The Rabbi's Blog
September 2015
Dear Friends, As we prepare for the High Holidays, I want to share with you a thought-provoking teaching from the Talmud I learned from my friend and teacher Rabbi Mishael Zion. In the school of Rabbi Ishmael it was taught: It can be likened to a shopkeeper selling [foul smelling] kerosene oil and [wonderfully aromatic] […]
read more »August 2015
On Love and Brokenness Dear Friends, As I write, it is a warm and breezy day outside. Summer is in full swing, and people in my neighborhood are walking leisurely, as if the rush of life has melted with the giant piles of snow. For my August Newsletter, I was going […]
read more »July 2015
Dear Friends, Below, we are reprinting my letter to our community about the massacre of nine Black brothers and sisters in Charleston’s Mother Emmanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church on June 17th. Tragically, this event has sparked a series of hate-driven church burnings in Black churches across the South, and Black faith communities continue to live […]
read more »June 2015
Dear Friends, Last weekend, Jews around the world celebrated Shavuot, the festival that commemorates the giving of the Torah. I want to share with you some of what I taught last Friday night about the Book of Ruth, the main text we read on Shavuot. The Book of Ruth is one of the great […]
read more »May 2015
Dear Friends, As I shared with many of you at our mid-April service, Jeremy and I are overjoyed to report that we are expecting a baby girl, due October 2nd. For the months before I shared the news, I spent much of my time at synagogue observing our Sha’arei Shalom families and imagining […]
read more »March 2015
Dear Friends, We are now well into the Jewish month of Adar, and Purim is fast approaching. For many of us, Purim represents a sort of Jewish Halloween, a time to dress up and eat sweets. For many Jews in traditional congregations, Purim looks like a Jewish version of Marti Gras, a time of […]
read more »February 2015
Dear friends, This week, we experienced an epic winter storm. The roads shut down, the schools closed. From my warm house, I looked out the window as the snow blew in every direction, eventually burying Jeremy’s car almost completely. Yet, with central heating, electricity, and excellent public programs to remove snow, the storm was more […]
read more »January 2015
Rabbi’s Dispatch from Israel Dear friends, Happy New Year! I am writing to you from the Holy Land, where Jeremy and I arrived this morning. As requested, I hope to share with you some of our experience, to give you a taste of what it is like to be here. When we hear about Israel […]
read more »December 2014
Dear Friends, As I write, Thanksgiving approaches, with its promise of family gatherings, holiday traffic, and delicious desserts. As I shared at our recent Shabbat Circle potluck dinner, I recently learned a new twist on an old Thanksgiving custom. My colleague Rev. Viola Morris Buchanan shared that in her family, instead of just having people […]
read more »November 2014
Dear Friends, When Candidates Feel Underwhelming, Why Vote? In Exodus 18:21, Jethro advises Moses on the kind of leaders who should govern the people. “Select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain.” As the 2014 election approaches, I suspect many of you feel as I do — […]
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