Peace
A commentary on Parshat Vayeitze published in the Jewish News of Greater Phoenix, Nov. 24, 2023 In Genesis 27:13-14 God speaks to the patriarch Jacob in a dream, “This land upon which you are lying, I give it to you and your descendants. Your descendants will be as the dust…
Violating the Law of Land Warfare Rabbi Bonnie Koppell CH (COL) USAR- Retired War has been part of human history for as long as we know. In the Torah, , by Genesis 14 Avram is doing battle with 4 local kings, and his nephew Lot is captured. Avram is forced…
Dear Friends, I can’t stop thinking about Babi Yar this week, a ravine in the Ukraine where 75,000 Jews were slaughtered in WWII. Bloodshed is, sadly, well-known to the people of the Ukraine, which is currently home to over 200,000 members of the Jewish community. Some are Russian speaking, with significant ties to…
The holiday of Hanukkah invites reflection on themes of war and peace. Changes in the nature of warfare can be quantitative and/or qualitative. There is no neat evolution from primitive hand-to-hand combat, culminating in star wars. The wars of the Maccabees were fought against combatants on elephants – the tanks of…
On June 1, 2010, I had the privilege of being honored by the Respect for Law Alliance as their Military Leader Honoree. Below is the text of my remarks on that occasion. — In the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 16, verse 20, we read, “Justice, justice shall you pursue, in…