Sermons

I was watching a short video the other day that really got to me. It just struck me at the right time, and then I figured it was about Torah. The video was of a woman in her car, with tears in her eyes, choked up and trying to tell a story. She had clearly […]

There is an elephant in the Jewish room. Now, I could stand up here this evening and pick out a verse or two from this week’s Torah portion and talk about how it relates to something in our lives. Perhaps, I could make a couple of humorous parallels between something in my own life and […]

There exists a Japanese philosophy called “wabi-sabi.” Wabi Sabi is the belief that beauty and meaning can be found in imperfection; that there is a natural order to things…there is life, aging, wear and tear, and decay. These are not processes to be resistant to, but wabi sabi tells us to embrace the changes, and […]

I was reading a journal article this past week from the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. To simply summarize: the scientific study described found that the more interested in material things people are, the more incompatible they become internally with sustainable and healthy functioning. This eventually impacts the greater world, hence the […]

Person 1, longing to be a part of the group says, “I really like that band, too. I’m a fan!” Person 2 responds, “You don’t even understand what heavy metal music is. If you haven’t seen the band live, you’re not really a fan.” Gate shut. “I heard that show is so funny! I should […]

I read a quote of unknown origin recently that said: “Never underestimate the perception of a donkey; it sees far beyond its own view.” According to a 2019 article in the Journal of Veterinary Behavior, Donkeys are one of the most cognitively misunderstood animals. Historically ridden by distinguished figures, they were often used below their […]

They were walking for the lives of the hostages. They were peacefully calling for the release of those still remaining in captivity by Hamas. They were mostly in their 50’s-80’s. One of them was a survivor of the holocaust. They were in Boulder Colorado. A depraved man sprayed them with fire. He burned them; not […]

I have to ask: Is it high time for a collective reset? This past couple of weeks, I would sit down to read and think, but kept getting notifications from every device with links to different news stories. As hard as I might have tried, I couldn’t look away from everything. There was something popping […]

“To put it simply: earth and those that inhabit her are often exhausted. The Torah knew the risk of exhaustion. God rested on the seventh day and made it holy. In parshah Behar, we are exposed to the idea of the Shemitah, the “Sabbath-year.” God said, “Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six […]

Why would a decent and loving God ever allow this to happen? I am sorry, but I can’t believe in a God who would allow for this. I am angry at God. I can’t forgive God. This is the one thing that I cannot reconcile with a benevolent God. Where is God? These, and so […]