Articles by Lazer Gurkow
Rabbi Lazer Gurkow began his career at the tender age of fifteen when he was invited to congregations the world over to deliver guest sermons and to lead services. Rabbi Gurkow received his Rabbinic ordination through the Chabad Yeshiva system and was ordained in 1995 at the United Lubavitcher Yeshiva in Brooklyn, New York. With his easy, informal manner of presentation, Rabbi Gurkow engages his audience and leads them on provocative journeys of thought. He has lectured on many topics and was invited to speak to audiences Israel, Europe, Australia and throughout North America. Gifted with the ability to present the complicated in easily understood language, Rabbi Gurkow has lectured successfully to University students and community groups. A prolific writer, he is the author of more than six hundred articles that appear regularly in both on line and print publications. He is the author of a weekly Torah essay that is distributed via email and is published on numerous websites. He is the author of www.innerstream.org, a web site devoted to presenting the inner stream of meaning within Torah and he was a long-standing Scholar in Residence with Askmoses.com. Rabbi Gurkow serves as Rabbi to Congregation Beth Tefilah and resides in London Ontario with his wife and five children. Rabbi Gurkow is available to lecture to your community and is prepared to tailor his talk to the needs of your audience. You can reserve Rabbi Gurkow for an evening lecture on the subject of your choice or for a full Shabbaton weekend. For more information or to learn more about Rabbi Gurkow's lecture titles and fees you may contact him directly at rabbi@innerstream.org.
Lech Lecha: Do We Care?
Double Terror
This past week, Canada was shocked by two terror attacks. The first occurred on October 20 in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, south of Montreal, when Martin Rouleau, a recent convert to Islam, ran over two military officers killing one and injuring the other. Do we care?
The second occurred on October 22, when …
Noah: Unity Of Thought
The Word
The rain began to fall and G-d told Noah to enter the Tevah. What is a Tevah? Every biblical commentator will tell you that it mean an ark. The Hebrew word Tevah, means a box or a trunk. The word is often used to describe the hull of a …
Noach: The Ebola Flood
Selfish Man
Have you ever received a backhanded compliment? The kind that acknowledges your achievement while smoothly sliding in a zinger? A particularly good zinger comes to mind when I think of Candidate Barak Obama responding to a wailing Hillary Clinton in a 2007 Democratic Primary Candidate debate. Clinton complained that …
Simchat Torah: Festival Of Transformation
The Million Dollar Question
Everyone wonders about this. Why do we rejoice with the Torah at the end of the High Holiday season if the Torah was given in the late spring, on Shavuot? Should we not dance and rejoice over the Torah on the day it was given?
The obvious answer …
Sukkot: A Time for Unity
Alone In Our Thoughts
I sit at my desk late at night and reflect on the day that just passed. It was Yom Kippur today, a day filled with prayer, song, meditation and study. My mind turns to the last few moments of the holy day and I remember standing at …
New Year Greeting: Growing Up
New Year Greeting: Growing Up
A new year is upon us. One year chases another, one decade follows the next. Our lives unfold, our circumstances evolve, but how about us? Do we grow as well or are we stinted in our spiritual and emotional growth?
Tweet
Rosh Hashanah: Humility
Shabbat of Penance
The days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are Aseret Yemei Teshuva, the ten days of penance and the Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is Shabbat Shuva, the Shabbat of return. This year, the two days of Rosh Hashana lead directly into the Shabbat of return.
Tweet
Vayelech: All For The Boss
Three Messages
I always say that it’s better to work for G-d, than for man. Man pays a higher salary than G-d, and every Rabbi can attest to that, but when you need the money and G-d is your boss, G-d always comes through.
Tweet