Evergreen

We are often blind to the dimension that lacks physical substance, and that can lead to enslavement to things.

Jethro, Moses' father-in-law suggests a system for establishing lower courts to settle disputes; God speaks the Ten Commandments to the Children of Israel amidst fire, smoke, and the sound of the shofar.

Jewish tradition places great emphasis on the way in which we hear and how we interpret the messages we receive.

Raising questions about our complex relationship with God.

Establishing an equitable human judicial system is the necessary condition for receiving the divine moral wisdom of the Torah.

Holiness derives from encounters with God in Torah study; it is not intrinsic to locations like Mount Sinai.

Jethro's position at the outside of the Jewish people allowed him to understand how to make the Torah work for a multiplicity of people.

Moses' challenge as a leader was to learn the difference between the Israelites' expressions of fear and rebellion.

The transformation into a sacred people occurs not through miracles but rather through steady education, discipline and communal reinforcement.

Just as the Israelites maintained their faith through nine plagues, we too should develop our ability to have faith in times of darkness.