Parashat Shoftim

Why the Torah equates human life with the life of a tree.

War and peace — and the difficulties with both — are the subjects of Parashat Shoftim.

Is there ever justice in the death penalty?

Judaism possesses the values on which an ecological morality may be grounded.

At a time when Jewish influence has increased, how do we approach unethical commandments?

Resisting the temptation to return, geographically or psychologically, to the site of our bondage.

The prohibition against encroaching on your neighbor's land teaches us that our own expansion and success must not compromise the success of others.

Justice, expressed in Parashat Shoftim, is one of the eternal religious obligations of Judaism.

From the commandment not to cut down trees in war, we derive the prohibition against the careless destruction of nature.

The Torah expects us to be our own autonomous interpreters of divine will, turning to Jewish legal experts only when we reach our limits of understanding.

The Torah provides a model for separating religious, judicial, and governing bodies -- to keep power in check.

In the contemporary Jewish community, judging goes beyond adjudicating.

True justice balances the needs of a whole group, rather than just the individual.

The Torah takes care to limit the power of both the kingship and the priesthood, the formal institutions of leadership and governance in ancient Israel.

The commandment to be wholehearted with God requires us to devote our entire beings sincerely to God.

The instructions to pursue justice and practice communal responsibility should motivate us to constantly improve our efforts to alleviate the crises that affect our people.

The understanding that Israelite troops were addressed on two different occasions before they entered war reflects the idea that our reactions to war often depend on its imminence.

Shoftim: A resource for families.

The John Doe challah.

Learn more about the weekly Torah portion.

Through Isaiah, God extends a note of condolence.

Moses reviews for the Israelites their system of justice, the rules of kingship, their relationship to idolatrous nations, and the rules of doing battle.