Sublime

In the land of Israel, under the sovereignty of God, there would be a republic of free and equal citizens, held together not by hierarchy or power but by the moral bond of covenant. It didn’t happen.

A leader is held responsible for the sins of the people he leads – at least those he might have prevented (Shabbat 54b). With power comes responsibility: the greater the power, the greater the responsibility.

Bias: To believe in G-d’s ultimate goodness, to know that blessings await us beneath the surface of our experience, no matter how bleak, to actively seek those blessings out, and to spread their light to the world beyond.

Leadership, as every leader knows, can be lonely. Yet you continue to do what you have to do because you know that the majority is not always right and conventional wisdom is not always wise. Dead fish go with the flow. Live fish swim against the current. So it is with conscience and courage. So it is with the children of Abraham. They are prepared

great leader has the responsibility to both be an ambassador and inspire his or her people to be ambassadors as well.

The Torah survived as the law of the Jewish nation because Jews continued to see themselves as a nation, even though they had lost all visible bases of nationhood.

The radiance of a generous heart that sees clearly

If in Israel Jews were ungovernable, in the Diaspora they were unconquerable.