A Blessing for Tu BiShvat
We who have become cynical,
Hard shelled,
Whom life has raised its tough first
Of despair and
Disappointment and heartache
And grief,
We who have learned to protect our souls
And toughen our hearts
To avoid more anguish
To stop the flow of tears
On the Outside Looking In: Approaching Conversion
Next week at this time, I’ll be stepping into the mikveh, the Jewish ritual bath. It’s been a yearlong journey that will lead me to that holy space, one I’ll enter as a former Catholic/not-quite-Jew and exit as a Jewish woman – no longer an outsider.
These Are Our Neighbors: Remembering Victims of Gun Violence
When I witnessed a gun homicide, I struggled with how best to incorporate my own mourning and my sense of community loss into my Jewish worship.
Tu BiSh'vat: A Time to Celebrate Environmental Justice
There are many reasons to celebrate Tu BiSh’vat this year, as this has been an exciting year for environmental justice.
This Shabbat, Make Time for Souling
I thought I invented the word until I Googled it and discovered it already exists.
What Do Shabbat and Social Justice Have in Common?
Even as Shabbat is a day of rest, it also has the power to agitate, and thus is a call to action, a call for us to respond to the injustices we see in our world.
How the Charlottesville March Reminded Me of My Favorite Havdalah Service
I couldn’t help but notice the similarities between their protest and our Havdalah services – and the deep differences those parallels represent.
Attempt to Enter the Promised Land, Take One: Fail
The end of this week's parashah includes some short, but memorable pieces of legislation: the explanation for why we tithe a little dough when making challah (Numbers 15:20-21); the killing of the man who gathered wood on Shabbat (Numbers 15:32-36); and the instructions to wear tzitzit w
Fateful Words Can Have Fatal Consequences
The Jewish people's turbulent saga of disillusionment with liberation takes a new and momentarily promising turn this Shabbat, with a foray into the land of Canaan by twelve scouts.