We continue to explore the Shema and it's challenge to notice and bring oneness and cohesion to different spaces, but also to different times and different experiences

This is an intro to the second meeting of my class on the shema. The heart is probably best understood as "self" (as opposed to Self?) and the self is a space in which many voices and spirits come to play. Not all of them should be immediately expressed.

The Shema - the great statement that "this is One!" goes on to describe many things that seem like (at least) two - Divine providence and nature, heart and mind, thought and action, inside and outside, night and day. This is precisely the work of Shema - to learn how to bridge those disparate worlds.

Malchut is tricky. On one hand it implies kingship - taking responsibility for a group, an event, a space, a moment, a self. On the other hand, "Malchut... has nothing of its own." How do these pieces work together?

This 6th week of the Omer has us almost touching down, almost manifesting in the world. So, how do you "touch down"? How do you "manifest"?

Hod is the work of Aharon, down in the trenches with the people as Moshe brings down the Torah. How do we cherish and relish our moments even as we sometimes falter in our march toward the Infinite?

The man who personifies this week's Omer work is Ya'akov - in the crucible of a complex world he strives to maintain enough distance to make good choices. Not so simple.

Avraham does the essential work of going, pushing, leaving, deciding. And, not surprisingly, people are affected by this.

it is such an honor to participate in the unfolding of the Divine Expansion into the world through mitzvah.

R' Koenig sees not being sad and being happy as two separate challenges. Here, he focuses on the sadness or frustration a person might feel if they begin to come close to God and then look back on their lives