After the March: An Open Letter to Congress
I turn to you, our elected representatives, to let you know that I am holding you accountable .I am a values voter, and these are the values that will determine my future votes.
One Morning in a Mosque in America...
A Jewish teacher in an Islamic school, I shared a message from the local Jewish community. “We stand side by side with our Muslim brothers and sisters."
One Year and Counting: Western Wall Prayer Fight Must Go On
One year ago, we thought we had made history.
Speaking Truth to Power: Then and Now
Let me not mince words: He’s a narcissistic, unstable tyrant who hates migrant workers and has instituted oppressive policies that endanger their lives. Almost everyone liked his predecessor but it’s a new day.
Reform Jews Stand With Our Immigrant Friends and Allies
Now is not the time to be discouraged. Instead, it is a moment to stand up for what we believe in. Take action today.
American Values Religious Voices: 100 Days, 100 Letters
Organizers are announcing the launch of a powerful grassroots initiative titled “American Values Religious Voices: 100 Days. 100 Letters.”
How to Host a Mahj Madness "Fun"draiser at Your Temple
Many Baby Boomers remember listening to the sounds of tiles clicking on their mother’s game tables and smelling the smoke wafting from their cigarettes. Usually a lovely lunch or snack was served by the hostess and the games went on for hours. This was the social world of Post WWII housewives.
Ode to the Moon of Shvat
Winter weighs on the soul of this author. She finds comfort, though, in the moon cycles and their symbols, laden with meaning, healing, comfort, and inspiration.
Torah Readings for Rosh Hashanah
The Torah and Haftarah readings for Rosh Hashanah all connect with, and illustrate, one or another of the themes of the holiday. I use the plural advisedly here, because there have been a variety of readings from early on-long before the onset of modernity and the Reform movement.
Mishkan HaNefesh, Rosh HaShanah Morning and Torah Reading Options
The most traditional texts for the Torah reading on Rosh HaShanah morning are Genesis 21 and Genesis 22. In many congregations that observe two days of the holiday, it is most customary to read 21 on the first day and 22 on the second day. Genesis 21 begins with the notion that God remembered our matriarch Sarah and enabled her to have a child. The idea of remembering is tied to a name of Rosh HaShanah in the Bible: the Day of Remembrance. This is the lesson: God remembers us as God remembers Sarah. To paraphrase a very different cultural artifact: “God knows when we have been bad or good so be good for goodness sake.