... in the power of our guiding principles. Like Lynn Westmoreland, we sometimes have trouble even remembering what they are. And so the Ten Commandments, among the other mitzvot in the Torah, can serve to guide us. They remind us that the universe is not static; it’s always evolving toward freedom and redemption...

...ANA LEVY-LYONS Copyright © Tikkun magazine 2016 Arif Qazi / cargocollective.com\arifqazi O f all the old-and-dusty-sounding commandments in the Hebrew Bible, the commandment to not “take God’s name in vain” seems oldest and dustiest. We can’t help but picture nuns rapping school...

... in the example of the “deaf-mute” person described in the Talmud, who is fully exempted from responsibility for fulfilling Jewish commandments. Due to his inability to speak or hear, he was incorrectly deemed in the Talmud as having an intellectual disability and thus being incapable of fulfilling religious...

...Glen Stassen Copyright © Tikkun magazine 2008 The Ten Commandments Should Be Interpreted as Deliverance for the Vulnerable by Glen Stassen HE HEADLINE...

...The Third Commandment acknowledges the power of speech to wound or to heal and transform the world. Creative Commons ...

... of the 613 commandments are understandable and serve a clear purpose, while others are revelatory and beyond our understanding. That is, some can be defended to the doubter through rational argument, while some must be taken on faith (How many of us were taught that kashrut is good for your health...

... quorum). In Parashat Teruma we find a literal articulation of this concept. God is instructing the Israelites in the building of the Mishkan, or dwelling place of the Holy One. Within the Holy of Holies they are to build an ark to house the Ten Commandments, and on top of the ark, fashion two winged...

... the government seeks to expand settlements any place in the world, that place shall be part of Eretz Yisrael. Cast out the heretics among you—those who suggest that Jewish tradition and Jewish religious texts command behavior that conflicts with the ability of the State of Israel to enforce, retain...

...Many Jewish families continue to view their observation of the Torah’s circumcision command as a joyous occasion. Credit: Creative Commons/spilltojill. ...

... are ignored regardless of their prestige and credibility. In his last public speech at Brown University, McNamara advocated for abolition. And General Lee Butler, former Supreme Commander of the Supreme Air Command, became an abolitionist. This victory shows what those of us on the margins can do...

... of the fact that the subjects were thoroughly traumatized by the unfamiliar situation, the screams of the person they were supposedly electrocuting in the next room, and the robotic commands of the experimenter. Swaim argues that Milgram created such a traumatizing and deceitful set of circumstances that very...

... of their university years to studying Judaism, they were often oblivious to their own espousal of blatantly anti-Semitic ideas. “The God of the Jews is a murderous God who commands Jews to murder everyone who isn’t Jewish.” So began the text that I distributed one day to my students. It was written...

... if all Bible readers in English could have sensed what God thought when he saw and heard slavery.” Another example of mistranslation is the Ten Commandments. The Hebrew Bible refers to the Ten Commandments as the “ten sayings,” or “words,” or “things”—not commandments. This and several other factors...

... to that of a general and soldier, where the power lies with the general and the soldiers merely follow orders. In re­ ality, every command implemented by the soldier extends the general’s power. The growth of the power of the general thus corresponds...