Frank: Mark, we have all been asked many times in our lives whether our glass was half full or half empty, to ascertain if we were optimistic or pessimistic about a certain situation. Recently I have been asked that question as it relates to the outcome of the presidential election, and I responded ...
Frank: During my fifty years of practice, I participated in the care of thousands of pregnant women and have attempted to answer the many questions that each patient invariably wants answered. While these questions are often specific to each patient's pregnancy, one common question usually surfaces ...
Frank: Mark while we were on our trip last year to Berlin, we often spoke about issues surrounding the topic of forgiveness, and with the High Holidays now over, I thought this would be a good time to review some of those issues and begin by asking if you believed there were instances and events that ...
Mark: In many Reform synagogues, like mine, a prayer for healing has been reintroduced in recent years. Though always a part of traditional Jewish worship, it was abandoned by Reform Jews because it was felt to be a theological bridge too far for many to cross: It was one thing assemble as a congregation ...
Frank: As a young child, my mother, of blessed memory, had me recite a prayer in German each night before I climbed into bed for a good night’s sleep. Translated into English, the prayer said, “In God’s name, I lay myself down to sleep, and hope to reawaken happy and healthy.” As I grew older ...
Mark: There is a Jewish blessing which directly acknowledges a close relationship between God and every single human soul: Blessed are You, God of the universe, the Knower of all secrets. This short but substantive prayer suggests that belief among many that the Master of the ...
This is the first of several upcoming columns by the authors on the subject of God. Frank: It was 1967 and I was an Obstetrics and Gynecology Resident at Yale New Haven Hospital, and I was helping take care of a patient who was having considerable problems with her pregnancy. At one of my ...
Frank: Mark, it is disturbing that so many of our people do not know the history of the numerous attempts over the years by Israel to accept a two state solution with Palestinians and to make a permanent peace with them as well. There have been five incredibly generous offers of a two State solution ...
Frank: Mark, an age- old question of why things happen is one that you and I have discussed several times. Is what happens in life predetermined and for a reason, or is what happens merely a random phenomenon? In his extremely popular book, When Bad Things Happen to Good People, Rabbi Harold Kushner ...
Frank: Mark, I have always been fascinated by the fact that it was the Jewish people who gave the world its first introduction to monotheism as well as laws which God instructs us to follow by giving Moses the Ten Commandments. I have also noted that, while many of these Ten Commandments ...