The Jewish community is aging, and Jewish communal leaders are facing up to this reality. We are contemplating what Sacred Aging looks like (including a new book Seekers of Meaning by Rabbi Richard Address, D.Min.); our Union for Reform Judaism among others is developing new resources. Next spring, we hope to see the publication of Broken Fragments, …
For Jews (and others) struggling between two equally problematic presentations of Israel: ‘Israel, right or wrong’ or ‘Israel is an apartheid demon state,’ comes this Letter from Jerusalem: To a Progressive American Jewish Friend from Israeli author Gershom Gorenberg. It is a bit long, but well worth the read. *** Dear L——, Please don’t give …
For those who believe that the minor festival of Chanukah should be celebrated with more gusto. Happy Chanukah!
On Chanukah we light the menorah/chanukiah, increasing the light in a very dark world. What is the significance of light in Judaism and Jewish ritual? What purpose did the menorah in the Jerusalem Temple originally serve? Rabbi Adin Steinsalz offers some answers to these questions in an article that appeared in the Jerusalem Post. The …
[This article is the conclusion of an article entitled Simcha Wars: The Battle For Joy (part 1), which appeared Congregation Or Ami’s Divray Or Ami quarterly Newsletter. Read the beginning here.] Happy New Year! Up on our Jewish Spiritual Journey Facebook group (Facebook message me if you want to join the closed group. It is quite …
Serenity. Inspiration. Exhaustion. Uplift. Shalom. Choice words to describe the essentially indescribable feelings which permeate my heart, soul and mind as I depart five days of the Union for Reform Judaism’s Biennial Convention outside of Washington DC. With six thousand Jews gathering to learn, dream, celebrate and plan for the Jewish future, the experience was …
I wish I had coined that phrase: “Jewish Education is Dead; Long Live Jewish Education.” But in truth, this is the title of the talk by Dr. Jonathan Woocher, the Chief Ideas Officer of JESNA, the Jewish Educational Service of North America. Dr. Woocher, whom I have followed through his writings for years, spoke at …
This post was slightly edited from a posting by Rabbi Phil Cohen. This is wonderful piece on the Truth in Chanukah, or better, the ahistorical truth that still lives on in the non-historical story of the cruse of oil. For background, you might want to first read the New York Times’ What Historically Happened Back During …
A mother of a son with significant medical issues wrote me recently about God. Dear Rabbi Paul: In general I’m a believer in hope but at the moment I feel lost for direction which takes me to my original contemplation about God. Why do the bible stories suggest that God spoke to our leaders? Doesn’t …
The Calabasisher Rebbe, the RiPiK, teaches: One does not fully celebrate Chanukah, the Festival of Lights, unless one does 11 rituals over the 8 nights. Lights the candles and puts the Chanukiyah (Chanukah menorah) in the window to publicize the miracle. Print out the Chanukah blessings. Tell the story of Chanukah. This is a festival when …
Alternative Title: Sex, Harassment, Jail and a President: You Gotta Love Israel Score one for Women’s Rights! Score another for Israel doing Justice and for Ethical Standards! It is bittersweet but ethics-affirming to read that Israel distinguishes itself again. Very soon, Israel’s eighth President Moshe Katsav will enter jail to serve a seven year sentence …
Hysterical, laugh out loud funny! or click here This song raises all sorts of issues that go to the roots of questions about whether Hanukkah is (or should be) celebrated with the same pervasiveness as Christmas, or like the minor holiday it always was, should just be a private home celebration affair. Worthy of a …
A few years back, we started a Jewish Spiritual Seeker website. About a dozen of us participated regularly, posting and commenting on each other’s posts. Once a month I would post a question about spirituality and invite congregant-volunteer-bloggers to respond. Each blogger was also asked to comment on 2-3 posts by others. We had a …
Counting the days until the Union for Reform Judaism’s Biennial convention outside of Washington DC became that much more exciting after a planning session with some colleagues. Gathering together by telephone from all across the US, we – three camp directors, three rabbis, and one talented URJ specialist – put our heads together to plan …
Strangers No More, the Academy Award winning documentary about Tel Aviv’s Bialik-Rogozin School, debuts on Monday, December 5th (6:45-7:30 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO. According to the eJewish Philanthropy blog: The school, serving one of the most economically challenged and socially diverse student populations in Israel, has morphed from a failing one to a highly …