Listening and Hearing: It's How to Learn Our Stories
Torah is full of family stories; retelling them shapes our collective identity. We can learn them best by enhancing how we listen and how we hear them.
Raised Lutheran, I Found My Way Back to My Father's Faith
Judaism is where I found my home. As I learned more about it, I discovered that my dad had raised me with Jewish values; as a child, I just hadn’t realized it.
What Auschwitz Can Teach Us About the Future
The only thing I needed to see with my own eyes was the infamous sign over the main gate that reads ARBEIT MACHT FREI, “Work makes you free.”
JudaOSm: Consider This Next Time a Phone Rings During Services
In service, the ring of a phone serves as a rude disruption to our worship. But that same ring can also serve as a powerful and effective reminder.
This Year, Open Your Heart to Veterans and Their Stories
As a veteran, it is nice to hear “Thank you for your service.” It is much more meaningful, however, to hear “Tell me about your service.”
Celebrating Love and Equality at My Jewish, Irish, Same-Sex Wedding
The inscription inside the kippot (head coverings) shared on my wedding day read, "September 2, 2016, Marriage of Michael and MacDara."
How to Reestablish Our Covenant as Citizens - and Why It Matters
Laws that impede or prevent eligible Americans fundamental right to vote do not reflect the values that make our nation a beacon to the world.
How Each Shabbat Is a Eulogy for My Late Father
Each Shabbat, my eyes tear up when I sing the Kiddush. My dad would smile to hear my husband's baritone and our daughter's alto carrying on his tradition.
A Conversation with David Broza, Israel's Troubadour for Peace
Israeli singer/songwriter David Broza has elicited comparisons to Bruce Springsteen and Stevie Ray Vaughan - but he's also known worldwide for his commitment to humanitarian causes.
One Torah's Journey from Pennsylvania to its New Home in South Carolina
At my congregation, Temple Solel in Fort Mill, S.C., a Torah read for the first time on Rosh HaShanah made its way to us thanks to the generosity of Temple Hadar Israel in Newcastle, PA.