For Orlando, For the USA: A Prayer After the Pulse Nightclub Shooting
In Orlando early Sunday, 49 people died in the deadliest mass shooting in U.S history, in an act of domestic hate and terror focused on a popular gay nightclub. May the memories of the righteous be a blessing.
Congress Poised to Take Action to Curb Opioid Abuse
The United States faces a serious opioid abuse problem.
The Reform Movement Mourns the Victims of the Tel Aviv Shooting Attack
As news reports with more details came in from Tel Aviv last night, we are shocked and horrified at the sight of two gunmen, dressed as ultra-Orthodox Jews, who opened fire at diners in the Sarona Market.
Rabbi Jonah Dov Pesner Expresses Concern about ICE Raids
Rabbi Jonah Dov Pesner sent the following letter to Secretary of Homeland Security, Jeh Johnson, on June 16, 2016, expressing concerns about reports of a new round of ICE raids targeting undocumented families:
Words Not Spoken . . . Words Not Heard
Words are powerful. In Genesis, chapter one, God creates through words: “God said, ‘Let there be light!’—and there was light. . . . God said, ‘Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters,’. . . . God now said, ‘Let us make human beings in our image,’ ” (Genesis 1:3, 6, 26).
Love Wins: A Pride Prayer (In Memoriam, Orlando)
This prayer is shared memoriam of the victims of racist terror and massacre of LGBT people in Orlando, FL, last Sunday. In the end, love wins.
After Orlando, LGBTQ Jews Seek More Than Just Solidarity
As a queer Jew, the solidarity I seek from other Jews is not simply ignoring the passages of Torah that are used to discriminate against LGBTQ people. I seek recognition that homophobia and transphobia actively exist in our modern Jewish community and are perversions within our interpretive tradition. I seek the acknowledgment that religion is too often used to justify discrimination against LGBTQ people.
An Attack on My Israeli Neighborhood, 6,000 Miles Away
Two weeks ago, I lived a two-minute walk from the scene of Wednesday’s attack. Sarona, a chic pedestrian mall filled with shops, restaurants and play areas, was where my wife and I took weekend walks with our newborn son in his stroller. It was where I met colleagues for a mid-afternoon coffee. Occasionally, it was where we splurged on a nice dinner, as many Israelis were doing when the shooting began Wednesday.
The Challenge of Righteousness
The wording of the verse gives rise to this debate. The text states that “Noah was a righteous man,” but immediately follows with the phrase “in his generation, he was above reproach. . . ” All of us, including the ancient Rabbis, are left to wonder if Noah is exceptional or not, if his righteousness would be universally righteous or simply righteous in his time.
BDS Faces Setbacks in Faith and Academic Organizations
For a number of years, activists seeking to damage Israel’s legitimacy and standing in the world have mounted a campaign to boycott, divest from and sanction the Jewish state.