What Children Can Teach Us at Rosh HaShanah
A deep spiritual life is hard to find. While opportunities abound for spiritual connections (yoga, meditation, retreats and the like), for most of us it doesn’t come easy.
Vodou Rock and Cherry Manischewitz: Reflections of a Jew Visiting Haiti
At the last count of the World Jewish Congress in 1997, there were 25 Jews living in Haiti. There is no native Jewish population to speak of in what is currently the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.
The Nudge of Selichot
After 10 weeks of swimming, biking, walking at the ocean's edge, and rationalizing that it's too hot for tennis, Saturday night Selichot services appear on my calendar as the call back from the freedom of su
The Elul Mitzvah Challenge: Join In!
In Pirkei Avot, the rabbis wrote, “Mitzvah goreret mitzvah, averah goreret averah,” one mitzvah (commandment/good deed) leads to another mitzvah, and one transgression leads to another transgression.
An Arizona Congregation Forms a New Kind of "Israel Bonds"
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 the Jewish state.
Finding Our Fergusons: An Opportunity to Do Something Extraordinary
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 so many black men who have been shot by police.
Shabbat in Israel: An Island in Time
Shabbat is an island in time. It is a chance to pause, reflect, and differentiate between the holy and the mundane.
"At a Good Hour": Waiting on My First Grandchild
At a good hour. At the right time. B’sha’ah tovah. That is the traditional Jewish response to learning about a pregnancy. Generally, in the United States, we say “Congratulations," "mazel tov," or "wonderful,” but Judaism says, “At a good hour."
Honoring 50 Years of the Civil Rights Act
On Wednesday, July 2nd, we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the landmark legislation that outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin.
A Lifetime of Conflict: My Son, the IDF Soldier
It is Shabbat, and my wife Anat and I are relaxing in lounge chairs in the small backyard of our home.