MLK on Forgiveness

My class on forgiveness at Steelbridge, the recovery program for homeless men and women, got postponed again yesterday because of a local flu epidemic. The bright side was that this gave me more time to attend an event where my granddaughter Eden was among those chosen to receive a Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship, based…

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More Reasons to Forgive

You want me to forgive him?!” When I was a kid he did horrible things to me; he used me sexually every day for years—and you’re telling me I need to forgive him!" She’s manipulative and disgusting; why should I forgive her?” My first class on forgiveness at the local homeless recovery center got cancelled…

Forgiving From the Heart, part 1

I've been writing a lot about forgiveness lately (which means thinking and praying about it too), and I'll be teaching a class on forgiveness starting Monday, 1/8, at Steelbridge resource center here in Albuquerque. Steelbridge, headed up by my good friend Pastor John Hill, reaches out to homeless men and women, not just to provide…

Who Deserves Forgiveness?

Last week I posted a commentary on Vayechi, the final Torah portion in Genesis, entitled How Trust Can Be Restored. It opened with a question, or two actually: “The news stream today is filled with stories of abuse and betrayal, and we might wonder whether deeds like this can ever be forgiven. And even if…

Hot Air & Chanukah

Albuquerque hosts the largest hot air balloon festival in the world, so it’s no surprise that my home town can also claim the world’s greatest hot air balloon Chanukah menorah. According to the local Chabad, it’s . . . The Largest Menorah Ever! Made from hot air balloons, this Menorah will be seen for miles.…

Favor Elevates Its Giver

Parashat VaYishlach, Gen 32:4–36:43 When someone asks us, “Will you do me a favor?” we’re likely to ask what they have in mind before we say yes or no. Why? Because a favor by definition is something undeserved, something that might go beyond the ordinary, and we want to know what it is before we…

The Lonely Place of Connection

 Parashat VaYetse, Genesis 28:10-32:3   It’s a paradox: To find community, I have to find my individual self. Or turn that around: As I find myself in God, I find that I’m part of something much bigger than myself. Our ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, all encounter moments of intense solitude on their way to…