Riot at the Western Wall
This week a riot ensued at the Western Wall in Jerusalem when a group of Jewish women and men defied a ban that prohibits women from reading from the Torah. Rabbi Brad Hirschfield asks how do we appreciate the “other” and “what do you do when you encounter or witness something that you think is generally wrong?”
Read moreAaron Hernandez and Life Without Parole: A Just Sentence?
This week former NFL player Aaron Hernandez was convicted of murder and sentenced to life without parole. “Was justice served?” asks Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, president of Clal and co-founder and executive editor of TheWisdomDaily.com. And “does it matter if you believe in the possibility of forgiveness, salvation, redemption or human change?”
Read moreRabbi Brad Hirschfield on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act
Lawmakers in Indiana and Alabama are facing a firestorm after they enacted new legislation around religious freedoms, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which critics say is designed to discriminate against LGBT citizens. “Profound misunderstandings” around religion and religious ideology, says Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, president of Clal and co-founder and executive editor of TheWisdomDaily.com, “are getting in the way...
Read moreGermanwings Flight 9525: Where Was God?
As more details emerge as to the causes of the Germanwings Flight 9525 plane crash on Tuesday, Rabbi Brad Hirschfield considers how those who lost loved ones may find meaning in the tragedy. Within all the questions they may be asking themselves, one may be ‘Where Was God’? While this may be offensive to some, for Rabbi Hirschfield “in a...
Read moreIf Martese Johnson Was White
In an atmosphere of heightened racial tensions, particularly between police and young African American men, Martese Johnson was arrested this week for underage drinking. The force used by police during his arrest, which left him bloodied and in need of stitches, has shocked many and led to renewed cries of racial prejudice by police. Rabbi Brad Hirschfield tells us...
Read moreRabbi Brad Hirschfield on Racist Chants and Free Speech
This week the University of Oklahoma expelled two students and shut down the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity after a video showed them chanting and making racist slurs. Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, president of Clal and co-founder and executive editor of TheWisdomDaily.com wonders if “we’re on a collision course between protecting free speech… and responding to the very real issues of...
Read moreJustice Not Vengeance: Curt Schilling and Cyberbullies
This week retired baseball player Curt Schilling made headlines when he went after the Twitter trolls who posted offensive comments about his daughter. Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, president of Clal and co-founder and executive editor of TheWisdomDaily.com, agrees that Schilling did the right thing, but cautions that we should “name and shame appropriately but then not make one bad act...
Read moreLitigation v. Conversation: Rabbi Brad Hirschfield on Discrimination in the Workplace
This week the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in a case involving a young Muslim woman and Abercrombie and Fitch. Samantha Elauf’s attorneys claim she was discriminated against when she was not hired because she wore a hijab, which violates the retailer’s “Look” policy. Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, president of Clal and co-founder and executive editor of TheWisdomDaily.com, says that maybe what we...
Read moreRabbi Brad Hirschfield on Religion and Terror
This week some of the biggest headlines coming out of the Washington summit on countering global terrorism focused on the refusal of President Barack Obama to define ISIS (ISIL) in relation to religion. Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, President of Clal and co-founder and executive editor of TheWisdomDaily.com, talks about why religion is important to this discussion.
Read moreFlowers, A Rock Or A Cockroach – What Does Love Mean To You?
This week Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, President of Clal and co-founder and executive editor of TheWisdomDaily.com, explores three unique Valentine’s Day gift and how they reflect different important aspects of love.
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