‘Alas’ (ekhah). This is the Hebrew title for the Book of Lamentations of which we read a portion of chapter one today. In the first chapter Jerusalem/Zion is personified and mourns the loss of all that is familiar and comfortable. The Babylonian empire had destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple, taking...

Forget “Merry Christmas” – a more appropriate holiday greeting is “Be not afraid” (perhaps the response could be “Thank you. Nor you”)  Not only would this better capture the tone of the Christmas story, echoing the angel’s greetings to Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds, it would better address the emotional...