We are living in times of darkness, where change seems impossible. But there are small groups of people who are working to make a difference.

We fast on Tisha B'Av because we still have not improved; we still have not strived to our fullest capacity to achieve real equity and justice. There is so much that needs to be done for the poor in our own neighborhoods, both within the Jewish community and without.

Today, this nightmare persists for millions of human beings around the world. There are an estimated 30 million slaves in the world, perhaps more than at any other point in history.

On Tisha B'Av, we are left with ruins, the emptiness remains. We are left with what was, with the past as such. But what is a ruin?

How many of us have complained about food that was healthy, sustaining and plentiful, but didn't meet our sensual desires? How many of us have exclaimed "I'm starving!" after eating a meal just a few hours ago?

When do we cross the line into materialism or even gluttony? When does having more cease to add appreciably to human satisfaction? Let us cultivate a deeper awareness of our personal measures of success, and celebrate them together.

One of the major mitzvot of Purim is giving gifts to the poor. We must respond to poverty through solidarity, identification, understanding and kindheartedness. But never through shame.

Taking Purim seriously is the commitment to take the contours of our lives seriously, even its extremes, perhaps especially in such cases.

On Rikers Island, where some 14,000 inmates await their trials, I prayed, ate and slept over during Rosh Hashanah and Shabbat as the rabbi of a community of 60 or so Jewish inmates.

The painful truth? Your hands, my hands and the hands of everyone else we know are tools of oppression. They directly and indirectly cause suffering in the lives of God's creation -- human, animal and more.

May we all use this time of Passover to make transformations, big or small, in our food system, our communities and our selves.

By working on service projects together, we demystify each other and open up space for dialogue. It's an opportunity for people to come together around a shared, positive goal.

By Nicole Neroulias Religion News Service NEW YORK (RNS) What does it really mean for your Hebrew National hot dog to "answer to a higher authority?"...