Yom Kippur and the Gift of Forgiveness
Yom Kippur in Vietnam
Yom Kippur, 1965, I was a Navy medical officer stationed aboard a destroyer off the coast of Vietnam.
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.
Take Action to Support Transparency in the Criminal Justice System!
Urge your Senators to introduce and pass this important legislation. Take action now!
Social Media is No Place for the Real Work of Repentance
I have a hard time believing that, however good the intentions may be, typing "Please forgive me if I hurt you" into our browsers can create change.
Go Ahead, Post Your Yom Kippur Apologies on Facebook
If posting an apology online serves as a starting point for follow-up conversations, I say go for it. How could that ever be a bad thing?
For the Sin of Abandoning My People
I vowed that if Israel survived, I would never again abandon my people, never again be indifferent to Israel’s fate.
Kol Nidre: All Vows and One Haunting Melody
Perhaps the most familiar melody we hear each High Holiday season is Kol Nidre – the introductory prayer recited before sundown on the eve of Yom Kippur.
When Yom Kippur Coincides with National Coming Out Day
As we begin the year 5777, let us commit to putting greater inclusion, equality, and acceptance of all God’s children front and center.
My Alphabet of Failings: A New Ashamnu
Each year on Yom Kippur, I join my congregation is reciting the Ashamnu, an alphabetic acrostic of sins for which we repent. And each year, it occurs to me that most of the sins named in the Ashamnu don’t hit me in the heart I’m beating – and so, I wrote my own version of the prayer.