Blog

The last major holiday of this Jewish calendar year, Shavuot, begins this evening (Thursday) at sundown.  Shavuot celebrates the seminal moment in the history of our people, namely the giving of Torah. Thus, one way we traditionally observe the Festival is by reading the Ten Commandments during our morning service (Friday, 10:00 am).  

However, for all of the ways we affirm the centrality of the 10 Commandments in Jewish...Read more...

I vividly remember that one of my elementary school teachers had a script from which she would not deviate.

Whenever anyone would ask the simple question, “Can I go to the bathroom?” she would respond, “I don’t know, can you?” This would be met with a confused look from all, and it might continue for several rounds of identical questioning. Finally, the student realized the didactic purpose of this exercise, and would...Read more...

In last week’s column, Rabbi Levenberg wrote about his memorable trip to Israel shared with the Jewish Federation and a large contingency of Temple Sinai members. Serendipitously, I was in Israel at the same time, although for an entirely different reason; I was honored to serve as one of the Reform Movement’s ARZA delegates to the World Zionist Organization “Extraordinary” Congress. In stark contrast with the positive energy of the...Read more...

Coming from New York, I must admit I had a fair amount of Northeastern elitism... Is there really a thriving Jewish World outside of NYC?  And, if so, what do Jews in the South know about Jewish culture and experience?

And then I came here, and now, even 7 years later, I find myself astonished at the sheer breadth of Jewish offerings and expressions around the region. There are so many ways you can be Jewish in Atlanta and the...Read more...

Chag Sameach!  Whether you are going to celebrate your first or second Passover Seder this evening, I hope that the opportunity to gather around the table with family, friends, new acquaintances, or any combination of the above, adds sincere joy to this year’s Passover observance. Many may have learned at some point over the years that in order to fully grasp the significance of Passover, we must approach the Seder as more than mere...Read more...

There is a beautiful Hebrew word, popularized by Israel's founder, David Ben Gurion: mamlachtiyut. Difficult to translate to English, Reform Jewish activist, Peter Shapiro, contends that it means "unity despite difference." It is putting the interests of the state ahead of personal or political considerations, and it is the exact opposite of what we are seeing these days in Israel.  

Temple Sinai is a...Read more...

I don’t know about you, but I do not like using cruise control. I don’t trust it and it makes me feel uneasy. Only recently did Natan convince me to start using it for highway driving. And… much to my surprise, I have slowly begun to appreciate it… especially with all of the latest safety features in my minivan (another one of those things I never thought I would get!). In cruise control mode with radar and lane assist engaged, the...Read more...

Because I love Israel and care deeply for her wellbeing, 230 Reform rabbis and I from across North America joined our Israeli rabbinic colleagues and more than 150,000 Israelis in Tel Aviv to protest the radical judicial overhaul proposals that the current government, despite widespread opposition, is unabashedly and quickly pushing through the Knesset to become law.  If the four proposed “reforms” are passed in their entirety, they...Read more...

Each year, the Torah portion Mishpatim fills me with a pang of nostalgia. It brings me back to the very first sermon I ever wrote. It was February 2012 at Hebrew Union College, in Jerusalem. 

I remember it quite well because at that time, during the first year of Rabbinical School, students were required to write and deliver only ONE sermon, or D’var Torah. 

I remember the pressure and the anxiety that surrounded...Read more...

While I am fond of many parts of the Torah, it is this week’s portion, Parashat Beshalach, that speaks to me most. It is this week that the Israelites finally escape slavery after hundreds of years of servitude in Egypt and encounter the miracle at the Sea of Reeds when they flee. This parasha contains within it Shirat Hayam or The Song of the Sea. We know it by its familiar title, Mi Chamocha. And, because this special song is typeset in...Read more...

Unfortunately, the hateful virus of antisemitism has been the topic of many recent conversations.  As these conversations come up in the news, or in our lives, we can be at a loss for words. We might feel uncomfortable or scared or triggered. Despite all the years of antisemitism, at times we still do not know what is the “right” way to respond.

In this week's parasha Va’era, we read of the Egyptians who watched as the...Read more...

The very first choir I sang in was a children’s choir at Taylor Mills Elementary School in Englishtown, New Jersey. It was 1976, and I was in the second grade. We were singing a myriad of patriotic songs to celebrate our nation’s bicentennial year. (I still sing "Grand Old Flag" to my children on Flag Day as an homage to my 2nd grade music teacher). However, amid all of the fun and celebratory songs, we sang a song called “Abraham,...Read more...

I recently overheard a parent say to her child the following phrase, “Hope is overrated.”

Before I get to my response, let me set the stage. My family and I took a few days and headed to Florida for a Disney vacation. We skipped the parks, instead checking out the resorts. We found that resort hopping during the holiday break is, well, not a unique activity. In fact, we were joined by an exceptionally large group of people, making...Read more...

One year ago, my children lost their father unexpectedly to a heart attack. As with any death, especially the ones that shock us, they/we experienced a lot of chaos and disruption as we made plans to head down to Florida for his funeral.

After the meetings with funeral home and cemetery, we made our way back to our hotel. It was Chanukah and we had brought a Chanukiah with us to light while we were away. Sarah, Hannah, Hannah’s...Read more...

”Jacob had a dream in which a stairway (ladder) was set on the ground and its top reached to the sky, and angels of God were going up and down on it.” (Gen 28:10).

It is likely many of us have encountered depictions of this verse in this week’s Torah portion at some point in time. Various prose and poetic interpretations as well as artistic paintings, drawings, and sculptures have all contributed to our mental pictures of what...Read more...