Writing

Seventh Night Seder Pdf

Prayer for an ill friend

My prayer for a friend who is ill. I wrote this thinking about how much more difficult it must be to be ill in a time of a pandemic when we are all apart.

The End of Perfection

On Kol Nidre we begin a 25-hour pursuit of a common goal: improvement. We want to be better, we want to do better, and we want a better world. My problem is that I have trouble distinguishing the lofty and sacred goal of just being better from…

Set in Stone: A Yizkor Story

Visiting the cemetery before Rosh Hashanah, I learned a powerful lesson on grief and love.

Rights vs. Obligations

Judaism is a religion of obligations, not of rights. This amazing insight was offered by Rabbi Michael Pollack on Yom Kippur.

A New Definition of Jewish

Toward a new Jewish identity . . . shared on Kol Nidre.

The Art of Asking

In life, the art of asking ennobles and engages. A better way to live in 5779, is to work on the art of asking.

Time to Act (my sermon for Shabbat Chukat)

Upon watching a documentary about World War One I learned that the United States entered the Great War because we believed in a greater good, a higher calling and a noble cause. 

Resilience and Responsibility (Kol NIdre 5778)

The path from enslavement does not end at freedom but rather at responsibility. As Victor Frankl said, the Statue of Liberty on the east coast should be balanced with a Statue of Responsibility on the west coast. This is the legacy of the Jewish experience, finding meaning in suffering and working to improve the world.

Resilience

Hurricanes, Floods, Earthquakes –Nuclear Weapons, Famines in AfricaIn 5777 we witnessed the stresses and shocks that come with a new reality.  What distinguishes today's threats from those of the past are the escalating rate at which…