Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Discordant disappointment
by Rabbi Scott Perlo
Parashat Beshallah is a symphony beautifully played, until the orchestra flubs the finale. It is a prima donna nailing the high note of the aria,. . .
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Silence of the dogs
We read two puzzling statements as God prepares to exact the plagues in this week’s parasha. “And I will pass through Egypt ... and I will smite. . .
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Just breathe
by Rabbi Dan Moskovitz
In this week’s Torah portion, we meet a frustrated and dejected Moses. God’s reluctant leader of the Jewish people cannot convince Pharaoh to. . .
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Déjà Vu, all over again
by Rabbi Marc Mandel
It’s a new year and we are beginning a new book of the Torah — Exodus. Unfortunately, we are dealing with the same old problem. Anti-Semitism,. . .
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Unloading the emotional U-Haul
By Rabbi Lisa Edwards
A funeral director once said, “In all the funerals I’ve attended, I have yet to see a hearse with a U-Haul trailer attached.” But while it’s. . .
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Candle power
By Rabbi Elazar Muskin
Anyone familiar with religious practices can testify to the fact that candles play a crucial role in normative observance for many religions. It is. . .
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Vayeshev Yaakov (Genesis 37:1-40:23)
By Rabbi Anne Brener
I had a dream shortly after I arrived in Los Angeles in 1981 to study at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion’s (HUC-JIR) School of. . .
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
The rebellious man of faith
By Rabbi Shmuley Boteach
The patriarch Jacob, my namesake (Jacob Shmuel) of whom we have read the past few weeks in the Bible, is the most maligned of all the patriarchs.. . .
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Parashat Vayishlach (Genesis 32:4-36:43)
by Rabbi Daniel Bouskila
Like a good movie, Israel evokes a variety of emotions within us. In fact, the poster for the 1994 Israel Film Festival (IFF) reads:. . .
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
A collision of fate
by Rabbi Yehuda Hausman
The years turn and turn, slowly at first, like the wheels of a train as they roll from the station. Bit by bit, momentum gathers. In the window,. . .
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Attitude of gratitude
by Rabbi Avivah Winocur Erlick
I work as an on-call hospice chaplain, and I am often paged following the death of a patient. I was called recently to support a rather large group. . .
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Come on in!
by Rabbi Michael Barclay
“My Lord, if I find favor in Your eyes, please pass not away from your servant. Let some water be brought and wash your feet, and recline beneath. . .
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Parashat Lech Lecha (Genesis 12:1-17:27)
By Rabbi Laura Geller
Last week’s Torah portion ends with a genealogy, a long list of names of who begot whom and how long they lived. It is one of many genealogies in. . .
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Unique Capabilities: Parashat Noach (Genesis 6:9-11:32)
By Rabbi Joshua Levine Grater
There are places in the Torah where many of us moderns have a hard time relating to our ancestors and the societies in which they lived. Oppression. . .
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Occupy Genesis
By Rabbi Yonah Bookstein
The story of creation begins again this week in synagogues around the world. The Jewish people make a global reset and roll back our Torah scrolls.. . .
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Preserving our story
By Rabbi Isaac Jeret
Some months ago, I was asked by a group of Christian pastors to lead a series of study sessions on Jewish mysticism. We agreed to explore Isaac. . .
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Ask forgiveness of yourself
by Rabbi Lisa Edwards
When a friend called with holiday wishes, I asked, “What happened for you this year?”. . .
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
From trouble child to favorite
By Rabbi N. Daniel Korobkin
What would it take for you to disown your child? I know that for most everyone this is a hypothetical question, but please indulge me:. . .
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Apples and honey
by Rabbi J.B. Sacks
One of the most meaningful customs at each Rosh Hashanah meal is the dipping of apples into honey. By doing so we make a sweet fruit, the apple,. . .
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
True blessings
By Rav Yosef Kanefsky
“In these tough economic times ...”. . .
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Ultimate fighting strategies
by Rabbi Michael Barclay
This week’s Torah portion seems to begin and end with “politically incorrect” recommendations for war, death and destruction.. . .
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Back to School
By Rabbi Elazar Muskin
With a new school year upon us, I found the following story, “What Teachers Make,” revealing.. . .
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Seeing with the sixth sense
by Rabbi Yehuda Hausman
Do we have a sixth sense? There is a commandment:. . .
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
From Pain to Peace
By Rabbi Anne Brener
“Remember the long way that YHVH your God made you travel in the wilderness these past 40 years, that he might test you, by hardships, to learn. . .
