As 5777 draws to a close, here are some members of the tribe — representing areas as diverse as pop culture to politics — we've mourned since last Rosh HaShanah.
I am sitting at my desk in my office, Maroon 5 playing on Pandora, anxiously perusing a variety of news websites: Jerusalem Post, CNN, Haaretz, and yes, even Fox News. Sure, my Erev Rosh HaShanah...
In Jewish tradition, the entire month before Rosh HaShanah is devoted to a searching examination of our words and deeds over the past year. This examination, this accounting, is both personal and...
Like many Massachusetts families, the Boston Marathon is very much part of my family’s lives. Every year we gather to watch, volunteer, or run, as my wife and I did in 2008. Drawing thousands of...
There is much talk of forgiveness these days, particularly in the wake of the sentencing of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, perpetrator of the Boston Marathon bombing, and the arrest of Dylann Roof, the accused...
May we continue to be inspired by Congregation Beth Israel to turn darkness into light, to turn fear into resolve, to turn xenophobia into acceptance, and to turn hatred into hope.
After the nation moves on, we will be left to pick up the pieces. Fortunately, this is a very strong and capable Jewish community, blessed to be led by incredible rabbis.
Many communities still need our help In that spirit, here are a couple of ideas you can do with your kids, also with what you probably already have at home.
How do we help our children understand this world? How do we both protect them and make sure that they are knowledgeable enough to take action when needed?
The fears and uncertainties surrounding the continuing crisis in Ukraine has had an effect on this year’s Inter-Regional Summer Camps. Despite a few changes, camp went on as planned, providing...
As a Jewish preschool director just an hour north of Parkland, FL, my office has been a buzz of activity after 17 people were murdered at a local high school.
Growing up as a Reform Jew in a liberal, socially active environment in Southern California, I always felt that capital punishment and the death penalty were morally wrong and never the right...
The following is a letter I sent last week to the Middle Tennessee Council of the Boy Scouts of America in Nashville, TN. A native of Nashville, I once belonged to Troop 31, sponsored by St....
Monday night, St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch announced that a grand jury had decided there was not enough probable cause to indict police Officer Darren Wilson in the death...
The Mourners Kaddish begins "Yitgadal v'yitkadash sh'may rabba," "Exalted and Holy be Your great name" - yet little feels holy today, following another mass shooting.
In his second year in office, President George Washington wrote a letter to the Touro Synagogue in Newport, Rhode Island - one of our Nation's first Jewish houses of worship - and reaffirmed our...
We must gather together. We cannot turn aside our attention. We need to stand up and shine our collective light. Politically, we have a six-month timeline that starts now.
Last week, we watched in horror and dismay as violent event after violent event unfolded, each amplifying and recontextualizing the one before it. By Friday morning, July 8, five Dallas police...
I promise that for the rest of my life, I will fight for your safety. I will fight for your freedom from fear. I will fight in memory of Alyssa Alhadeff, and in honor of all of you.
As Reform Jews, our task is to challenge America's conscience and not stand idly by the blood of our neighbor. We offer words, prayers, and concrete ways to take action to prevent...
Imagine being forcibly separated from your loved one. This scenario may evoke thoughts of one of the darkest times in Jewish history. Yet, this is happening today, in America.
Recovery for a storm of this magnitude will take months, if not years. We are working hard to provide resources to affected families, and we encourage you to do the same.
Years ago, before I had children, I sat in a meeting with a colleague who casually mentioned that her young son was not feeling well but was in good hands with his nanny, whom she completely...
The wait, over. The worst, confirmed. Gilad Shaar, Naftali Frenkel, and Eyal Yifrach, three kidnapped Israeli teens who disappeared on June 12, were found dead today. Baruch Dayan Emet, may...
“There's a hill right across the street from our temple — it was fully engulfed — and there was a raining down of sparks onto our property," the rabbi told JTA on Monday.
July 2, 2014. Tel Aviv. Summer is so often about our kids—but this summer, we have all had a stark and tragic reminder of how fragile life is and how often our children are put in harm’s way by...
Whether or not there will be another shooting just a few days from now is not even up for debate. Call it pessimism, cynicism, or fatalism, but the undeniable truth of the situation is not a...
I remember little of my elementary school years in Cleveland, except for one incident in the second grade. We were doing an art project in class, and I couldn’t find my scissors. When I noticed...
Here’s a new prayer for safety of IDF soldiers during Operation Protective Edge. It’s based on a prayer called "For the IDF: Operation Pillar of Defense," which I wrote nearly two years ago for...
As Reform Jews, our task is to challenge America's conscience. Here, yet again, we offer words, prayers, and concrete ways to take action to prevent gun violence.
Jews of a certain age might share similar early impressions of Israel. In Chicago, where I grew up, the young congregants at Lawn Manor Hebrew Congregation were inculcated with a firm commitment to...
This story of Israel’s diversity, coexistence and humanitarian aid as evidenced by the Galillee Medical Center community moves me, and especially now, I feel it is important to share it with others.
I sat down last week to write about what happened in Ferguson. As I began to write, there was no doubt in my mind that there would be a “next time” as soon as we hit the next news cycle, if not...
I want to slam society against the wall and shout at the top of my lungs, “This is not right! This is not just! This is not the world that we are commanded to create"
The Oscar-nominated short film A Night at the Garden is a documentary short about a massive pro-Nazi rally that happened in Madison Square Garden 80 years ago this week.
During Shabbat, our day of rest, terrible events took place in Charlottesville, VA. A "Unite the Right" protest organized by the alt-right turned bloody, violent, and ultimately...
Standing on the steps of the Old Court House in St. Louis the night before Michael Brown’s funeral, we stopped marching and chanting, and instead prayed quietly for his family and the families of...
The Ruderman Family Foundation recently released The Ruderman White Paper on Media Coverage of Law Enforcement Use of Force and Disability. As an authority on the topic of disabilities, the...
The sound of glass shattering. Smiles and cheers. That was on Saturday night as Dan and Lauren officially became husband and wife. Before Dan stomped on the glass, Rabbi Ettin reminded all of us...
A hearty mazal tov to the 28 rabbis named to the Jewish Daily Forward's annual list of "America's Most Inspiring Rabbis," released today. On this year's list are 10 Reform rabbis who received...
In search of a unique Hanukkah gift for the social justice hero in your life? Look no further than this guide for all your gift-giving needs - with an emphasis on tikkun olam, the repair of our broken world.
Reform Zionism is a continuation of the early Zionist dream to foster a living, breathing national culture that represents the highest ideals of Jewish peoplehood.