Menachem Zaman

The Torah’s prohibition against taking interest is often understood as a law about compassion. A Jew may not turn his brother’s need into an opportunity for profit. That is certainly true. But there is another layer as well. The Torah is not only concerned with the lender’s character. It is also deeply concerned with the …

The Torah’s Ethics of Lending Read More »

How can a commoner desire a Queen?She radiates a light he cannot bear.A splendor sensed before it’s seen—drawn—yet he dares not stare. Can flesh ever love a soul?The soul—beyond space and time, complete.And the body—dust and ash,fallinginto quiet defeat. And can a shallow breathyearn for the ocean’s depth? A breath—as soon as it is born,perishes—unmourned. …

Dreamer Read More »

“From there you shall seek.” So we played hide and seek. At home — and in exile, across the corners of the world. We searched in silence.We searched in cries. Through spring days that overflowedand winter nights of crushing cold. Even when the game frayedand stopped feeling like play. . You win. Come out —wherever …

Hide & Seek Read More »