Silence Implicates Us

“The most urgent, the most disgraceful, the most shameful and the most tragic problem is silence.” These words were spoken by Rabbi Joachim Prinz, one of two Jews to speak at the March on Washington in 1963 alongside the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. Rabbi Prinz knew of which he spoke, having served the Jewish community...
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Jewish Health Care

The old joke is told about a proud Jewish parent flying to Washington to attend their child’s inauguration as the first Jewish president of the United States. They strike up a conversation with the stranger sitting next to them on the airplane, who asks why they’re flying to D.C. “Well, my daughter Julie is a...
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The Mournfulness of Her Song: Hearing the Cries of the Enslaved

On my recent visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC, I was moved to tears by one of the readings displayed in the darkened memorial room to those who were transported to America on slave ships from Africa. I learned that the chained slaves would sing songs of...
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Education: The Building Blocks of Justice and Understanding

“In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be expected to succeed in life if [they are] denied the opportunity of an education,” U.S Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren declared in the famed case of Board v. Board of Education, almost 64 years ago. Decades later, in 2009, Former Secretary of Education Arne Duncan...
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How Darkness Immobilizes (Parshat Bo)

Commentary on Parshat Bo (Exodus 10:1 – 13:16) I am usually one to heed a call to mobilize for justice and human rights. I participated in a peace delegation to Israel and Palestine at the beginning of the Second Intifada and was at Standing Rock for the clergy action against the Dakota Pipeline. But lately,...
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Praying With Our Feet

“Praying for freedom never did me any good ‘til I started praying with my feet.” – Frederik Douglas “On the seventh day there shall be a Sabbath of complete rest, a sacred occasion.  You shall do no work.” – Leviticus 23:2-3 (Parshat Emor) We are blessed to live in a thriving democracy.  Though American and...
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Healing the Rift: Jacob’s Ladder & the Great Law of Peace

When President Trump announced that he would no longer receive The New York Times or Washington Post at the White House, I was struck that a sitting President would brazenly cut out half of America’s civil discourse to justify his domination of American politics. I felt how deep the rift in our politics has become,...
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