine your light upon us, show us your face. veNashuvah (“and we will return”) is the daily work, integrating the experience:…
Selections from a Commentary on the Haggadah My incomplete commentary, which will never be completed, is now online again. First appeared in Conservative Judaism, Vol. XLII, no. 2, (with a different name) and subsequently in several other places.