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.
Bamidbar: Positive Thought
Is Optimism Naive?
Are you confident about the future? There are those who are frustratingly optimistic. No matter what the present, their faith in mankind, destiny and G-d’s basic commitment to goodness is unshakable. Others are more jaded. They look at the current state of affairs and take a dismal view …
Bechukotai: Active Listening
Sight
Do you practice Active Listening?
I remember standing on a cliff high above the Pacific Ocean in Central California, gazing down at the blue waters, shimmering waves and bright sunlight. I was transfixed, utterly and completely absorbed by the scene. Having lost all critical thought, I was aware of only one …
B’har: Jewish Pride
Sense of Self
Is pride a dirty word? It’s often listed alongside lust and greed, but is it really bad? I suppose it depends on what you are proud of. If you have Jewish pride, if you take pride in your Jewishness, it isn’t altogether bad, but if you take pride …
Emor: Trying Times
Optimism in Trying Times
We live in trying times. The economy keeps forcing us to tighten our belts. Even those that have tightened up considerably, are called on to tighten some more. People are working harder, earning less and paying more than ever before. Some are more comfortable and others less, …
K’doshim: Drafting Charedim
The Great Argument
Once again, the nation of Israel is embroiled in fierce debate over the rights of Charedi (strictly observant) students to defer their army service until after the conclusion of their studies. The Charedi community wants to maintain the arrangement negotiated in 1948. They argue that drafting their students …
Passover: You Are Unique
You Are One
Ezekiel famously said, “Echad Hayah Avraham,” Abraham was one.[1] Ezekiel was speaking to the fact that Abraham was promised the land of Israel on his own merit because he stood utterly and completely alone in defiance of contemporary culture. Abraham was willing to be unique.
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Acharei Mot: Post Shivah
The Shelf Life
I have seen it as often as you have. Someone loses a loved one, family, friends and acquaintances close ranks around them, attend Shivah, coordinate details, bring food and provide comfort. Then Shivah ends, everyone bids the bereaved farewell and return to daily life.
It is now post Shivah, …
Mitzorah: The Jewish House
On the Walls
Tzaraat was a prevalent disease in Biblical times that presented in the form of lesions on skin, hair, clothing and even the walls of a Jewish house. Tzaraat wasn’t an ordinary condition produced by heat or humidity. Tzaraat was a Divinely ordained affliction in punishment for various sins.
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