I love that verse about freeing the captive because it makes me feel that Judaism, and really the best of religion wherever we are and whoever we are, is about helping other human beings to reach their full potential, instead of being punitive and angry.

That verse reflects so badly on both the USA and the UK with our high prison populations, and the huge percentage of those populations who suffer from mental illness and should be being helped rather than incarcerated. I love that verse because it tells us that we should get the people out of prison, cure their sickness, let them see the light of freedom, and realize that punishing people by putting them in the dungeon is of no use at all in changing their ways. Instead, we should be rehabilitating them, keeping them with their families, making connections for and with them.

This is not about the Jews being a chosen people, though it has often been interpreted that way. It is about being chosen- all of us who take these words seriously- to make a difference, to deal with disadvantage, to notice our fellow human beings and their suffering, and to alleviate it. The rest is, as they say, commentary, for that is what God wants of us.