Good news and less good news from the David Cardozo Academy

In Der Beschrankung zeigt sich erst der Meister. And Das Gesetz nur kann Uns Freiheit Geben.
It is when human beings are confronted with drawbacks that they can prove their mastery. And it is only the Law which can provide us with freedom.
– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

To my great regret, due to a severe lack of funds, the David Cardozo Academy has been forced to leave its offices, place its library of some 5,000 books in storage, and dismiss some of its excellent staff.

Since we cannot afford office space at this point, I will not be able, at least for the meantime, to write my weekly essay. I am doing what I can to resolve this unfortunate situation Meanwhile, you can still find previous thoughts and reflections on the David Cardozo Academy website: www.cardozoacademy.org/

To compensate, we will be providing weekly podcasts based on the profound questions of my friends, and in particular my dear friend Rabbi Ari Ze’ev Schwartz, author of The Spiritual Revolution of Rav Kook. In addition, I will do my best to write one Thought to Ponder each month.

Here are the first three brief (10-15 minute) podcasts:

• Heaven and Hell And the Revival of the Dead. Is belief in an afterlife really integral to Judaism? What impact should such a belief have on our observant of the Mitzvot?
• Halacha as The Art of Playing Chess. Halachah (Jewish Law) is a discipline with its own rules, among them the search for creative ways to get around the rules!
• A Religious Approach to Homosexuality. How should Jewish Law deal with the reality of homoxesuality in the Jewish community?

Note: These interviews are unedited. We are still experimenting and we hope that the quality will improve. The topics are highly unusual and I am sure you will enjoy them.

On a much more joyful note:

To my great joy, Kasva Press has published the first volume of a 5-volume series: Cardozo on the Parashah, Essays on the Weekly Torah Portion and will publish a two-volume series on the Jewish festivals.

Volume I – Bereshit, the book of Genesis is now available online at Amazon
Buyers in the U.S. can also order directly from the publisher’s website
The book is now available to buyers in Israel! Contact info@kasvapress.com to get your copy.

We hope soon to publish a volume on Shemot, Exodus.
In spirit of Goethe’s profound statement, above, we will continue!!!!

In the meantime we wish you a shana tova, a good and healthy year to you and your families, to the Jewish people, and to all of humanity.

Tizku leshanim rabot.

Nathan Lopes Cardozo