Committing Ourselves to the Actions Required for Full Inclusion
At its best, the Torah can lift up humanity, reminding us of our place in the continually unfolding story of God’s Creation of the world and our role in the hopeful journey toward freedom. At its worst, it can serve as a tool for domination, oppression, hatred, and all that is base and vile within the human soul. As a gay man, I approached this week’s Torah portion, Acharei Mot-K'doshim, with a fair amount of trepidation.
RAC-CA 2020/5780 Seder Action Insert
How My Texas Congregation Led the Way to Support Immigrant Families
Our congregation in McAllen, TX, is the go-to congregation for donations in support of immigrant families; the response from the Reform Jewish community has been amazing.
9 Ways to Celebrate Lag BaOmer from Home
Health and Hope: Lessons from My Parents, Who Survived the Holocaust
In this time of COVID-19, my mother will likely spend her upcoming 100th birthday sheltering at home with her caregiver. I asked her how this tsura (tragedy) is different from the time of Hitler.
Hitler’s True Believers: How Ordinary People Became Nazis
A widely believed myth is that Adolf Hitler was a unique personal aberration in history and his Nazi movement with its reign of terror was a one and done occurrence that lacked any real foundational ideology.
Why We Must be Like Abraham and Speak Truth to Power
It is no secret that social action is a central maxim of Judaism.
Trouble at the Borders — and Within
This post is adapted from a sermon given at Temple Sinai in Washington, DC on Friday, June 29, 2018.
Identity and Ethics: Knowing Who and Whose You Are
If someone tells you that Judaism is X or Y, you should never believe them. Judaism is such a complex civilization — it is made up of religion and culture, language and land, and a particular kind of peoplehood. ... The Israelites’ preparations both to enter the Land and to create an ideal society are central motifs of Deuteronomy, and a particular focus of the extensive Parashat R’eih.