Resources

I loved the cover of my first album. It was all swirls of red and blue painted by my friend Eileen. The year was 1996, and I was proudly selling my CDs (and cassette tapes!) after finishing a performance. One woman bought a CD, took one look at it, shook her head, and said, “Your...

For the honor of Torah: A rabbinic response to Rabbi Dov Lior

Commentary on Parshat Masei (Numbers 33:1 – 36:13) When I take my dog to the dog park, he loves to run from picnic table to picnic table and dive underneath them, seeking shade and safety. The picnic tables are a safe zone, a refuge, a sanctuary. Between 1980 and 1991, nearly one million Central Americans fled...

Many of us are war-weary and disheartened this week as we open the final book of Torah—Devarim or Deuteronomy. The Rambam called this book Mishneh Torah (repetition of Torah), because so much of it contains Moshe’s retelling of the stories that our ancestors lived out in the 40 years’ walk through the Wilderness. The aged...

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...

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...

A d’var Torah for Shavuot 5774 “Moses led the people out of the camp towards God, and they took their places at the foot of the mountain.” (Ex. 19:17) This is the essence and promise of Shavuot: that we as a people can walk towards God, take our places, and stand together as one nation,...

Rabbi Barry L. Schwartz writes about Parshat Sh'lach-Lecha.

This week’s Torah portion is Parshat Bo. The portion tells the stories of the last three plagues suffered by the Egyptians—locusts, darkness and the killing of the firstborn. During the Pesach seder, we remove drops of wine from our cups to remember the suffering of the Egyptians. During morning worship on Pesach, we recite Hallel,...

In 2013, nearly 800 rabbis, cantors, and rabbinical and cantorial students signed this letter, which was delivered to the Israeli government. As spiritual and Jewish community leaders who care deeply about the State of Israel, we write to you in solidarity with concerned Jewish and Arab Israelis to urge you to withdraw the Bill on...