I'm honored and delighted to be able to say that I have a poem in the new issue of Sh'ma: A Journal of Jewish Responsibility -- an issue entirely dedicated to the Akedah, the binding of Isaac. I collaborated with Matthew Zapruder, Kathryn Hellerstein, and Yerra Sugarman on the poem So Avraham Took the Ram. (That link goes to the poem in the beautifully-formatted digital magazine; if you prefer you can also read it as a webpage, here.)

This year, Shma's September issue approaches this old story in a fascinating new way, exploring the binding of Isaac through the voices of its major figures: my friend and ALEPH rabbinic school colleague Hannah Dresner writes from the perspective of the angel; Arthur Strimling writes from the perspective of Abraham, Penina Adelman writes from the perspective of Sarah, Shai Held and Peter Pizele write from the perspective of Isaac, Huda Abu Arqoub writes from the perspective of Ishmael, and Naomi Graetz writes from the perspective of God. The issue also features the voices of Menachem Creditor writing from the perspective of the mountain; Marc Bregman, Naomi Less and Chana Rothman writing from the perspective of the ram, Julie Seltzer writing from the perspective of the knife, and Michael Graetz writing from the perspective of the wood.

Also in this issue:

• Sharon Brous, Josh Kornbluth, Dov Linzer, and Jeff Helmreich engage a lively discussion on the tension between faith and ethics
• Sarah Imhoff writes on violence & secrecy
• Shaul Magid writes on the Akedah in Hasidic literature
• Bryna Jocheved Levy reflects on Rembrandt's paintings of the Akedah
• Yael Feldman writes on themes of the Akedah in Hebrew literature
• Joshua Holo writes on the differences between Jewish & Christian thinking on the binding.
• Four creative poets (that's Matthew, Kathryn, Yerra, and me!) collaborate on a poem based on the verse, "So Avraham took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering in place of his son." (Gen.22:13)

Holy wow, you know? I'm delighted and honored to be a part of this amazing issue of Sh'ma. Go and read!