Making space for G-d is the name of the game during the season of the Omer. There are forty-nine days between Passover and Shavuot, and we enjoy and savor them all. We count each day as if it were a precious jewel as we prepare for the festival of Shavuot. …
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Yom Hazikaron »
Yom Hazikaron: We Remember
Sweeping vista
Lifeless plane
Victory hollow
Heart of pain
Land mass strewn
friend and foe
Lie forever
Battle throe
Sand storm rising
Sinai beckons
A soul asunder
Wanders, reckons
Patience try
Today on high
Was it worth it
An anguished sigh
A rising wave
A tidal crest
We won the war
We lost our best
Victory sweet
A price so steep
Oh please dear G-d
My brother keep
Sinai captured
Fires cease
Dead, secure
A lasting peace
Will our neighbors
See the light
Will they give up
The endless fight
Your loss protected
The lives of others
A grateful country
Sisters brothers
You gave your life
You formed a nation
A sacrifice
For generations
In death you serve
We cry forever
We live for you
But see you never
Your body broken
A missile a mine
Your soul complete
A sacred shrine
A burning coal
A glowing ember
Eternal hero
We remember
K’doshim: The Manual
The manual for G-d’s creation is the Torah. Just like a manual outlines all the safe and unsafe practices for an appliance, so does the Torah lay out all the proper practices for life. Just as a manual explains the use of every feature of the appliance, so does the …
Acharei Mot: Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the Jewish calendar year. It is unusual to discuss Yom Kippur shortly after Passover, but it comes up this week because the Torah portion of the week describes the Yom Kippur service that was performed by the High Priest in the Holy of …
Passover: Bland Matzah
Have you ever noticed that we eat bland Matzah at the Seder table?
There are no spices in Matzah; we don’t add anything to give it zest because we want it to resemble the poor man’s bread. We don’t even add salt. In fact, we are not permitted to add salt …
Metzora: Twitter
Twitter nowadays has little to do with birds and everything to do with people, but the underlying idea is the same. Birds tweet to make noise and people tweet to make noise. Twitter is not a place for deep conversation. It is a place for shallow discussion, impetuous thrusts, and …
Tazria: Holier Than Thou
Tazria: Holier Than Thou
Holier than thou is an expression that connotes false piety. It describes those who pass themselves off as holy when they aren’t. For example, those who give generous donations when others are looking, but nothing at all when no one takes notice. Or those who make sure …
Shemini: Examine Again
Examine again, is a central feature of Torah study. We derive this from the words “examine, he examined”[1] a description of an examination made by Moses.
On the inaugural day of the Tabernacle, Moses left instructions for a particular offering, and when they went unheeded, he investigated the matter. However, he …
Purim: Jewish Identity
Can we deny our Jewish identity? This question was a subject of debate among Jews since the advent of the Jewish enlightenment. Reeling under the burden of antisemitism, many Jews concluded that if they were to conform in dress and behavior to the wider population, they would blend in and …
Vayikra: Love
True love can only emerge when two people perform acts of love for each other. I am not talking about the shallow love that people describe when they talk about falling in love. That kind of love is skin deep. I am not even talking about the kind of love …
Parsha Insights »
Yitro: The Confident Approach
Cold Feet
Many years ago, I found myself in a plane high above the Grand Canyon. I was on my way to accept a job as head counselor of a West Coast summer day camp when I began to doubt myself. Was this job right for me? Was I good enough? …
Yearly Cycle »
High Holilday Greetings 5777
New Year Greeting 5777
As I prepare for my sixteenth Rosh Hashanah in London, Ontario, my mind turns to an event that occurred shortly after we arrived.
Congregation Beth Tefilah organized an installation ceremony in my honor and Joel Wittstein of blessed memory was in attendance. I feel fortunate and honored to …
Concepts »
Yitro : A Protest of Orange Stars
A Controversial Decision
The Orange Revolution, a campaign orchestrated in 2005 by Jews in Israel to protest the forced expulsion of Jews from Gaza, advised Jews to wear orange stars on their arm sleeves as a duel symbol of solidarity with the Jewish communities of Gaza and of protest against the …
Rabbi’s Desk »
Festival Shabbat: Show Respect
United Airlines
Social media is abuzz with the terrible story that occurred on United Airlines several days ago. Dr, Dao, a 69 year old physician on a flight from Chicago to Louisville, was physically dragged off a plane after being beaten by three police officers. The physician’s crime was refusing to …
