"Offer the Ram of Pride instead"

Interesting piece in the Tribune about the High Holidays and the various creative ways in which rabbis deal with the story of Abraham and Isaac--a difficult enough passage even for the faithful, and certainly not an easy way to engage the occasional worshipers and the visitors in attendance on Rosh Hashanah.

I've always been fascinated by the story, not least because of the many provocative ways (some more orthodox than others) in which people (clergy, theologians, writers, philosophers) have interpreted/used it over the years. One of my favorites--Wilfred Owen, in a poem later set to music by Benjamin Britten.

(I had the pleasure of singing this piece with my college choir. Years earlier, I sang the Isaac solo in a children's musical written by my father. Both meaningful experiences, for different reasons.)