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Stories We Tell: What it Takes to Get in
Three souls are met by the Heavenly Tribunal as they approach the gates of Paradise: a learned rabbi, a pious man, and a tavern keeper. Each one makes their case as to why they should enter Paradise, but who among them instantly earns the Tribunal's favor?
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Stories We Tell: How Do You Use It
Have you ever had a great idea that wasn’t useful until you applied it? This week, join Rabbi Phyllis Sommer of Am Shalom in Glencoe, IL, as she tells the story of a rabbi and a soap maker who explore this idea and realize their professions have more in common than they might have thought.
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Stories We Tell: Zoo Seder
On this special Passover episode of Stories We Tell, Rabbi Mark Kaiserman, Rabbi of the Reform Temple of Forest Hills, tells the story of a little girl who’s excited for a very different Passover seder her family is planning and how a little imagination might be what we all need right now.
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Stories We Tell: My Havdalah Set
Have you ever seen yourself as the “most” important? Have you felt your contributions mattered more than others, only to find out it actually took a group effort to accomplish your goal? This week, we’re treated to an original story by Alice Myers, actress and daughter of Rabbi Lisa Grushcow, who talks about this idea from the perspective of a havdalah set.
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Stories We Tell: The Perfect Seder
What is the real meaning of Passover? Is it ritualizing the seder and reading the Haggadah, or is there something more? This week, Rabbi Esther Lederman, the Union for Reform Judaism’s Director of Congregational Innovation, tells a story about a rabbi, a water carrier, and the prophet Elijah, and asks what it means to truly celebrate this sacred festival.
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On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Acharei Mot and Kedoshim - "Loving the Stranger" Isn't Always Intuitive
Let's talk about love: Torah talks about three kinds of love - and in fact, the phrase “love the stranger” appears in the Torah 36 times. Why is it written so often? Who is "the stranger," anyway? And who might be the strangers in our own lives? In this episode, which originally aired in April 2017, Rabbi Rick Jacobs talks about what it means to move from strangeness to equality to, finally, closeness and love.
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Stories We Tell: Two Frogs and a Little Encouragement
Has there ever been a moment when you wanted to give up on a goal because others said it was too hard? Has there ever been a moment when it seemed like all you could hear were cheers of encouragement to keep going? This week, we hear a story about two frogs who were in this exact same situation from Rabbi Rachel Greengrass of Temple Beth Am (Pinecrest, FL)
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One Week After the Newtown Tragedy, Reform Jewish Leader Calls for United Religious Response
Saperstein: "We are here, one week after a national tragedy shattered our complacency and aroused the dormant conscience of our nation, to assure our elected officials that the American people are ready for leaders who will take on sensible gun control measures."
Reform Movement Troubled by Michigan "Right-to-Work" Law
Rabbi Saperstein: "Unions act as an ally and represent those workers without a voice, ensuring their rights and shielding them from abuse. The new law threatens the well-being of Michigan workers and exposes them to misrepresentation and manipulation".
Reform Movement Horrified by CT School Shooting; Reaffirms Call for Sensible Gun Control
Laser: The Talmud teaches us, "He who takes one life it is as though he has destroyed the universe." The loss of so many lives, including children, is not just devastating - it is unacceptable.