Lessons from Bad Segeberg after 80 Years
The faces in the photo that hangs in the new synagogue in Bad Segeberg haunt me. They seared themselves into my brain the first time I saw it, and they do not let go.
What were these 26 souls thinking when – in hiding – they celebrated Purim in 1936? Their eyes and their smiles betray fear, and their resolve to celebrate the festival with joy.
Reform Movement Response To News That Donald Trump Will Speak At AIPAC Policy Conference
The Reform Jewish Movement has always worked very closely with AIPAC. We respect completely its decision to invite all the viable candidates for president to speak at its upcoming Policy Conference. By inviting the candidates to speak, AIPAC does not support or oppose their candidacies, nor does it condone or commend their policies. AIPAC has, as it must, a singular focus: the U.S./Israel relationship. AIPAC's intent – and its responsibility – is to better understand the candidates' views on issues that impact the U.S./Israel relationship.
Twenty Years Later, We Continue to Define the Legacy of Yitzhak Rabin
“Take your son, your only one, the one you love, Yitzhak…” (Gen 22:2)
Why "UN COP 21 Paris" Matters for Reform Jews and the World
World leaders, environmentalists, faith leaders and activists will soon gather in Paris, a city so recently plagued with violence and terrorism, to create a framework to reduce the grave dangers of escalating clim
How We Commemorated Kristallnacht in the Western Galilee
In the Western Galilee where I live in northern Israel, the population is diverse – about half is Jewish with the other half a combination of Muslim, Christian, and Druze. Although many of us live in different cities and villages according to faith or culture, some of our communities are mixed, so we share many of the same entertainment venues, businesses, and institutions. We live and work together and must afford one another respect and understanding.
The Future Looks Hopeful: Five Insights on Next Steps for Start-Up Synagogues
Jewish pundits love to predict the eventual demise of the synagogue, decrying its dearth of deep ideas, shortage of spiritual inspiration, and absence of meaning.
Holding One Another On Our Shoulders
This passage is excerpted from a d’var Torah shared at the URJ Biennial convention's Shacharit service focused on tikkun olam, repair of the world.
The poet Naomi Shihab Nye tells this story:
In Place of God? In God’s Place?
After a natural calamity or terrorist attack an understandable question presents itself: Where is God in all this?
What Does It Mean to Be a Man in Full?
One day, I may give a sermon titled: "Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Pagan Philosopher." This is thanks to the book, The Art of Living ,1 by Sharon Lebell.