Related Blog Posts on Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion and Jewish Values

View from behind of a person blowing a shofar into the sunset while wearing a prayer shawl that covers their head and back
sacred texts

Unetaneh Tokef in the Time of a Pandemic

Rabbi Joseph B. Meszler
The Unetaneh Tokef has a long list of ways that people die, often violently, a way of shocking us into realizing our mortality. The original prayer, however, can be traumatizing. This version seeks a more empathetic approach to mortality.
Blue ballot box in front of an Israeli flag
Israel

Who Cares About Israeli Democracy?

Rabbi Josh Weinberg
I agreed with my friend that democracy isn’t perfect. And I agreed that we must do everything to protect Israel as a majority Jewish State. I pushed back, though.
Paintbrushes in a glass vase
Yom Kippur

Inspired 5781: More Art, More Awe

Rebecca Guber

I grew up going to services. A lot of services. I was adept at counting the ceiling tiles, reaching into the thousands as my grasp of numbers grew more sophisticated.

Rabbi Max Chaiken wears a green shirt and blows the shofar
Jewish History

Navigating COVID: Our Ancestors Pointed the Way

Aron Hirt-Manheimer
Rabbi Max Chaiken, our Ten Minutes of Torah commentator for the Book of Deuteronomy, is the associate rabbi of Congregation Kol Ami in Los Angeles, CA. We talk to him about his Jewish journey and the ideas behind his commentaries.
Forest path with light shining through and if elucidating the way
Yom Kippur

What Does it Mean to Make Successful T’shuvah?

Lee B. Kass
For the first time this year, High Holidays will be conducted remotely for our community – but it will show us that we can, as Rabbi John Rosove taught, truly “overcome the past for the sake of a better future.”