d’var Torah

Top of Washington Monument against a blue sky with pink cherry blossoms blooming in the foreground
Sh'mot

Awakening to the Moral Imperatives of this Moment

Rabbi Rick Jacobs
 January 8, 2021
This is a moment that requires extraordinary courage to do the hardest and most transformative social change work. It is for all Americans of conscience to build a more just and compassionate future by facing the truth of our history and our present.
Rabbi Max Chaiken wears a green shirt and blows the shofar
COVID-19

Navigating COVID: Our Ancestors Pointed the Way

Aron Hirt-Manheimer
 August 25, 2020
Rabbi Max Chaiken, our Ten Minutes of Torah commentator for the Book of Deuteronomy, is the associate rabbi of Congregation Kol Ami in Los Angeles, CA. We talk to him about his Jewish journey and the ideas behind his commentaries.
chess piece
Shof'tim

What the Torah Teaches about the Use (and Abuse) of Political Power

D'Var Torah By: Rabbi Max Chaiken

 August 13, 2020
“Justice, justice shall you pursue…” (Deut. 16:20) We find this famous biblical aspiration at the beginning of this week’s Torah portion, Parashat Shof’tim, which continues Moses’ elaboration of the extensive set of laws that the Israelites are to follow, if they are to create a holy and just society.