Articles by Tzvi Freeman

This, then, is the secret of prayer: The entire world may be ripping apart at the seams, but the beseecher’s heart and mouth are at peace as one. And then that peace spreads outward into all things.

The Hebrew language has no word for "things", "objects" or "stuff". In Hebrew, all things are dvarim, "words": articulations of the soul, crystallized thoughts

It began and it will end and then it will be no more. Each breath, each tick, each beat of the heart comes only once; none will ever repeat itself precisely. Every instant of life is a raw but precious stone, beckoning...

"Each 'gate' of a Chassidic melody," taught Rabbi Sholom DovBer of Lubavitch, "must be repeated twice. The first time only traces a form; the second carves deep into the soul..." Reflections for the anuual "Shabbat of Song"

The child naively believes that everything should be fair and honest, that only good should prevail, that there should be no pain or sadness. And the child is right

When you find the Infinite, where will you put it? In your broken vessel? It will not stay. In a new, whole one? It will not fit...

The common conception of how the system works is faulty. People see a career as "making a living." But a career doesn't "make" anything

On the outside, it speaks the language of humankind; on the inside is depth without end. Grasp either end and you have nothing. Grasp both and you have G-d Himself

Criticizing another person is not out of the question. It's just that there are a few conditions to attend to before you start...

Pharaoh, you see, was actually quite intellectually capable; it was just that he was "Monotheistically Challenged"

If He had made the world a complete and utter mystery, we would have no path to know Him. But if all would fit together like a neat and tidy grandfather clock, we would not know that there is anything more to know...

Imprisonment is a fate worse than death, out of which the truly righteous squeeze an elixir more potent than life

In this swamp of confusion, darkness becomes evil, for it entraps the light. When we tug to fissure their bond, an iron resistance opposes us. In the final release, a burst of energy shakes the cosmos....

I would know the life of a predator or a victim, even a worm, or a plant or a rock. I would experience the satisfaction of munching green leaves, the fear of an attacked animal; the choices of the hero, of the villain, or the coward. All would recognize the Me that is within them, and even I would find Myself there. And be surprised. If you’re G-d, you can surprise even yourself

Some folks think of people much as we think of cars on a highway: Each with its own origin and destination, relating to one other only to negotiate lane changes and left-hand turns. But people are not cars

From one, many. This, the Lubavitcher Rebbe points out, is also the common feature of every system of the universe, from the galaxies to the atom, from the human being to the cells of which he is made

The other morning, I woke up to discover a little truth. At least, it seemed like a truth to me, but I wanted to make sure. I figured a good philosopher could help me with that . . .

I'm glad my kids feel so free. As for me, I'm still a slave and Pharaoh, king of Egypt, never died. I labor for him all week long