by Rabbi Avi Shafran
Would it really have been enough?
Much of our Seder-night message to our children, mediated by the Haggadah, is forthright and clear. Some of it, though, is subtle and stealthy.
Dayeinu, for example.
On the surface, it is a simple song -- a recitation of events of Divine kindness over the course of Jewish history, from the Egyptian exodus until the Jewish arrival in the Holy Land -- with the refrain "Dayeinu": "It would have been enough for us." It is a puzzling chorus, and everyone who has ever thought about Dayeinu has asked the obvious question.
Would it really have "been enough for us" had God not, say, split the Red Sea, trapping our ancestors between the water and the Egyptian army? Some take the approach that another miracle could have taken place, but that certainly would weaken the import of the refrain. And then there are the other lines: "Had God not sustained us in the desert" -- enough for us? "Had He not given us the Torah." Enough? What are we saying?
Contending that we don't really mean "Dayeinu" when we say it, that we only intend to declare how undeserving of all ...   more »

Bill Salus
The epicenter, as author Joel Rosenberg calls it, in the Middle East continues to shake, quake, and bake the International Community. Daily news headlines emanate from the world’s most problematic region, like magnitude 6.0 aftershocks on the "Richter Scale"! The seismic activity of the Arab – Israeli conflict threatens to push humanity over the fault’s edge, and has it wondering if the hourglass has made its final turn.
Are the sands of time nearing their end in the Middle East? One thing is for certain the accelerating volatility in that region has the Bush administration pushing the "Roadmap Plan" to the top rung of the political ladder. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has made the Middle East her favorite back yard, while President Bush frequents the round table playing "high stakes" poker with Ehud Olmert and Mahmoud Abbas.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the "Performance-Based Roadmap to a Permanent Two-State Solution to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict" better known as the "Roadmap Plan", you can read the U.S. Department of State press statement prepared April 30, 2003 online at http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2003/20062.htm (accessed 3/1/08).
To date this plan stands out as humanities best effort to provide a comprehensive solution ...   more »

Former US President Carter defied US and Israeli warnings and met twice this weekend with the exiled leader of Hamas and his deputy, two men the US government has labeled terrorists and Israel accuses of masterminding attacks that have killed hundreds of civilians.
Carter met Mashaal and his deputy, Moussa Abu Marzouk, again for about an hour Saturday morning, after more than four hours of talks the night before.
"Several subjects were discussed, including [Israeli-Palestinian] crossing points, [captured Israeli soldier Gilad] Schalit, the siege on the Palestinians and a cease-fire between Hamas and Israel," Abu Marzouk said Saturday.
Another senior Hamas official in Damascus, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to represent the group publicly, described the meetings as "warm."
However, he said Carter did not receive a response to either of the two requests the former president made in the session: that Hamas halt its rocket attacks against Israel, and agree to a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Eli Yishai to discuss a prisoner exchange.
Nazzal said Gaza-based Hamas leaders would travel to Syria on Saturday to confer with Mashaal, and that Carter "will be informed of Hamas' response in the coming days."
However, underscoring ...   more »

Rep. Myrick calls on Rice to clip wings over Hamas-meeting flap
A Republican congressional leader called on Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to revoke former President Jimmy Carter's passport in response to his traveling to Syria and Egypt to meet with delegations from the terrorist group Hamas.
Since 1995, the Palestinian organization has officially been designated by the United States as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
"Former President Carter has acted in contradiction of international agreements to isolate Hamas," said Rep. Sue Myrick, deputy Republican whip in the House. "He has acted in defiance of both United States policy and international policy."
After Hamas won the 2006 Palestinian parliamentary elections, Washington, along with the United Nations, the European Union and Russia called on Hamas to renounce terror, recognize Israel and recognize the previous agreements between the Palestinian Authority and Israel as they seek an agreement to make peace. Hamas has categorically rejected these three conditions for more than two years.
Carter met Thursday with Mahmoud Zahar, a top Hamas leader with control over militants in the Gaza Strip, after meeting Tuesday with a high-ranked Hamas politician. Carter reportedly hugged and kissed another Hamas leader Tuesday in the West Bank town of ...   more »

'This isn't conjecture, it's happening now'
By Bob Unruh
A doctor at the renowned Children's Hospital Boston has launched a new program to drug children to delay puberty so they can decide whether they want a male or a female body, according to a report today in the Boston Globe.
Pediatric endocrinologist Norman Spack, 64, says he started the Gender Management Service Clinic because he found himself encountering 20-somethings who were "transgendered" and in good shape socially, "but they were having trouble getting their physique to conform to their identity.
"I knew the 20-somethings could have better chances of passing if they were treated earlier," he said.
"We don't think that demonic is too strong a word to describe this," said a statement from the pro-family Mass Resistance organization. "It brings us thoughts of the Nazi doctors who thought they were doing good things."
WND has reported previously on some of the controversies prompted by the belief that a man can be born in a woman's body, or vice versa, including in Montgomery County, Md., where county officials have adopted a law that precludes those who provide public accommodations from discriminating based on that "gender identity."
Voters there have petitioned ...   more »