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In raising my two daughters, I had always hoped they would have courage to face life challenges with confidence and character. When they were young, I anticipated that those challenges would be the...
The sukkah is a symbol of fragility. We build the temporary structure each year and know that it is only meant to last for the week-long holiday. It sways in the breeze. The raindrops land inside....
I am thinking a lot about food at the moment, not because I am hungry as I write this post, but because I am in the midst of a 21-day cleanse. Under the guidance of Jen Nassi, my holistic health...
It was hours before I would step on the bimah and conduct the Erev Rosh HaShanah service. As the nation was reeling from the cataclysmic events of 9/11, I lay upon the examination table of the...
This morning I received a text message from my Aunt Linda saying, “I am doing well… love being home after three weeks in the hospital and rehab.” I almost replied, as if on rabbi auto-pilot, “I’ve...
Let’s cover the basics first: About 11 years ago, I was diagnosed with kidney disease. Almost three years ago, I started dialysis. About a year and half ago, I got a kidney transplant. Now I’m...
Gore For several days before I began chemotherapy for transitional cell carcinoma, I created and rehearsed a guided image of a boat that allowed me to relax and give myself permission to enjoy the...
New Year's Eve lost some of its festivity for me after reading the New York Times reporting the reaction to a fatal rape and beating in Delhi, India. Many women there say they are still subject to...
May is Mental Health Month, a time when we consider ways to prevent and treat mental illness – including the agonizing scourge of depression that can result in suicide. It is also the month when...
On Sunday, October 6, 2013, Congregation Rodeph Shalom will partner with the Basser Research Center for BRCA for an educational program about BRCA gene mutations, which are related to breast,...
I was very young when I first recognized my calling in life. My early experiences helped me grasp the importance of what I might accomplish if I could succeed at practicing medicine with...
The Jewish dietary laws of kashrut, or keeping kosher, are a complex system of regulations with numerous theories circling around their origin. Many of the regulations seem to have the health...
This post is part of #JDAMblogs, a series of blog posts throughout the Jewish community during the month of February in honor of Jewish Disability Awareness Month (JDAM). #JDAMblogs is the...
This post is part of #JDAMblogs, a series of blog posts throughout the Jewish community during the month of February in honor of Jewish Disability Awareness Month (JDAM). #JDAMblogs is the...
These days, relationships are a hot conversation topic in the Jewish community. Noted rabbis Larry Hoffman and Richard Address, as well as Jewish academics like Dr. Ron Wolfson, have delved...
Sometimes it is a seemingly innocuous comment that can be the beginning of something amazing.
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Do you know anyone who has Parkinson’s disease (PD)? It’s likely – the neurodegenerative disease affects one in 100 people over the age of 60, and more than 5 million people worldwide. Today,...
I remember when I was first diagnosed with bipolar disorder. I was shocked and upset, depressed and crying - but in a way, I was also relieved. There was a name for what I was feeling, for what I...
Turning on the news, it seems like all that anyone is talking about these days is the Ebola virus. From the news, to our offices, to our conversations amongst friends, we’ve been hearing every day...
When the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. addressed the American Jewish Congress in May 1958, he explained that “our unity is born of our common struggle for centuries, not only to rid ourselves of...
Passover can be overwhelming. Why not simplify it? Here are five easy tips for reconnecting with the meaning of the holiday.
Here's something that you probably don’t know about Israel: Israelis are very happy. In fact, they are among the happiest people in the world – far happier than Americans, and a bit happier than...
As a communications director, it’s my job to tell other people’s stories. However, I’m not always so comfortable telling my own. Even so, I want to tell you my dad’s story. More than that, I need...
Purim is coming, a wild holiday that holds its place alongside Yom Kippur and Passover as a dramatic story in the Hebrew Bible’s accounts of redemption and revelation. But, unlike these other...
In commemoration of World AIDS Day, I'm again struck by the final lines from American playwright Tony Kushner’s Angels in America.
13 Reasons Why, the new miniseries from Netflix, is filled with painful stories about sadness, bullying, rape, and suicide. Teens need their parents' help unpacking it.
When in Jerusalem, I try to tap into both its earthly and ethereal realms – the Jerusalem below (Yerushalayim lamata) and the Jerusalem above (Yerushalayim lamala).
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Shmirat haguf – literally, guarding the body – is the religious imperative to take care of our body and soul. Learn how you can fulfill this mitzvah in 2018.
April is Parkinson’s Awareness Month, and – in honor of the one million people living with Parkinson’s disease in the United States – I want to share my story.
My grandfather was looking at me through empty eyes. His scruffy mustache was unmoving; he was just staring. My dad was making simple, small talk, but grandpa was just staring. I couldn’t recall...
to an array of social justice issues can make it difficult to find time to take care of my own well-being. What’s the best way to find the right balance?
The old adage “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words shall never hurt me” was first recorded in the 1860s and is something parents have since used to soothe their children’s hurt feelings...
When most people think of “France” and “Jews” together, past or current anti-Semitism comes to mind. That wasn’t our experience while vacationing in Brittany this summer, although we were just...
Someone new recently joined my weekly atheist meet-up group, so the subject came up again: What was your former religion? When and why did you stop believing?
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There was a time in my life where I had a lot of trouble sleeping. When I encountered the following Talmudic text, I empathized with Rabbi Yohanan whole-heartedly: “Rabbi Yohanan said: If one says,...
The Mi Shebeirach, a Jewish prayer for healing, has been set to music by several contemporary Jewish musicians, including the late Debbie Friedman. Her interpretation – just two short stanzas – is...
I am not from the athletes.
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Since celebrating my 50th birthday, I have enjoyed attaining many milestones: half a century of life, 25 years of marriage, the graduation of all three of our children, and the publication of my...
Passover is usually one of my favorite holidays. I love the ritual of preparing the house, the smell of the food, and the joyous atmosphere at the seder table. But this year is different. Passover...
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a time to consider how we can help prevent and treat mental illness – including the agonizing scourge of clinical depression. It’s also the month leading up to...
Just how is infertility a Jewish issue? Our community has always placed a value on raising Jewish families.
Like any child, growing up I relied on the support of my parents. Due to my severe learning disabilities, this support was even more essential. Although I was reading at age 4 and showed a...
With serendipity, I stumbled upon my youth Hebrew school lessons of pikuach nefesh, the concept of saving a life. It's our obligation to save lives whenever possible, even above observing the...
As a young Jewish woman, one of the reasons I am so impassioned by this cause is because of the Jewish prayer for healing, the Mi Shebeirach.
Positive psychology has from its inception been unabashedly influenced by ancient philosophical and religious wisdom, embracing teachings and values found in Judaism.
The Jewish mystics also understood that adversity, even tragedy, can hold the key to discovering one’s divine mission or calling.
The events of my son’s bar mitzvah day don't begin to tell the story of how Max arrived at that moment. Nor do they tell the story of the special connection that he, and we, have developed with the...
In 1937, my grandfather and great-uncle left Germany for America. My grandfather was young – maybe 17 – but he was mature and ready for the journey. Among his many preparations for the voyage and...
