Inspiration in Immokalee

I didn’t know what to expect when I went to visit the Coalition of Immokalee Workers this past February, with a delegation of rabbis organized by Rabbis for Human Rights. Since Dorshei Tzedek became involved with CIW’s Fair Food Campaign two years ago, I’ve learned that this farmworker organization has had remarkable success in getting...
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The Voice Trembles

A few weeks ago I sat in a hearing room of the Washington State House Judiciary Committee. I was there to testify on behalf of a coalition of interfaith and Jewish groups for passage of a bill that would hopefully limit gun violence in my state. The bill would create an “extreme risk protection order,”...
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Mob vs. Movement: Ki Tisa and the Power of the People

A group of people, fighting for a cause. It seems powerful, it seems romantic, it seems like the way to build a movement and achieve progress. But what distinguishes a movement from a mob? Five weeks ago, we stood together in shul and listened to the parshah’s recounting of the Torah’s climactic moment: the receiving...
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Not By Might: My Israel/Palestine

I am starting to write this from a cramped seat on an El Al flight to join the Center for Jewish NonViolence action from May 14-23 in the West Bank. I’ve been asked to drash Beha’alotecha in light of this trip, but, full disclosure, I have to write now because there won’t be enough time after...
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True Shalom for Planet Earth

“‘Shalom! Shalom!’ (They say.) But there is no Shalom.” (Jeremiah 6:14) The prophet Jeremiah lambasted the leaders of Jerusalem for declaring that everything was well and for making light of the very real dangers he perceived. Of course, they didn’t listen. The role of prophet seems designed for frustration. A prophet (1) calls out foreseeable disaster;...
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Love as Resistance (Parshat Vayakhel)

Commentary on Parshat Vayakhel (Exodus 35:1 – 38:20) “He made the washbasin of copper and its stand of copper, from the mirrors of the women.” (Exodus 38:8) Parshat Vayakhel describes the mishkan, the portable desert sanctuary, as filled with beautiful items created from donated materials. Near its entrance stood a copper washbasin, a public fountain...
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