Shoftim: “Thus Blood of the Innocent Will not be Shed” The Necessity of Sanctuary
A self-proclaimed “melting pot,” a country that declared its independence by asserting that all men are created equal, should continue to be a sanctuary and refuge.
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An Open Letter from North American JewsCondemning Settler Violence and Settlement Construction
We, the undersigned, strongly condemn settlers attacking Palestinians in the West Bank and setting fire to their homes and property. The settlers’ actions are a chillul Hashem, a desecration of the Divine name. Their behavior flies in the face of our Jewish values of human dignity, human life, and true justice for everyone. For far...
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Countdown To Close Rikers Rally
Join T'ruah and Freedom Agenda on August 31, 2023 from 10-11 a.m. ET at City Hall Park to kick off the official countdown of Rikers closer, and remind Mayor Adams that closing Rikers is required by law, and New York City has a legal and moral obligation to get it done.
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Tirdof Clergy Pre-Reception (Clergy and Rabbinical and Cantorial Students Only)
Gather with Tirdof: New York Jewish Clergy for Justice on February 6 for an hour of noshing, singing, and conversation ahead of a community-wide City Budget Justice Teach-In at B'nai Jeshurun.
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Slavery, Then and Now
In this moving sermon, Rabbi Gordon Tucker discusses the problem of modern slavery and describes his experience visiting sites from the African slave trade. SLAVERY THEN AND NOW Rabbi Gordon Tucker The Torah, in Leviticus 25:55, has God saying “The children of Israel are My servants”, and the rabbinic tradition afterwards added the following...
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Peering Outside the Camp
“Joseph’s master had him put in prison…but even while he was there in prison, God was with Joseph.” -Genesis 39:20-21 Bulletproof glass separates me and my congregant. David [not his real name] and I sit opposite one another, in identical, soundproof, cinder-block visiting cubicles at a prison an hour’s drive from my home. He’s wearing...
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Paying Priests, Paying Parents
This past weekend, many of us celebrated Father’s Day to honor the important work our dads do. A month ago, we did the same thing to honor our mothers: BBQs and brunches, phone calls and cards in the mail, “Number 1 Mom” mugs and “World’s Best Dad” baseball caps. As a congregational rabbi, I spend...
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Every Person Counts? (Parshat Bamidbar)
Commentary on Parshat Bamidbar (Numbers 1:1-4:20) Our Torah portion opens with the taking of another census of B’nai Yisrael – the Children of Israel – this time “listed by their clans, ages 20 years and up, all those in Israel who are able to bear arms…” (Num. 1:2) This is census number three since the...
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Those who served their time deserve a second chance (Shabbat Nachamu)
A d’var Torah on Shabbat Nachamu Clarence Office, Jr., of Miami, FL, served in the U.S. Army for three years in the 1970s and was honorably discharged. Like many veterans, Clarence tragically fell into drug use and was arrested for drug offenses. He served a prison term and paid his debt to society. Clarence now...
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