Social Justice
For many white observers, the protests calling for an end to police violence and Black liberation that erupted over the weekend may have appeared sudden. Yes, they came directly after the killing of George Floyd, but they were anything but sudden. The relatively swift decision to charge the officer who killed George Floyd in Minneapolis stands in stark contrast to the delayed (to put it mildly) investigation that few if any prior deaths of Black and Brown people at the hands of police or individual citizens have received; This includes the modern-day lynching of Ahmaud Arbery... Read More
As a Zionist rabbi, I believe this is the moment for a universal declaration of support for the fact that Black Lives Matter. For me, the issue is simple: As a Jew, and as a human being, I support the essential right of all human beings to breathe and to live. That is fundamental to what it means to be a person. Early Zionists set out to create a utopian and exemplary society. Its socialist and egalitarian nature called for equal treatment among genders, races, and ethnicities. Today’s Israeli society is far from achieving its utopian ideals, but our job as Zionists, since the State was... Read More
One of the first things we learn in the Torah from the story of creation is that humans were created b’tzelem Elohim, in the holy image of God (Genesis 1:27). All of us reflect the beauty and goodness of God, and as such, we have a sacred responsibility to treat each other with the dignity, respect, and loving kindness owed to the Divine. It is this belief that guides the Reform Jewish community's advocacy for LGBTQ+ equality. But there is more to be learned from that story in Genesis. God took an additional step while creating the world and its inhabitants:... Read More
The Hebrew language is rich with meaning and beauty. It offers us multiple layers of depth and understanding, and often the simplest and most oft-used words can elicit powerful emotional responses. In this week’s parashah, Naso, God instructs Moses to instruct Aaron and his sons to offer the people of Israel a blessing. What follows is a 15-word 3-5-7 structure traditionally known as the Birkat Kohanim, the Priestly blessing, which is one of the oldest biblical texts in existence. In 1979, a scroll with this blessing was found in Jerusalem in an area known as Ketef Hinom just... Read More
George Floyd was murdered by an officer of the law whose duty was to protect him; he died crying out for his mother, begging to breathe. Ruach Elohim, the Divine Spirit, can be understood as the Breath of Life, a gift from the Creator of All Life. To deny a human being breath is idolatrous – and George Floyd’s murder comes after countless Black and Brown people have similarly been killed and countless others have suffered the brutal systems of racism in our country. The United States simply cannot achieve the values of “justice for all" to which it aspires until we... Read More
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