Dream Until It’s Your Reality

Like Jacob’s dream, our justice work must be grounded in this world, absorbing the pain of everyday injustice with our hearts open to those suffering. And yet, our work must remain aspirational, reaching for the sky and not settling for anything less than our basic demands of human dignity and human rights.
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How does it feel to be homeless in NYC?

“These are the names of the children of Israel, who came towards Mitzrayim.” (Shmot 1:1) I decided to experience firsthand what homelessness feels like. Having the privilege of serving a vibrant and amazing congregation in Manhattan’s prestigious Upper East Side, and living in that same neighborhood, I have never quite felt that my sense of...
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Net Neutrality: The Torah of the Donkey

In this week’s Torah portion, parashat Balak, we read the story of the mighty Moabite king Balak, who wants to hire the prophet Bil’am to curse the children of Israel. Balak places increasing pressure upon Bil’am, first through Moabite and Midianite elders, and then through elite princes. Both times Balak sends esteemed men, but God...
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Emerging from the Darkness into the Light

A D’var Torah by Rabbi Nancy Wiener for Parshat Bo The rabbis teach that, at the dawning of a new day, we must wait to begin our morning prayers until we can recognize another’s face in the distance. In this inaugural week, we can now see faces that reflect our nation’s diversity in the House...
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Headshot of Rabbi Jay LeVine

Tetzaveh: Meet the Darkness with a Persistent Light

We need each other’s lights. A friend, colleague, or ally — perhaps even those we consider adversaries — have the sacred potential to ignite in us the lamp of tamid consciousness and the willingness to widen our circles and give ourselves to the tasks of care, compassion, advocacy, and love.
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Technicalities, Flames, and Democracy

Before I was a rabbi, I was a lawyer. Most of my legal career was spent assessing almost-inevitably doomed appeals. These were often criminal cases based upon what are popularly called “technicalities.” That work came back to me when I read the story of Nadav and Avihu, to which we return again this week in parshat...
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Israel Fellowship

The T’ruah Israel Fellowship offers six students spending the year in Israel the opportunity for intensive study, experiential learning, development of a rabbinic voice, and cohort building.
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The Wisdom of Welcome

Welcome, it appears, does not end at the door. It is a commitment to walk with vulnerable guests as they emerge from the protection of our homes and enter the public square.
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In This Stormy Moment, We Must Make Room For Everyone On The Boat

This week's Torah reading of Parshat Kedoshim questions us about our human relationships, how we treat our siblings, and how we relate to our neighbors to make this world a better place to live. So here I go back to the beginning. When I read in Kedoshim, "Do not stand before the blood of your neighbor" (Leviticus 19:16), I feel the moral obligation to shout that it is not nationality that makes a life something sacred and that we have the responsibility to watch over our neighbors.
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