Jonathan Sacks

Abraham In Parshat Mishpatim we witness one of the great stylistic features of the Torah, its transition from narrative to law. Until now the book of Exodus has been primarily narrative: the story of the enslavement of the Israelites and their journey to ...

There’s an enthralling story about the Ten Commandments and the role they played in Jewish worship and the synagogue. It begins with a little-known fact. There was a time when there were not three paragraphs in the prayer we call the Shema, but four. The ...

Moses’ second question to G‑d at the burning bush was, Who are you? “So I will go to the Israelites and say, ‘Your fathers’ G‑d sent me to you.’ They will immediately ask me what His name is. What shall I say to them?” Exodus 3:13 G‑d’s reply, Ehyeh ...

The master is dependent on his slaves—he has leisure only because they do the work, and he is the master only because he is recognized as such by them.

Why did Moses tell Pharaoh, if not a lie, then less than the full truth? Here is the conversation between him and Pharaoh after the fourth plague, arov, "swarms of insects" (some say “wild animals”). Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, ...

Laban begins by seeming like a friend. He offers Jacob refuge when he is in flight from Esau who has vowed to kill him. Yet it turns out that his behaviour is less generous than self-interested and calculating.

The Rebbe did something absolutely extraordinary; he said to himself: if the Nazis searched out every Jew in hate, we will search out every Jew in love.

Chief Rabbi of the British Commonwealth, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, tells how the Rebbe's guidance affected him at three critical junctures in his life. Rabbi Sacks suggests that we can all live the Rebbe's vision by a) increasing in love for all Jews, b) ...